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US president says Harvard must ‘show us their list’ of foreign students to make sure they are not ‘troublemakers’.

United States President Donald Trump has intensified his dispute with Harvard University, saying the college should cap foreign enrolments and share information with the government about its international students.

“Harvard has to show us their lists. They have foreign students, almost 31 percent of their students. We want to know where those students come from. Are they troublemakers? What countries do they come from?” Trump told reporters at the White House on Wednesday. According to university enrolment data, foreign students make up 27 percent of Harvard’s student body.

“I think they should have a cap of maybe around 15 percent, not 31 percent,” Trump said, adding that he wants universities to accept “people who are going to love our country”.

The Trump administration has sought to pressure Harvard into compliance on a number of demands, including greater control over the university’s curricula, information about foreign students and further steps to crack down on pro-Palestine student activism, which the administration has characterised as anti-Semitic.

“Harvard has got to behave themselves. Harvard is treating our country with great disrespect, and all they’re doing is getting in deeper and deeper,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

The university has resisted what it says is an effort to erode its independence from the government and commitment to academic freedom.

The Trump administration has severed grants worth billions of dollars to Harvard and announced that it would revoke Harvard’s ability to enrol international students entirely. The Department of Homeland Security said that order was a response to Harvard “fostering violence, antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party”.

The university said in a statement at the time that the order was part of a “series of government actions to retaliate against Harvard for our refusal to surrender our academic independence and to submit to the federal government’s illegal assertion of control over our curriculum, our faculty, and our student body”.

The university swiftly challenged the order in court, and it was temporarily blocked by a judge on Friday.

Patricia McGuire, president of Trinity Washington University, said on Wednesday that Trump’s actions against foreign enrolment at US universities “makes no sense”.

“It’s so irrational because higher education is one of the top US exports to the world and the international students who come to this country enrich American universities immensely and take their knowledge back to all of their countries around the globe for the improvement of their countries and their populations,” McGuire told Al Jazeera from Washington, DC.

However, McGuire said Trump’s actions are consistent with “an administration that has literally snatched students off the street and taken them to detention centres”, referring to Tufts University student Rumeysa Ozturk, who was forcibly taken into custody by masked federal agents in broad daylight on a street near her Massachusetts home in March.

This month, a court ordered the release of the 30-year-old Turkish doctoral student from the custody of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.

“This is, in my view, completely anti-American values, and I think many academics are horrified by the fact that students are now being censored for their viewpoints,” McGuire said.

May 28 (UPI) — A three-judge panel on Wednesday struck down President Donald Trump‘s unilateral tariffs, including 10% imposed on most U.S. trading partners, calling them “contrary to law.”

Despite several lawsuits filed in different courts, this is the first time a federal court has blocked them.

The New York-based Court of International Trade, in a 49-page opinion, said the International Emergency Economic Powers Act does not give him the “unlimited” power to levy across-the-board tariffs.

The Trump administration can appeal the decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and, ultimately, the Supreme Court.

White House spokesperson Kush Desai said the U.S. trade deficits with other countries have “created a national emergency that has decimated American communities.”

“It is not for unelected judges to decide how to properly address a national emergency. President Trump pledged to put America First, and the Administration is committed to using every lever of executive power to address this crisis and restore American Greatness,” White House spokesperson Kush Desai said in a statement to CBS News.

The judges’ decision was based on two cases brought by a group of small businesses and 12 Democratic state attorneys general.

The judges were appointed by three presidents: Gary Katzmann by Barack Obama, Timothy Reif by Donald Trump and Jane Restani by Ronald Reagan.

“The President’s assertion of tariff-making authority in the instant case, unbounded as it is by any limitation in duration or scope, exceeds any tariff authority delegated to the President under IEEPA,” the judge wrote. “The Worldwide and Retaliatory tariffs are thus ultra vires and contrary to law.”

Separate tariffs against China, Canada and Mexico “do not deal with the threats set forth in those orders,” the court also found. These went into effect on March 4.

Trump imposed a 25% tariff against Canadian and Mexican goods, except for items compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada, and 10% for energy and potash from the U.S. northern neighbor. China was hit with a 30% tariff.

The 10% duties went into effect on April 5.

The president has the right to impose tariffs, based on a 1970s court decision involving the Trading with the Enemy Act of 1917, which preceded the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

The judges said the president’s tariffs do not meet the limited condition of an “unusual and extraordinary threat” that would allow him to act alone without approval by Congress.

“Because of the Constitution’s express allocation of the tariff power to Congress, we do not read IEEPA to delegate an unbounded tariff authority to the President,” they wrote. “We instead read IEEPA’s provisions to impose meaningful limits on any such authority it confers,” the ruling said.

Earlier this month, T. Kent Wetherell II, a district judge in Florida nominated by Trump, said the president has the authority on his own to impose tariffs, but opted to transfer the case to the Court of International Trade.

Several lawsuits have been filed since Trump announced the tariffs on April 2 as “Liberation Day.”

Trump also announced on April 2 plans for harsher tariffs against the so-called worst offenders but one week later he paused them for 90 days until July. They include ones against America’s greatest allies: 26% against India, 25% against South Korea, 24% against Japan and 20% against the 27 members of the European Union.

Trump also had announced a 125% tariff on top of 30% against China but he suspended that. He also excluded tariffs on electronic products in China but last week threatened a 25% one on Apple products not made in the United States.

