CNN's Frederik Pleitgen has exclusive access inside Syrian regime's fight against ISIS General credits Russian airstrikes and aerial intelligence He says his forces recently have been gaining ground Driving along a bumpy road on the eastern fringes of Syria’s Hama province, dozens of government army personnel watch from hills overlooking the desert. Finally we reach a fork in the road – to the left lies Aleppo, to the right Raqqa, the self-declared capital of ISIS. In this barren place, we receive an escort to a large military base, where artillery cannons are firing intermittently. We’re taken to see the commanding general. Related video U.N. struggles to get food to starving Syrians The general did not want to appear on camera and did not allow us to use his name, but he spoke openly about the Syrian army’s operations here – combating ISIS but also al Qaeda’s wing in Syria, al Nusra Front. “The Russian intervention has been a blessing,” he said. “They have helped us a great deal and in two ways – first of all there are the airstrikes themselves. But they also give us aerial intelligence, which allows us to conduct pre-emptive strikes as well.” The general said his forces had recently been gaining ground – not only on the road to Raqqa but also farther south near the ancient city of Palmyra. Opinion: Why ISIS wants to erase Palmyra’s history The UNESCO World Heritage Site is also on the main highway toward Deir Ezzor, Syria’s seventh-largest city, which is mostly in the hands of ISIS, but where government forces are holding out in an enclave. The United States and other Western powers have accused the Syrian government and its Russian backers of mostly fighting against moderate rebels, and putting little effort into operations against ISIS – a charge Moscow has denied. But the general rejected those allegations and said his forces have firefights with ISIS militants every day. He acknowledged, however, that other military operations, such as the major offensive in Aleppo province, are a priority. “Of course our operations are also dependent on the battlefields in Latakia and Aleppo,” he said. “Right now the main priority is to seal the border with Turkey – to cut the supply lines of all the rebel groups.” Inside Aleppo – One man’s epic story of defiance Meanwhile, Syrian President Bashar-al-Assad has granted a general amnesty to military deserters, according to Syria’s state news agency SANA. The amnesty applies to deserters inside and outside the country, who left the military before February 17. The battle lines in the area east of Aleppo are complicated. While the Syrian military’s fortifications are sometimes less than a mile away from ISIS areas to the east, forces also face pockets of al-Nusra resistance to the west. The commander said he would welcome assistance in fighting ISIS, including from the United States and its allies. At the same time he appeared cynical when asked about the current U.S. contribution to that battle. “America? Are they doing anything?” he asked. “I have not seen them make a contribution yet. On the contrary, they are the ones who made ISIS strong.” To emphasize his point, he showed a photo of a U.S. Humvee, which he said ISIS had used in an assault on one of his bases. He said his troops took out the vehicle with a Russian-made missile. As the artillery kept firing, I asked if and when he thought his forces would be able to oust ISIS from Syria. “I cannot make any real predictions,” he said. “But if there is no foreign intervention from Saudi Arabia or Turkey, I think we can be in Raqqa city by the end of the year.” At this point the general’s forces are still far away from achieving that goal and have a lot of desert terrain to cover. But with Russia’s intervention in the five-year conflict, Syrian troops seem more confident than ever of taking on ISIS. Opinion: From Sarajevo to Syria – Where is the world’s moral compass?


The temporary restraining order affected travelers arriving in Massachusetts The Department of Homeland Security is looking to clear up some confusion about the travel order In the first court victory for the Trump administration, a federal judge in Boston declined Friday to renew a temporary restraining order affecting Massachusetts that prohibited the detention or removal of foreign travelers legally authorized to come to the US. The win in court comes at the same time that the administration issued a clarification to its travel order allowing for some citizens from the seven banned countries – Iraq, Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen – to enter the US under specific circumstances. It was issued shortly before a federal judge in Washington state issued a temporary restraining order against the travel ban effective nationwide. The original temporary restraining order in Massachusetts, issued by US District Court Judge Allison Burroughs and US Magistrate Judge Judith Dein, was put in place early Sunday morning and was set to expire on February 5. But a different federal judge, US District Court Judge Nathaniel Gordon, ruled Friday that the claims brought by legal permanent residents are now moot given the White House counsel’s recent clarification that the travel ban order does not apply such individuals. Gordon went on to additionally conclude that because the other plaintiffs in the case – Iranian nationals and Oxfam America, Inc. – did not demonstrate a likelihood of success on the merits of their claim, “an extension of the restraining order at the present time is not warranted.” But attorneys who brought the lawsuit vowed to continue the fight after Friday’s ruling. “The ACLU of Massachusetts is deeply disappointed that the federal district court did not extend the temporary restraining order on President Trump’s illegal and dangerous executive order. But this case is not over; ACLU of Massachusetts lawyers will continue to challenge the executive order in this case, and the ACLU will continue to challenge it in cases all over the nation,” Carol Rose, executive director of the ACLU of Massachusetts, said in a statement. ACLU attorney Lee Gelernt in the New York lawsuit also pointed out that the federal judge’s order in that case protects travelers from being removed from the country on a nationwide basis until at least February 21. The Department of Homeland Security is looking to clear up some confusion about who from the seven restricted countries can still enter the US during what the agency described as a “pause.” “This pause does not apply to Lawful Permanent Residents” – also known as green card holders – “dual citizens with passports from a country other than the seven listed, or those traveling on diplomatic, NATO or UN visas. Special Immigrant Visa holders who are nationals of these seven countries may board US-bound planes, and apply for and receive a national interest exception to the pause upon arrival,” according to the DHS release. The flurry of Friday night activity was capped off by a new tweet from the President, who insisted that we must keep “evil” out of the country. We must keep "evil" out of our country!


An unmarked, nondescript door off Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan leads down to a shadowy train tunnel with a storied past. It once covertly carried a United States president from Grand Central Terminal to the Waldorf Astoria hotel. Follow the tunnel today, and you’ll find it still leads to the railroad car used by POTUS number 32, Franklin D. Roosevelt. This is Track 61, the first stop on a secret subterranean tour of New York enjoyed by a very lucky few, as tourists and locals hurry about on the streets above, oblivious to those standing in the midst of history below. The dusty rail car parked in the tunnel transported President Roosevelt’s 1932 Pierce-Arrow limousine during his 16 years in office, says tour guide Danny Brucker in a distinctly New York accent. The president would have been seated inside the limo as the train arrived, he says. Brucker – Metro-North Railroad’s tour master and storyteller extraordinaire who ends most sentences with a “right, check” – explains that this was one of the many ways a polio-stricken FDR masked his disability. With Secret Service on the Pierce-Arrow running boards, the president would be driven from the train onto a freight elevator capable of carrying 8,000 pounds. Brucker points out the rail car’s bulletproof gun turrets and extra-wide, limo-sized pocket doors. It sits just a few hundred feet from the enormous elevator, which still goes directly up to the hotel, which opened in its current location in 1931. Even today, the site is largely blocked off from public access. Brucker describes those who normally get the tour, as “super- and ultra-VIPs – congresspeople, senators, celebrities.” “U.N. dignitaries are coming later in the week,” he says. Can he name names? Nope. “And hurry up! Right, check;” there’s much to see on this rare tour. Although the Waldorf Astoria occupies the property above the track, the track is owned by Metro-North. You kind of have to know someone, or be persuasive and resourceful, to secure your own look at this largely forgotten space. Next stop: Grand Central Terminal. Here, Brucker leads the group through the Main Concourse, crowded with some 750,000 commuters each day, to another unmarked door and another descent into the unknown. This time past millions-year-old bedrock bearing dynamite blast markings, down nine flights – the equivalent of 13 stories below street level – to a secret sub-basement that “doesn’t exist on any plans.” Adolf Hitler plotted to destroy this secret space, known as M42. A vast monument to the Machine Age, M42 features mammoth electrical rotary converters that kept Grand Central humming during World War II. Since Hitler knew about the sub-basement, armed guards were instructed to “shoot on sight,” according to Brucker, “anyone entering carrying a bucket of sand. “ Sand thrown into the superheated converters “would’ve turned into a concrete block of glass” and shut down the trains that moved “80 percent of the troops and war materials,” says Brucker. The FBI foiled two German saboteurs sent by U-boat before they could execute an attack, according to Brucker. M42 also houses an electric device built by Westinghouse in 1913 that spit out ticker tape noting a stalled train’s exact location. And even though radio communication made the engineering marvel obsolete in 1922, every so often “Apple [computer] chiefs quietly” come to “pay homage,” says Brucker. “Right, check!” It’s back up the stairs and into an elevator. “I don’t know if we can see this, but hurry,” says Brucker, navigating another labyrinth of stairs and hallways. He disappears into a hallway, reappears and motions for the group to follow. “No phones. No cameras. And quiet!” Suddenly we are in Metro-North Operations Control Center, an enormous room that features a swooping wooden ceiling. Two giant screens take up one wall displaying the 700-some trains coming in and out of the terminal, different colors representing different lines. The sheer volume is dazzling, as are the rows of women and men keeping the whole shebang humming. “Onto the final stop,” Brucker barks. More maze-like walking to a door with a small window. Like the other secret doors on this tour, it doesn’t look like much. But once opened? You’re walking on a glass-floored catwalk at the very top of three enormous arched windows flanking Grand Central. Brucker advises the group to kneel and look out. The 1913 architectural triumph spreads out below, ant-like people moving across the elegant pink marble floor. Being so close to Grand Central’s majestic ceiling mural depicting constellations of the night sky is magical. As the tour finishes, it’s clear New York City has its own largely invisible stars, Brucker bright among them. So, how do you get on this incredible tour? “Email me,” says Brucker. “Bug me.” Getting in touch with him? Well, that’s part of the secret, but not impossible to figure out. Right? Check! Margaret Heidenry is a writer living in Brooklyn, New York. Her work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair and Boston Magazine. She can be tweeted at mheidenry


