“A five-month investigation has named 13 previously unidentified victims of US attacks on boats allegedly carrying narcotics in a campaign that has [murdered] nearly 200 people in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific. It is unclear if the US has ever identified any of its 194 victims before attacking them, and the names of just three had previously emerged, after their families launched legal cases against the White House. … a joint effort by 20 journalists led by the Latin American Center for Investigative Journalism (CLIP) this week published the identities of 13 of those killed, some of whom showed no indication of involvement in drug trafficking.” (05/15/26)
“New York officials urged commuters to work from home Monday as a strike by Long Island Rail Road workers threatened to disrupt travel for hundreds of thousands of riders across the region. Gov. Kathy Hochul said the state and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority were preparing emergency transit alternatives, including shuttle buses from Long Island into Queens and additional subway service, after negotiations between the MTA and rail unions broke down this weekend, prompting workers to walk off the job and shutting down the railroad Saturday. … The strike — the LIRR’s first in roughly 30 years — has halted service on one of the nation’s busiest commuter rail systems, which carries hundreds of thousands of riders between Long Island and New York City.” (05/17/26)
“Protesters gathered Thursday outside The New York Times building in New York City expressing outrage over an opinion piece by liberal columnist Nicholas Kristof that contained allegations of serial sexual abuse by Israelis against Palestinian detainees. The article featured the testimony of men and women who alleged ‘brutal sexual abuse at the hands of Israel’s prison guards, soldiers, settlers and interrogators.’ The article mentioned several claims, including that Palestinians ‘had their genitals yanked or were beaten on the testicles,’ ‘some men had to have their testicles amputated by doctors,’ and metal batons were used to rape men. Kristof also said a Gaza journalist claimed he was ‘mounted’ by a dog before adding that ‘[o]ther Palestinian prisoners and human rights monitors have also cited reports of police dogs being coached to rape prisoners.'” (05/16/26)
“Colorado Gov. Jared Polis on Friday commuted the sentence of election conspiracy theorist Tina Peters following pressure from President Donald Trump, the latest instance of the president using his powers to reward those who echoed his baseless claims of mass fraud as the cause of his 2020 loss. Trump has championed the case of Peters, a 70-year-old former county clerk who was sentenced to nine years behind bars after being convicted in a scheme to make a copy of her county’s election computer system. She gets released June 1. In April, a Colorado appeals court upheld her conviction but ordered Peters to be resentenced because it said the judge who sent her to prison wrongly punished her for speaking out about election fraud, a decision that Polis praised.” (05/15/26)
“A proposal to fund $1 billion in security additions for the White House campus and the president’s new ballroom fails to meet procedural rules, according to the Senate parliamentarian, dealing a blow to Republican plans to include it as part of a bill to fund immigration enforcement agencies for the next three years. The parliamentarian’s ruling, described late Saturday by Senate Democrats, said that funding for a project as large and complex as President Donald Trump’s massive East Wing renovation is too broad to be included in the narrow GOP budget bill, which cannot be filibustered and only needs a simple majority to pass. It’s unclear if Republicans will be able to immediately salvage any part of the billion-dollar Secret Service proposal, which would fund security for Trump’s ballroom along with other parts of the White House, including a new visitor screening center, additional training for agents and extra reinforcements for large events.” (05/16/26)
“The Senate parliamentarian on Thursday ruled that several elements of the Republicans’ budget reconciliation package to provide $70 billion in immigration enforcement funding failed to comply with the Byrd Rule and would be stricken from the bill if any senator raises a point-of-order objection against the bill. The ruling is a setback for Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), who wants to bring the legislation to the floor next week, that may push Republicans to redraft or drop some provisions of the package.” (05/15/26)
“The United States is moving to indict former Cuban president Raúl Castro, two sources familiar with the matter told USA TODAY. The possible charges are related to a 30-year-old case that involved the Cuban government shooting down two planes operated by a humanitarian group in 1996, the sources said. Any indictment would have to be issued by a grand jury after being presented with evidence in the case. News that the United States was looking to indict Castro came hours after CIA Director John Ratcliffe led a delegation to Havana on May 14 to deliver a message from President Donald Trump to Cuban officials and Raúl ‘Raulito’ Guillermo Rodriguez Castro, who is the elder Castro’s grandson.” (05/15/26)
“At least 24 people, including three children, were reported killed in yesterday’s Russian attacks on Kyiv, Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. The death toll update came after a night of search and rescue operations. ‘The Russians practically demolished an entire section of the building with their missile,’ president Zelenskyy said after visiting the site in Kyiv. The Ukrainian ministry of foreign affairs said it was ‘one of the deadliest attacks on Kyiv since the start of Russia’s full-scale war.’ … Separately, Russia and Ukraine have reportedly exchanged 205 prisoners of war each, which Zelenskyy said was the first part of a broader swap of 1,000 for 1,000.” (05/15/26)
“Abortion pills can remain available through the mail for the immediate future after the Supreme Court on Thursday paused a lower court ruling that would have blocked access while a lawsuit proceeds. The justices halted a May 1 order from the conservative U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit that reinstated a requirement that women must visit a health care provider in-person to obtain mifepristone. If it had taken effect, the order would have severely curtailed abortion access across the country. Conservative Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented separately. ‘The Court’s unreasoned order granting stays in this case is remarkable. What is at stake is the perpetration of a scheme to undermine our decision’ overturning constitutional [sic] abortion rights, Alito wrote.” (05/14/26)
“Israeli authorities will take The New York Times to court over a piece it published denouncing alleged widespread sexual abuse against Palestinian detainees, the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday, May 15. Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Saar have ordered the ‘initiation of a defamation lawsuit against The New York Times,’ according to a joint statement issued by their offices. … The investigation, which was published on Monday as an opinion piece by Kristof, a columnist, is based on testimonies gathered in the Israeli-occupied West Bank from 14 men and women who said that they had been sexually assaulted by Israeli settlers or members of the security forces. … The New York Times responded that any legal claim over the ‘deeply reported opinion column’ lacked merit.” (05/14/26)
