Gaza is now in a more dire malnutrition crisis as a result of Israel’s blockade. As the Strip’s population reaches its highest level, hospitals are overflowing with patients who have been denied access to food. Children are dying from malnutrition.
More than 230, 000 pages of once-classified files relating to Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK)’s murder have been made available by the White House almost six decades after his death in 1968.
After becoming president in January, Donald Trump signed an executive order declassifying documents related to the assassinations of King, former President John F Kennedy and former Senator Robert F Kennedy.
The MLK files, in large part, support the long-held myth that the assassin James Earl Ray acted alone and without conclusive proof of a larger conspiracy.
The FBI’s surveillance and harassment of King, including attempts to discredit and intimidate him in the years leading up to his assassination, are well documented in the files released on Monday.
So what do the MLK files offer? What actions did the FBI take against him? Why did Trump just release them now, then?
The MLK files are a treasure trove of documents that relate to King’s assassination in 1968 and the FBI’s ongoing surveillance of him throughout the 1950s and 1960s. After the FBI compiled the documents and gave them to the National Archives and Records Administration, the records were placed under a court-imposed seal in 1977.
The files include internal memos, wiretap transcripts, informant reports and correspondence from then-FBI Director J Edgar Hoover and senior officials, reflecting how the FBI viewed King as a political threat due to his civil rights activism.
The FBI’s covert attempt to discredit and intimidate King, which included bugging his hotels, breaking into his inner circle, and even writing him an unidentified letter urging him to commit suicide in 1964, is a major focus.
King’s ties to former Communist Party member Stanley Levison were used by the FBI to support illegal surveillance and attempts to undermine his reputation, and the FBI also falsely identified him as a communist sympathiser.
These operations were part of the FBI’s wider COINTELPRO programme, which targeted activists and dissenters across the country.
The newly released MLK files do not reveal any dramatic new evidence about his assassination or secret plots.
The FBI conducted extensive surveillance, and Ray was convicted as the lone shooter, which was widely known in the files.
The FBI may have considered additional suspects after Ray, but the communications also suggest otherwise. Ray confessed to killing King in 1969 but later recanted and claimed he was framed.
Ray had been on the run for almost two months prior to his arrest. Before being extradited to the US, where he was found guilty and given a 99-year prison sentence, he fled to Canada, Portugal, and the UK. He died in April 1998 from complications related to kidney and liver disease.
The FBI continued to monitor King and conduct extensive surveillance and disinformation campaigns under Hoover’s direction in the documents. These methods, including anonymous threats and wiretaps, have been widely known for decades, especially since the church committee’s findings in the US Senate in the 1970s.
The new files appear to confirm this history while adding more granular details. They provide additional internal memos and internal records that support earlier accounts of the bureau’s efforts to discredit King and keep his activities in perspective.
Notably, the release does not include any fresh information about the King assassination that might have been related to Ray.
But King scholars would like to see the information the FBI was discussing and circulating as part of its investigation, Ryan Jones, director of history, interpretation and curatorial services at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee told The Associated Press news agency.
According to Jones, “That’s critical given the fact that the American public at the time wasn’t aware that the FBI that was overseeing a smear campaign while he was alive,” They merely ignored the same bureau that was receiving assassination threats against King.
In the 1950s and 1960s, the civil rights movement fought for decades to put an end to racial segregation and prejudice against African Americans, primarily in the US.
Following World War II, Black Americans demanded equal treatment under the law and full access to the political, social, and economic rights guaranteed by the US Constitution, which was the root of centuries of resistance to slavery and racial injustice.
Led by figures such as Malcolm X, Rosa Parks, King and countless grassroots activists, the movement employed strategies ranging from peaceful protests and legal challenges to civil disobedience and mass mobilisation.
Landmark events like the Selma-to-Montgomery marches, the Alabama bus boycott in Alabama, the March on Washington, where King delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech, and the Selma-to-Montgomery marches, all of which were under the control of the public. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 were among the major legislative victories resulting from these efforts.
The FBI’s counterintelligence program, known as COINTELPRO, a covert initiative launched by the FBI under Hoover, dominated the FBI’s operation against King.
Initiated in 1956, COINTELPRO targeted various organisations, but its focus on King and the broader civil rights movement intensified in the early 1960s, particularly as King’s prominence grew.
King was identified as a threat to national security by the FBI, who had a suspicion of communist influence in the civil rights movement, despite never having any proof of such a claim.