Last week Trump suggested 50% tariffs on the EU by June but paused them until July 9 on Sunday.

The tariffs have rattled U.S. stocks.

May 28 (UPI) — President Donald Trump is a strong ally for the growing cryptocurrency industry, Vice President JD Vance told attendees at the Bitcoin 2025 Conference in Las Vegas on Wednesday.

“Crypto finally has a champion and an ally in the White House,” Vance said while delivering the event’s keynote address, CBS News reported.

“We want our fellow Americans to know that crypto and digital assets, and particularly bitcoin, are part of the mainstream economy and are here to stay,” he said.

Vance was this year’s featured speaker at the annual bitcoin conference, which President Donald Trump headlined last year while campaigning for the presidency.

Stablecoins stabilize the dollar

He said the Trump administration does not view so-called stablecoins as destabilizing the U.S. dollar and instead strengthens it, CNBC reported.

“We view them as a force multiplier for our economic might,” Vance told the audience at The Venetian Resort.

A stablecoin is a type of cryptocurrency whose value is derived from another asset, such as gold or the U.S. dollar, according to coinbase.

Vance said cryptocurrency has transformed how people and businesses conduct transactions, and its decentralized nature makes it a good way to protect personal and business finances against bad policies.

“Crypto is a hedge against bad policymaking from Washington, no matter what party’s in control,” he said.

Political advocacy for crypto progress

Vance encouraged those who are involved in cryptocurrency to increase their political advocacy.

He said $200 million in campaign support for candidates who supported cryptocurrency had a positive effect during the 2024 general election, The Hill reported.

Such financial support enabled Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, to beat Democratic Party incumbent Sherrod Brown in the 2024 Senate election in Ohio.

“Part of the reason that I’m standing here, part of the reason that Bernie Moreno defeated Sherrod Brown in the Senate campaign last year, is because you guys got organized and got involved in American politics,” Vance said.

Brown chaired the Senate Banking Committee, but his election defeat removed him as an obstacle to crypto-friendly legislation.

“There’s a lesson to take from that experience,” Vance said. “Unless you guys get involved in politics, politics is going to ignore this industry.”

Strong support for the GENIUS Act

The Trump administration is advocating for the GENIUS Act, which officially is called the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation in U.S. Stablecoins Act.

Vance said the proposed act’s enabling legislation is poised to be approved in the Senate and likely would fare well in the House of Representatives.

President Trump’s lead crypto adviser, David Sacks, last week told CNBC that U.S. investors have more than $200 billion in unregulated stablecoins.

Sacks said that amount could reach trillions of dollars “if we provide the legal clarity and legal framework for this.”

Praise follows conflict of interest concerns after Trump launches his own coin and hosts a dinner for his investors.

United States Vice President JD Vance has urged the domestic cryptocurrency industry to remain involved in US politics, highlighting the close ties of President Donald Trump’s administration to a deep-pocketed industry.

Speaking at a Bitcoin conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Wednesday, Vance urged cryptocurrency executives and enthusiasts to keep pressure on the US Congress to pass pro-crypto legislation supported by the White House

“We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to unleash innovation and use it to improve the lives of countless American citizens,” Vance said in his address. “But if we fail to create regulatory clarity now, we risk chasing this $3 trillion industry offshore in search of a friendly jurisdiction.”

Vance made the speech after Trump promised to make the US the “crypto capital of the planet” when he addressed the same Bitcoin conference in Nashville, Tennessee, last year in the middle of the presidential campaign. The crypto industry, which felt unfairly attacked by former President Joe Biden’s administration, spent heavily to help Trump and pro-cryptocurrency lawmakers win election.

Vance praised how quickly the crypto industry was able to organise and influence US politics during last year’s elections, giving special credit to Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, the billionaire founders of the crypto exchange Gemini.

“You chose to speak up, and you chose to get involved, and I believe you changed the direct trajectory of our country because of it,” Vance told the crowd gathered at the Venetian Hotel.

Vance hailed cryptocurrencies as a hedge that can help conservative populists protect themselves against what he called bad politicians, overly aggressive regulators and unethical elites. He predicted continued assimilation of the digital currencies into the financial mainstream and said it was strategically important for the US to be a world leader in the industry, noting that the Chinese government is hostile to crypto.

As president, Trump has established a Bitcoin reserve for the federal government and pardoned Ross Ulbricht, the founder of Silk Road, a black market website that was key to the early growth of Bitcoin.

Trump has also put outspoken crypto backers in his administration, which has undone or paused several enforcement actions taken against large cryptocurrency companies

Several other Trump officials are speakers at the Bitcoin conference, as are his sons Don Jr and Eric.

Conflict of interest

The president and his family’s use of cryptocurrencies as a platform to make money has drawn criticism from Democrats and even crypto enthusiasts as corrupt and unseemly.

The Trump family holds about a 60 percent stake in a crypto project called World Liberty Financial, which recently launched its own stablecoin, a fast-growing form of cryptocurrency whose value is often tied to the US dollar. This month, the US Senate advanced legislation that would create a federal framework to regulate stablecoins, a bill that Vance said the Trump administration wants passed into law quickly.

Trump’s media company announced on Tuesday that it was raising $2.5bn to buy Bitcoin, the world’s oldest and most popular cryptocurrency.

