Latest news with #securitythreats
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Leaked Homeland Security memo warned of attacks eerily similar to Minnesota political assassin
A leaked 'confidential' memo from 2024 reportedly detailed that wannabe attackers against high-level government officials are focusing attention on their targets' residences, eerily resembling the assassination and attempted assassination attempts in Minnesota. The resurfaced report comes as State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, were shot and killed in their home on Saturday morning in what Governor Tim Walz said appeared to be 'politically motivated.' Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, were also shot and underwent surgery. Walz told reporters that doctors were 'cautiously optimistic' that the couple would survive the assassination attempt. The shocking events may seem unpredictable, but a confidential memo, obtained by ABC News in March 2024, detailed a 'recent uptick' in personal residences targeted by public officials. The memo said that the attacks on homes left public servants and their families 'vulnerable to attack.' The attackers referenced in the memo have moved from targeting public spaces and known buildings to home addresses, which often lack security measures. The federal intelligence bulletin cited increased online messaging promoting attacks on homes as the reason for the recent uptick in planned attacks. 'Recent attacks at private residences have occurred during a period of overall increased political polarization, target hardening of more traditional attack locations, and the prevalence of conspiracy theories targeting industry and government officials,' the memo stated. The bulletin added that increased security measures in public spaces and government buildings have potentially driven attackers to 'prioritize private residences.' The memo also stated, 'While targeting private residences is not a new tactic, 7 of 10 known attacks or disrupted plots against high-profile officials since 2018 occurred in the last two years.' Analysts at the Department of Homeland Security also noted that attackers are motivated by ideological and personal grievances. The federal intelligence bulletin warned that the enhanced technology and the ability to find people's addresses online have increased the potential of attacks on personal residences. Although attacks on people's homes aren't new practices, the rise of violence against public officials in their residences has become increasingly alarming. In October 2022, a man named David DePape broke into former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's home. DePape invaded Pelosi's home with a hammer and attacked her husband, Paul, while repeatedly asking for the former speaker. Now, in 2025, the threat has become even more real as federal officials investigate the shocking assassinations in Minnesota. The information noted in the leaked memo last year foreshadowed the disturbing events that transpired on Saturday morning. As the federal intelligence bulletin warned, the personal residences of Hortman and Hoffman presented an opportunity for the attacker to invade with fewer obstacles than a government building or public event. The first shooting occurred just after 2am at Hoffman's home before the attacker arrived at Hortman's residence at 4am. Law enforcement named Vance Boelter, 57, as the suspect, who remains at large after the vicious attacks. Boelter is an employee at a security company where he works as the director of security patrols. Investigators believe Boelter has attempted to flee the state as a nail-biting manhunt has ensued. Law enforcement also found a 'manifesto' with almost 70 names inside his vehicle along with flyers for the anti-Trump 'NO KINGS' nationwide rallies. Police have issued new terrifying images of the suspect in a Halloween-style mask during the shootings. There is a $50,000 reward for information leading to his whereabouts. A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security didn't respond to a request for comment on the leaked memo, but referred to a statement from Secretary Kristi Noem. 'DHS is monitoring the horrific shooting of two Minnesota legislators in Brooklyn Park and Champlin,' the statement read.
The Guardian
06-06-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Countries under Trump's travel ban are unique subjects of American imperialism
The list of countries banned by the Trump administration's newest order seems to have no rhyme or reason. Little connects Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, all targeted for a total ban, or Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela, all targeted for restrictions. The reasoning stated in the order is that they all pose security threats measured by 'whether each country has a significant terrorist presence within its territory, its visa-overstay rate, and its cooperation with accepting back its removable nationals'. Visa overstays, the order elaborates, 'indicates a blatant disregard for United States immigration laws'. Yet the latest data on overstays from Customs and Border Protection does show these countries high on the list, along with others not included. If we sit with this list a little longer, though, with attention to the history of the world we share, we can see a different unifying logic. All of these countries are in the global south, their citizens are racialized as Black or brown and Muslim. Most have high poverty rates that hover at or above half their population. Several have recently been sites of social upheaval or horrific wars. Yemen, Sudan, Somalia and Afghanistan, for example, all appear on the World Food Program's list of the world's most dire food crises. These facts do not, as the travel ban assumes, tell of the inherent violence of people from these nations, nor of a penchant to 'disregard' law. In fact, even the data on overstays says nothing of people's legal status. Nationals of Afghanistan, Burma, El Salvador, Haiti, Somalia, Sudan and Venezuela have long had a right to apply for temporary protective status due to the insecurity of their countries. We do not know how many of the so-called 'overstayers' applied for other protections like asylum. The poverty and insecurity of these nations are mainly an indication that they have been subject to imperialism, including US military and economic intervention and coercion. You cannot understand the endemic violence or