Jacob Zuma faces backlash after firing respected finance minister South African President is facing numerous calls to resign After days of rumors, the official announcement came in an email just after midnight on Friday. South African President Jacob Zuma had swung another scythe through his cabinet, repositioning or firing no less than ten ministers. As the recently departed US Ambassador to South Africa put it on Twitter, “Holy wow. Midnight ministerial massacre in South Africa.” Holy wow. Midnight ministerial massacre in South Africa. Zuma has reshuffled his cabinet before, but this, say many, was a complete purge. Most significantly, Zuma axed respected finance minister Pravin Gordhan and his deputy Mcebisi Jonas. Zuma said the changes were made to “bring about radical socio-economic transformation and ensure the promise of a better life for the poor and the working class becomes a reality” in a video statement Friday. Gordhan built a reputation as a steady hand who expertly guided South Africa’s economy and promoted its business interests. He first served as finance minister between 2009 and 2014, and returned to the job in December 2015, much to the relief of international investors. Predictably, South Africa’s currency tanked on the news, and economists believe that ratings agencies are poised to downgrade the country to junk status. But to focus on the economy is to miss the wider significance – many feel the very essence of South Africa is at stake. “Our souls are not for sale. Our souls are not for sale,” said the outgoing Gordhan during a press conference, surrounded by applauding Treasury officials. “We don’t need anyone’s brown bag. And we hope that more and more South Africans will make it more clear that our country is not for sale.” It was a thinly veiled reference to Zuma. For years, the President has been dogged by allegations of corruption. After decades of activism and government service, Gordhan says he found out through the media that he was being fired. The famously adept political organizer called on South Africans to mobilize. “What should the public do? Organize. Organize,” he said. Treasury staff clapped and sang revolutionary songs in an emotional sendoff for Gordon on Friday. Now at national treasury. Now at national treasury. The developments capped off a remarkable week in South African politics. Gordhan was in the midst of his yearly investor roadshow to the United Kingdom and the US, trying to convince ratings agencies that the country is politically stable, when he was summarily hauled back home by Zuma. According to deputy president Cyril Ramaphosa and other political allies, Zuma fired the finance minister on the basis of an “intelligence report” claiming the finance team was looking to collaborate with investors to overthrow the government. The leaked “report” was short and seemed amateurish. Gordhan called it nonsense, and it attracted little more than criticism from some government officials. “I find it very difficult to believe that someone like Gordhan, who has served the country with everything he has and so much pride and total honor, planned to besmirch Zuma and his government overseas,” Ramaphosa told local media. “The actions Zuma has [taken] against Gordhan is based solely on assumptions.” Ramaphosa’s public rebuke was a rarity amongst leaders in the ruling African National Congress, and proof of the deep divisions that Zuma’s presidency has sown. Zuma clearly went against the wishes of senior party members, allies, business leaders and opposition parties. The opposition, meanwhile, has called for a vote of no-confidence in Parliament, a move they have attempted before. But they will need a significant portion of ANC politicians to turn their back on the President. Zuma even faced calls to resign from beyond the grave. In an emotional funeral earlier in the week, with rumors already circulating of a cabinet purge, liberation hero Ahmed Kathrada, who spent more than two decades in jail with Nelson Mandela, was laid to rest. To a standing ovation, an open letter that Kathrada wrote to Zuma last year was read out as a eulogy. “Dear Comrade President, don’t you think your continued stay as President will only serve to deepen the crisis of confidence in the government of the country?” it said. “And bluntly, if not arrogantly, in the face of such persistently widespread criticism, condemnation and demand, is it asking too much to express the hope that you will choose the correct way that is gaining momentum, to consider stepping down?” Zuma ignored the pleas.


An American survivor says she heard "a big thud" before the boat flipped over The passenger ferry capsized near shore shortly after leaving Ormoc City Searchers recovered more bodies Friday, a day after a passenger ferry capsized shortly after leaving port in the Philippines, killing 59 people, authorities said. The Philippine coast guard said 140 people survived. The MB Nirvana tipped over Thursday, roughly 200 meters (220 yards) from shore only minutes after it set off from Ormoc City, in Leyte province. It was bound for the town of Pilar on Camotes Island, in Cebu province. Three Americans are among the survivors. They are Rhome and Chip Nuttall, and Larry Drake, according to Philippine Red Cross Chairman Richard Gordon. Rhome Nuttall, who helps run a medical mission in the Philippines, told CNN that the boat was “very crowded.” “There was a little wave, which is normal, but yesterday that caused the boat to flip to the right,” she said Friday. “I ran to the left hoping we could help to balance the boat. When we flipped, I said: ‘OK, this is it. OK, this is it.’” Water came in and washed her out of the boat. Nuttall said she couldn’t find her husband for about five minutes, and that everyone panicked. She remembered hearing a loud noise before the vessel capsized. “I think it was that big thud. I think that was cargo that shifted and that caused the boat to flip,” Nuttall said. Investigators will examine what caused the boat to overturn. A CNN Philippines reporter quoted the coast guard as saying the boat had left port too quickly and people stood up, throwing the boat off balance. Gordon said he understood the boat overturned because of high winds. The coast guard is leading the search effort for those still unaccounted for, with divers from the Red Cross and the military also involved. Poor weather conditions hampered the initial rescue effort on Thursday. Video footage from the scene showed people of all ages, including a small child, being brought ashore in small inflatable craft. Some survivors were laid on the concrete waterfront, while others were wheeled away on stretchers. Gwendolyn Pang, secretary-general of the Philippine Red Cross, described the vessel as a commercial “pump boat” or banka, which is essentially a canoe-style craft with outriggers powered by a small engine. They’re widely used across the Philippines for transporting people and goods as well as for fishing. Gordon said the boat operates three times a day on the route from Ormoc to Camotes Island. “The passengers would have been farmers or fishermen, or ordinary businessmen – common folks,” he said. Rhome Nuttall told CNN that one of the other boats that work the route was broken Thursday, so the MB Nirvana was extra crowded. “They are not very well off, otherwise they would be on better vessels or take the plane,” Gordon said. “But obviously, these are poor folks, simple folks who are trying to eke out an existence.” This style of outrigger boat has no cabins, he said, which should make it easier for divers to find anyone trapped under the canopy or keel of the vessel. CNN’s Chieu Luu, Sara Mazloumsaki, Brian Walker, Alisha Hardiasani, Laura Smith-Spark, Elizabeth Joseph and Paul Armstrong contributed to this report.


Former Trump campaign deputy Rick Gates told a federal court Thursday afternoon that he and his wife believe it’s “not prudent” for them to take their four children on a trip to Boston, after feeling threatened by an online commenter who invoked the Russian mafia. A Boston Globe report on Gates’ scheduled trip, planned for next week and approved by Judge Amy Berman Jackson, “generated comments on the internet, some of which were of a threatening character,” Gates’ attorney said in a court filing. Following his guilty plea and agreement to cooperate in special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation last Friday, Gates had asked to take his family to Boston for spring break to learn about the Revolutionary War. He is only allowed outside of the Washington, DC, and Richmond, Virginia, areas, where his lawyers are based and where he lives, with special permission from the judge. Gates’ attorney said Thursday that Gates hoped for permission to travel with a different itinerary. The judge approved. The filing did not say when or where the requested trip would take place. One Globe reader posted two comments referencing possible violence against Gates in response to an online Boston Globe story published February 26 and titled  “Following guilty plea in Mueller probe, Rick Gates plans to visit Boston.” The comments suggested Russians living in Boston could be angry with Gates, if Mueller targeted them in his probe. The Globe late Thursday blocked the two comments. Also on Thursday, a federal judge in Virginia formally dismissed criminal charges pending there against Gates. Prosecutors had sought the dismissal as part of Gates’ plea bargain. Gates’ co-defendant Paul Manafort, President Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman, has maintained his innocence while he faces federal criminal charges brought by Mueller’s team in Washington, DC. Manafort will appear in court in Virginia Friday afternoon to enter a plea in that case, which alleges that Manafort committed bank fraud and tax crimes in a decade-long scheme built upon his Ukrainian political lobbying work.