The president and first lady Melania Trump have also launched their own meme coins. Last week, Donald Trump rewarded investors in his coin. About 220 of the biggest investors in the $TRUMP were invited to Trump’s luxury golf club in northern Virginia.

May 28 (UPI) — Financial giant Fannie Mae said Wednesday it will launch its AI-powered unit to detect and prevent mortgage fraud in a partnership with AI software company Palantir.

“By integrating this leading AI technology, we will look across millions of datasets to detect patterns that were previously undetectable,” said Fannie Mae’s president and chief executive officer Priscilla Almodovar.

Fannie Mae, which holds more than $4 trillion in U.S. housing market assets, is the nation’s single largest holder of outstanding residential mortgage debt.

The launch of its new artificial intelligence-powered crime detection unit with Palantir seeks to expand Fannie’s ability to sniff out fraud with “leading” scientific and investigative AI-enabled tech.

The Washington-based Fannie Mae says its new capability will prevent and detect fraudulent activity with a “speed and precision” that, according to the company, has “never before” been seen designed to save millions of dollars in future financial losses to fraud in the U.S. housing market.

“This new partnership will combat mortgage fraud, helping to safeguard the U.S. mortgage market for lenders, homebuyers and taxpayers,” Fannie’s Almodovar continued.

Fannie Mae, which likewise owns or guarantees roughly one in four single-family mortgages and about 20% of America’s multifamily mortgages, says Palantir’s technology will provide “expansive” monitoring for anomalous transactions, activities and other digital behaviors.

According to Fannie officials, it will not only detect suspicious activity but ultimately will “trigger investigative action.”

“No one is above the law,” Fannie Mae Chairman William Pulte said in a statement.

Palantir was one of eight major tech firms to sign on to then-President Joe Biden‘s voluntary commitment in 2023 aimed to ensure AI tech is utilized responsibly.

On Wednesday, its top official said the Fannie Mae partnership will set off “a revolution in how we combat mortgage fraud” in the United States.

“We are bringing the fight directly to anyone who attempts to defraud our mortgage system and exploit hardworking Americans,” says Alex Karp, co-founder and CEO of Palantir Technologies.

May 28 (UPI) — Nvidia officials have scheduled a 5 p.m. EDT first-quarter earnings report that many expect to reflect the Trump administration’s restrictions on trade with China.

The artificial intelligence firm is expected to show increased earnings from a year ago, when it posted adjusted earnings of 61 cents per share on $26.04 billion in sales during the quarter that ended on April 27, Investor’s Business Daily reported.

Analysts queried by FactSet anticipate Nvidia to report adjusted earnings of 73 cents per share and $43.34 billion in sales during the first quarter this year.

Others suggest the AI chipmaker will report 93 cents in adjusted earnings per share on $43.31 billion in sales, CNBC reported.

Analysts anticipate improved numbers during the second quarter with projected adjusted earnings of 99 cents per share and nearly $46 billion in sales.

The effect of the Trump administration’s restrictions on trade with China should be known better after the Wednesday earnings report by Nvidia.

The Trump administration on April 9 notified Nvidia that it is requiring the chipmaker to obtain an export license for its H20 chip that is designed specifically for use in China’s market.

The chip is a specially designed version of Nvidia’s popular Hopper AI chips and is intended to comply with U.S. trade restrictions.

The Nvidia earnings report also comes on the heels of the Federal Reserve‘s recent announcement that it is maintaining the Fed’s lending rate of 4.25% to 4.5%.

The Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee met earlier in the month and agreed that President Donald Trump‘s tariffs policy and other inflationary pressures could trigger a rise in inflation.

Despite such concerns, Nvidia is expected to announce increased first-quarter earnings.

Meanwhile, the Dow closed down more than 200 points at the end of trading on Wednesday.

Pakistan win the opening match of the three-game T20 series against Bangladesh by 37 runs in Lahore.

Pakistan stormed to a 37-run win against Bangladesh in the opening T20 international of the three-match series at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.

Hasan Ali, returning to the side for the first time in a year, claimed 5-30 to bowl the tourists out for 164 in the final over.

Having won the toss, the hosts amassed 201-7 with captain Salman Agha top scoring with 56, but the innings was not without its bumps.

Right-arm seamer Hasan stole the hearts at least on his return to the international fold, following injury troubles, having recently impressed in his country’s domestic Two competition, the Pakistan Super League.

“I have seen him work hard and put in extra hours, and it has all paid off,” his skipper said afterwards.

On his top score in the match, Salman added, “What mattered is that everyone contributed, and that’s how we want to play – everyone has to bat, bowl and field well.”

Pakistan, like Bangladesh, are looking to recover from the group-stage exits at February’s ICC Champions Trophy, a competition they hosted.

It couldn’t have been a worse start for the hosts, who also lost seven of eight matches in the recent white-ball series against New Zealand, as they were reduced to 5-2 after eight balls of their innings.

Mohammad Haris began the recovery with his captain Salman as the pair shared a stand of 51 for the third wicket.

Hasan Nawaz took that foundation on with the highest strike rate of the innings as he hit 44 off 22 balls in a stand of 65 – the highest of the innings.

Salman was the only batter in the match to reach a half century and posted 56 off 24 with eight fours and one six.