economic destitution that forces people to leave Haiti without attending to both the French extortion of the island nation in exchange for their freedom from enslavement, and the United States' occupation of it. You cannot understand the mass exodus of people from Afghanistan, one of the world's largest refugee populations, without understanding the United States' funding of the Mujahideen, or the so-called 'war on terror', that did little more than further destabilize the nation. Iran's current regime is only possible because the US supported British efforts in destroying Iranian democracy to save British Petroleum. US sanctions, whether in Iran or Venezuela or in Cuba, have not contributed to pressuring regime change, but rather to economic devastation and mass displacement. American shrapnel has been pulled from the bodies of Yemeni children. Since March, 250 people have been killed in US strikes on Saada and Sanaa, at least 68 of whom were detained African migrants. Time and time again data shows that African countries such as oil-rich Equatorial Guinea and Chad, ravaged by companies such as Exxon Mobile, and gold-rich Sudan, are not victims of poverty, but victims of theft. The United Nations estimates that $86bn leaves the continent each year in 'illicit financial flows', or theft through criminal activities and tax evasion. What's more, between 1970 and 2022, countries in the global south, including those on this list, are estimated to have paid more than $2.5tn in interest alone to the benefit of the global north. Thomas Sankara, a former president of Burkina Faso, once called debt a 'skillfully managed reconquest of Africa'. The wealthiest nations in the world are causing the climate crisis that the poorest nations pay for. Climate activists estimate that governments in the global north owe $5tn each year to countries in the global south for the devastation they are causing them. Seen from this vantage, Trump's travel ban, which proudly cites what came to be known as the 'Muslim ban' of his first administration in its opening paragraphs, is a cruel escalation of a longstanding policy of profiting off Black and brown lives and disposing of the most vulnerable among them. In displacement camps in New York and Tijuana and the Aegean islands of Greece, I have met pharmacists, artists, DJs and journalists from many of the targeted countries. Just this week I spoke to a political activist who, forced to flee a massacre in one of the targeted countries, left her three young children behind. Speaking to me after the issuance of this ban, she worried whether she would be able to secure her asylum, which is currently being adjudicated, and whether she could ever reunify her family. Her voice broke as she said: 'I wish they could understand that I never wanted to come here.' Trump justified the ban by referencing a recent incident in which an Egyptian man in Boulder, Colorado, injured 12 people calling for the release of Israeli hostages (though notably Egypt is not on the list). That this one act justifies the banning of millions of people is absurd. This latest ban is simply another installation in a series of policies meant to 'Make America white again', following a ban on asylum and a cancellation of humanitarian parole. It comes as attacks on our immigrant students continue, particularly those who dare speak out against the US funding of Gaza's decimation. It is not the people of these nations that are a threat to the security of the United States. It is the United States that has long been a threat to them, robbing them of their wealth, destroying their institutions and environments, and then denying them participation in the safety built at their expense. We should be atoning for our sins, not exacerbating them.
The Herald
05-06-2025
- Politics
- The Herald
Trump bans nationals from 12 countries, citing security concerns
US President Donald Trump signed a proclamation on Wednesday banning the nationals of 12 countries from entering the US, saying the move was needed to protect against 'foreign terrorists' and other security threats. The countries affected are Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. The entry of people from seven other countries: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela, will be partially restricted. The travel restrictions were first reported by CBS News. 'We will not allow people to enter our country who wish to do us harm,' Trump said in a video posted on X. He said the list could be revised and new countries could be added. The proclamation is effective on June 9 at 12:01am EDT (0401 GMT). Visas issued before that date will not be revoked, the order said. During his first term in office, Trump announced a ban on travellers from seven majority-Muslim nations, a policy that went through several iterations before it was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2018. Former President Joe Biden, a Democrat who succeeded Trump, repealed the ban in 2021, calling it 'a stain on our national conscience'. Trump said the countries subject to the most severe restrictions were determined to harbour a 'large-scale presence of terrorists', fail to co-operate on visa security and have an inability to verify travellers' identities, inadequate record-keeping of criminal histories and high rates of visa overstays in the US. 'We cannot have open migration from any country where we cannot safely and reliably vet and screen those who seek to enter the US,' Trump said. He cited Sunday's incident in Boulder, Colorado, in which a man tossed a petrol bomb into a crowd of pro-Israel demonstrators as an example of why the new restrictions are needed. An Egyptian national, Mohamed Sabry Soliman, has been charged in the attack. Federal officials said Soliman had overstayed his tourist visa and had an expired work permit — though Egypt is not on the list of countries facing travel limits. Somalia immediately pledged to work with the US to address security issues. 'Somalia values its long-standing relationship with the US and stands ready to engage in dialogue to address the concerns raised,' Dahir Hassan Abdi, the Somali ambassador to the US, said. Trump's directive is part of an immigration crackdown that he launched at the start of his second term. He previewed his plan in an October 2023 speech, pledging to restrict people from the Gaza Strip, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Yemen and 'anywhere else that threatens our security'. Trump issued an executive order on January 20 requiring intensified security vetting of any foreigners seeking admission to the US to detect national security threats. That order directed several cabinet members to submit a list of countries from which travel should be partly or fully suspended because their 'vetting and screening information is so deficient'. In March, Reuters reported that the Trump administration was considering travel restrictions on dozens of countries. Reuters