Russia denies discussions on sanctions Kremlin says "information is incorrect" President Donald Trump said Friday afternoon he was unaware of reports that his national security adviser, Michael Flynn, may have spoken about sanctions with the Russian ambassador before the inauguration. Trump, speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, said he will “look into that.” A US official confirmed to CNN late Friday afternoon that Flynn and the Russian ambassador, Sergey Kislyak, did speak about sanctions, among other matters, during the call. The context of Flynn’s side of the conversation wasn’t clear, even to the FBI and intelligence agencies that reviewed the content, and there’s nothing to indicate that Flynn made any promises or acted improperly in the discussion. Flynn cannot rule out that he spoke to Kislyak about sanctions, an aide close to the national security adviser said earlier Friday. Flynn, the aide said, has “no recollection of discussing sanctions,” but added that the national security adviser “couldn’t be certain that the topic never came up.” Earlier Friday, a senior White House adviser told CNN that Vice President Mike Pence did not know that Flynn may have discussed sanctions in the December conversation and believes “it’s a problem.” Three administration officials said Pence only knew what Flynn told him – that he had not talked about sanctions – before Pence stood before cameras last month and vouched for Flynn. One official said Pence was trying to “get to the bottom of it,” and two senior administration officials said Pence was “very intentional” in asking Flynn about his communication with the Russians before speaking to the media. A source with knowledge of the situation told CNN the only reason Flynn hasn’t been fired is that the White House doesn’t want to look bad. Adding to Flynn’s problems, the source said, is that this latest revelation reflects poorly on Pence. Flynn has avoided making firm commitments about maintaining US sanctions on Russia, according to US and European officials familiar with his meetings in recent weeks. Even as the Trump administration maintains publicly that it will keep in place sanctions on Russia over its incursion into Ukraine, White House officials, including Flynn, are offering less committal signals behind closed doors, according to these sources. “We’re getting mixed messages” on Russia, a senior western diplomat who has met with Flynn recently told CNN, going on to suggest that while State Department officials are adamant that sanctions will remain in place until Russia withdraws from Crimea, those closer to Trump at the White House are offering less certain assurances. Those sources told CNN both Ukraine-related sanctions, and the set of sanctions related to Russia’s cyber-meddling in the US election, are on the table for review, according to their discussions with Trump administration officials. The Kremlin denied Friday reports that Flynn discussed sanctions on Russia in recent discussions with Russia’s ambassador to Washington. When asked about a Washington Post report published Thursday that Flynn and Kislyak discussed US sanctions on Russia – and that these discussions may have influenced President Vladimir Putin’s decision not to retaliate to the sanctions – Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said “the information is incorrect.” “If I understand the communication between Flynn and Kislyak correctly, there have been some talks. If I understand correctly,” Peskov said. “As for the rest, the information is incorrect,” he added. According to another person who met recently with members of Trump’s national security team, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson echoed previous public assurances that sanctions enacted on Russia for its Ukraine actions would remain in place. But Flynn seemed to be on a different page, suggesting that Trump is seeking areas for cooperation with Russia. .@SenatorRounds on Mike Flynn: If we've been misled "we would expect the President to take appropriate actions" https://t.co/rDspdBvlCf Last week, US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley offered a tough stance on Russia’s actions in Ukraine, where violence has escalated in recent weeks. “The United States continues to condemn and call for an immediate end to the Russian occupation of Crimea,” Haley said during her first set of remarks at the UN Security Council. “Crimea is a part of Ukraine. Our Crimea-related sanctions will remain in place until Russia returns control over the peninsula to Ukraine.” A source familiar with Haley’s speech told CNN’s Dana Bash at the time that the White House was well aware of what she was going to say, though didn’t receive explicit direction from Trump’s close circle of advisers on how to address the issue of Crimea in her remarks. The source said that Haley made clear in private conversations, as well as during her confirmation hearings, how she felt about global hot spots like Russia. In some areas, her point of view differed from Trump’s, who as a candidate hinted he might recognize Russia’s annexation of Crimea. Asked last month whether he would maintain Crimea-related sanctions on Russia, Trump demurred, saying it was “too early” to discuss sanctions. And last weekend, Pence also refused to say the Ukraine-related sanctions would remain firmly in place. “I think that’s a question that will be answered in the months ahead. And it just simply all depends…on whether or not we see the kind of changes in posture by Russia,” he said on ABC. “And the opportunity perhaps to work on common interests. And the president’s made it clear the top priority of this administration is to hunt down and destroy ISIS at its source.” Maine Sen. Angus King is on the Intelligence Committee and plans to further investigate Russia’s interactions with members of the Trump campaign during the 2016 election. “I think that’s very important information,” he told CNN’s Alisyn Camerota on “New Day.” “As far as where this issue goes with Michael Flynn, I don’t see it as necessarily something that’s a crime or anything. But it does go to questions of credibility and judgment.” New York Rep. Chris Collins said he is not bothered by Flynn’s potentially illegal activity. “No, it doesn’t bother me. I’m thrilled (with) the team President Trump has put together,” the Republican, who is Trump’s congressional liaison, said. “I know General Flynn personally and he’s a man of integrity who is always going to put our country first.” “I’m just an individual that happens to know the players and trusts them implicitly and know they are always putting America’s best interests first and only first,” he added. Law enforcement and intelligence officials told CNN last month that calls between Flynn and Kislyak were being scrutinized by investigators as part of a broader counterintelligence investigation of Russian activities in the US. Officials stressed last month that there was no determination of any wrongdoing. The calls were captured by routine US eavesdropping targeting Russian diplomats, according to the intelligence and law enforcement officials. CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated when Flynn and Kislyak spoke. They spoke in December. CNN’s Maria Stromova, Gloria Borger, Dan Merica, James Masters, Evan Perez, Jim Sciutto and Eugene Scott contributed to this report.


Glenn Simpson's November interview was released by the House Intelligence Committee on Thursday Republicans questioned whether the allegations Simpson was making actually had evidence to back them up Fusion GPS co-founder Glenn Simpson used his six-hour interview with the House Intelligence Committee in November to defend the crafting of the now-infamous opposition research dossier on Trump and Russia and detail the suspicious connections his firm found between the Trump world and Russia. Simpson’s interview was released by the committee on Thursday following a unanimous vote to make it public. The transcript sheds new light explaining the work Fusion GPS and ex-British intelligence agent Christopher Steele did investigating real estate deals from the Trump Organization and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, connections between the Trump world and Russian oligarchs and the possibility that the Russians had blackmailed Trump, which is what prompted Steele to go to the FBI with the dossier. At the same time, Simpson acknowledged that he wasn’t convinced at the time a “specific crime had occurred,” though he told lawmakers he thought it was possible there was a “crime in progress.” “I’m an ex-journalist, so I’m not really in a position to prove that anyone’s engaged in a crime. I mean, you know, sometimes you do find proof of criminal activity in an investigation, but more often than not you find things that are suggestive or raise questions.” Related article House intelligence panel votes to release transcript from Fusion GPS co-founder interview Simpson said that in retrospect, the “wide-ranging conspiracy” described in the memos by Steele resembles the “well-established patterns of surreptitious contacts that occurred last year” that have since surfaced. The release of the 165-page transcript of Simpson’s interview, one week after California Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein unilaterally published her committee’s interview, is unlikely to change minds over the partisan fight that’s broken out about the dossier and how it was used by the FBI in its investigation of Trump and Russia. But there’s plenty of fodder for both sides to point to, as the dossier continues to be a focal point in the congressional investigations into Russia. California Rep. Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the committee, said the transcript reveals “serious allegations that the Trump Organization may have engaged in money laundering with Russian nationals.” Related article Read the House Intel Committee's interview with Glenn Simpson Simpson “testified that if the Trump Organization did engage in money laundering with the Russians, it would be with the knowledge or approval of the Kremlin and constitute powerful leverage over the President of the United States,” Schiff said. “Thus far, Committee Republicans have refused to look into this key area and we hope the release of this transcript will reinforce the importance of these critical questions to our investigation.” But during the testimony, Republicans questioned whether the allegations Simpson was making actually had evidence to back them up. “With all those things that we talked – that you talked to Adam (Schiff) about – we never really got to the fact part. Is that true?” GOP Rep. Tom Rooney of Florida asked Simpson. “Or do you feel like with your investigation that you made the conclusion that you think that those things are true – or not that you think that they are, but they are true?” “It’s a great question,” Simpson responded, explaining that he felt the research showed a crime could have been occurring. Rep. Jim Himes, a Connecticut Democrat on the committee, also said that Simpson “did not provide evidence,” and  suggested that the question of criminality was better suited for special counsel Robert Mueller than the intelligence panel. “I think that’s an important point,” Himes told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer. “They’re very serious allegations, and, again, not one that this investigative committee has the resources to pursue, but one hopes that if there’s anything to the allegations, those who live in the criminal realm, that is to say Special Counsel Bob Mueller, would be doing the investigation of those allegations if he feels that there’s reason to do so.” Alan Garten, the Trump Organization’s chief counsel, told Reuters that the deals Simpson referenced mainly involved properties to which Trump licensed his name, as opposed to owning, developing or selling them. “These accusations are completely reckless and unsubstantiated for a multitude of reasons,” Garten told the news agency. “These issues have nothing to do with the scope of the investigation” by the House Intelligence Committee, Garten told Reuters in a phone interview. “But it’s not surprising the minority (Democrats) would focus on this given they’ve found absolutely no evidence of collusion.” Simpson explained part of the reason he was motivated to go to the media with the dossier, which has been a sore spot with Republicans – Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley and Sen. Lindsey Graham referred Steele to the Justice Department for possible prosecution over what Steele told the FBI about his media contacts. Simpson said he felt what the dossier had uncovered was “historic” and was something the press needed to investigate. But he was also motivated by the then-FBI Director Jim Comey’s decision in late October 2016 to announce the FBI was re-opening its investigation into Hillary Clinton’s email server – while at the same time not disclosing it was also investigating the Trump campaign’s ties to Russia. “We began talking to the press again about – we decided that if James Comey wasn’t going to tell people about this investigation that, you know, he had violated the rules, and we would only be fair if the world knew that both candidates were under FBI investigation,” Simpson said. “It was my feeling at the time he had violated both the norms of our campaigns and Justice Department policy by disclosing or announcing or taking those kinds of investigative steps within 2 weeks of Election Day,” Simpson added. The transcript revealed new details about ties between Fusion GPS and Justice Department official Bruce Ohr, who has been criticized in recent weeks by Republicans over his ties to Fusion GPS and Steele. Ohr gave a private interview to the Senate Intelligence Committee about these connections last month. “I met Bruce too through organized crime conferences or something like that,” Simpson testified. “And Chris said he had been – Chris told me that he had been talking to Bruce, that he had told Bruce about what happened, and that Bruce wanted more information, and suggested that I speak with Bruce.” After Steele made that suggestion, Simpson says he met Ohr at a coffee shop around Thanksgiving 2016. “It was not clear to us whether anyone at a high level of government was aware of the information that Chris had gathered and provided to the FBI,” Simpson said. “We were, frankly, you know, very scared for the country and for ourselves and felt that if we could give it to someone else, we should, higher up. And so, Chris suggested I give some information to Bruce, give him the background to all this.” Trump’s legal team seized upon Ohr’s connections to Steele and Simpson when they were revealed in press reports late last year. Trump’s lawyer Jay Sekulow told CNN that a second special counsel should be appointed to investigate Ohr’s activities. There is no public evidence of wrongdoing by Ohr. Democrats, including Schiff, pressed Simpson to detail Trump’s alleged links to organized crime. In the interview, Simpson went over the connections his firm and Steele found between Russians and numerous figures in Trump’s orbit, including Felix Sater, Carter Page, Paul Manafort and Michael Cohen. All have denied colluding with Russians during the election. At one point, Schiff seemed to ask Simpson for a blueprint for how to investigate Trump’s potential financial improprieties – a facet of the investigation Democrats have criticized Republicans in the House for not pursuing. Simpson recounted that he found it “puzzling” that Trump and his son, Donald Trump Jr., would go to Russia but come back without securing any deals. Simpson’s hypothesis, early on, was that Trump would pursue a deal but it would “get shot down by his own lawyers because they think he’s going to get prosecuted for some sort of corruption offense.” Simpson advised Schiff to subpoena the people involved in the business deals, the banks that handled their accounts, and the shell companies that are traditionally used to hide financial trails. Simpson said before Fusion had hired Steele, the firm started looking into Trump’s ties to Russia when it was investigating Trump’s real estate deals and suspicions of money laundering through Russian officials. In addition to the Trump Organization real estate, Simpson said that Fusion GPS had also investigated Kushner’s real estate deal in Jersey City, New Jersey. Since the election, there have been a series of questionable Russian deaths that some Russia watchers and conspiracy theorists have speculated were tied to the dossier. But Simpson said that he didn’t think anyone killed was a source for the dossier, instead speculating that they were an “old-fashioned purge.” “I mean there was a series of episodes where people were arrested or died mysteriously that came shortly after the disclosure of the existence of this information,” Simpson said. “To my knowledge, it wasn’t anyone that helped us. think it was more likely people who were taking the opportunity to settle scores or were falsely accused, as often, you know, just like in the old days, and/or were sources of the US Intelligence Community, not us.” Simpson’s answer is different from what his lawyer, Joshua Levy, had previously told the Senate Judiciary Committee in August, when he said “somebody’s already been killed as a result of the publication of this dossier” as a reason not to discuss sources. A source close to that testimony previously told CNN that those comments weren’t meant to refer to any specific killing but instead were a reference to the mysterious string of Russian deaths after the 2016 election. This story has been updated with more details from the transcript and Trump Organization chief counsel Alan Garten’s comments to Reuters. CNN’s Manu Raju, Liz Stark, Caroline Kenny and Eli Watkins contributed to this story.