Through surveillance and psychological strategies, King’s activities are outlined in declassified documents as part of a coordinated effort to monitor his behavior, undercut his leadership, and tarnish his reputation in the public. Wiretaps were placed on King’s home and office phones, and hidden microphones were installed in hotel rooms where he stayed.
Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy authorized these efforts in 1963, but they frequently turned on themselves to get slanderous information about King’s private life, particularly his extramarital affairs.
The FBI urged King to commit suicide to avoid public outcry in 1964 by sending an anonymous letter to him along with an audiotape it allegedly obtained from a contaminated hotel room to conceal his affairs.
The FBI’s operation against King, which continued until his assassination in 1968, reflected Hoover’s animosity and the agency’s broader paranoia about civil rights activism disrupting the status quo.
In a statement from the King family, it was stated that “he was relentlessly targeted by a deeply disturbing, predatory, and disinformation and surveillance campaign.“
The Trump administration released the MLK files despite opposition from his family and the political group he once led.
Attorney General Pamela Bondi stated in a statement that “the American people deserve answers decades after one of our country’s greatest leaders was killed.”
According to Trump’s request for the files to be made public, it was “in the national interest” to release the information. “Their families and the American people deserve transparency and truth”, it said.
To mark the release of the files, Bondi hosted Alveda King, a conservative commentator and MLK’s niece, at the Department of Justice. Alveda expressed gratitude to Trump for “keeping their promise of transparency in the release of these documents on King’s assassination.”
The King family said in its statement that it had hoped to get an opportunity to review the files as a family before their public release.
King’s children described their father’s case as a “captivating public curiosity for decades,” but they also stressed that “these files must be viewed in their full historical context.
We ask those who sign up for the release of these files to show respect for our family’s ongoing grief, according to the statement.
Trump declassified thousands of documents relating to the murders of former president John F. Kennedy (JFK) and his younger brother, Robert F. Kennedy, before making the MLK files public, citing transparency as a result.
In March, the National Archives released tens of thousands of pages concerning JFK’s 1963 assassination, including previously redacted FBI and CIA records. The intelligence efforts of US surveillance efforts during the Cold War and the assassin Lee Harvey Oswald were provided in more detail in these documents.
The Trump administration then released more than 70, 000 pages relating to Senator Kennedy’s 1968 assassination, which were released from April to June. These records included FBI field reports, informant files and internal memos.
While many praised the most recent release, other leaders criticized Trump for making the president’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files a political distraction.
Donald Trump, the president of the United States, has called for Barack Obama’s arrest, refuting unproven assertions that the Democratic administration had purposefully misled the public about the 2016 election.
Trump accused Obama, a long-standing adversary, of helming a criminal conspiracy at Tuesday’s Oval Office meeting with Philippine President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.
According to Trump, “Barack Hussein Obama was the gang’s leader,” the media reported.
“ He’s guilty. Treason was committed here. Every word you can think of was used to describe this. They attempted to sabotage the election. They attempted to obstruct the election. Nobody has ever imagined what they did, even in other nations.
President Trump has a history of spreading election-related lies, including by denouncing his own defeat in the 2020 election.
However, he has attempted to resolve problems with his victory in the 2016 presidential election, which has sparked concerns about Russia’s alleged attempts to influence the outcome.
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) discovered that Russia had attempted to influence the outcomes of Trump’s second term in the wane in 2016. Obama reacted to the allegations by removing Russian diplomats and imposing sanctions on the nation.
Later, details about the Russian influence campaign were revealed in a 2017 intelligence community assessment.
However, a special counsel’s report found that there wasn’t enough evidence to refute the claim that the Trump campaign colluded with Russia in 2019. However, it once more bolstered the government’s claim that Russia “infected the election in a comprehensive and systematic manner.”
Trump, however, has referred to these inquiries as politicized attacks meant to undermine his authority.
Trump cited recent assertions made by his director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, who claimed the Obama administration had committed wrongdoing in his appearance on Tuesday.
Trump remarked, “They caught President Obama absolutely cold.” There should be very harsh consequences for those who attempted to rig the election after being caught.
Trump’s most recent comments regarding what he refers to as the “Russia hoax” come just days after Gabbard released a press release on the subject on July 18.
Gabbard’s office claims in the statement that “President Obama and his national security cabinet members produced and politicized intelligence” to create the framework for what was essentially a years-long coup against President Trump.
