Free Republic

Donald Trump has demanded that Europe release emergency diesel reserves or risk being cut off from US supplies. Britain joined crisis talks with European allies on Thursday after the US president threatened to choke off diesel exports to France and Germany. Mr Trump is frustrated with the two EU powers, believing they have not met earlier pledges to release emergency oil and petrol supplies. His administration is calling for tens of millions of barrels of fuel to be unlocked to lower pump prices for motorists. A White House official said it was "in Europe's best interest to work with the...

The United States on Thursday told its European allies, particularly Germany and France, to "immediately" release their strategic reserves of diesel to help lower the soaring price of the refined fuel. It comes a day after President Donald Trump floated the possibility of banning US diesel exports to stem the rise in prices. At an emergency meeting of the European Union's energy task force on Friday, an EU spokesperson said the bloc "fully rejects" the ban threat, saying it would "undermine ... trust in the US." Average US diesel prices have surged over 70% to $6.39 per US gallon (€1.50...

Ever since the start of the Iran war, the Democrats and their media allies have been rooting against America and President Trump. This was particularly true regarding the Strait of Hormuz, a major global economic shipping channel through which much of the world's oil (and other commerce) flows. Late last month, Secretary of State Marco Rubio laid out what the Strait, and its control, means for not just the United States, but the world, saying that allowing Iran — especially a nuclear Iran — to control the Strait would allow the Islamic nation to control energy for countless nations. But...

An Iranian man accused of being part of a hacking scheme that breached more than 150 US universities and companies while targeting data worth over $3 billion has been extradited from Montenegro to the US to face criminal charges, police in the European country and a person familiar with the case said Thursday. Amir Barati, 40, is expected to face wire and computer fraud charges in the US Southern District of New York, where he and 16 other Iranian nationals were charged in a superseding indictment in August. Montenegrin police arrested Barati, who is also a Turkish citizen, in June...

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the FBI began examining Ellaboudy after receiving information that he had purchased precursor chemicals, components and other materials associated with improvised explosive devices. Investigators also found purchases of parts used to construct drones and remotely operated aerial systems. The complaint alleges that Ellaboudy took sick leave in December 2024 after claiming exposure to highly concentrated nitric acid, a chemical that can be used in explosive materials. In September 2025, prosecutors say, he used an official passport issued during earlier employment with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to travel from Washington state to...

Two Louisiana brothers are facing terrorism charges for their alleged role in a twisted scheme to fund Hamas under the guise of Gaza humanitarian aid – and they were brought down with the help of the NYPD. Abdel Adhami and his sibling Omar Adhami were busted in the Pelican State last month for allegedly raising money online and funneling it to Saleem Alzaq, a member of the terror group who regularly uses social media to post Hamas propaganda, according to newly unsealed federal indictments. Abdel allegedly funneled more than $83,000 to Hamas from 2023 to 2026 while his brother is...

The Left’s cries of “genocide” against Israel ring hollow when many of its loudest critics ignore the far bloodier histories of their own ancestral homelands. On October 7, 2023, Hamas killers slaughtered 1,200 people, more than two-thirds of them civilians, inside Israel. For the ensuing three weeks, they refused Israel’s demands to turn over the 251 hostages and to surrender the architects of the massacre. No matter—within a day of the attacks, when Hamas gunmen were still fighting Israeli troops on Israeli soil, the American Left was already screaming “genocide!” They did not mean Hamas’s intended genocide of Jews, a...

A Department of Energy electrical engineer has been arrested on charges of providing support to the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, including by buying materials for homemade explosives and drones and traveling to Yemen, the Justice Department said Thursday. Ashton Hamed Ellaboudy, 51, of Richland, Washington, was arrested Thursday and is due to make his first court appearance Friday. Court records do not list an attorney available to speak on his behalf. The FBI says Ellaboudy had a goal of helping the Houthis improve their communications capabilities and traveled last September to Yemen, where the Houthis and Saudi-backed government forces are now...

RUBAYA, Democratic Republic of Congo - Under the watchful eye of M23 rebels in the hills around the Congolese town of Rubaya, a line of men in rubber boots ferry sacks full of crushed rocks up winding paths cut into the slopes.The laborers are hauling coltan ore, a mineral that powers the modern world. The ore will be loaded onto motorbikes and eventually shipped thousands of kilometers away to Asia. There it’s processed into tantalum, a heat-resistant metal that fetches more than $300 a kilogram and is in high demand by makers of mobile phones, computers, aerospace components and gas...

MECCA: A suicide bomber reportedly attempted to detonate explosive-laden vest inside Grand Mosque here Friday night. The device malfunctioned and no blast occured. According to reports the alleged bomber got close to Kaaba. However, Saudi authorities on Friday, while denying suicide bombing reports, clarified that a man was arrested for harassing passerby, causing fear and panic. No details apropos the nabbed person has yet been provided. Reuters reports on Thursday: The Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen's Houthis said on Thursday the terrorist group had attacked a power distribution station in the holy city of Medina this week, putting one transformer out...