Editor’s Note: Peter Bergen is CNN’s national security analyst, a vice president at New America and a professor of practice at Arizona State University. He is the author of “United States of Jihad: Investigating America’s Homegrown Terrorists.” Peter Bergen: Use of bomb should be seen as part of effort to reverse course of Afghan war Afghan conflict has not been going well for the country's government or the United States The dropping of a “mother of all bombs” Thursday by the United States on an ISIS cave and bunker complex in Achin district in eastern Afghanistan should be understood as part of an effort to reverse a war that is not going well for the Afghan government and, by extension, the United States. The non-nuclear 21,600-pound GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb (MOAB) “targeted a system of tunnels and caves that ISIS fighters use to move around freely,” White House press secretary Sean Spicer said. Thursday’s bombing had a feeling of deja vu. A decade and a half ago the US Air Force dropped massive 15,000 pound “Daisy Cutter” bombs on the Tora Bora complex where Osama bin Laden was hiding in December 2001. Achin district is only a dozen or so miles from the Tora Bora region. US bomb hits ISIS target in AfghanistanCaves and tunnels used for smuggling Why the MOAB and why now?Trump won’t say if he approved strikeWhy did the US use the MOAB?How serious is Afghan ISIS threat? US bomb hits ISIS target in AfghanistanCaves and tunnels used for smuggling Why the MOAB and why now?Trump won’t say if he approved strikeWhy did the US use the MOAB?How serious is Afghan ISIS threat? While those Daisy Cutter bombs certainly killed many members of al Qaeda, bin Laden and many of his senior leaders escaped. That’s a useful reminder that very few military campaigns are won from the air. There are perhaps secondary effects of Thursday’s bombing in Afghanistan such as signaling to the North Koreans and the Syrians that the United States can deploy such weapons against their bunker systems, but the key is that the war in Afghanistan is at a critical point. In fact, the war in Afghanistan is at its lowest point for the Afghans and their American allies since the Taliban were overthrown in the months after 9/11. The Taliban “control or contest” about a third of the population of the country, according to senior US military officials, a total of around 10 million people, which is more than the population that ISIS controlled in Syria and Iraq at the height of its power during the summer of 2014. Al Qaeda and ISIS have also established footholds in Afghanistan. Whereas a few years back Kabul had a bustling restaurant scene and Westerners could live there and lead relatively normal lives, all that is now gone as a result of the multiple bombings in Kabul by the Taliban and the targeted kidnapping of Westerners. The exodus of Westerners from the country has had an adverse impact on both investment and development in Afghanistan. Because of the worsening situation in Afghanistan, the Trump administration is engaged in a strategic review of Afghanistan both at the Pentagon and the National Security Council, according to multiple U.S. and Afghan officials. Related article Opium fuels the stalemate in America's longest war US National Security Advisor Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster is overseeing the Afghanistan review at the White House and will be traveling to Afghanistan soon to make his own assessment. McMaster served in Afghanistan running an anti-corruption task force in 2010, as a result of which he understands the players and politics of the country well. In testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee in February, Gen. John “Mick” Nicholson said that the present troop level of 8,400 US soldiers was insufficient and noted, “We have a shortfall of a few thousand” advisers to train and assist the Afghan army. The Obama administration had a counterproductive policy of announcing scheduled withdrawals from Afghanistan even as it surged troops into the country. Take, for instance, a speech at West Point on December 1, 2009, where President Obama announced a surge of troops into Afghanistan and also announced their withdrawal date. That withdrawal date, of course, came and went – as did a number of others. It is in American and Afghan interests for the US to stay in Afghanistan so it doesn’t turn into Iraq circa 2014, with the Taliban controlling much of the country while hosting a strong presence of ISIS and al-Qaeda as well as every other jihadist group of note. Sign up for CNN Opinion’s new newsletter.Join us on Twitter and Facebook What to do? The Trump administration should publicly state that the US already has a strategic partnership with Afghanistan until 2024 that was negotiated by the Obama administration and that it promises to maintain a US military “train and advise” non-combat mission for the Afghan army that will stay in the country until the Taliban are contained. Afghans don’t care if the United States has 8,400 troops in the country, as it does now, or 12,000 troops or 20,000 troops. Clearly there is a difference from a purely military point of view but from a political point of view the message Afghans want to hear is that the United States is not abandoning them. A public announcement of such a long-term commitment to Afghanistan will help NATO and other allies also commit for the long term. It will also undermine the Taliban.

United States military presence in Afghanistan


The US military sought authority to arm drones in Niger for months prior to a deadly attack The October ambush of US forces there left four soldiers dead The government of Niger granted the US military the authority to arm its drones in Niger earlier this week, a US official told CNN Thursday. US defense officials had previously told CNN that the US military had been seeking the authority to arm its drones in Niger for months prior to the October ambush of US forces there that left four soldiers dead. One official said the effort to arm US drones in Niger had gained a greater sense urgency following the deadly attack. Related article Pentagon says Niger investigation expected to be completed by January The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Joseph Dunford, told reporters that a remotely piloted drone aircraft arrived overhead within minutes of the soldiers’ request for support but defense officials told CNN that it was unarmed due to the previous prohibition on armed drones. It is unclear what if any authority military commanders have to conduct drone strikes in Niger. A spokeswoman for the Pentagon declined Thursday to speak about specific authorities or permissions but stressed the closeness of the US-Niger relationship. “The Government of Niger and the US stand firm in working together to prevent terrorist organizations from using the region as a safe haven. For operational security reasons, I will not comment on specific military authorities or permissions,” Maj. Audricia Harris said. The New York Times was the first to report Niger’s granting of authority to arm drones. Hundreds of US troops are currently helping to build a new drone base in Niger, at Agadez. The current base of drone operations is near the main civilian airport in the capital, Niamey.


