Agents

Announcement coincides with reports of influx of federal agents to Delaney Hall, site of protests and hunger strikeTop New Jersey officials announced on Friday that the state police will be taking over policing functions from federal immigration officers outside the contentious Delaney Hall facility, as reports surface of an influx of federal agents making their way to the area.As part of the state police’s takeover of “public safety operations” at the site, they will establish a “peaceful protected zone” for demonstrators and will have protesters “move there today”, according to New Jersey’s governor, Mikie Sherrill, and attorney general, Jennifer Davenport. Continue reading...

Maine, Massachusetts, Oregon and Washington state sued as ICE seeks plates in Trump’s immigration crackdownThe Trump administration is suing to challenge the refusal of four US states to issue confidential license plates to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, saying the states have long provided them to other law enforcement agencies conducting undercover operations.The US Department of Justice on Thursday said it had filed lawsuits against Maine, Massachusetts, Oregon and Washington state after states led by Democratic governors refused to rescind their policies. ICE is seeking access to such plates to carry out arrests as part of Trump’s immigration crackdown. Continue reading...

• Dimension Market Research reports that the Agentic AI security market is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 36.2%, reaching USD 888 billion by 2035. • This surge is driven by the proliferation of multi-agent systems and non-human identities, which are creating a new cybersecurity category as traditional security measures fail to keep pace. • The United States is expected to be a primary driver of this growth, with its domestic market alone forecasted to reach USD 247.5 billion by 2035.

Democrat Andy Kim says he saw ‘chaos’ at the New Jersey ICE facility amid ‘standoff’ between protesters and agentsAndy Kim, a Democratic senator, said he was pepper sprayed by federal agents on Monday during a protest at a New Jersey detention facility.Video posted on social media showed Kim receiving help from a volunteer who is seen pouring water in his eyes outside Delaney Hall in Newark, where detainees are reportedly staging a hunger strike against poor conditions and denial of medical care. Continue reading...

Protesters say agents used pepper spray and batons in clash outside Delaney Hall where a hunger strike is under wayProtesters outside a New Jersey migrant detention center where a hunger strike is under way alleged that US immigration agents deployed pepper spray and batons against them during a demonstration on Monday.The protesters tried to stop ICE from transferring Martin Soto – who announced the strike – but officials said that they were able to move him to the Elizabeth contract detention facility. Continue reading...

• The America First Policy Institute published a policy page arguing that the U.S. government should speed AI agent adoption by strengthening security standards and issuing clearer guidance. • The memo says agencies should promote secure-by-design development so AI agents can be used more widely without increasing operational risk. • The proposal matters because AI agents are moving from demos to enterprise and government workflows, where authentication, data handling and tool access create new attack surfaces.

Homebuyers more cautious due to possible mortgage rate rises and higher inflation as sellers sit on propertiesFears of higher mortgage rates and rising inflation as a result of the Middle East conflict are leading to a subdued and downbeat housing market, according to estate agents.Demand from potential homebuyers across England and Wales has shown a “noticeable softening” recently, according to a monthly survey of estate agents by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). Continue reading...

• Anthropic released 10 financially-focused AI agents on May 5 that can automate tasks like building pitchbooks, auditing statements, and drafting credit memos for banks and insurers. • The company announced new data sources for its Claude AI model and revealed that 40% of its top 50 customers are financial institutions, making finance its second-largest revenue segment after technology. • CEO Dario Amodei predicted further software disruption across industries and called for legislation governing the release of powerful AI models, noting that Claude's Mythos model has likely identified tens of thousands of vulnerabilities.

• Anthropic unveiled 10 new AI agents designed for banks and insurers to automate tasks like building pitchbooks, auditing statements, and drafting credit memos. • Major global firms such as Goldman Sachs, Citi, Visa, and AIG have adopted Anthropic's Claude AI, with banks using the Claude Mythos model for cybersecurity enhancements. • The agents integrate directly with Claude Code and Cowork products, allowing customization to firm-specific policies and styles, accelerating finance sector AI adoption.

• Indian cybersecurity companies are deploying in-house AI agents built on large language models to combat threats. • These AI agents reduce software vulnerability detection and remediation times from days to hours. • The acceleration matches attackers' machine-speed operations, where human response windows shrink to near zero.

