More than 20 Russian spies, hackers, and organizations have been subject to sanctions by the United Kingdom for what it called a “sustained campaign of malicious cyber activity” to destabilize Europe.
The Russian military intelligence agency GRU agency and 18 of its officers were sanctioned by the Foreign Office on Friday.
According to the report, officers were allegedly involved in the preparation of the 2022 attack on Ukraine’s Mariupol theater, which resulted in the deaths of hundreds of civilians who sought refuge inside the structure.
It also sanctioned those accused of being involved in the British nerve agent Novichok poisoning attack that happened in 2018 against former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy stated in a statement that “GRU spies are conducting a campaign to destabilize Europe, undermine Ukraine’s sovereignty, and threaten British citizens’ safety.
Additionally, the UK claimed that Russia had targeted British media outlets, telecoms companies, political and democratic institutions, and UK energy infrastructure.
Moscow has been repeatedly accused of orchestrating bad behavior by British authorities, including sabotage and assassinations, as well as traditional espionage and actions that undermine democracy.
Russia refutes assertions.
Three men were found guilty earlier this month of arson at a London-based Ukrainian company, according to police, who carried out the attack at the mercenary group’s will.
Moscow has refuted these accusations, saying they were made up by Moscow because they were not in any way harmful to the UK.
The British foreign ministry announced that it was punishing three members of the “African Initiative,” which it claimed was a Russian-funded social media content mill operating in West Africa, in addition to the sanctions against GRU.
To change its approach to defense, the UK has recently increased its military spending, partly to address Russian threats, nuclear risks, and cyberattacks.
On Friday, the European Union and NATO released statements praising what they thought were Russia’s destabilizing hybrid activities.
The UK’s action comes on the same day that the EU approved a number of stringent sanctions against Russia for its conflict in Ukraine.
Israel’s posture poses a significant challenge to the Syrian government, according to Al Jazeera’s Zeina Khodr, as fighting continues between southern Syrian factions and the country’s army is under threat from Israel.
Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s residence and headquarters have been raided by federal police, who have ordered him to wear an ankle monitor because he may have fled the country.
Bolsonaro, who ruled Latin America’s largest nation from 2019 to 2022, was reportedly a top priority for police in a statement released on Friday, saying they had executed search warrants ordered by the nation’s Supreme Court.
The prosecutor general of Brazil later confirmed the raid, citing Bolsonaro as saying there was a “concrete” possibility that Bolsonaro would leave the country as a result of his andnbsp, ongoing trial over alleged efforts to overturn President Luiz Inacio’s election victory in January 2023.
Bolsonaro was told to stop using social media, wear an ankle bracelet, and sever all contacts with foreign officials, according to the court. Additionally, it was against him to approach Brazilian consulates or embassies abroad.
Brazilian police have also been accused of working with his son Eduardo, a Brazilian lawmaker who has been lobbying for US President Donald Trump to impose sanctions on Brazil, in a statement from the top court.
Trump earlier this month threatened to impose a 50% tariff on Brazilian goods if Bolsonaro is denied legal reprieve, according to the claim.
The lawyers for Bolsonaro responded to the most recent actions by calling them “surprising and indignant” with “severe precautionary measures imposed on him.” Bolsonaro continued, noting that the court has so far followed orders.
Eduardo Bolsonaro alleged in a social media post that Trump retaliated against a video his father posted on Thursday, thanking him for his support.
The elder Bolsonaro denied that he was considering leaving the country in a statement to reporters on Friday.
He claimed that the end goal is “absolute humiliation.”
Trump’s tariff threats
Trump claimed in a Truth Social post last week that Brazilian authorities “have only done things after Bolsonaro,” day after day, night after night, month after month, and year after year!
Trump remarked, “He is not guilty of anything other than fighting for THE PEOPLE.”
In a 517-page document released late on Monday, Brazilian Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet demanded that Bolsonaro be found guilty of the crimes, which could have put the former leader in prison for decades.