Netanyahu backs away from agreement to allow a space where men and women could pray together Decision provokes angry response around world Bowing to pressure from the ultra-Orthodox parties, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu froze plans for an egalitarian prayer space at the Western Wall, one of Judaism’s holiest sites. The decision, made during the cabinet meeting on Sunday, brought a stinging rebuke from Jewish organizations in Israel and around the world. In freezing the plan, Netanyahu backed away from an agreement reached in January 2016 after five years of negotiations, in which a space where men and women could pray together would be established at the southern end of the Western Wall. But Netanyahu never implemented the agreement because of pressure from the ultra-Orthodox parties in his government. Currently, men and women pray separately, following the strict rules of Orthodox Judaism. The move risks driving a deep wedge between Israel, which recognizes Orthodox Judaism, and more liberal streams of Judaism, such as Conservative and Reform Judaism, which make up the majority of the world’s Jews. Rabbi Rick Jacobs of the Union for Reform Judaism called it an “unconscionable insult to the majority of world Jewry.” Yizhar Hess, the executive director of the Conservative movement in Israel said, “Nothing like this has ever happened before.” Knesset member Michael Oren blasted the decision, saying, “This move undermines the very foundations of Zionism.” But Rabbi Yaakov Litzman, head of the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism party, lauded Netanyahu’s decision, saying it was important for “the future of the Jews.” Litzman warned that Conservative and Reform Judaism, which have a more liberal interpretation of the religion, are “harming Judaism and tearing the Jewish nation to bits and threaten a terrible assimilation that we are unfortunately aware of outside of Israel.” In an unprecedented step, the Jewish Agency’s Board of Governors cancelled a dinner with Netanyahu. Natan Sharansky, chairman of the Jewish Agency and a key architect of the agreement, said, “Today’s decision signifies a retreat from that agreement and will make our work to bring Israel and the Jewish world closer together increasingly more difficult.” Rabbi Gilad Kariv, president and CEO of the Israel Reform Movement, directed his anger squarely at Netanyahu. “The Prime Minister and his coalition partners actively gave their blessing to this anti-Zionist step that will hurt the relations between Israel and the Diaspora, and weaken the connection of millions of Jews to Jerusalem.” Prime Minister Netanyahu did not comment on the decision to pull back from the agreement. The leader of the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, Aryeh Deri, praised the freezing of the agreement. “There is no doubt that maintaining the status quo with the subject of the Wall reflects the desire of the majority of the nation that sees the Western Wall as the most holy place for the Jewish people and not a place for destructive elements whose total objective is to desecrate the place.” The two ultra-Orthodox parties control only 13 seats out of 120 in the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, but they make up a more substantial part of Netanyahu’s 66-seat coalition. That allows them to make demands on Netanyahu, since they have enough seats to topple the coalition and threaten new elections. Although they almost always back the Prime Minister, their main concern is matters of religion, such as the status of the Western Wall. Women of the Wall, an organization that advocates for freedom of prayer at the Western Wall, promised to keep “praying according to our conscience.” Anat Hoffman, chairperson for Women of the Wall, said, “It’s a terrible day for women in Israel when the Prime Minister sacrifices their rights while kowtowing to a handful of religious extremists, who want to enforce their religious customs while intentionally violating the rights of the majority of the Jewish world.” The government will try to reach a new agreement on prayer at the Western Wall, led by one of Netanyahu’s closest ministers.


At least 25 Somali troops died in the attack on an African Union base in southern Somalia, military source says Twelve Ugandan soldiers also were killed, a Ugandan military spokesman confirmed Al-Shabaab appears to be shifting tactics in attacking more remote AU military bases At least 37 African Union soldiers were killed in an attack by Al-Shabaab militants in southern Somalia on Tuesday, according to military sources in Uganda and Somalia. A source from Somalia’s security services told CNN that at least 25 Somali government troops were killed in the fight. Twelve Ugandan soldiers also were killed, Uganda’s military spokesman Lt. Col. Paddy Ankunda confirmed. The attack by the Somali terrorist group occurred on a remote African Union base in the town of Janaale. It was the largest loss sustained by the Ugandan contingent of the AU Mission to Somalia, or AMISOM, since 2012. Ankunda told CNN by phone that 10 of the fallen soldiers’ bodies had already arrived back in Uganda. Other Western sources said that as many as 50 AU troops were killed. The 22,000-strong, United Nations-backed AMISOM force consists of troops from Uganda, Burundi, Kenya, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Sierra Leone. It has been dealt serious blows in recent months in Al-Shabaab attacks. The terror group seems to be shifting tactics, moving from smaller, asymmetrical suicide-bombing attacks on civilian, government and military targets to larger and more sustained operations solely focused on smaller, remote AU bases. A member of Al-Shabaab told CNN that the battalion behind Tuesday’s attack is the same group of about 200 fighters who assaulted an Ethiopian convoy and a base predominantly held by Burundian soldiers in Leego, Somalia, in July.  Those two attacks killed dozens of AMISOM troops. The fighters call themselves the Abu Zubair Battalion –  named after the Al-Shabaab leader (a.k.a. Ahmed Abdi Godane) who was killed by a U.S. drone strike in Somalia in September 2014. Al-Shabaab says the attack was in retaliation for alleged AMISOM attacks on civilians. The United States on Thursday condemned Al-Shabaab for its “brutality in its depraved efforts to destabilize Somalia and deny the people of Somalia the peaceful, prosperous future they deserve.” A Western source told CNN that the AMISOM had recently withdrawn their heavy weaponry from the Janaale base to be used elsewhere against the Islamic extremists. The source says Al-Shabaab also destroyed two nearby bridges, trapping the Ugandan soldiers. Militants loaded a car with explosives to breach the perimeter of the base. The source added that poor weather conditions prevented U.N. air assets from reaching the attack to help evacuate the wounded Ugandan soldiers. The U.N. has been criticized for not providing funding for more air assets in the fight. The Ugandan military has had no troop transport or armed helicopters in Somalia. Because of damaged roads after more than 20 years of civil war, ground transportation is slow and unreliable, making it harder to respond quickly when remote bases such as Janaale come under attack. Ethiopia and Kenya have attack and troop transport helicopters. Kenya also uses fighter jets to strike Al-Shabaab targets, and the U.S. uses drones at times to help with surveillance and launch missiles at high-value terrorist targets. What is Al-Shabaab? CNN’s Nana Karikari-apau contributed to this report.


An Irish woman with wind whipping through her blonde hair walked down a deserted Atlanta street in search of inspiration. She stopped at her destination: the white marble crypt of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Sunlight glittered in the water of the reflecting pool surrounding it as she stared solemnly at King’s resting place. His baritone voice rang from a loudspeaker nearby, the words of his “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech echoing across the grounds. An American flag fluttered overhead. Marian Purcell tried to reassure herself that the America she admired while growing up on an island once engulfed by sectarian violence still existed after the election of Donald Trump. “I just kind of wanted to feel that things would be OK,” said Purcell, who was visiting the site with her husband Patrick. “Trump is a misogynist, a racist – he doesn’t have any moral values I care for. I kind of wanted to go somewhere to be reminded that the moral values that we should stand for will eventually win.” While millions of Americans spent this week wondering how Trump’s election might change their country, some people living abroad said it has already changed how they see America. The country’s allies were stunned. Some worried Trump’s election would unleash waves of intolerance, that an America under Trump would no longer champion human rights, or that Washington would abandon allies it has protected since World War II. Many are concerned that the America they know – a refuge of religious and racial tolerance embodied by King – is becoming something else. Some of those fears could be seen in the almost panicked tone of news coverage abroad. Some could be heard in the anxious conversations of tourists who made a pilgrimage to King’s crypt after the election. The tourist season is over, and the grounds of the King Center were largely empty. But many who were there saw King’s resting place as a sacred space that evokes another America. They wrestled with this question: How does a country venerate both a King and a Trump? “I’m very confused,” said Brianna Martelozzo, who came to King’s crypt with her husband, Giancarlo, a Brazilian painter. “I feel a little sadness being here today.” Related video Van Jones discusses 'whitelash' comments They decided to stop in Atlanta after flying from San Diego to Florida. Together, they looked like Bohemian artists: sunshades, nose-rings and, for Giancarlo, a scruffy black beard. He said he doesn’t think people abroad will look up to Americans as they once did. “No,” he said, scratching his beard. “They will look at America like it’s a joke. They will be more scared of this country.” Some of their friends warned Giancarlo that America would no longer welcome him. “She is more scared than me,” he said, motioning to Brianna, her brow furrowed. “I don’t care about religion, race, sexual options or stuff like that. I’m from Brazil, but I didn’t choose to be from Brazil. I’m a global citizen. If you are good, I respect you.” Trump’s election was also mystifying to a Canadian trio who had journeyed here. One was a stylishly dressed man sporting a black leather jacket and shaved head. He only gave his name as Maurice. “We love you as neighbors, but there is a whole part of you that we don’t understand, and I don’t know if we ever will,” he said, laughing. Maurice hails from Toronto, which he proudly calls the most international city in the world. At least 140 languages and dialects are spoken there. “We all live in a global village, and we need to think more progressively,” he said, standing near a mural of King at the 1963 March on Washington. “Trump’s rhetoric and policy are going to dial back the clock, and we should be moving forward. America has traditionally been a leader, but this is troubling.” It may be troubling, but it’s not really surprising to Patrick Purcell, Marian’s husband. The Purcells live in the United Kingdom and voted against what they called the “horror” of Brexit, the recent referendum by their country’s citizens to leave the European Union. Trump’s election was fueled by the same fear that led to the Brexit vote, said Patrick Purcell. “He’s tapped into this sense that there is this new economic order that is leaving people behind,” he said. Purcell is a student of American politics. He’s visited four presidential libraries during his many travels to the United States since 1964. He even went to a recent Trump rally in Florida out of curiosity. “He was extraordinary,” Purcell said. “He’s very funny, charismatic, nasty, racist – all at the same time. It was very uncomfortable at times.” Purcell said he is worried about Trump’s temperament. He told a story about a British prime minister who was once asked what the hardest part of his job was. His reply: “Events, dear boy, events.” He wonders: How will Trump handle unforeseen events? “George Bush said he would be a domestic president and then 9/11 happened nine months into his presidency,” Purcell said. “You wonder how [Trump] is going to react.” Trump’s election won’t irrevocably change how people abroad see America, Purcell said. “This place is a beacon of hope,” he said. “You can get ahead if you work hard. It stands for freedom, freedom of the press, a fair legal system. America stands for fairness. “America is stronger than Trump.” His wife disagreed. Asked if America is still an inspiration abroad, she said: “I’m not sure it is anymore.” “I think the perception is that, with all due respect, a lot of Americans are naive. They don’t actually see the bigger picture in a lot of ways.” The picture should become clearer over the next four years. The motto of Trump’s campaign was “Make America Great Again.” And the nation’s motto is E pluribus unum: “Out of many, one.” The world will soon find out if those two mottoes can coexist.


