Foreign News
Trump to Turn Himself in, Faces Day in Court
Donald Trump, the ex-president, and front-runner for the Republican nomination in 2024, will appear in court on Tuesday to be fingerprinted, photographed, and formally charged in a watershed moment.
This will be coming ahead of next year’s presidential election.
Indicted last week, Trump is the first sitting or former president to face criminal charges, over a case involving a 2016 hush-money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels.
He has said he is innocent and is due to plead not guilty.
Trump, 76, will surrender amid tight security and expected street protests.
Police made plans to separate supporters and critics outside the barricaded courthouse, where news outlets had lined up overnight to get access.
Although Trump has drawn tens of thousands of fervent supporters to rallies across the country, it was unclear how many would travel to his heavily Democratic home town, where automobile travel is difficult.
“We have to take back our Country and, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” Trump wrote on social media shortly after arriving in New York from Florida on Monday.
The arraignment, where Trump will be in court to hear charges and have a chance to enter a plea, was planned for 2:15 p.m. (1815 GMT) on Tuesday.
“It won’t be a long day in court,” Joseph Tacopina, one of Trump’s lawyers, said on ABC.
The specific charges reached by a grand jury were due to be disclosed on Tuesday.
Yahoo News late on Monday said Trump would face 34 felony counts for falsification of business records.
Any trial is at least more than a year away, legal experts said.
An indictment, or even a conviction, does not legally prevent Trump from running for president.
Judge Juan Merchan late on Monday ruled that five photographers will be admitted before the arraignment starts to take pictures for several minutes.
Trump’s lawyers had urged him to keep them out, arguing they would worsen “an already almost circus-like atmosphere.”
The District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat, who led the investigation, will give a news conference afterwards.
Trump and his allies have portrayed the case as politically motivated.
Trump will return to Florida and deliver remarks from his Mar-a-Lago resort at 8:15 p.m. on Tuesday (0015 GMT on Wednesday), his office said.
Bragg has faced harsh criticism from Trump and his office has received bomb threats in recent weeks.
Security officials say they were not aware of credible threats surrounding Trump’s courtroom appearance.
Mayor Eric Adams warned potential rabble-rousers to behave.
“Our message is clear and simple: Control yourselves. New York City is our home, not a playground for your misplaced anger,” he told reporters.
President Joe Biden, a Democrat who is widely expected to seek re-election and face a potential rematch against Trump, said he had faith in the New York police.
The case has divided people in New York, where Trump’s name is emblazoned on buildings related to his business ventures.
“It’s a terrific day. I hope it goes well and that he is eventually found guilty,” said New Jersey resident Robert Hoatson, 71, outside Trump Tower, where Trump stayed on Monday.
Susan Miller said she hoped the show of support would “give him a little strength.”
“He’s honest as the day is long,” she said.
Trump’s lead has widened over rivals in the Republican Party’s presidential nominating contest, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Monday, conducted after news broke that he would face criminal charges.
Some 48 per cent of Republicans say they want Trump to be their party’s presidential nominee, up from 44 per cent last month.
Second-place Florida governor, Ron DeSantis fell from 30 per cent to around 19 per cent. (Reuters/NAN)
Mozambique’s disaster management agency announced that the death toll from Cyclone Chido has risen to 94.
The cyclone had made landfall in northern Mozambique a week ago and Mozambique’s institute for natural disasters on Thursday had given the death toll at 73.
The Indian Ocean archipelago Mayotte bore the brunt of the storm.
Officials in Mayotte, which is one of France’s poorest overseas territories, have only been able to confirm 35 fatalities from Chido, but some have said they fear thousands could have been killed.Olamide Harrison, the International Monetary Fund’s Mozambique resident representative, said on Wednesday that the country’s 2024 economic growth would likely be revised down from a previous forecast of 4.
3 per cent due to the impact of the cyclone and post-election civil unrest.In October, Daniel Chapo, the candidate of Mozambique’s ruling party Frelimo, was declared winner of the presidential election. (Reuters/NAN)
Foreign News
No talk of Ceasefire Deal Between Turkey, US-backed SDF in Northern Syria – Turkish Official
There is no talk of a ceasefire deal between Turkey and the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northern Syria, contrary to a U.S. announcement on the issue, a Turkish defence ministry official said on Thursday.
The official was responding to comments from State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller, who said a ceasefire between Turkey and the SDF around the northern Syrian city of Manbij has been extended until the end of this week.
“As Turkey, it is out of the question for us to have talks with any terrorist organisation.
“The (U.S.) statement must be a slip of the tongue,” the defence ministry official, who was speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters.
Washington brokered an initial ceasefire between Turkey-backed Syrian rebels and the SDF forces last week after fighting that broke out earlier this month as rebel groups advanced on Damascus and overthrew Bashar al-Assad.
The SDF is an ally in the U.S. coalition against Islamic State militants.
It is spearheaded by the YPG, a group that Ankara sees as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants who have fought the Turkish state for 40 years.
Turkey regards the PKK, YPG and SDF as terrorist groups. The U.S. and Turkey’s Western allies list the PKK as terrorist, but not the YPG and the SDF.
When asked if Ankara was considering another ground operation into northern Syria, the official said that Turkey still sees a threat to its borders from north Syria.
“Our preparations and precautions as part of the fight against terrorism will continue until the PKK/YPG lays down its arms and its foreign fighters leave Syria,” the official said.
Since 2016, Turkey has mounted four military operations in northern Syria, citing national security threats.
Turkey believes that forces of the Syrian National Army paramilitary group which it backs will “liberate” YPG-controlled areas in northern Syria, the official said, signalling that Turkey does not plan an imminent operation into the region by its military.
The SDF have close ties with Western countries including the U.S. and France. Recently, France said the political transition in Syria needed to ensure that the SDF was represented. (Reuters/NAN)
The South Korean Government ordered an overseas travel ban on President Yoon Suk Yeol.The South Korean news agency Yonhap reported on Monday that the travel ban is due to the ongoing investigation into Yoon, which involves suspicion of high treason.Yoon unexpectedly imposed martial law on his country last Tuesday night, but hours later, after massive political resistance, he repealed the order.
On Saturday evening, a motion by the opposition to impeach the president in parliament failed. However, public pressure against the 63-year-old continues. (dpa/NAN)
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