The fourth-wicket pair fell within 11 deliveries of each other, and the finish looked to be stuttering until Shadab Khan smashed 48 off 25 to pile the pressure back onto Bangladesh.

The allrounder’s end came off the penultimate ball of the innings as Shoriful Islam claimed his second wicket – the only Bangladesh player to claim more than one scalp.

A top-heavy reply from the tourists looked to offer hope of a series-opening win as the highest partnership of the match of 63 was shared between their captain Litton Das and Tawhid Hridoy for the third wicket.

The breaking of that partnership, with the score on 100-2 before Litton departed, was the beginning of the end for the chase.

Shadab Khan claimed 2-26 along with his ferocious tally with the bat to be named Player of the Match.

“My comeback to Pakistan colours wasn’t great despite my hard work, but my recent performances in PSL helped regain some confidence,” the Pakistan vice captain said, having lost his place in the side recently.

All the matches in the series are being played in Lahore, with the second game taking place on Friday before the series finale on Sunday.

“We didn’t bowl, bat and field well,” Bangladesh captain Litton said in his post-match comments, believing his team needs more consistency in “all areas of the game”.

“We have two more games, so we must come back strongly as a unit,” he added.

May 28 (UPI) — The People Power Party’s Kim Moon-soo, 73, is the main conservative candidate in South Korea’s June 3 snap presidential election. The former labor minister trails his liberal opponent, Democratic Party frontrunner Lee Jae-myung, by a large margin in most polls.

Kim emerged as a prominent labor and democracy rights activist in the turbulent 1970s, and as a former labor activist, he began his career in politics when he participated in the founding of the progressive People’s Party in 1990. Watching the collapse of communist countries in the late 1980s and early 1990s, he abandoned his “leftist view of labor” and shifted to a moderate stance, expressing the view that resources should be concentrated on growth while also improving welfare. He ran as a candidate for the conservative New Korea Party in 1996 and became a three-term lawmaker representing Bucheon. He was later elected governor of Gyeonggi Province in 2006 and won a second term in 2010. Kim served as Labor Minister under impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol in 2024-2025.

The PPP candidate was born in Yeongchon, North Gyeongsang Province, as the sixth of seven children in an impoverished household. He was able to enter business school at Seoul National University in 1970 but was expelled for his anti-dictatorship activism during the regime of President Park Chung-hee.

Kim found factory work after expulsion and grew deeply involved with the labor activist movement as well, rising to national prominence and facing arrest and torture by the authoritarian government during the 1980s. He eventually finished his university degree in 1994, some 25 years after first enrolling.

After a turn to the conservative camp in 1994 under the invitation of then-President Kim Young-sam, himself a former activist who moved rightward, Kim saw his political star rise as a lawmaker and then Gyeonggi governor. In 2014 he announced that he would not run for re-election, ending his term as Gyeonggi governor. Instead, he supported his party colleague Nam Kyung-pil. Nam was elected governor that year but lost to the Democratic Party candidate four years later, who was none other than Lee Jae-myung.

Kim re-emerged in the Yoon Suk Yeol administration and maintained support for Yoon even as some other primary candidates called for distancing the party from the impeached president.

He was the sole cabinet member who refused to stand and apologize for Yoon’s martial law attempt in a session at the National Assembly and won the strong backing of hardline loyalists who opposed impeachment.

Kim won the PPP nomination on May 3, but faced a late push by party leadership to replace him with former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who some saw as a less polarizing figure with a better chance of defeating Lee. An all-member meeting finally confirmed Kim as their candidate a week later.

Kim has outlined a conservative vision for the country in his campaign, touting business-friendly economic policies and a hard line against threats from North Korea, as well as promising to push through sweeping political and anti-corruption reforms.

Economy

Kim said he would be a “job president” in his acceptance speech for the PPP nomination in May, and has promoted business-friendly policies such as economic deregulation and tax relief. Like his opponent, Lee Jae-myung, Kim has vowed to make South Korea an AI powerhouse, promising to establish a $71 billion public-private fund to invest in infrastructure and technology development in the sector.

Other pledges include child support grants and housing assistance to help address South Korea’s declining birthrate crisis, and the expansion of nuclear power as an energy source.

If elected, Kim has vowed to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump immediately to negotiate tariffs and resolve trade issues.

Defense and Foreign Policy

In his nomination acceptance speech, Kim vowed to be a “security president who eliminates the fear of North Korea’s nuclear weapons,” and has signaled a hard-line stance similar to the approach taken by Yoon Suk Yeol.

He has called for strengthening extended deterrence capabilities under the U.S.-South Korea military alliance, including the potential of redeploying U.S. tactical nuclear weapons on the Korean Peninsula.

“If we can arm ourselves with nuclear weapons within the scope of the South Korea-U.S. alliance, we should do it,” Kim said during a presidential debate on May 28.

Kim has also called for enhancing South Korea’s own defense capabilities and has pledged to develop nuclear-powered submarines.

On May 26, Kim’s key foreign policy advisers said that the candidate would seek engagement with North Korea while maintaining a demand for its complete denuclearization, and would “proactively support” a summit between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Government Reforms

Like his opponent Lee Jae-myung, Kim has proposed transitioning from South Korea’s current single five-year presidential term to a two-term, four-year presidency. He has promised to cut down his own term to three years if elected, allowing presidential and general elections to synchronize in 2028.