African countries are investing in space for economic development Nigeria aims to have a astronaut in space by 2030 African space programs are nothing new. In 1964 Edward Mukuka Nkoloso, high school teacher and self-appointed director of Zambia’s national space program, had the bold ambition of beating the USA and the Soviet Union in the space race, and landing a Zambian on the Moon. Using unconventional techniques, such as spinning students around a tree in an oil drum, Nkoloso trained 12 astronauts. He was unsuccessful, but in 2014 there was a film released inspired by his efforts. Fortunately Africa’s space programs now look much more promising. In fact, in the last decade the continent has entered a space race. Nigeria, South Africa, Ethiopia, Egypt and Algeria have taken a renewed interests in their existing programs, and Kenya has joined the club and launched its own home-designed satellite last week. While no African country is within realistic reach of moon travel yet, Nigeria and South Africa have by far the most advanced space programs on the continent. South Africa is set to host the world’s biggest radio telescope, the Square Kilometre Array (SKA). If successful, they claim the telescope will enable astronomers to look much deeper into space – at the sensitivity of many times current telescopes. The first phase will cost approximately $790 million. Related video Africa's space race “What drove this project was a need for the next generation radio telescope with a preference for the southern hemisphere as then you can view the centre of our galaxy,” said Carla Sharpe, Business Manager at SKA. “When you’re studying space with an optical telescope you’re only observing the visible light, whereas a radio telescope can observe the electromagnetic spectrum over a number of frequencies,” she added. However, Sharpe disagrees that there is an African space race per se. Instead, African countries see space programs as an important part of economic development. “In general African countries accept that developing technology drives growth and that space is a great area for technology development. It’s accepted as a new market we can still get into,” Sharpe continues. Although space programs in Africa are frequently criticized for being a waste of money, particularly with the presence of more immediate concerns. Sharpe responded: “Space science and technology is not just rockets. It’s everything from data analytics, data storage and transport and more. There are so many areas of development within the arena which are classed as space science.” South Africa has set its sights on space observation, but what about space travel? In that field, Nigeria is leading the charge. They’re planning to be the first African country to send an astronaut into space. The government announced the plans last year, and is aiming to visit space by 2030. Nigeria is aiming to create a world-class space industry. “The focus of our space program is economic development,” Felix Ale, communications chief of The National Space Research and Development Agency (NASDRA), told CNN. Since 2003, NASRDA have launched five satellites which have helped improve agricultural practices, collect climate data and track-down hostages taken by Boko Haram and in 2016 received $20 million of funding. But Professor Calestous Juma, an expert on space programs in developing countries at the Harvard Kennedy School, told CNN in 2016 that the mission could be a “lofty ambition” that “may or may not happen.” Aside from Nigeria and South Africa, there are also a number of interesting developments from other African countries. In 2017 Ethiopia announced it would launch a satellite into orbit within 3 to 5 years to help monitor weather conditions. And in 2015, the multi-million dollar Entoto Observatory and Research Center was opened near the capital Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Kenya has launched its first cube satellite this year, designed by experts at the University of Nairobi. Ghana is also venturing into space technology and successfully sent its first satellite into orbit in 2017. In 2015, the government allocated $10m for nuclear and space technology. To add to that, in 2016 Egypt approved ambitious plans to launch a new Egyptian Space Agency. Across the continent new programs represent a growing appetite for space technology, but the continent still lags far behind in the global space race. It could be argued that a collaborative effort could help the continent catch up. But there is no pan-African space program in the works just yet. In 2010 the African Union (AU) approved a study to test the feasibility of an African Space Agency. Two years later President of Sudan Omar Hassan al-Bashir repeated the call. It largely fell on deaf ears. “My personal opinion is that the African Space Policy is a great step forward. The African Space Agency will be beneficial in the long term but is a little premature. I think countries need to develop and grow their own capabilities first,” said Sharpe. An official African Space Agency might be a long way off, but national space programs are looking at ways of working together. “I think collaboration will be the only the answer for us to develop forward,” said Sharpe.


The move surprised Washington Tuesday Comey was appointed by Obama in 2013 President Donald Trump on Tuesday fired FBI Director James Comey, sweeping away the man who is responsible for the bureau’s investigation into whether members of his campaign team colluded with Russia in its interference in last year’s election. The bombshell announcement that sent shock and surprise ricocheting through Washington ends the career of the man who was once seen as the unimpeachable and nonpartisan ideal of how a law enforcement officer should behave. But Comey saw his reputation tarnished when he was dragged into the toxic politics of the 2016 campaign. The Trump administration attributed Comey’s dismissal to his handling of the investigation into Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton’s email server, but Democrats ridiculed that notion, raising parallels to Watergate-era firings and suggested Comey was getting too close to the White House with the Russia probe. In any case, senior White House officials appeared to have badly misjudged the impact of Trump’s sudden move. A source with knowledge of discussions inside the White House told CNN’s Dana Bash that the thinking was that because Democrats were saying precisely what Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said in a letter explaining the grounds for Comey’s dismissal, there would be no backlash. What was not thought through, apparently, was an explanation of why Comey was fired now, at a time when critics would immediately conclude it was because of the Russia probe. In recent days, Comey again came under fire for his handling of the investigation into Clinton’s private email server. Many Democrats believe that his announcement that he was reopening the probe 11 days before the election cost the former secretary of state the presidency. Related article Clinton aides react to Comey firing with concern, not joy Trump referred to Democrats’ criticism of Comey Wednesday morning, tweeting, “The Democrats have said some of the worst things about James Comey, including the fact that he should be fired, but now they play so sad!” The Democrats have said some of the worst things about James Comey, including the fact that he should be fired, but now they play so sad! Comey learned of his dismissal from televisions tuned to the news, as he was addressing the workforce at the FBI office in Los Angeles, law enforcement sources said. The source said he made a joke about it to lighten the mood and called his office to get confirmation. Longtime Trump ally Roger Stone was among those who recommended to the President that he fire Comey, according to a source familiar with the conversation. Stone, who also is being scrutinized by the FBI as part of its Russia investigation, spoke to Trump after Comey appeared at a hearing last week on Capitol Hill, according to the source. Trump immediately disputed that Stone was involved: “The Roger Stone report on @CNN is false - Fake News. Have not spoken to Roger in a long time - had nothing to do with my decision.” The Roger Stone report on @CNN is false - Fake News. Have not spoken to Roger in a long time - had nothing to do with my decision. Stone said he was not the source behind the reporting but added that he supported the firing of Comey “100%.” A White House spokesperson reached out to CNN to reiterate the President’s tweet that he has not spoken to Stone in a “long time,” adding, “The President has not spoken to Roger Stone in many months and any reports suggesting otherwise are categorically untrue.” In a signed letter released by the White House, Trump informed Comey that he was “hereby terminated and removed from office, effective immediately,” explaining that he reached the conclusion that Comey is “not able to effectively lead the bureau.” “It is essential that we find new leadership for the FBI that restores public trust and confidence in its vital law enforcement mission,” Trump told Comey in the letter. “I wish you the best of luck in your future endeavors.” White House press secretary Sean Spicer, sandwiched in the dark between a gaggle of reporters and a large shrub on the White House driveway, described Trump’s decision as arriving only after a long memo from the deputy attorney general, which Spicer said was delivered Tuesday, detailing Comey’s shortcomings on investigating Clinton’s emails. But multiple White House officials said Trump had been considering firing Comey for at least a week before he made Tuesday’s decision. Indeed, Trump revealed his anger in a string of late-night messages on Twitter May 2, exactly a week before his final decision was made public. At the center of Rosenstein’s rationale for recommending Comey’s firing was the director’s handling of the investigation into Clinton’s private server, namely his decision to recommend no charges be filed and the news conference he held to explain his reasoning. Rosenstein accused Comey of attempting to “usurp the attorney general’s authority” by publicly announcing why he felt the case should be closed without prosecution. “Compounding the error, the director ignored another longstanding principle: We do not hold press conferences to release derogatory information about the subject of a declined criminal investigation,” Rosenstein argued in his memo. “We should reject the departure and return to the traditions (of the bureau),” Rosenstein said. “The way the director handled the conclusion of the email investigation was wrong. As a result, the FBI is unlikely to regain public and congressional trust until it has a director who understands the gravity of the mistakes and pledges never to repeat them.” But Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said he told Trump on the telephone that he had made a terrible mistake. “Were these investigations getting too close to home for the President?” Schumer asked. And in a sign of possible trouble for the administration, Republican Sen. Richard Burr, who is leading a Senate intelligence committee probe into alleged Russian influence on the election, expressed disquiet at the firing of Comey, which he described as a “loss for the bureau and the nation. “I am troubled by the timing and reasoning of Director Comey’s termination. I have found Director Comey to be a public servant of the highest order, and his dismissal further confuses an already difficult investigation by the Committee,” Burr said. As Democrats renewed their demands for a special counsel, arguing that the Trump Justice Department could not be trusted to oversee the case, Republicans insisted that one was not needed. “I think Rod Rosenstein, the new deputy attorney general, is competent to lead that effort,” said Texas Sen. John Cornyn, a member of the GOP leadership. But Republican Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker of Tennessee said that though Rosenstein’s rationale for removing Comey was sound, it, would “raise questions.” Sen. John McCain added: “While the President has the legal authority to remove the director of the FBI, I am disappointed in the President’s decision to remove James Comey from office.” The Arizona senator renewed his request for a special congressional committee to review the Russia allegations. CNN’s senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin was not buying the idea that Comey was sacked over the Clinton investigation, saying it was “absurd.” Toobin branded the move a “grotesque abuse of power by the President of the United States.” “This is not something that is within the American political tradition,” Toobin said, comparing the sacking of Comey to President Richard Nixon’s firing of special prosecutor Archibald Cox during the Watergate scandal. “This is not normal. This is not politics as usual,” said Toobin, though he added that Trump did have the legal authority to fire an FBI director. The White House, however, said that the impetus for the firing of Comey came from Rosenstein, noting that he was a career prosecutor who served under President Barack Obama as the US Attorney for Maryland, and was confirmed in his new job on April 25. A senior administration official said that Rosenstein assessed the situation upon taking office and concluded the FBI director had lost his confidence. He sent his recommendation to Sessions – who has recused himself from the Russia investigation since he was a Trump adviser and campaign surrogate – who forwarded it to Trump, who accepted it on Tuesday. Former Clinton campaign officials accused Trump of using the furor over Comey’s handling of the email server as a ruse to get out from under the Russia investigation. “I was as frustrated, concerned and disappointed as anyone with Director Comey’s handling of the email investigation, but President Trump just fired the man investigating how Russia meddled in our election and whether members of his campaign were involved, an investigation President Trump called a “charade” only 24 hours ago,” said Clinton’s former campaign manager, Robby Mook. “It’s equally concerning that our attorney general, who lied about his own meetings with the Russians, approved Director Comey’s firing,” he said. One Trump loyalist, who worked on the campaign and the transition, gave his reaction to CNN’s Jim Sciutto. “I firmly believe the Russia angle is fake news. But this gives me pause,” the person said. Senior Justice Department and FBI officials said they were unaware of the Comey decision until the announcement. Officials who spoke to CNN said they were shocked by the development. Comey’s term was due to run until 2023. The decade-long tenure was introduced to shield FBI directors from being drawn into politics, but the position is still subject to dismissal at the pleasure of the President. Comey’s last appearance on Capitol Hill last week exacerbated doubts about his position. Just before news of his dismissal broke, his office issued a statement aiming to clear up his testimony that former Clinton aide Huma Abedin “forwarded hundreds and thousands” of emails to her husband’s laptop. The note, signed by Gregory Brower, assistant director of the FBI’s Office of Congressional Affairs, clarified that the “hundreds and thousands of emails” that Comey said were ‘forwarded” from Abedin to her husband’s email “included emails transferred via backups as well as manual forwarding.” The White House said it would immediately launch the search for a new FBI director. Deputy Director Andrew McCabe is now the acting FBI director, according to a message sent to employees by Sessions. Comey was appointed FBI director by President Barack Obama in 2013. In so doing, he elevated a Republican law enforcement veteran who had been critical of the Justice Department under former President George W. Bush to the top domestic investigative and surveillance organization, among the most powerful posts in the world. In the decades since former FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, the controversial director who brought the FBI into the modern era, law enforcement has avoided the appearance of influencing politics the way Hoover did. But Comey’s decision to thrust himself repeatedly into the 2016 election put him at odds with the FBI’s general decision to stay away from the political spotlight. Comey made the decision in July to go public with his recommendation that the Justice Department not pursue any charges against Clinton or her former staffers over her email practices as secretary of state. However, he also took the opportunity to rebuke Clinton at length as being “extremely careless” with sensitive information. Then-candidate Trump had talked up the investigation until this point, at which time he and his campaign derided Comey for the “political” decision. Just days away from the election, Comey jumped into the race again. He informed Congress, via letter, that the FBI had reopened its investigation into Clinton. The decision was made because of its investigation into former Rep. Anthony Weiner, who is married to Clinton confidant Huma Abedin. Comey followed up days later with another letter, informing Congress that the FBI didn’t find anything and continued to believe Clinton’s practices did not merit the pursuance of any criminal charges. After Clinton’s loss, former President Bill Clinton blamed Comey for it, as have many Clinton staffers, at least in part. Last week, Hillary Clinton herself told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour: “I was on the way to winning until a combination of Jim Comey’s letter on October 28 and Russian WikiLeaks raised doubts in the minds of people who were inclined to vote for me and got scared off.” After taking office, Trump met with Comey at the White House. He offered a cryptic remark to the FBI chief. “Oh, here’s Jim,” Trump said in January. “He’s become more famous than me.” CNN’s Sara Murray, Ted Barrett, Eli Watkins, Shimon Prokupecz, Gloria Borger, Pamela Brown, Rene Marsh and Scott Glover contributed to this report.


