US sanctions Iran ‘shadow fleet’ it says fuels violent protest crackdown

Minneapolis businesses close doors for economic blackout protesting ICE

As part of a significant economic protest dubbed “The Day of Truth and Freedom,” hundreds of businesses in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in the middle of the United States, are closing their doors.

Small businesses, unions, faith organizations, and educators from across the city who have come together for Friday’s walkout, which has become a focal point for the aggressive actions of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency. A coalition of community groups is behind the call, which also calls for the suspension of consumer spending.

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The organization organizing the protest wrote on its website that “it is time to suspend the normal course of business” in order to demand the immediate cessation of ICE operations in Minnesota.

In cities all over the country, including Seattle, Los Angeles, New York City, Los Angeles, Salt Lake City, and others, there are solidarity marches.

The group also has a march scheduled for the Minneapolis protest that will start at 2 p.m. local time (20:00 GMT) and end at the Target Center, a downtown Minneapolis arena.

Eyes on Target

Due to the company’s close ties to Minneapolis, where its headquarters are located, and its position as the state’s fourth-largest employer, the big-box retailer, in particular, has been in the spotlight of event planners.

The organization is urging Target stores to enact Fourth Amendment protections, which would prevent federal agents from entering homes or places of business without a judge-signed warrant.

The group identified two incidents that raised concerns in a document that the organization shared with the organizers. Two cases came on the same day, on January 8, when Customs and Border Patrol brutally detained two US citizens while they were employed at a store in Richfield, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis; the other was in nearby St Paul, where Customs and Border Patrol Chief Greg Bovino and other agents squatted into a store.

“Target follows, where others lead.” Federal agents are reportedly attacking Minnesotans inside of Target stores, and our state is under their control. The document states that Target must support Minnesotans in preventing these attacks.

The protests and calls for action from Target have been kept under wraps. According to Bloomberg News, the company emailed a memo to employees warning of possible disruptions.

The anti-ICE protesters’ pressure is just the latest in a string of progressives’ recent counterrepression against the retail giant. Following the company’s decision to reverse its diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, which the company later attributed to a factor contributing to a decline in sales in early 2025, there were calls for boycotts.

Wall Street’s stock is up 1.3 percent in midday trading, keeping up with the looming tensions.

Al Jazeera requested comment from Target, but the outlet did not respond.

The political response

“The Trump Administration’s immigration enforcement operations have resulted in the removal of numerous dangerous criminal illegals from the streets, including murderers, burglars, drunk drivers, and more.” Making American communities safer will result in a safe environment for all businesses and their customers. Democrats and Joe Biden should have never allowed a large number of dangerous criminals to enter our nation. According to White House spokesman Abigail Jackson, the Trump administration is now cleaning up the Democrats’ mess, according to a statement from the White House.

The White House declined to comment further when asked for a response to this argument and whether ICE would hold agents accountable for breaking the law.

The protests were prompted by allegations that the agency’s actions violated First and Fourth Amendment protections and threatened to target protesters.

Among them are the Department of Justice’s decision not to investigate the shooter who killed Renee Good, which has sparked further outrage among civil liberties advocates. The agent who fatally shot and killed Renee Good is one of the economic blackout’s demands.

I support the decisions made by those who are choosing to take part in the blackout on January 23. Our small businesses, especially those that are owned by immigrant people, are currently under a lot of pressure, and they could really use our assistance. I hope we consider our neighbors and nearby businesses, according to Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey in a statement released to Al Jazeera.

Venezuela’s interim president’s oil law reform to break with Chavez model

Venezuela’s parliament has proposed a proposal to lessen the state’s influence over Venezuela’s oil industry and strengthen the private sector’s role in the first major industry overhaul in a long time.

Following the US’s abduction of former president Nicolas Maduro on January 3, Venezuela’s hydrocarbons law was proposed to reform it, which had attracted significant business and political party interest.

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Following those events, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright and the White House made the announcement of a $500bn energy deal between the two nations, which would allow Washington to have significant influence over Venezuela’s oil industry.

The reform, which was approved in its first reading on Thursday, disintegrates several tenets of former president Hugo Chavez’ 2006 plan, which gave the state-owned oil company PDVSA exclusive rights to crude marketing.

The new text reaffirms PDVSA’s majority stake in joint ventures, permits minority partners to exercise technical and operational management, and permits direct commercialization by private companies. It also permits the opening of bank accounts in any currency and jurisdiction.

Additionally, the bill proposes repealing the law that allows private companies to subcontract oil extraction, provided they bear the associated costs and risks, for the state to retain ancillary services related to primary oil activities.

Further, it allows for more flexible royalty payments, cutting them from 30% to as little as 15% of the extracted crude as a propulsion to attract investment, particularly new drilling in underdeveloped areas.

Another significant change seeks to incorporate legal safeguards through independent dispute-resolution mechanisms like arbitration and mediation.

Executives from multinational oil companies discussed legal certainty with US President Donald Trump on January 9 during a meeting to discuss multibillion-dollar claims made by ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips against the Venezuelan state following the 2007 nationalization process.

The “Legal of Ambiguity”

The proposal is still fraught with rhetoric, according to economist Jose Guerra, former Central Bank director of research. He contends that there is no explicit agreement between private companies and private companies regarding the ownership of majority shares.

Guerra remarked that “this law is a law of ambiguity” to prevent people from “blatantly breaking with Chavez’s oil legacy.” It doesn’t emphasize private participation at all.

He noted that production participation contracts (CPP), under which companies could effectively hold more than 50% of the market, have already been used by the government to cede ground to private capital.