• Anthropic unveiled 10 specialized AI agents designed for the financial services sector, automating critical tasks for banks and insurance companies. • The agents can autonomously handle operations including pitchbook construction, financial auditing, and other complex processes with limited human intervention. • The launch, timed to Anthropic's New York event, represents the company's deepening commitment to enterprise AI adoption across the financial industry.

• Anthropic released 10 new AI agents on Tuesday designed for banks and insurers to automate tasks like building pitchbooks, auditing statements, and drafting credit memos with limited human intervention. • The agents integrate with Claude Code and Cowork products, can be customized to firm policies, and access expanded data sources for financial work, adopted by Goldman Sachs, Visa, Citi, and AIG. • This marks Anthropic's rapid expansion into finance less than a year after announcing ambitions, with executives noting a 'dramatic change' in capabilities over the past six months.

• AI agents are emerging as tools to help social enterprises scale operations efficiently with leaner teams, addressing resource constraints in the social impact sector. • Without proper boundaries, AI agent deployment risks eroding trust, compromising data safety, and diminishing human connection—critical elements for social enterprises. • The development highlights the need for responsible AI implementation frameworks that balance automation benefits with ethical considerations and user trust in mission-driven organizations.

Federal raids unfold in Twin Cities amid ongoing tensions between the Trump administration and Minnesota officialsSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxFederal agents under the command of the Trump administration have descended on Minnesota’s Twin Cities again to primarily target alleged fraud at daycares after the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s so-called “Operation Metro Surge” all but wound down earlier in the year.“Today the FBI with federal, state and local law enforcement is involved in court-authorized law enforcement activity as part of an ongoing fraud investigation,” the US justice department told the Guardian in a statement on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Buffalo’s Rohingya community pushes for NY state law to protect immigrants after Nurul Amin Shah Alam’s deathSince Nurul Amin Shah Alam’s death in February, the fear across Buffalo’s East Side has been palpable.Alam, a 56-year-old Rohingya refugee from Myanmar, who spoke no English and had mental health issues, was dropped by federal immigration officers outside a closed coffee shop in the middle of a brutal winter. He had spent months in custody following a confusing encounter with local law enforcement, then was released – alone, in the cold – far from the Rohingya community hub where he might have found help. Days later, he died. Continue reading...

• IBM announced IBM Autonomous Security on April 15, 2026, deploying coordinated AI agents to detect and contain threats at machine speed without human intervention. • The service addresses a critical gap: attackers now achieve full network lateral movement in as little as 27 seconds, compared to an average of 29 minutes in 2024—a 65% speed improvement driving urgent demand for AI-powered defenses. • AI-enabled attacks surged 89% year-over-year in 2025, with a 44% increase in assaults exploiting public-facing applications, prompting major security vendors to adopt autonomous AI defense strategies.

• Operant AI launched CodeInjectionGuard on April 22, 2026, a tool that blocks malicious code execution by AI agents at runtime. • The guard defends against code injection attacks, preventing supply chain compromises in autonomous AI systems. • It secures AI agents used in critical operations, addressing rising cybersecurity risks in AI deployments.

Mexico to investigate possible breach of its constitution and assess US’s role in anti-drug operation near ChihuahuaMexico has launched an investigation into a possible breach of its constitution as it was reported that two US embassy officials who died in a car accident while returning from a raid on a drug lab with local officials in the border state of Chihuahua were CIA operatives.The accident happened early on Sunday, as the officials were driving back from the scene of the raid. Their vehicle skidded off the road and plunged down a 200 metre ravine in the mountains near Chihuahua’s border with the state of Sinaloa. Continue reading...

Jose Serrano, a sergeant, said Deisy Rivera Ortega, his wife, was arrested at an immigration appointmentA US army sergeant with 27 years of military service – including deployment to Afghanistan – has said that federal immigration agents recently arrested his wife during an appointment at an El Paso, Texas, immigration office.In an interview with CBS News published Monday, Sgt First Class Jose Serrano said that Deisy Rivera Ortega, a Salvadoran and his wife, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers under the command of the Trump administration despite receiving legal protection in 2019 that bars her from being deported to El Salvador. Rivera Ortega, who wed Serrano in 2022, has been in the US since 2016, he said. Continue reading...