The defendant systematically acted throughout his mandate and after losing in the election to incite insurrection and the destabilization of the democratic rule of law, Gonet claimed in the filing.
Following his first term in office, Trump himself was charged with four counts of inciting crime, one of which involved his efforts to overturn the result of his own election loss in 2020. Like Bolsonaro, he has repeatedly claimed to have been the victim of a political “witch hunt.”
Trump’s threat to impose massive reciprocal tariffs on dozens of trade partners comes as part of the US pressure campaign, which stands out for its particularly personal tone.
Bolsonaro and Trump have remained close to each other since the US president’s first term, which runs from 2017 to 2021, and are sometimes referred to as the “Trump of the Tropics.”
After Trump announced 50-percent tariffs on Brazilian goods in Sao Paulo, Brazil, protesters wearing masks of US President Donald Trump, right, and former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro.
Lula claimed on Thursday that there was no logic to Trump’s tariff threat.
“We cannot let President Trump forget that he was elected to serve as the US’s president rather than as the world’s emperor,” Lula said.
Date: Saturday 19 July Kick-off: 22:05 BST Venue: Audi Field, Washington DC
Full-back Joe Carpenter says he wants to follow the example of Sale team-mate Tom Roebuck in claiming a regular England spot when he makes his Test debut against the United States on Saturday.
Carpenter toured Japan and New Zealand last summer with England, without winning a cap, and was left out of Steve Borthwick’s autumn and Six Nations selections.
However, with Marcus Smith on Lions duty and George Furbank out injured, he has been part of the squad this summer, scoring a try in the non-cap warm-up match against a France XV last month.
Roebuck, Carpenter’s former house-mate, was frustrated to not get more game time in Japan and New Zealand last summer, but made his first England start against Wales in the Six Nations and has four tries in his past four Tests.
“I’m excited to rip in,” Carpenter told BBC Sport.
“An opportunity to play for England is massive and, whatever game it is, it’s an opportunity to put my best foot forward and hopefully stay in the squad and get more opportunities.
“It’s great to be in this environment with Tom and see him thrive. I think he’s on five or six caps now and so I’m massively proud of him.
“We lived in academy houses together, and then moved into town together before eventually splitting off to live with our partners. He’s definitely my best mate in terms of rugby.
“To have someone that close to you doing it, it just pushes you to be better and get there with him.
“Unfortunately, he’s not playing this weekend. It would have been cool to share the field with him in an England shirt.
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Carpenter faces considerable competition for the 15 shirt.
Leicester’s Freddie Steward started both wins over Argentina earlier in the tour, while, in addition to Furbank and Smith, injured Lion Elliot Daly and Henry Arundell, back in England contention after moving to Bath, can also play full-back.
However, the 23-year-old believes he is well suited to the attacking, opportunistic style that England want to play.
“For me there’s a lot on kick return and beating the first man, which is a big focus here – getting the boys on the front foot,” he said.
“That’s massive. And also being that edge connection that gets the ball to the wingers. We have got Cadan [Murley] and Manny [Immanuel Feyi-Waboso] this weekend who are absolutely flying. I want those boys to get the ball.
“I get on with Freddie really well. It’s great when that’s the case because you can compete together, learn together and get better together.
“Freddie is an aerial beast, isn’t he? That has been an area of my game over the past three years that I’ve been trying to match to his because obviously that’s one of one of his USPs.
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Even with Roebuck rested, Sale are the best-represented club in England’s XV in Washington with fly-half George Ford and props Bevan Rodd and Asher Opoku-Fordjour alongside Carpenter.
Ben Curry is on the bench and, behind the scenes, Sale’s defence coach Byron McGuigan and physio Nav Sandhu have been seconded to England’s staff this summer.
Sale lost to Steward’s Leicester in the Premiership semi-finals in June, the fourth time in the past five seasons that they have reached the play-offs.
