“President Trump named William Pulte, the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, to serve as the acting head of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. In tapping Pulte, Trump turns to an ally who has been behind referring several of his foes for prosecution for alleged mortgage fraud. Pulte would replace Tulsi Gabbard, who resigned last month.” (06/02/26)
“A British couple jailed in Iran on espionage charges have lost an appeal against their 10-year sentence, according to their family. Lindsay and Craig Foreman were arrested in January 2025 while passing through Iran on a round-the-world motorcycle trip. They were accused of spying – charges they adamantly deny – and were sentenced in February. Both are currently on hunger strike in Tehran’s Evin prison. A member of their legal team in the UK told the BBC no reason was given for the rejection of their appeal. Lindsay’s son, Joe Bennett, said they were ‘not permitted to attend their own appeal hearing’. ‘It is a serious human rights violation, and it is one more reason why two British citizens, with no other options left, are now starving themselves in protest.’ Bennett said his mother and step-father had been asked to sign documents in Farsi which they could not read, and refused.” (06/02/26)
“Poland wants to ban under-16s from using mobile phones in schools from September 1 and plans to introduce stricter age verification rules to access pornography, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Tuesday. Countries including the Netherlands, South Korea and Italy have banned smartphones in schools due to [feigned and/or irrational] concerns over their impact on concentration and behaviour. Others have banned – or are considering banning – children’s access to social media. The proposed bill would ban children aged 7-15 from using phones on school premises, including breaks between classes, and give schools legal bases for creating deposits to store phones.” (06/02/26)
“Secretary of State Marco Rubio [faced] a litany of questions Tuesday about the Trump administration’s fragile or stalling diplomatic efforts around the world when he appears for back-to-back hearings on Capitol Hill for the first time since the Iran war began. Senate Republicans are meeting Tuesday to discuss next steps after the Justice Department said it would comply with a court order pausing the implementation of a $1.776 billion settlement fund designed to compensate President Donald Trump’s political allies. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche is also set to return to Capitol Hill on Tuesday for a hearing before the House Appropriations Committee. The hearing was scheduled for discussion of the Justice Department’s budget, but lawmakers will almost certainly focus their questioning on the settlement fund.” (06/02/26)
“New Mexico lawmakers said Monday they are demanding documents from an array of government and private institutions as the first major step in their effort to tell the full story of what Jeffrey Epstein did in the state — and whether any other people should be prosecuted for crimes there. A committee known as the New Mexico Truth Commission expects to send subpoenas this week to 14 targets. … Epstein, who bought a ranch outside Santa Fe in 1993 and typically visited several times a year, was never charged with crimes in New Mexico, despite allegations of sex crimes dating back decades. At least 10 women have alleged that Epstein groomed or abused them at the 10,000-acre ranch starting in the mid-1990s, an NBC News review of court testimony, lawsuits and other records found.” (06/01/26)
“Ghana’s new bill criminalising LGBTQ+ activities will undergo scrutiny before it is officially approved, the president has said. Speaking during a visit to the UK, John Mahama said his legal council and attorney general would ‘sit on it because it was a private members’ motion … [and] not a government bill’. The bill – passed by parliament on Friday – proposes up to three years imprisonment for identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer, and a ‘duty to report’ prohibited acts to police. ‘We will look at it and make sure that everything is in order,’ Mahama said, adding that the bill would be referred to the Council of State – his advisors – if there were any problems. Since coming into power last year, Mahama has been pressured by religious leaders to strengthen anti-gay measures, which ban same-sex relationships under laws dating from the British colonial era.” (06/02/26)
“Kenya’s High Court has ordered the government to disclose details of a proposed United States-linked Ebola quarantine facility, a day after hundreds of people took to the streets in the central town of Nanyuki to protest about the planned site. The Reuters news agency said two people died from gunshot wounds during Monday’s unrest, citing protest organiser Patrick Wahome and a security source. The court extended conservatory orders stopping the establishment of any Ebola quarantine, isolation or treatment facility in Kenya and barred the admission of individuals exposed to the virus.” (06/02/26)
“Businesses big and small have started receiving tariff refunds after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that President Donald Trump lacked the constitutional authority to impose higher import taxes on goods from nearly every other country. The process could grind to a halt, however, after the Trump administration said Friday that it intended to appeal a federal judge’s order to allow all companies that paid the invalidated duties to seek refunds, not just the ones that filed lawsuits. Until the Department of Justice informed the judge of its planned appeal, the refund system overseen by U.S. Customs and Border Protection had worked fairly smoothly. Refunds reached the bank accounts of the first successful applicants on May 12, about three weeks after importers and their customs brokers could start submitting claims, according to CBP.” (06/02/26)
“A burglar was stabbed to death with his own knife by the tenant he was trying to rob after being caught breaking into a Brooklyn apartment, the Daily News has learned. The tenant, who was stabbed in the neck during the clash, is not expected to be charged because he acted in self defense, law enforcement sources said. … When the tenant came out of the bathroom, he caught the stranger red-handed, stealing two cell phones, a laptop and other belongings, the tenant says. …[Dan] Costume bit the tenant’s hands and cheek during the struggle, then whipped a knife out of his pocket and stabbed the tenant in the back of the neck, the tenant said. The tenant managed to disarm Costume and stab him in his thigh and lower back with the crook’s own knife, sources said.” (06/01/26)
“Russian drones and missiles pounded the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and other cities early on Tuesday. At least 11 people were killed and more than 100 wounded in the assault which also hit Dnipro and Kharkiv, authorities said. Last week, the Kremlin warned that it intended ‘systematic strikes’ on targets in Kyiv in response to a drone attack on a dormitory in Ukraine’s Russian-held region of Luhansk, which killed 21. Ukraine denied the attack. … Russian regions also came under attack. The Ilsky oil refinery, in the southern Russian region of Krasnodar, caught fire after a drone attack, local authorities said on Telegram on Tuesday.” (06/02/26)
