عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
World

Special Counsel Seeks Limits on Trump's Statements in Elections Case

TOPSHOT - Former US President and Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump arrives to speak during the Pray Vote Stand summit at the Omni Shoreham hotel in Washington, DC on September 15, 2023. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP)
TOPSHOT - Former US President and Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump arrives to speak during the Pray Vote Stand summit at the Omni Shoreham hotel in Washington, DC on September 15, 2023. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP)
TT
TT

Special Counsel Seeks Limits on Trump's Statements in Elections Case

TOPSHOT - Former US President and Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump arrives to speak during the Pray Vote Stand summit at the Omni Shoreham hotel in Washington, DC on September 15, 2023. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP)
TOPSHOT - Former US President and Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump arrives to speak during the Pray Vote Stand summit at the Omni Shoreham hotel in Washington, DC on September 15, 2023. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP)

US Special Counsel Jack Smith is asking a judge to impose limits on statements from former President Donald Trump regarding a Washington, D.C., court case over his attempt to overturn his 2020 election defeat, according to a court filing on Friday.

"The defendant has an established practice of issuing inflammatory public statements targeted at individuals or institutions that present an obstacle or challenge to him," Smith said in a filing in US District Court asking Judge Tanya Chutkan to impose some "narrow" limits on Trump's statements outside of court, Reuters reported

"This demonstrates the need to protect potential jurors from fear of threats and harassment that stem from the defendant’s (Trump's) disparaging and inflammatory public statements," prosecutors wrote.

Prosecutors want Trump restricted from giving statements about "the identity, testimony, or credibility of prospective witnesses." They also want restrictions on comments about "any party, witness, attorney, court personnel, or potential jurors that are disparaging and inflammatory, or intimidating."

"This is nothing more than blatant election interference because President Trump is by far the leading candidate in this race," a Trump spokesperson said in a statement.

Chutkan has given Trump’s legal team until Sept. 25 to respond to the government’s request.

Trump, the front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has been charged with four felony counts for allegedly plotting to subvert the results of the 2020 election. It is one of four criminal cases he faces. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Chutkan previously warned Trump against making statements that could threaten witnesses or taint the jury pool. As a condition of his release, he also agreed not to make threats against those involved in the case.

Earlier this week Trump filed a motion asking Chutkan to recuse herself from the case, saying that her prior statements about some defendants in previous Jan. 6 cases reveal bias.

Chutkan last month set a trial date of March 4 for the federal case in Washington.

That is one day before "Super Tuesday," a potentially decisive date in the Republican presidential race, when states from Maine to California will hold their nominating contests. Opinion polls show Trump leading his rivals by a wide margin.

Most Viewed

 
 
World

Israel’s Supreme Court Suspends Govt Move to Shut Army Radio

Israeli troops during a military operation in the Palestinian village of Qabatiya, near the West Bank city of Jenin, 27 December 2025. (EPA)
Israeli troops during a military operation in the Palestinian village of Qabatiya, near the West Bank city of Jenin, 27 December 2025. (EPA)
TT
TT

Israel’s Supreme Court Suspends Govt Move to Shut Army Radio

Israeli troops during a military operation in the Palestinian village of Qabatiya, near the West Bank city of Jenin, 27 December 2025. (EPA)
Israeli troops during a military operation in the Palestinian village of Qabatiya, near the West Bank city of Jenin, 27 December 2025. (EPA)

Israel's Supreme Court has issued an interim order suspending a government decision to shut down Galei Tsahal, the country's decades-old and widely listened-to military radio station.

In a ruling issued late Sunday, Supreme Court President Isaac Amit said the suspension was partly because the government "did not provide a clear commitment not to take irreversible steps before the court reaches a final decision".

He added that Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara supported the suspension.

The cabinet last week approved the closure of Galei Tsahal, with the shutdown scheduled to take effect before March 1, 2026.

Founded in 1950, Galei Tsahal is widely known for its flagship news programs and has long been followed by both domestic and foreign correspondents.

A government audience survey ranks it as Israel's third most listened-to radio station, with a market share of 17.7 percent.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had urged ministers to back the closure, saying there had been repeated proposals over the years to remove the station from the military, abolish it or privatize it.

But Baharav-Miara, who also serves as the government's legal adviser and is facing dismissal proceedings initiated by the premier, has warned that closing the station raised "concerns about possible political interference in public broadcasting".

She added that it "poses questions regarding an infringement on freedom of expression and of the press".

Defense Minister Israel Katz said last week that Galei Tsahal broadcasts "political and divisive content" that does not align with military values.

He said soldiers, civilians and bereaved families had complained that the station did not represent them and undermined morale and the war effort.