In the wake of the martial law crisis under Yoon, Kim has proposed decentralizing executive power and removing presidential immunity. He has also been deeply critical of the current Democratic Party-led parliament, calling it the “worst National Assembly dictatorship in history” over its opposition to Yoon and numerous impeachment motions. Kim has said he would slash the number of lawmakers by 10% and relocate the National Assembly to the administrative city of Sejong.

Kim has maintained a connection with Yoon and received the impeached president’s endorsement on May 17.

He issued an apology for the “suffering” caused by Yoon’s martial law attempt earlier in May and called it an “extreme measure” that he would not look to employ.

“If I become president in the future, I will not use martial law,” he said while campaigning. “I will complete democracy through dialogue, persuasion and patience to resolve any issues between the ruling and opposition parties.”

He also met two former conservative presidents, Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye and received their support.

Tren de Aragua was a little-known gang in Venezuela – until recently. US President Donald Trump’s focus on the group has thrust it into the spotlight, as hundreds of Venezuelans have been deported from the United States.

May 28 (UPI) — The Trump administration ordered a hold on any new interviews of foreign student visa applications as it expands the vetting of applicants’ social media accounts.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Wednesday in a social media post that he is “announcing a new visa restriction policy that will apply to foreign officials and persons who are complicit in censoring Americans.”

Politico, NBC News and CBS News previously reported that Rubio issued a cable to all U.S. Embassies and consular agencies Tuesday to request the hold, in which he wrote that “Effective immediately, in preparation for an expansion of required social media screening and vetting, consular sections should not add any additional student or exchange visitor (F, M, and J) visa appointment capacity until further guidance is issued septel, which we anticipate in the coming days.”

“Septel” is State Department shorthand for “separate telegram.”

The cable also states that “consular sections will need to take into consideration the workload and resource requirements of each case prior to scheduling them going forward,” and that the main concern should be in regard to “services for U.S. citizens, immigrant visas, and fraud prevention.”

Politico said the cable alluded to the search for anti-Semitism and material that would indicate potential terrorist activity.

In a speech Rubio recorded for the Foreign Minister’s Conference on Combating Antisemitism, held Wednesday at the World Holocaust Remembrance Center in Jerusalem, he spoke on behalf of the State Department’s Office of the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism.

“Those who call to boycott Israel are calling for the boycott of their Jewish neighbors and classmates,” Rubio said. “We have implemented a vigorous new visa policy that will prevent foreign nationals from coming to the United States to foment hatred against our Jewish community.”

Rubio further posted online Wednesday that “Foreigners who work to undermine the rights of Americans should not enjoy the privilege of traveling to our country. Whether in Latin America, Europe, or elsewhere, the days of passive treatment for those who work to undermine the rights of Americans are over.”

The Trump administration previously imposed requirements for screening the social media of returning students who participated in protests in support of Palestinians opposing Israel’s war in Gaza.

Joel Le Scouarnec tells court he committed ‘despicable act’ in another mass rape case that shocks France.

A French court has sentenced a retired surgeon to 20 years in prison for raping or sexually abusing nearly 300 victims, many of them children under anaesthesia, over 25 years of his career in another case of years-long abuse that has rocked the nation.

The conviction and sentencing on Wednesday in the Brittany court capped what is widely seen as the worst case of abuse of children that has ever gone to trial in modern France.

It comes after 51 men were convicted of taking part in the decade-long mass rape of a woman, Gisele Pelicot, in southern France in what many advocates hoped would be a watershed #MeToo moment for those seeking justice against their abusers.

Throughout the most recent trial, 74-year-old Joel Le Scouarnec admitted to raping or sexually abusing 299 patients – including 256 victims under the age of 15 – as he worked in hospitals in western France.

The attacks took place from 1989 to 2014, many while his patients were under anaesthesia or waking up after operations. All told, Le Scouarnec was charged with 111 rapes and 189 sexual assaults in the case, which began in February.

Throughout the trial, Le Scouarnec told the court he committed “despicable acts”.

“I owe it to all these people and their loved ones to admit my actions and their consequences, which they’ve endured and will keep having to endure all their lives,” he said at one point.

Victims ‘will never forgive you, never’

But victims, lawyers and advocates who gathered at the courthouse throughout the trial and on Wednesday for the verdict said they put little stock in Le Scouarnec’s words of contrition.

“You are the worst mass paedophile who ever lived,” Thomas Delaby, one of about 60 lawyers representing the victims, said during the trial. He described Le Scouarnec as an “atomic bomb of paedophilia”.

Delaby told Le Scouarnec the victims “will never forgive you, never”.

Le Scouarnec had previously been convicted in 2020 for raping and sexually assaulting four children, including two of his nieces. He was already serving a 15-year sentence as the current trial played out.

The 20-year sentence is the maximum possible. In France, sentences are not served consecutively. In the United States, prosecutors noted, Le Scouarnec would have been sentenced to “2,000 years”.

Questions over public health system

The case has raised questions about France’s publicly run health system and how Le Scouarnec was able to act with impunity for so many years.

Advocates have demanded to know why he was allowed to continue working in public hospitals despite being convicted in 2005 of downloading images of child sexual abuse. At the time, he received a suspended jail sentence.