“I think that representation kind of reflects the last few seasons at Sale really,” Carpenter added.
“All the lads and all the coaches have been fantastic here, but it is really good that we’ve got such a good crew of Sale boys here.
“Next year for us it is about how we can keep that consistency throughout the year and I think it will show with the boys here and the boys we have signed.”
A birthday note emblazoned with US President Donald Trump’s signature was included in a collection of letters given to the late, well-known sex offender Jeffrey Epstein on his birthday in 2003, according to the Wall Street Journal (WSG) on Thursday.
Trump denies having written the letter and, on Thursday, told Attorney General Pam Bondi to request a court release of the transcripts of all grand jury testimony in the Epstein case.
According to the WSJ, Trump’s relationship with Epstein has rekindled conflict. We identify the exact degree of kinship between the two men over time.
What was in Trump’s birthday letter to Epstein?
Epstein received a leather-bound collection of letters and notes for his 50th birthday in 2003, according to a report from the WSJ.
Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s associate and partner, who later admitted to being Jeffrey Epstein’s accomplice in his sexual abuse operation, had compiled this. She was found guilty in 2021 and is now serving a 20-year prison sentence handed down in 2022.
Third-person typewritten text was included in the letter. Additionally, it had a woman’s breasts inked in a cartoon, and it had the name “Donald” on it. The drawing appeared to be hand-drawn with a heavy marker, the WSJ reported.
Happy birthday, and may every day be another wonderful secret, was the letter’s final phrase.
Al Jazeera couldn’t independently confirm the letter’s veracity.
Following the revelations about the letter, Trump wrote on Truth Social: “The Wall Street Journal printed a FAKE letter, supposedly to Epstein. Not in my words, not in my conversation. I also don’t use any pictures as much.
” I told Rupert Murdoch it was a Scam, that he shouldn’t print this Fake Story. But he did, and I’m now suing both his third-rate newspaper and his a** off. I appreciate you paying attention to this issue! DJT. “
According to him, “I have asked Attorney General Pam Bondi to produce any and all pertinent Grand Jury testimony, subject to Court approval,” he further wrote. This Democrats-persisted SCAM should end right away!
Soon after Trump’s statement, Bondi announced on X that the Justice Department planned to request the unsealing of grand jury transcripts in court on Friday.
What we know about the two men’s true relationships with one another is revealed here.
Trump and Epstein are close friends in the 1980s.
in 2002, Trump told the New York Magazine that he had been friends with Epstein since about the late 1980s.
Trump was both a real estate mogul and a businessman in the 1980s.
Jeff and I have been friends for 15 years. Terrific guy, “Trump said.
He’s a lot of fun to be around. He claims to like beautiful women just as much as I do, and many of them are younger. No doubt about it – Jeffrey enjoys his social life, “Trump continued.
1990s: Trump and Epstein can be seen spotting at parties and flying together.
The two men were photographed socializing at prominent gatherings throughout the 1990s.
In November 1992, Trump threw a party with NFL cheerleaders at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. He had requested NBC to take the event’s recording.
Trump and Epstein are laughing together, as recorded on the party’s audio, which was released by NBC online in 2019.
In 1997, Epstein and Trump were seen together at the Victoria Secret” Angels “party in New York.
At the Victoria’s Secret “Angels” party on April 28, 1997 in New York City, Trump posses with Belgian model Ingrid Seynhaeve.On April 9, 1997, Epstein and Trump attended a performance at the club Duvet on 21st Street in New York City.
Trump also frequently flew on Epstein’s private jets – seven times in total between 1993 and 1997 – according to flight logs presented as evidence during Maxwell’s trial.
This included four occasions in 1993: one in 1994, one in 1995, and one in 1997. Between Palm Beach and New York, there was a stop in Washington, D.C.
Epstein (left) and Trump as they pose together at the Mar-a-Lago estate, Palm Beach, Florida, in 1997]File: Davidoff Studios/Getty Images]
2000s: Trump’s name appears in the Epstein files, and the two continue to party.