Katz also argued that a military-run radio station serving the general public is an anomaly in democratic countries.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid had condemned the closure decision, calling it part of the government's effort to suppress freedom of expression ahead of elections.

Israel is due to hold parliamentary elections in 2026, and Netanyahu has said he will seek another term as prime minister.

World

Thai Army Accuses Cambodia of Violating Truce with over 250 Drones

Displaced residents rest in a bunker in Thailand's Surin province on December 11, 2025, amid clashes along the Thai-Cambodia border. (AFP)
Displaced residents rest in a bunker in Thailand's Surin province on December 11, 2025, amid clashes along the Thai-Cambodia border. (AFP)
TT
TT

Thai Army Accuses Cambodia of Violating Truce with over 250 Drones

Displaced residents rest in a bunker in Thailand's Surin province on December 11, 2025, amid clashes along the Thai-Cambodia border. (AFP)
Displaced residents rest in a bunker in Thailand's Surin province on December 11, 2025, amid clashes along the Thai-Cambodia border. (AFP)

Thailand's army on Monday accused Cambodia of violating a newly signed ceasefire agreement, reached after weeks of deadly border clashes, by flying more than 250 drones over its territory.

The Thai army said "more than 250 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) were detected flying from the Cambodian side, intruding into Thailand's sovereign territory" on Sunday night, according to a statement.

"Such actions constitute provocation and a violation of measures aimed at reducing tensions, which are inconsistent with the Joint Statement agreed" during a bilateral border committee meeting on Saturday, it added.

Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn said in remarks aired on state television on Monday that the two sides had discussed the incident and agreed to investigate and "resolve it immediately".

Prak Sokhonn described it as "a small issue related to flying drones seen by both sides along the border line".

Thailand and Cambodia agreed to the "immediate" ceasefire on Saturday, pledging to end renewed border clashes that killed dozens of people and displaced more than a million this month.

The reignited fighting spread to nearly every border province on both sides, shattering an earlier truce for which US President Donald Trump took credit.

Under the agreement signed on Saturday, the Southeast Asian neighbors agreed to cease fire, freeze troop movements and cooperate on demining efforts and combatting cybercrime.

World

Mexican Train Derailment Kills at Least 13 People, 98 Injured

Authorities work at the site of train derailment on the Interoceanic Corridor of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, a railway line connecting Mexico's Pacific and Gulf coasts, where several passengers were killed and injured near Nizanda, Oaxaca state, Mexico, December, 28, 2025. (Reuters)
Authorities work at the site of train derailment on the Interoceanic Corridor of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, a railway line connecting Mexico's Pacific and Gulf coasts, where several passengers were killed and injured near Nizanda, Oaxaca state, Mexico, December, 28, 2025. (Reuters)
TT
TT

Mexican Train Derailment Kills at Least 13 People, 98 Injured

Authorities work at the site of train derailment on the Interoceanic Corridor of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, a railway line connecting Mexico's Pacific and Gulf coasts, where several passengers were killed and injured near Nizanda, Oaxaca state, Mexico, December, 28, 2025. (Reuters)
Authorities work at the site of train derailment on the Interoceanic Corridor of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, a railway line connecting Mexico's Pacific and Gulf coasts, where several passengers were killed and injured near Nizanda, Oaxaca state, Mexico, December, 28, 2025. (Reuters)

Mexican authorities said on Sunday that at least 13 people ​were killed after an Interoceanic Train carrying 250 people derailed in the southern state of Oaxaca.

The Mexican Navy said the train, which derailed near the town of Nizanda, was carrying nine crew members and 241 passengers.

Of those on board, 139 were reported to be out of ‌danger, while 98 ‌were injured, including 36 ‌who ⁠were ​receiving medical assistance.

President ‌Claudia Sheinbaum said on X that five of the injured were in critical condition, adding that senior officials had been dispatched to the site to assist the families of those killed.

The governor of Oaxaca, Salomon Jara Cruz, expressed condolences to the families ⁠of those killed in the accident and said state authorities ‌were coordinating with federal agencies to ‍assist those affected.

Mexico's Attorney ‍General's Office has already opened an investigation into ‍the incident, Attorney General Ernestina Godoy Ramos said in a social media post.

The Interoceanic Train, inaugurated in 2023 under former President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, forms ​part of the broader Interoceanic Corridor project.

The initiative was designed to modernize the rail link across ⁠the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, connecting Mexico's Pacific port of Salina Cruz with Coatzacoalcos on the Gulf Coast.

The Mexican government has sought to develop the isthmus into a strategic trade corridor, expanding ports, railways and industrial infrastructure with the goal of creating a route that could compete with the Panama Canal.

The train service is also part of a broader push to expand passenger and freight rail ‌in southern Mexico and stimulate economic development in the region.