The extent of Le Scouarnec’s abuse was revealed only after his rearrest in 2017 on suspicion of raping his 6-year-old neighbour.  Police then discovered electronic diaries that appeared to document decades of abuse in painstaking detail.

In his notes, the doctor described himself as a “major pervert” and a “paedophile”.

“And I am very happy about it,” he wrote.

Wednesday’s verdict was handed down during what some hope will be a wider reckoning over sexual abuse in France and what some see as social mores that enable such crimes.

In December, a court in the southern French city of Avignon convicted 51 men of the years-long rape and sexual abuse of Pelicot, who refused to remain anonymous during the proceedings and whose clear-eyed testimony resonated among the French public.

“I’ve decided not to be ashamed, I’ve done nothing wrong,” she testified during the trial. “They are the ones who must be ashamed.”

Among those convicted was Pelicot’s ex-husband, 72-year-old Dominique Pelicot, who prosecutors said orchestrated the drugging and raping of his wife for nearly a decade.

May 28 (UPI) — Global warming is expected to send temperatures soaring at or near record levels over the next five years, according to a Wednesday report from the World Meteorological Organization.

The WMO report said there’s an 86% chance that at least one of the next five years will exceed the Paris Climate Agreement goal of 1.5 degrees Celsius, or 2.7 degrees Farenheit, above the 1850-1900 global temperature average.

There’s an 80% chance that at least one of the next five years will surpass 2024 as warmest on record.

The WMO report said global temperatures “are expected to continue at or near record levels in the next five years, increasing climate risks and impacts on societies, economies and sustainable development.”

“We have just experienced the ten warmest years on record. Unfortunately, this WMO report provides no sign of respite over the coming years, and this means that there will be a growing negative impact on our economies, our daily lives, our ecosystems and our planet,” WMO Deputy Secretary-General Ko Barrett said in a statement.

The report forecast a 70% chance that the 2025-2029 five-year-average warming will be more than the 2.7 degrees Farenheit threshold.

That’s up from the 47% chance forecast in last year’s report for the 2024-2028 period. In the 2023 report it was 32%.

The report’s data indicates a higher risk of climate-change intensified storms, wildfires, floods and drought.

“Every additional fraction of a degree of warming drives more harmful heatwaves, extreme rainfall events, intense droughts, melting of ice sheets, sea ice, and glaciers, heating of the ocean, and rising sea levels,” the WMO said.

The WMO report follows the hottest 10 years ever on Earth.

The rapid warming of the Earth includes Arctic warming over the next five extended winters, which is expected to be more than three and a half times the global average.

The chance of seeing a global temperature rise of 3.6 degrees Fearenheit before 2030 is about 1%, but it was previously considered impossible.

“It is shocking that 2C is plausible,” Adam Scaife of the Met Office, which played a leading role in compiling the data, said it was “shocking” that reaching that temperature was plausible.

“It has come out as only 1% in the next five years but the probability will increase as the climate warms,” he said.

Investigators in China are working to find the cause of a powerful explosion at a chemical plant that killed five people and injured 19 more. More than 200 emergency workers responded to the blast in Shandong province, which damaged properties up to a kilometre away.

May 28 (UPI) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky traveled to Germany Wednesday to discuss the state of German military support, which could include a delivery of powerful missiles to Ukraine for use against Russian targets.

Zelensky and the Ukrainian delegation were welcomed by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz shortly after their arrival in Berlin, and Zelensky is also expected to meet with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

The visit takes place as speculation continues in regard to whether Germany will supply Ukraine with its Taurus cruise missiles, which can strike targets as far away as 300 miles. Merz had signaled before his ascension to chancellor that he would overturn a previous ban by his predecessor Olaf Scholz on the provision of such weaponry to Ukraine.

Zelensky spoke with reporters Tuesday, and said he would discuss the issue of long-range missiles.

The decision to provide the Taurus missiles remains officially unresolved as it has been a matter of contention between the conservative alliance of the Christian Democratic Union and Christian Social Union parties, and the Social Democratic Party, their coalition partners.

However, Merz announced Monday that Germany would “do everything in our power to continue supporting Ukraine,” and that “also means no longer having any range restrictions on the weapons we supply. Ukraine can now also defend itself by attacking military positions in Russia.”

Merz later explained the comment was in reference to actions taken months ago, and German Vice Chancellor Lars Klingbeil has since confirmed that no new decision in regard to the Taurus missile issue.

Germany has previously provided Ukraine with two weapons systems capable of strikes within Russian borders, the Mars II rocket launchers and Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled artillery, and range restrictions on their usage were lifted in May 2024.

Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced Monday that European countries who lift restrictions on the range of provided armaments for use against Russia on Russian territory would be making a “rather dangerous decision.”

Zelensky posted to social media Tuesday that in an “extended meeting” with Ukrainian military leadership, they had discussed “preparing new agreements with our European partners in the near future, to attract investment into Ukrainian production,” which “First and foremost,” means “the production of unmanned systems and long-range capabilities,” so that the military can “operate at significant distances.”

Harvard students protested US President Donald Trump’s decision to cut all remaining federal contracts with the Ivy league university. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has ordered a halt to all international student visa processing, as it prepares to expand social media vetting for all foreign applicants.

May 28 (UPI) — The Czech Republic accused China on Wednesday of being responsible for a “malicious cyber campaign” that targeted an unclassified network of the foreign ministry.