The two men were photographed at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in 2000.
These images also feature Maxwell and Trump’s now wife, then known as Melania Knauss.
On February 12, 2000, Melania Knauss (later Trump) and Michael Bolton pose with the musician at the Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida. [Davidoff Studios/Getty Images] Maxwell (second right) and Epstein (right) are visible in the background. Melania Trump, Prince Andrew, Epstein associate Gwendolyn Beck and Epstein at a party at the Mar-a-Lago club, Palm Beach, Florida, on February 12, 2000]Davidoff Studios/Getty Images]
About 950 pages of court documents identifying Epstein’s associates were made public in January 2024.
Trump was not charged with any offense in these documents, but he was mentioned in them.
Virginia Giuffre, one of the women who accused Epstein of sexual abuse, told the court that she was working at Mar-a-Lago when she was recruited by Maxwell to become Epstein’s masseuse at the age of 16.
Giuffre claimed that Prince Andrew and Epstein arranged for her to perform sexual acts with other people.
Another woman, Johanna Sjoberg, alleged that Virginia Giuffre, a minor, was on a 2001 flight from Florida to Florida, on which they were also passengers.
Due to a storm, the plane diverted to Atlantic City, where they visited one of Trump’s casinos.
Sjoberg compared Giuffre to say, “I did not know anything about the age requirement for legal gambling.” She and I didn’t gamble because we both knew she couldn’t because of an ID problem.
Giuffre died by suicide in April this year.
Trump’s birthday letter to Epstein from 2003
The WSJ obtained the text of a allegedly Trump letter for Epstein’s birthday. It appears to be in script form:
Voice Over: “There must be more to life than having everything.
Donald: Yes, but I won’t disclose what it is.
Jeffrey: Nor will I, since I also know what it is.
Jeffrey, you know, we have a few things in common.
Jeffrey: Yes, as you might imagine.
Donald: Enigmas never age, have you noticed that?
Jeffrey: Since when did it really matter to me when I last saw you?
Donald: A pal is wonderful. Happy Birthday – and may every day be another wonderful secret. “
Trump threatened to sue the publication if he denied writing the letter to the WSJ on Tuesday, according to the report. In my entire life, I have never written a picture. I don’t draw pictures of women, “he told the Journal.
Trump directly warned Rupert Murdoch and The Wall Street Journal that the allegedly fake letter printed by him to Epstein was a FAKE and that they could be sued if they print it, according to Trump’s post on his Truth Social platform.
Publisher News Corp., run by Rupert Murdoch, is the WSJ’s publisher.
2004: Trump and Epstein have a real estate dispute
Trump and Epstein argued over a Palm Beach foreclosed oceanfront mansion in 2004.
According to The Washington Post, Trump had outbid Epstein for the property.
Since that date, there was sparse public evidence of the two men interacting.
Epstein is facing criminal charges in 2006;
After the girl’s parents filed a complaint, Florida police began an investigation into claims Epstein had sexually assaulted a 14-year-old girl.
Epstein was charged by Palm Beach police officials with multiple counts of unlawful sex with a minor.
However, the State Attorney referred the case to a grand jury, which indicted Epstein on one count of soliciting prostitution.
Epstein admitted guilt in 2008 to charges involving just one victim. He served 13 months in jail under a work-release programme that permitted him to leave during the day for work and return to jail at night.
2019: Epstein is detained once more and passes away.
In New York, Epstein was charged with sex trafficking during Trump’s first presidential term, which ended in 2019.
In July 2019, Trump was asked by a reporter about Epstein, to which he responded:” Well, I knew him like everybody in Palm Beach knew him. People in Palm Beach knew him, after all. He was a hit in Palm Beach.
Trump added:” I had a falling out with him a long time ago. I don’t believe I’ve spoken to him in 15 years.
On August 10, 2019, Epstein passed away in a Manhattan jail cell.