Alexandre Ramagem fled country after he was sentenced to 16 years for his role in plotting military coup in BrazilWhen Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro was sentenced to nearly 30 years in prison for an attempted coup, six other members of his cabinet were also found guilty and all began serving their sentences – except for one.Days before the verdict, Bolsonaro’s former spy chief, Alexandre Ramagem, fled by car to Guyana and boarded a flight to the United States, where he has remained ever since. Continue reading...

• Dropzone AI, a Seattle-based startup, secured $16.8 million in funding to develop autonomous AI agents for cybersecurity operations. • The company is a finalist for GeekWire Awards' AI Innovation of the Year, competing with firms transforming HR, retail, biotech, and more. • Investors back the platform amid surging demand for AI-driven threat detection and response in US enterprises.

Carlos Ivan Mendoza Hernandez hospitalized after shooting in rural Patterson as officials say investigation under wayImmigration and Customs Enforcement agents shot a man in a vehicle in northern California on Tuesday.ICE agents conducted a vehicle stop in Patterson, a rural agricultural town in California’s Central Valley about 80 miles east of San Jose, to arrest Carlos Ivan Mendoza Hernandez, ICE director Todd Lyons said in a statement. Continue reading...

Annie Ramos, who came to US from Honduras as a toddler, was detained last week at husband’s base in LouisianaThe wife of a US soldier who was detained last week by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents at her husband’s Louisiana military base was released from federal custody on Tuesday.“All I have ever wanted is to live with dignity in the country I have called home since I was a baby,” Annie Ramos said in a statement following her release. Continue reading...

‘She got ripped away from me,’ army soldier Matthew Blank said after his wife Annie Ramos was detained in LouisianaImmigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents under the command of the Trump administration have reportedly detained the wife of a US army staff sergeant at his military base in Louisiana amid his preparations to deploy.The arrest of Annie Ramos, 22, took place last Thursday, just days after she married 23-year-old Matthew Blank, a soldier who has served for more than five years and previously deployed to the Middle East and Europe, the New York Times first reported on Sunday. Continue reading...

Nurul Shah Alam, a nearly blind Rohingya refugee, was left alone in a Buffalo parking lot. His death has been ruled a homicide – what now?On 19 February, the second day of Ramadan, Mohamad Faisal Nurul Amin and his family gathered to pray before sunrise in their apartment on the outskirts of Buffalo, New York. After nearly a year of waiting, they believed their family would be together again. Amin’s father, Nurul Shah Alam, 56, was coming home.“For the first time since we arrived in America, I felt happy,” said Fatima Abdul Roshid, Shah Alam’s wife, speaking through an interpreter. “I thought my husband would be with our two sons and me for Ramadan.” Continue reading...

Attorneys for Salah Sarsour, a Palestinian-born US green card holder, say he was targeted for criticizing IsraelSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxThe president of Wisconsin’s largest mosque was detained by federal immigration agents, drawing accusations from local officials and religious leaders that the arrest was motivated by his statements against Israel.Salah Sarsour, a Palestinian-born legal permanent resident of the United States, was taken into custody by nearly a dozen US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents on Monday in Milwaukee after he left his home, according to the Islamic Society of Milwaukee. Continue reading...

• FBI agents have arrived in Cuba to investigate the February fatal shooting of five men aboard a US-flagged speedboat, which Cuban authorities claimed was attempting to infiltrate the island. • The probe occurs amid strained US-Cuba relations, focusing on circumstances surrounding the incident near Cuban waters. • This development underscores ongoing tensions in US-Latin America diplomacy, potentially affecting migration and security cooperation.

Nurul Amin Shah, 56, who was visually impaired, was left outside Buffalo Tim Hortons on cold night and later diedAuthorities have ruled that the death of Nurul Amin Shah, a 56-year-old Rohingya refugee from Myanmar who was left by immigration agents at a restaurant in Buffalo, was a homicide.Shah, who was visually impaired, died on 24 February, five days after US Border Patrol agents dropped him off in the parking lot of a Tim Hortons on a cold winter night without notifying his family or attorney. Continue reading...