China has long been an ally and financier of the land-locked African state A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said the visit was "normal" A visit by Zimbabwean army commander Constantino Chiwenga to China would not normally be seen as unusual, given Beijing’s status as Zimbabwe’s largest foreign investor and longtime ally. But days after Chiwenga returned from a recent trip to meet senior Chinese military leaders, Harare was plunged into political chaos as the Zimbabwean military – led by Chiwenga – seized control and placed President Robert Mugabe under house arrest. In that context, Chiwenga’s visit to China has come under scrutiny, with speculation that he had sought Beijing’s tacit approval for a possible move against Mugabe. China’s involvement in Zimbabwe stretches back to the 1970s, when Beijing covertly supplied ammunition and financing to Mugabe’s guerrilla forces during the country’s war of independence. In the intervening years, China has continued to provide financial and political support to the African nation, investing extensively across a range of sectors and helping to develop key infrastructure projects. Related article Zimbabwe military: A calm transition is underway “Since Mugabe took power he has been consistently supported by the Chinese government. China has become the second largest trading partner with Zimbabwe and has invested very largely in the country,” said Wang Xinsong, associate professor at Beijing Normal University School of Social Development and Public Policy. China would be very reluctant to see Zimbabwe fall into a period of social instability and political turmoil, he added. But most observers say there is no way to know how involved China was in the apparent coup, or whether it received advanced warning. Cobus Van Staden, senior researcher on Foreign Policy at the South African Institute of International Affairs, described the possibility as a “billion dollar question.” “The fact there were these kind of visits to Beijing right before (the coup) certainly seems indicative of something, but who knows what that was?” During Chiwenga’s trip to China, he met with Central Military Commission member Gen. Li Zuocheng, according to a Chinese military press release, who told him Zimbabwe and China were “all-weather friends.” He also met with Chinese Defense Minister Gen. Chang Wanquan on November 10 in Beijing. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told a press briefing on Thursday the visit was just a “normal military-to-military exchange” which had been planned in advance. “Since the defense ministry hosted him, I don’t have other details,” he said. The military ties between the two countries extend beyond mere exchanges, however. According to leaked US diplomatic cables, since independence in 1980, the Zimbabwean government has purchased a range of military hardware from China, “including aircraft, armaments, air defense radars, and medical equipment.” In addition, claim the cables, “China regularly sends technical military advisers to work with their Zimbabwean counterparts.” Zimbabwe’s recently deposed Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who was fired on November 7 by Mugabe in a move that likely triggered this week’s apparent coup, was among the first Zimbabwean Zanu Party guerilla fighters to travel to China for military training. More recently, China has helped finance and construct Zimbabwe’s first highly specialized professional military college, Harare’s National Defense College. But it is 93-year-old Mugabe, now under house arrest, who has benefited most from China’s unwavering support. As Mugabe’s relationship with the West began to deteriorate into the later part of the 1990s, he increasingly looked to his old ally China for economic and political assistance. In 2015 alone, Chinese investment topped $450 million, accounting for more than half of all foreign investment into Zimbabwe. “China is very loyal in this kind of way, they tend to stand by these long-time allies and every time someone like Mugabe would go to Beijing they’d roll out the red carpet,” said Van Staden. Related article All aboard! The Chinese-funded railways linking East Africa In January this year, Mugabe met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, where he was told by Xi, “China will never forget its old friend.” But writing in the influential state media tabloid Global Times on Friday, Wang Hongyi, an associate research fellow at the Institute of West-Asian and African Studies, said concerns had begun to grow over the long-term safety of Beijing’s investment in its African partner. “Chinese investment in Zimbabwe has also fallen victim to Mugabe’s policy and some projects were forced to close down or move to other countries in recent years, bringing huge losses,” said Wang. “Bilateral cooperation did not realize its potential under Mugabe’s rule.” In the opinion piece, Wang said a change of government could be beneficial to China Zimbabwe relations. “Friendly ties will embrace new development opportunities,” he said. Official Chinese channels are being more circumspect though, not picking one side over the other. In a statement released after the apparent coup was under way, a Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman said China was “playing close attention” to the situation. Related video Mugabe under house arrest after takeover “We sincerely hope that the situation will remain stable in Zimbabwe and relevant affairs can be handled in a peaceful and proper way,” the statement read. “We will continue to develop friendly cooperation with Zimbabwe following the principle of equal and mutually beneficial cooperation with win-win results.” On Wednesday, an editorial published in the Global Times said no matter what, the Chinese government was unlikely to back down on its close relationship with Zimbabwe. “China has played a positive and constructive role in Africa. The long-term friendship between China and Zimbabwe will transcend the internal disturbances in Zimbabwe,” the editorial said. “The Chinese public would like to see peace in that distant but friendly country.”