Little information about the cyberattack was made public, the Czech government said it began in 2022, affected an institution designated as Czech critical infrastructure and that it was perpetrated by well-known China-backed hackers APT31.

“The Government of the Czech Republic strongly condemns this malicious cyber campaign against its critical infrastructure,” the Czech foreign affairs ministry said in a statement.

“Such behavior undermines the credibility of the People’s Republic of China and contradicts its public declarations.”

APT31, which stands for Advanced Persistent Threat Group 31, is a collection of China state-sponsored intelligence officers, contract hackers and support staff that conduct cyberattacks on behalf of the Chinese government.

Seven Chinese nationals were charged in the United States in late March for their involvement in APT31, which federal prosecutors said has targeted U.S. and foreign critics of the Chinese government, business, and political officials over the last 14 years.

The Czech government said Wednesday it tied APT31 to the cyberattack through an “extensive investigation,” which “led to a high degree of certainty about the responsible actor.”

“The Government of the Czech Republic has identified the People’s Republic of China as being responsible,” it said.

NATO and the European Union — both of which Czech is a member of — were quick to condemn China following Prague’s revelation.

“We stand in solidarity with the Czech Republic following the malicious cyber campaign against its Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” the security alliance said in a statement.

NATO did not blame China but acknowledged the Czechs’ accusation of Beijing for the attack and said that it has observed “with increasing concern the growing pattern of malicious cyber activities stemming from the People’s Republic of China.”

Similarly, the EU did not directly point the finger at China for the attack on the Czech Republic, but said there have been cyberattacks linked to Beijing targeting EU and its member stats.

“In 2021, we urged Chinese authorities to take action against malicious cyber activities undertaken from their territories. Since then, several Member States have attributed similar activities at their national level,” the EU’s high representative, Kaja Kallas, said in a statement.

“We have repeatedly raised our concerns during bilateral engagements and we will continue to do so in the future.”

Authorities are investigating the fatal shootings outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, DC, as hate crimes and ‘terrorism’.

Following the fatal shooting of two Israeli embassy employees in Washington, DC, last week, some social media users claimed the incident was a “false flag” because of when and where it happened.

“So you’re telling me two Israeli diplomats got killed across the street from an FBI field office outside a Jewish museum that had *closed* 4 hours earlier,” said a May 22 X post. “And one day after Israel fired at European diplomats and Europe was talking sanctions and you don’t think it’s a false flag?”

Other X posts similarly speculated about the deadly shooting on May 21.

The “false flag” phrase stems from the misuse of literal flags. Historically, a false flag operation referred to a military force or a ship flying another country’s flag for deception purposes.

Some confirmed false flag operations have occurred throughout history. But they have been outpaced in recent years by conspiracy theories that label real events as “false flags,” or an attack that’s designed to look like it was perpetrated by one person or party, when in fact it was committed by someone else.

Unfounded false flag claims often follow mass violence incidents, including Israel’s war on Gaza, the 2022 Uvalde school shooting and the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol.

Historians warn that social media rumours alleging that big news events are “false flags” should be viewed sceptically. Real false flag operations are logistically complex and tend to involve many people.

PolitiFact found no credible evidence to support the claim that the Israeli embassy employees’ shooting is a false flag.

What we know about the shooting

The X post said the shooting, which happened on a Wednesday, is a “false flag” because the museum had closed four hours earlier. The museum usually closes at 5pm on Wednesdays, except for the first Wednesday of each month, when it closes at 8pm.

However, the American Jewish Committee hosted an event on May 21 at the museum, scheduled to end at 9pm.

Preliminary investigations say the shooting happened after 9pm local time when the two victims, Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, were exiting an event at the Capital Jewish Museum, said Pamela A Smith, the Metropolitan Police Department police chief, at a May 21 press conference.

Police identified the suspect as Elias Rodriguez, a 31-year-old man from Chicago, Illinois. Rodriguez chanted, “Free, free, Palestine” after he was arrested, Smith said. The Justice Department charged him with the murder of foreign officials and other crimes.

The shooting, which has widely been criticised, came as Israel’s actions in Gaza has caused a global outrage and protests calling for ceasefire.

Jeanine Pirro, interim US attorney for the District of Columbia, said on May 22 that the incident is being investigated as a hate crime and “terrorism”.

The Capital Jewish Museum is diagonally across the street from the FBI’s DC field office. FBI Director Kash Patel and the Israeli government have condemned the shooting.

There is no evidence that the shooting was a false flag. We rate this claim False.

May 28 (UPI) — Israeli warplanes struck the Houthi-controlled Sanaa International Airport in Yemen on Wednesday morning, the Israel Defense Forces said, seemingly in response to missiles recently launched by the militant group toward Israel.

The IDF said in a statement on X that its airstrikes targeted unidentified aircraft belonging to the Houthis.

“The aircraft that were attacked were used by the Houthi terrorist regime to transport terrorists who promoted terrorist acts against the State of Israel,” it said.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said the strike destroyed the last remaining planes used by the Houthis at the site that remained following the IDF’s previous attack on the airport on May 6.

“This is a clear message and a direct continuation of the policy we established: Whoever fires at the State of Israel will pay a heavy price,” Katz said in the statement, The Times of Israel reported.