News24
05-06-2025
- Politics
- News24
Trump bans people from 12 countries ‘who wish to do us harm'
The Trump administration banned nationals from several countries from entering the US. US Donald Trump signed a proclamation banning people from Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. The bans were to protect the US from threats, Trump said. US President Donald Trump signed a proclamation on Wednesday banning the nationals of 12 countries from entering the United States, saying the move was needed to protect against 'foreign terrorists' and other security threats. The countries affected are Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. The entry of people from seven other countries: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela, will be partially restricted. The travel restrictions were first reported by CBS News. 'We will not allow people to enter our country who wish to do us harm,' Trump said in a video posted on X. He said the list could be revised and new countries could be added. READ | Trump policies and rising tensions have European tourists rethinking US trips The proclamation is effective on 9 June 2025 at 0:01 EDT (04:01 GMT). Visas issued before that date will not be revoked, the order said. During his first term in office, Trump announced a ban on travellers from seven majority-Muslim nations, a policy that went through several iterations before it was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2018. Former president Joe Biden, a Democrat who succeeded Trump, repealed the ban in 2021, calling it 'a stain on our national conscience'. Trump said the countries subject to the most severe restrictions were determined to harbour a 'large-scale presence of terrorists', fail to cooperate on visa security and have an inability to verify travellers' identities, inadequate record-keeping of criminal histories and high rates of visa overstays in the United States. We cannot have open migration from any country where we cannot safely and reliably vet and screen those who seek to enter the United States. Donald Trump He cited Sunday's incident in Boulder, Colorado in which a man tossed a gasoline bomb into a crowd of pro-Israel demonstrators as an example of why the new restrictions are needed. An Egyptian national, Mohamed Sabry Soliman, has been charged in the attack. Federal officials said Soliman had overstayed his tourist visa and had an expired work permit - although Egypt is not on the list of countries facing travel limits. Somalia immediately pledged to work with the US to address security issues. 'Somalia values its longstanding relationship with the United States and stands ready to engage in dialogue to address the concerns raised,' Dahir Hassan Abdi, the Somali ambassador to the United States, said in a statement. Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, a close ally of President Nicolas Maduro, responded on Wednesday evening by describing the US government as fascist and warning Venezuelans of being in the US. 'The truth is being in the United States is a big risk for anybody, not just for Venezuelans ... They persecute our countrymen, our people for no reason.' Calls early on Thursday to the spokesperson of Myanmar's military government were not answered. The foreign ministry of Laos did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Trump's directive is part of an immigration crackdown that he launched at the start of his second term. He previewed his plan in an October 2023 speech, pledging to restrict people from the Gaza Strip, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Yemen and 'anywhere else that threatens our security'. Pedro Mattey/AFP Trump issued an executive order on 20 January requiring intensified security vetting of any foreigners seeking admission to the US to detect national security threats. That order directed several cabinet members to submit a list of countries from which travel should be partly or fully suspended because their 'vetting and screening information is so deficient'. In March, Reuters reported that the Trump administration was considering travel restrictions on dozens of countries.
Reuters
05-06-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Here are the countries targeted in Trump's new travel ban
June 4 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump signed a proclamation on Wednesday banning the nationals of 12 countries from entering the United States, saying the move was needed to protect against "foreign terrorists" and other security threats. The proclamation signed by Trump comes into effect on June 9, 2025 at 12:01 am EDT (0401 GMT). The proclamation states that the full and partial travel bans apply to foreign nationals of the designated countries who: - are outside the United States on June 9, and - do not have a valid visa on June 9 The proclamation also states: No immigrant or non-immigrant visa issued before June 9 "shall be revoked pursuant to this proclamation." The following countries are subject to full bans on entry: Afghanistan Myanmar Chad Republic of the Congo Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Haiti Iran Libya Somalia Sudan Yemen WHICH COUNTRIES ARE SUBJECTED TO A PARTIAL TRAVEL BAN? The following countries are subjected to the suspension of the entry of immigrants, and people on the following temporary visas: B-1, B-2, B-1/B-2, F, M, and J visas. Burundi Cuba Laos Sierra Leone Togo Turkmenistan Venezuela ARE THERE ANY EXCEPTIONS TO THE TRAVEL BANS? Exceptions to the travel ban include: - Any lawful permanent resident of the United States - Dual nationals - Diplomats traveling on valid non-immigrant visas - Athletes or members of an athletic team and immediate relatives, traveling for the World Cup, Olympics, or other major sporting event - Immediate family immigrant visas - Adoptions - Afghan Special Immigrant Visas - Special Immigrant Visas for United States government employees - Immigrant visas for ethnic and religious minorities facing persecution in Iran