After that release, Gabbard made a number of social media posts, some of which suggested she had requested that Obama be charged with bringing criminal charges against him. She described the 2016 election scrutiny as a “treasonous conspiracy.”
According to Gabbard, “Their goal was to usurp President Trump and sabotage the American people’s will.”
Every person connected to this conspiracy must be investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent permitted, she continued. We’re submitting all of our paperwork to the DOJ for a criminal referral.
However, Gabbard’s report’s veracity has been questioned a lot. She appears to be interpreting different conclusions, according to critics.
Gabbard has cited internal government documents from the 2016 election cycle that show that Russia did not use cyberattacks to change the vote count overall.
However, the intelligence report from 2017 did not make any claims about Russian election hacking attempts. Instead, it highlighted ways Russia used disinformation to influence public opinion.
Online smuggling, the distribution of hacked data, and targeted messaging about election-related individuals and groups were part of Russia’s campaign.
Other investigations into the matter, including a separate Department of Justice inspector general report and a Senate investigation led by Republicans, all demonstrated that Russia had attempted to influence the 2016 election.
However, Gabbard’s claim that the Democratic Party’s scrutiny of the 2016 election was unlawful has sparked controversy.
Senator Mark Warner of Virginia even questioned Gabbard’s decision to continue serving as director of national intelligence.
He wrote on social media that it is regrettable that DNI Gabbard, who promised to depoliticize the intelligence community, is once more using her position to amplify the president’s election conspiracy theories.
Gabbard’s claims were described in a statement released by Obama himself through his office as “bizarre.”
Nothing in the document released last week undermines the widely accepted notion that Russia aided in the 2016 presidential election without successfully manipulating votes, it said.
Some critics have suggested that Trump may be attempting to distract from his current political woes by handling files involving Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted sex offender, in response to the years-old controversy surrounding Russian election interference.
Despite this, President Trump has refrained from contradicting Gabbard’s claims, even reposting a video that was created by artificial intelligence (AI) on Monday that showed Obama being handcuffed in the Oval Office while the YMCA was playing.
Trump said on Tuesday, “This is like proof that Obama was seditious and that he was trying to lead a coup.” Obama “headed it up,” he said.
Donald Trump, the president of the United States, claimed he and the Philippines have reached a trade agreement, which will set US exports at a 19% tariff rate, while US products will not be subject to tariffs.
Shortly after meeting with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at the White House, the president made the announcement of the new agreement on Tuesday on his social media platform Truth Social.
After welcoming Marcos to the White House, Trump stated on his Truth Social platform, “We concluded our Trade Agreement, whereby The Philippines is going OPEN MARKET with the United States.”
Trump earlier this month threatened to threaten a 20 percent tariff rate, but it was significantly higher than the 17 percent rate set by the president’s announcement to “receive tariff rates for dozens of countries” in April. It matches Indonesia’s 19% rate, outperforming Vietnam’s slightly higher 20 percent rate, which was announced.
Last year, the US and the Philippines traded almost $5 billion worth of bilateral goods.
At the start of the meeting, Marcos, the first Southeast Asian leader to agree with Trump in his second term, stated to reporters that the US was his nation’s “strongest, closest, most reliable ally.”
Trump did not provide specifics, but he said the two Pacific allies would also cooperate militarily.
Raquel Solano, the assistant foreign secretary for the Philippines, reported last week that trade officials have been collaborating with US counterparts to reach a “mutually beneficial and mutually acceptable” agreement.
As Marcos arrived, protesters gathered nearby to demand that the Philippine leader respond to Filipino Americans’ and immigrant workers’ repeated requests for support in response to US immigration raids.
Trump emphasized the significance of the US-Philippine military relationship, saying, “They’re a very important country militarily, and we’ve had some great drills lately.
Marcos met with Marco Rubio and Pete Hegseth, the secretary of state, on Monday in Washington. He will also meet with Philippine business leaders who are investing in the Philippines during his trip. According to Philippine officials, Marcos intended to make it clear that Manila must strengthen its economy if it wants to be a truly strong US ally in the Asia-Pacific region.
Trump stated at the Oval Office that he might make a historic trip to China “in the not-too-distant future” and that the Philippines had distanced itself from Beijing following his victory in November.
Trump claimed that while the nation was tying itself toward China, “we un-tilted it very, very quickly.”
After allowing a tit-for-tat tariff war that has impacted global trade and supply chains, the US president has attempted to ease tensions with Beijing in recent weeks. Next week, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will meet with Chinese officials in Sweden.