“The ports in Yemen will continue to be struck heavily, and the airport in Sanaa will be destroyed again and again, as will other strategic infrastructures in the area used by the Houthi terror organization and its supporters.”

Houthis, an Iran-backed group, have repeatedly attacked Israel since early in Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, which began on Oct. 7, 2023, in response to Hamas’ brutal attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and saw another 251 kidnapped.

The involvement of the Houthis, also an Iran-proxy militia, increased starting in mid-November when it started to enforce a military blockade of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, vowing to attack Israeli ships attempting to pass. It said the blockade was in solidarity with the Palestinian people. The rebels followed by broadening targets to include U.S. military ships.

Israel, with its allies, including the United States, have responded with conducting mass airstrikes in Yemen.

On May 6, Israel attacked the airport in Sanaa, and last week conducted similar airstrikes on ports in Hodeidah and al-Salif.

On Tuesday, the IDF said it had intercepted a missile launched from Yemen.

“This is another example of the Houthi terrorist organization’s brutal use of civilian infrastructure for terrorist activities,” the IDF said Wednesday morning on X, seemingly in reference to the Sanaa airport.

“The IDF is determined to continue to act and strike with force anyone who poses a threat to the residents of the State of Israel, at whatever distance is required.”

The world’s largest Bitcoin conference is taking place in Las Vegas, Nevada from May 27-29.

This year’s event includes several speakers from US President Donald Trump’s circle including Vice President JD Vance; Trump’s two eldest sons, Donald Trump Jr and Eric Trump; as well as White House crypto tsar David Sacks.

Trump’s favourable view of cryptocurrency and his family’s heavy involvement in the industry is raising concerns about the integrity of Trump’s administration and how he is using his influence as president of the United States.

How has Bitcoin performed under Trump?

Over the past week, Bitcoin reached an all-time high of $111,970, marking a 2.6 percent increase from its previous Inauguration Day peak of $109,114.

Since Donald Trump’s re-election in November 2024, Bitcoin has surged 60 percent, rising from about $69,539 at close on Election Day to its current record level.

The cryptocurrency briefly dropped below $90,000 on February 25, amid market jitters triggered by Trump’s announcement of new tariffs on multiple countries and industries worldwide, before recovering.

What were the policies during the Biden administration?

During the Biden administration, government policy on cryptocurrency was mixed, with a plethora of lawsuits brought against crypto firms by then Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chair Gary Gensler, who has been replaced under the new Trump administration. There were also major moves to adopt cryptocurrency, with the SEC approving 11 spot Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024.

In 2022 and into 2023, the crypto market faced major drawdowns following the implosion of Bahamas-based cryptocurrency exchange FTX in 2022 and the regional banking crisis in early 2023. This led to the Federal Reserve Board releasing statements to banks on the risks of crypto assets, which it has recently withdrawn.

What are Trump’s crypto policies?

The crypto industry has emerged as a significant political player, contributing large sums to support Trump and other legislators.

Much of Biden’s crypto policies have been rescinded under the Trump administration, with the US Senate advancing key pro-crypto legislation such as the establishment of the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and the Digital Asset Stockpile, aimed at maintaining control of Bitcoin seized as part of “criminal or civil asset forfeiture proceedings”.

Trump’s cryptocurrency policies included appointing pro-crypto figures to key regulatory roles, such as naming Paul Atkins as the new SEC chair.

The most recent rally in Bitcoin is largely prompted by investor optimism over a more crypto-friendly administration and proposed regulatory changes to reduce barriers to entry in the crypto asset markets.

Unlike fiat currencies, Bitcoin’s maximum supply is 21 million coins. Because of this, the White House has stated “there is a strategic advantage to being among the first nations to create a strategic Bitcoin reserve.”

What if Bitcoin were a country?

With Bitcoin priced at $110,000 and a circulating supply of approximately 19.87m BTC, its market capitalisation stands at roughly $2.18 trillion.

If Bitcoin were a country, it would be a major economic powerhouse, ranking roughly in the top 10 worldwide by gross domestic product (GDP) size, roughly on par with countries like Brazil ($2.17 trillion), Canada ($2.14 trillion) or Russia ($2.02 trillion).

What are the regulations and ethics on government officials’ involvement in crypto?

Just before taking office, Trump launched the $TRUMP meme coin at a Crypto Ball held in Washington, DC. Meme coins are often created as a joke and are susceptible to volatile price movements, however, Trump’s coin has allowed top investors access to him.

Last week, President Trump hosted top investors for a cryptocurrency project at his luxury golf course in Northern Virginia. It’s estimated investors spent $148m on the $TRUMP coin to secure their seats at the dinner, with the top 25 spending more than $111m, according to crypto intelligence firm Inca Digital, the Reuters news agency reported.

While the White House insisted Trump would be attending the event “in his personal time”, he spoke at the event behind a podium marked with the presidential seal.

When Trump’s meme coin launched, it first surged, then fell in value, while its creators, which include an entity linked to the Trump Organization, made hundreds of millions in trading fees.

The Trump family is now deeply invested in crypto, with ventures like First Lady Melania Trump’s coin and a stake in World Liberty Financial, a cryptocurrency firm founded in 2024.

While government officials have financial disclosure requirements, and regulatory agencies can monitor the goings-on of officials, critics have warned of conflicts of interest, as Trump backs crypto after once opposing it, potentially using policy to boost his own gains.