Suspect killed along with two others The two other extremists killed have not been identified Bangladeshi police killed one of the “suspected masterminds” of the July terror attack in Dhaka after an hourlong battle, authorities said. The suspect, Bangladeshi-Canadian Tamim Ahmed Chowdhury, was killed along with two others, the national police chief said Saturday. The two other extremists killed have not been identified, national police chief Shahidul Hoque said, adding that another suspected mastermind is under investigation. The terror attack at a bakery popular with foreigners left 21 people dead, including 18 foreign nationals. In addition, four terrorists were killed in the standoff while one was captured alive. Chowdhury is one of the leaders of the banned Islamist group Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh, or JMB, the police chief said. The terror group ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack, even though authorities have consistently denied its presence in the nation and said the attack was carried out by homegrown militants, hinting toward JMB. Bangladeshi police announced a cash reward this month for information leading to Chowdhury and a second suspected planner of the cafe terror attack. The attack took place in the city’s diplomatic enclave, and those killed were from around the globe: Italian, Japanese, Indian, Bangladeshi and an American. Even in a country that has become increasingly numb to Islamist attacks, the Holey Artisan Bakery standoff was particularly jolting in its brazenness. The gunmen went into the bakery on a Friday, the holiest day of the week in Islam, and at a time when the devout would be sitting down to break their fast in the holy month of Ramadan. And they targeted not a bar or a club – the kinds of venues fundamentalist Muslims rail against – but a bakery in the city’s Gulshan district, one of Dhaka’s most affluent neighborhoods. Residents in the neighborhood expressed shock because the upscale neighborhood was considered safe with buildings behind walls, gated driveways and security guard booths. Opinion: The question Bangladesh must answer Two men – Hasnat Karim and Tamid Khan – are still in custody under suspicion of involvement in the attack after being denied bail this week. According to their families and friends, the two were hostages, not attackers, and were detained immediately after the shooting and never released. No charges have been filed against either. In Bangladesh, it is legal for authorities to detain suspects without pressing charges. The most recent update on the Facebook page campaigning to release Khan, a university student, said this week that he was still in custody. “We continue to wait for the investigation to be completed,” it said. Facebook post not found. Post has been removed or is no longer public. Bangladesh cafe attack: Two arrested but families say they were hostages Karim was also denied bail Wednesday. “This has been an extremely difficult time for our family as he has now been away from us for 54 days,” a post to the Facebook page Free Hasnat Karim said. “We continue to feel confident and full of hope that any further investigation will continue to prove his innocence. Hasnat is a loving and devoted father and husband, and we will continue to cooperate with authorities to secure his release.” His family said they were at the cafe celebrating a birthday but were forced by the gunmen to carry out tasks that led some customers to believe he was part of the attack. “There is no justification at all for his incarceration with no end in sight,” Karim’s lawyer, Rodney Dixon, said.  “He should be released immediately and at least granted bail. The police have his passport, his family lives in Dhaka, and he is clearly going nowhere.” Our statement after #HasnatKarim was denied bail today. There has been one confirmed case of mistaken identity. The cafe’s chef Saiful Islam Chowkidar was shot and killed by police who believed he was a fleeing terrorist. The victim had been wearing a restaurant uniform but was running away near the attackers when authorities stormed in.


Haley said earlier this week that the US wanted emergency meetings to discuss the Iran situation Russia's deputy foreign minister has called the US proposal "harmful and destructive" US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley warned Iran on Friday that no government can legitimately deny human rights, adding that the regime is “now on notice.” Haley’s comments come at a United Nations Security Council meeting that centered on Iran after the US requested an emergency session amid protests in the country. “Human rights are not the gift of governments, they are the inalienable rights of the people themselves,” Haley said. “The Iranian regime is now on notice, the world will be watching what you do.” She added: “Freedom and human dignity cannot be separated from peace and security. When the rights of the people are denied, the people rightly resist. If the concerns are not acknowledged, then peace and security are inevitably threatened.” Haley said that “in the end, the Iranian people will determine their own destiny,” and she reiterated US support for the protesters. “And let there be no doubt whatsoever, the United States stands unapologetically with those in Iran who seek freedom for themselves, prosperity for their families and dignity for their nation,” she added. While most nations echoed Haley’s support for human rights and free speech, some also voiced concern that the UN Security Council was not the appropriate venue to discuss protests in Iran. “It is up to the Iranians, and to the Iranians alone, to pursue the path of peaceful dialogue, a dialogue based on full respect for the fundamental rights and freedoms of the Iranian people,” French Ambassador Francois Delattre said. “However worrying the events of the last few days in Iran may be, they do not constitute, per se, a threat to international peace and security.” Prior to the meeting, Delattre warned against the “instrumentalisation of the crisis from the outside because it would only reinforce the extremes, which is precisely what we want to avoid.” Russian UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia also slammed the US for using the meeting to bring up the Iranian protests under a “bogus pretext.” “Let Iran deal with its own problems,” said Nebenzia, who once again raised the idea of the Security Council meeting about protests in Ferguson, Missouri, and Occupy Wall Street demonstrations as the Russian mission to the UN did in a tweet on Tuesday. A representative from Iran responded forcefully at Friday’s meeting. “The move by the United States to bring to this council protests in Iran by some of our citizens for their legitimate grievances – some exacerbated by none other than the US itself in its dereliction of its obligations under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action – is an abuse of its power as a permanent member, and an abuse of the council itself,” Iranian Ambassador to the UN Gholamali Khoshroo said. “It is unfortunate that despite the resistance on the part of some of its members, this council has allowed itself to be abused by the current US administration in holding a meeting on an issue that falls outside the scope of its mandate, putting on display the failure of the council to fulfill its real responsibility in maintaining international peace and security,” he said. The US has been vocal in its support of the demonstrators and offered harsh condemnation of the Iranian government, including a tweet from President Donald Trump that called the Iranian regime “brutal and corrupt.” Related article Iran accuses US of 'grotesque' meddling through social media For its part, Iran has accused the US of “grotesque” meddling in social media to incite unrest – and thus tampering with Iranian affairs, according to a letter sent to the UN on Thursday. Haley said earlier this week that the US wanted emergency meetings in New York and in Geneva at the Human Rights Council to discuss the Iran situation. Russia’s deputy foreign minister has called the US proposal “harmful and destructive.” Differences in opinion between the US and Europe over how to address the situation in Iran began to manifest themselves ahead of Friday’s meeting. Related article Iran protests spur tensions between Trump admin and Europe “The United States has spoken clearly and unequivocally,” Vice President Mike Pence wrote in a Washington Post op-ed Wednesday. “Unfortunately, many of our European partners, as well as the United Nations, have thus far failed to forcefully speak out on the growing crisis in Iran. It’s time for them to stand up.” While the US and its European partners – including the United Kingdom, France and Germany – all fundamentally support the right of Iranian demonstrators to peacefully protest, they disagree in their analysis of where the situation on the ground is headed and over the strategic value of ramping up the rhetoric publicly, sources have told CNN. Uncertainty over how long the protests will continue has prompted European countries to collectively take a much more cautious approach to what it says publicly than the US. CNN’s Elise Labott contributed to this report


Editor’s Note: Rob Crilly is a British journalist living in New York. He was The Telegraph’s Afghanistan and Pakistan correspondent and was previously the East Africa correspondent for The Times of London. The opinions in this article are those of the author. This article has been updated to reflect the Queen’s speech. It is every dinner party host’s worst nightmare. The invitations have been sent, the menu selected and the seating plan is on its second draft. Then the guest of honor gets caught up in more scandals than you can count. What is the best way to unpick the whole thing? If you are British Prime Minister Theresa May, you distance yourself by not talking about it. Donald Trump’s State Visit to the UK was not  mentioned by the British head of state – The Queen – in her address to Parliament earlier today. British media previously reported that the visit has been put on ice due to a lack of public support. Downing Street denies this, claiming that no date has been decided yet. A senior White House official also said that it wasn’t mentioned “because the date is not yet set”. Related article What was missing from the Queen's Speech? Donald Trump It is easy to assume that Trump’s political travails and boorish missteps are the problem. When the invitation was extended, he was a part of a trans-Atlantic populist vanguard: a fellow traveler of the victorious Eurosceptics who pulled off the Brexit vote. The Prime Minister rushed to be the first foreign leader to meet Trump at the White House in January. The message was clear: A triumphant Britain marching out of Europe, head held high, was a Britain secure in the “special relationship.” Trump has rather spoiled that idea since then. He has riled Brits by trying to ban visitors from Muslim countries from entering the United States and withdrawn from the Paris climate accord. The public reception would almost certainly be hostile were Trump to visit the UK now. And imagine the scene at Buckingham Palace if Queen Elizabeth herself had to make small talk with Trump and Sadiq Khan, the London mayor berated by the American President on Twitter for his very measured, British reaction to the recent terrorist atrocity in London. May does not need that nor any more photographs of her hand clasped by an American whose popularity ratings are worse than her own. But there is more to this than meets the eye. It is not entirely about Trump as the embarrassing, unwanted uncle bringing unpalatable views to the dining table. It is as much about Britain’s domestic problems. May’s premiership is on life support, her government likely to be propped up by reactionary, homophobic lawmakers of Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party. No one knows how long that will last. The British people were asked to give her a mandate to govern last month. Instead they gave her a mandate to get lost. With the country less united than it has ever been, somehow she has to begin negotiating the UK’s exit from the European Union. Emmanuel Macron of France, Angela Merkel of Germany and Jean-Claude Juncker of the European Commission have let it be known they want to punish the Brexiteers, yielding not an inch in any deal so as to deter any other departures from their club. A strong British leader might have welcomed a Trump visit as a chance to steel the country’s resolve against them. Instead, we have a weak, disunited kingdom too fragile to survive boorish Trumpian tweets further riling European anger. Why further antagonize them with swipes at free trade and multilateral agreements? Related article Theresa May's Brexit to-do list is getting longer And therein lies the rub. The UK’s election results show a diminished country that is not at ease with itself or its recent decisions. None of its political parties was given the nod to sort things out. When asked who they wanted to govern them, its population said simply: not you! At best the country is uncertain; at worst it has entered a nihilistic rage. Against that backdrop of foreboding, of darker days ahead, of prime ministerial defenestration and a fresh election, of chaos and confusion, what meaning is there in a state visit? What point in pomp and circumstance? Sorry Donald, this just isn’t the right time. For once Theresa May is justified in using the classic breakup line: It’s not you, it’s me.