President Trump on Thursday said “it’s possible” the Iran war could cost him the November midterm elections by risking Republican control of the House, Senate or both. “Well, it’s possible. It should help,” Trump told reporters outside the White House before heading to a campaign rally in the Choctaw Nation in Oklahoma. “Because Iran will not have a nuclear weapon. So when you say, ‘Is it OK for Iran to have a nuclear weapon?’ I would say 100 percent of the people say no, including worldwide. So, when you say it that way, it would help. If you don’t say...

Hezbollah terrorists in Yemen received $157 million worth of weapons in 2024, most of it given freely by Iran, according to a new report from the Israeli nonprofit Center for Research of Terror Financing (CENTEF). The report, titled "Hezbollah Financial Statements," relied on open-source data as well as known valuations of Hezbollah's military assets, according to the Jerusalem Post. The report found that Hezbollah spent just $28 million on procuring weapons, and those were limited to small arms, ammunition, drone components, dual-use equipment and equipment obtained through its international procurement networks. Meanwhile, CENTEF said Iran provided roughly $129 million worth...

A major incident was averted on Wednesday when a pilot on a Flydubai flight to Tel Aviv was stabbed by his co-pilot, triggering a rapid descent and an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia. Passengers and crew members intervened and restrained the accused pilot, while other pilots on board helped land the aircraft safely. Israeli officials have described the incident as an apparent attempt to crash the plane and kill those on board. The incident has nevertheless raised questions about a possible Iran connection, given the heightened tensions between Israel and Iran and concerns over potential attacks against Israelis. Here's what...

The Omani copilot who stabbed the pilot on the flydubai flight yesterday discussed killing Jews on social media, an Israeli official tells The Times of Israel.The official adds that the attacker asked the Emirati crew members to kill him, citing conversations with passengers on the flight. “This was a person who was willing to commit suicide,” says the official. “His social media accounts [say] clearly that he has been radicalized into jihadist ideology. He talks about killing Jews.”“We can’t say for sure until the investigation’s over,” the official continues, “but it certainly seems like he was a suicide actor who...

In an extraordinary example of individuals from hostile countries working together to save lives, Israeli media that spoke with airport authorities are saying that the alternate pilot crew who landed a hijacked flight safely included a Russian and a Ukrainian. Israel Hayom identified the brave off-duty pilots’ nationalities after speaking with officials at the Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. The temporarily hijacked FlyDubai flight was headed for Tel Aviv in Israel, with many Israeli passengers, but after the violent incident it diverted to Tabuk for an emergency landing. There was some initial confusion about the...

This video reports on a dangerous in-flight incident involving a Fly Dubai flight to Israel (0:09). Key events include: The Attack: A co-pilot reportedly stabbed the captain mid-flight (0:20-0:23), leading to a rapid, terrifying loss of altitude (1:47-2:18). Heroic Response: Passengers, along with off-duty crew and another pilot who was on board, intervened to neutralize the attacker and regain control of the aircraft (3:23-3:45, 6:52-7:54). Emergency Outcome: The plane landed safely in Saudi Arabia (4:43), and many passengers later continued their journey to Tel Aviv (4:48-5:06). Investigation: The attacker was arrested (8:35). The video discusses potential geopolitical implications, citing the...

Senate confirms new director for spy agency, cyber command WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate confirmed on Tuesday President Donald Trump’s choice to lead the U.S. Cyber Command and National Security Agency, Army Lieutenant General Paul Nakasone. Nakasone has an extensive background in cyber issues, having held positions including serving as chief of the U.S. Army’s cyber command since late 2016. Nakasone, 54, replaces Admiral Mike Rogers, who is retiring after nearly four years in the “dual-hat” position leading the NSA, the country’s largest spy agency, and the military’s cyber warfare division. During his confirmation hearing, Nakasone said he did...

To the honorable people of the United States of America—the scholars, the students, and the members of the media, We begin this letter by saluting the noble souls of God’s greatest prophets—Noah, Abraham,Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad, may His peace and blessings be upon them all. … …it should be fairly obvious that the phrase "Death to America," which Iranians have been chanting since the triumph of the Islamic Revolution… is a prayer for the eradication of the diabolical ruling elite whose seat of power is the White House. The men enthroned at the White House oppress both Iranians and Americans....

Democratic Maine Senate hopeful Troy Jackson complained that Jewish residents of his state have been reluctant to label Israel’s war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip a genocide, saying that hesitation was “only because they’re Jewish.”Jackson, who has faced pressure from his left flank to more forcefully condemn the Jewish state, made the comment Tuesday to Portland’s NBC affiliate. “It’s unfortunate that there are people here in Maine that don’t like to use that term only because they’re Jewish and what that means to them, with the Holocaust,” said Jackson, according to Jewish Insider. “[Israel’s war in Gaza] fits that...

Trevor Noah says he was "angry" at CBS's Tony Dokoupil for saying Coates sounded like an extremist. Noah then compares Gaza to the American Revolution: "If you remove America's history...then it's like, yeah, those people who fought against the British, they were terrorists."