When Rodrigueez was minister of energy and oil in 2024, the CPP framework was created. Due to the protection provided by Article 37 of the Anti-Blockade Law, which was passed to obstruct sanctions imposed on PDVSA in 2019, its operation has been marked by opacity.

The existing Hydrocarbons Law, which restricts private or foreign capital to joint ventures in which PDVSA must hold a majority stake, is broken by that provision, which allows the government to bypass.

Rodrigues told the National Assembly on January 15 that oil production rose from 900,000 barrels per day to 1.2 million barrels per day, and that investments in this industry totaled nearly $900 million in 2025 as a result of the introduction of CPPs in April of that year.

The draft was not made public until a few hours before lawmakers convened for their first debate, which caused controversy. The opposition voted against the bill, arguing that it should be interpreted as a “social pact” in a nation with the largest oil reserves as a result of extensive and thorough consultation among all parties.

‘Model Chevron’

The law formalises what is known as the “Chevron model,” according to Luis Oliveros, dean of the Metropolitan University in Caracas, as a positive sign.

He added that it gives foreign companies more flexibility to take over the joint ventures’ technical, operational, and financial management. He continued, noting that foreign investors would have been more interested if PDVSA had been forced to sell its mandatory majority stake.

The reform, according to Oswaldo Felizzola, director of Venezuela’s International Center for Energy and Environment (CIEA), has enough elements to entice new investors to invest in the sector, but ultimately falls short.

The proposal “is necessary but not sufficient,” he said. According to Felizzola, the law needs to be updated for the 21st century. It is no longer as statist as it would paralyze the industry, though.

He noted that many well-established businesses could switch to a different operating model to increase profits, but he cautioned that the framework still has significant shortcomings. It does not consider current or upcoming issues, such as climate change, and it is not a law that will determine oil’s future role, he said.

The reform’s requirements, in Felizzola’s opinion, are more similar to those in place in Venezuela in the latter half of the 20th century. Are additional changes required? Yes. However, at least enough are in place to work with and be permitted by the Venezuelan government.

Before it can be passed, the reform bill must now go through the National Assembly’s consultation phase and undergo a second, article-by-article debate. When that will occur is unknown.

Venezuela’s economy is already being affected by the Trump administration’s energy cooperation. The US government made its first $ 300 million from US crude sales this week, with the goal of stabilizing the global exchange market.

One-year-old twin girls missing after migrant crossing to Italy: NGO

According to Save the Children, a boat carrying dozens of migrants and refugees reached the Italian island of Lampedusa this week, leaving twin girls, one-year-old, and two-year-old girls missing at sea.

The organization reported on Friday that 22 unaccompanied minors and the mother of the missing twins, who had crossed to Lampedusa in “extremely difficult conditions” brought on by Cyclone Harry, were among the 61 people saved from the ship the day before.

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They described being evacuated from Tunisia, enduring stormy seas for at least three days, and arriving in a state of extreme physical and psychological distress, according to a statement from Save the Children.

The group added that a man passed away after leaving the ship.

According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the Central Mediterranean is the world’s most fatal migration route.

Twelve children under the age of five, 12 of whom were killed last October when their boat capsized after leaving Salakta, a coastal town in Tunisia, killing 49 people.

The Central Mediterranean has recorded nearly 1, 000 deaths and disappearances this year [2025], with more than 25, 000 people dead since 2014, according to the IOM at the time.

In comparison to 22 deaths in all of 2024, there are at least 30 children dead off Tunisian coast already this year [2025].

According to the IOM’s Missing Migrants Project, which tracks crossings, Tunisia has seen a rise in departures in recent years.

The IOM reported that Tunisian nationals made up more than 60% of the Central Mediterranean crossings in 2020 because the nation was facing high unemployment rates and worsening socioeconomic and political hardships.

Due to the lack of safe migration routes, according to Save the Children, people continue to risk their lives “on dangerous and frequently fatal journeys.”

The European Union is accountable for every action that puts people who are fleeing poverty, violence, and persecution in danger, according to Giorgia D’Errico, director of institutional relations for the organization.

Former UK local politician pleads guilty to drugging, raping ex-wife

Five other men, including five men who are also accused of sexual offences against her, have admitted to drugging and raping his ex-wife over the course of more than ten years.

Joanne Young, ex-husband, was previously charged with violating her legal right to anonymity, but Philip Young, 49, who previously served on Swindon borough council in the south of England, admitted guilt on Friday.

The former local politician admitted guilt at Winchester Crown Court after appearing on 11 counts of rape, 11 counts of using a substance to elicit sexual activity, seven counts of assault by penetration, and four counts of sexual assault.

Additionally, he entered a guilty plea to 14 counts of voyeurism, including one in which Young accused him of publishing obsscene articles by publishing images and videos of his ex-wife “on no fewer than 500 occasions.”

According to the Press Association news agency, Joanne Young is the subject of a sexual offence against five other men who also show up in court.

Richard Wilkins, 61, and Norman Macksoni, 47, entered pleas not guilty to one rape count.

Additionally, Wilkins entered a not-guilty plea for one perforated assault charge.

Connor Sanderson Doyle, 31, entered a not-guilty plea for sexual assault through sexual touching and penetration.

Dean Hamilton, 47, is awaiting sentencing for a rape charge as well as two counts of sexual assault and one count of perforational assault.

Mohammed Hassan, 37, entered a not-guilty plea for touching someone sexually.

According to PA, the five men have all been granted bail and are scheduled to go on trial on October 5.

Joanne Young, 48, and a witness support witness were present in court with her sister.