According to two reports, solar and wind power will become even less expensive and more widely used as a result of the “positive tipping point” that has been reached in the global transition to renewable energy.
According to a report released by a number of UN organizations under the name Seizing the Moment of Opportunity, 74 percent of the increase in electricity produced globally was generated by wind, solar, and other green sources. On Tuesday, it was released.
According to the report, renewable energy accounts for 92.5% of all new grid capacity added in 2024. In addition, electric vehicle sales increased from 500,000 in 2015 to more than 17 million in 2024.
According to an energy cost report released by the Intergovernmental Energy Agency (IRENA), the three most affordable electricity sources were solar panels, new hydropower, and onshore wind. According to the reports, solar energy is currently 41% less expensive than wind power, and wind power is 53% less expensive overall.
In a speech at the UN headquarters in New York City, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres declared that “the fossil fuel age is failing and flailing.”
We are at the start of a new era of energy. a world with abundant, affordable, and clean energy that is “free of economic opportunity”
According to Guterres, “just follow the money,” according to Guterres, who quoted reports that showed there was $ 2 trillion in green energy investment last year, or $ 800 billion more than in fossil fuels.
Despite receiving nearly nine times as much government consumption subsidies as fossil fuels, Guterres and the reports claimed.
According to the UN report, global fossil fuel subsidies amounted to $ 620 billion in 2023, compared to $ 70 billion for renewables.
The UN did, however, warn that the transition to renewable energy is not quick enough.
Despite the boom in renewable energy, there is still a rise in global fossil fuel production rather than a decline. According to UN officials, this is because of the need for cooling in an ever warmer world, as well as the need for developing nations to increase overall power demand.
Guterres warned people who rely on fossil fuels that their futures were in danger of developing into poorer, not richer.
“Locations that cling to fossil fuels are not preserving their economies. They are [sabotaging] them, Guterres said, “sabotaging them by raising costs, undermining competitiveness, locking in stranded assets.”
Countries like China, where one-tenth of the economy is tasked with green energy, as well as countries like India and Brazil, have experienced the greatest growth of renewable energy globally.
Despite having significant electrification requirements, the reports claimed that Africa accounted for less than 2% of the new green energy installed last year.
The Bahamian climate scientist Adelle Thomas of the Natural Resources Defense Council, who did not contribute to the reports, told The Associated Press news agency that “the Global South must be empowered to generate its own electricity without adding to existing unsustainable levels of debt.”
By 2030, Guterres demanded that major technology companies use renewable energy to completely power data centers.
According to Guterres, “an AI data center consumes as much electricity as 100 000 homes.” According to the report, “data centers could use as much electricity as Japan does today.”
The UN representative claimed that “the cloud is being built in the future.”
Ozzy Osbourne, the infamous frontman of Black Sabbath’s legendary lineup, passed away at the age of 76, his family announced in a statement.
The raucous singer, who had been given Parkinson’s disease in 2019, passed away on Tuesday after playing a farewell concert in Birmingham, England, his hometown.
The family’s statement read, “Our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning. More sadness than words can convey.
He was surrounded by love and his family. At this time, we ask that everyone respects our family’s privacy.
Osbourne’s contribution to Black Sabbath’s enormous commercial success in the 1970s was instrumental in pioneering heavy metal, an offshoot of hard rock.
He once bit off a bat while performing as the “Prince of Darkness.”
He was 15 when he and his friend Geezer Butler left school and started working at the time, joining them in various bands. He was born as John Michael Osbourne on December 3, 1948, in Birmingham.
Later, he switched gears and appeared on “The Osbournes,” a reality TV program.
He ended his wild career earlier this month when Black Sabbath sang their most well-known songs in front of some 42, 000 fans at Villa Park, the home of Premier League football team Aston Villa.
The final song ever, in my opinion. After the band’s most well-known song “Paranoid,” Osbourne told the audience, “Thank you from the bottom of our hearts,” that our country has an amazing lifestyle.
The Beatles of heavy metal are “Black Sabbath.” Anyone who is serious about metal will agree that Sabbath is the center of everything, says Jane’s Addiction’s Dave Navarro in a 2010 tribute to Rolling Stone.
Through eighties bands like Iron Maiden, “there’s a direct line you can draw back to Sabbath,” says the artist.
Sharon and their three children, Kelly, Aimee, and Jack, survive Osbourne.