During an interview after Epstein’s death, Trump said about the case:” I want a full investigation, and that’s what I absolutely am demanding. “
Trump’s changing position on the “Epstein list” in 2025.
Trump pledged to release details about the Epstein case in 2024 while running for president.
He also appointed Pam Bondi to be the Attorney General.
Bondi was asked in a February interview with Fox News: “The DOJ may be releasing the list of Jeffrey Epstein’s clients, will that really happen? “
She responded, “It’s currently sitting on my desk.”
However, on July 7, the US Department of Justice released a , memo , stating that a government review had found no evidence that Epstein had a specific” secret client list”.
The memo also confirmed that Epstein had passed away by suicide, a claim that is disproven by many of Trump’s MAGA (Make America Great Again) supporters. They think Epstein was murdered because he had shady information about powerful people, and that this was a cover-up.
When Trump and Bondi were questioned by reporters about the July 7 memo, Trump said:” I can’t believe you’re asking a question on Epstein at a time like this, where we’re having some of the greatest success and also tragedy, with what happened in Texas, “referring to flash floods that roiled the southern US state over the weekend before the memo was released, killing 109 people.
Trump continued, “It just seems like a desecration.”
Trump recently expressed anger and resentment toward his supporters over the Epstein conspiracy theories.
Shaun Norris took the fourth tee at Royal Portrush one over for the Open. He was still aiming for the leaderboard.
The South African’s scorecard was destroyed twenty minutes later as he entered the numbers one and zero.
1-0.10. (Ten). Double figures over par .
A hole that should have taken four should have been completed by Norris with ten shots.
Sure, the fourth hole on Friday was regarded as the fifth-most challenging, and it also caused him some trouble on Thursday, but it wasn’t all that difficult.
What transpired in the hole?
Norris was in good fettle as he took aim at the far end of the course after three pars to begin. Then the driver’s errant lash caused the mood to become gloomy.
He was forced to fish a second ball from his bag after an ugly spray from the tee screamed out of bounds on the right.
What bunker is that, if you have to re-enter, compose yourself, and stay away from the left fairway bunker? You just landed in that bunker. You had to leave on Thursday, the one you took two.
Norris was three shots deep, three in the sand, and had 230 or so yards to the green at the time. Not particularly bad, but not catastrophic. Not yet.
The fourth shot, what was it? He explained that it “caught the lip.” Then I attempted to do the same thing and hit the same club.
He claimed to have tried to “chase something,” but three more enraged swipes later he was still in the same bunker.
He was starting to appear unlikely to ever emerge. As if this were his current life.
Finally, fueled by the fury of a man who’s world was disintegrating around him, he found just enough elevation to run away, his ball unapologetically bound 39 yards down the fairway.
Norris appeared behind it. A man who had probably forgotten what his name was, how many times he’d hit the ball, and even what hole he was in. He said, “My mind went a little numb.”
He had seven records, according to the records. 200 yards away, the pin was still in the thick end. As it turned out, fared.
The approach of Norris was successful 20 or so yards short of the left. He managed to chip to seven feet and hole the putt, but somehow he managed to gather himself.
“Shot 10. stuffed with balls. The official Open shot tracker recorded a “double bogey or worse” situation.
What was Norris’ response?
Norris would follow up his five-over victory with a missed cut. On the fourth of his two days on the Antrim coast, eight shots were lost.
He would have been in good shape for the weekend with a few pars. brutal .
He had to work up six to finish the fourth round on Thursday, but he caught himself and made it a birdie.
After the turn, he had three more birdies, including one from 30 feet on the final, which at least repaired some of the damage, at least on his scorecard.
He resisted, “I actually played quite well apart from one hole.” “I was happy with the way I fought back after one hole,” he said.
You never know what will happen if you take that hole out this week.
Given that he missed three shots on the fourth hole of the 2019 Portrush Open, Norris would have to have it torn apart.
But it is obvious that the South African man has a lot going for him.
