Files

Release follows Trump directive for agencies to declassify government files related to unidentified flying objectsThe Pentagon on Friday released an initial group of previously secret files documenting reports of UFOs – a move sought for decades by some.“These files, hidden behind classifications, have long fueled justified speculation – and it’s time the American people see it for themselves,” Pete Hegseth, the defense secretary, said in a statement posted on X. Continue reading...

• The Pentagon disclosed a large collection of UFO-related documents on May 8, 2026, at 10:04 AM EDT, as reported by Politico. • The release includes previously classified files but provides no new explanations for unidentified aerial phenomena, according to government statements. • This action fulfills long-standing demands for transparency on UAP sightings, potentially influencing public discourse and future congressional inquiries.

• Maurice 'Mopreme' Shakur, Tupac's stepbrother, filed a wrongful death lawsuit Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court against Duane 'Keffe D' Davis and unnamed defendants involved in the 1996 murder. • The suit claims 'for the first time in nearly 30 years, threads are starting to come together' amid new developments as Davis's first-degree murder trial approaches. • Tupac was fatally shot four times on September 7, 1996, in Las Vegas when a white Cadillac pulled alongside his BMW near MGM Grand and Caesars Palace.

Democrats had filed civil contempt resolution against former attorney general for not appearing for depositionUS politics live – latest updatesThe House oversight and government reform committee has said that former attorney general Pam Bondi will now appear before the panel on 29 May to answer questions about the Department of Justice’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation and its release of the Epstein files.The announcement of the date came shortly after the Democrats on the committee announced that they had filed a civil contempt resolution against Bondi after she did not appear for her deposition earlier this month. Continue reading...

Subject of charges remains unclear, after earlier case over congressional testimony was dismissedUS politics live – latest updatesSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter emailThe justice department filed new criminal charges against James Comey, the former FBI director, on Tuesday, according to a person familiar with the matter.The subject of the charges was not immediately clear and the justice department did not immediately return a request for comment. CNN first reported a new indictment had been filed. Continue reading...

• Taylor Swift submitted new trademark filings on April 28 to safeguard her voice and image amid rising AI-generated content. • The move positions Swift as the latest celebrity addressing AI deepfake risks in entertainment. • Trademarks target protections for her personal brand in a proliferating digital threat landscape.

Lawsuit alleges DoJ breached transparency law by withholding records on Jeffrey Epstein and over-redacting disclosuresTodd Blanche, the acting attorney general, engaged in a “brazen, shocking, and ongoing violation” of a law requiring the justice department (DoJ) to release the entirety of the so-called Epstein files, a lawsuit filed in Washington DC alleges.The action on Monday by Katie Phang, an investigative journalist and legal analyst, seeks to hold Blanche personally responsible for the DoJ’s alleged failure to publish all the documents the government holds about Jeffrey Epstein, the late sex offender. A full release was mandated by a landmark transparency act passed by Congress in November, with a deadline of 19 December. Continue reading...

The singer’s company filed three applications on Friday after Matthew McConaughey launched similar strategyTaylor Swift has filed applications to trademark her voice and image in a move seemingly designed to protect against AI misuse.On 24 April, Swift’s company TAS Rights Management filed three trademark applications, Variety reports. Two of these are sound trademarks which cover Swift saying the phrases “Hey, it’s Taylor Swift” and “Hey, it’s Taylor.” Continue reading...

An internal watchdog will review the agency’s handling of records related to Jeffrey Epstein, including whether relevant documents were properly redactedSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxA majority of Americans blame Donald Trump for surging gasoline prices, which is weighing on his Republican party ahead of November’s congressional midterm elections, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll.Some 77% of registered voters in the poll, which concluded early this week, said Trump bears at least a fair amount of responsibility for the recent rise in gas prices, which was sparked by his decision to launch a war on Iran along with US ally Israel.Our preliminary objective is to evaluate the DOJ’s processes for identifying, redacting, and releasing records in its possession as required by the Act.Alleged victims of sexual abuse by Epstein have complained that DOJ repeatedly failed to redact photos and other details that could reveal their identities and did not make public all the information prosecutors have about Epstein associates who were allegedly aware of his crimes or conspired with him but were never charged.Lawmakers have made similar complaints and have said they suspect DOJ has not released some relevant documents.The Trump administration has moved to reclassify marijuana, more than four months after Trump signed an executive order directing the attorney general to move it from schedule I to schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act.Trump, apparently abandoning his attempt to frighten Iran’s leaders into negotiating by channeling Richard Nixon’s “madman” theory, ruled out the use of nuclear weapons in his conflict with Iran.Trump has decided to invite wanted war criminal Vladimir Putin to the G20 summit in December at Trump’s Doral golf resort, the Washington Post reports.Trump confirmed that the government is considering a plan to bail out or ‘“just buy” Spirit Airlines, but confused Barack Obama with Joe Biden, and Jet Blue with People Express, which has been defunct since 1987.India’s foreign ministry denounced comments from the rightwing US commentator Michael Savage, posted on social media by Trump, which argued against awarding birthright citizenship to the US-born children of immigrants “from China or India or some other hellhole on the planet”. Continue reading...

Mandated release of files was marred by missed deadlines, leaked victims’ information and excessive redactionsUS politics live – latest updatesThe US Department of Justice’s office of the inspector general (OIG) announced on Thursday that it is launching an audit of the justice department’s compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act.In a news release, the deputy inspector general William M Blier, who the statement said is performing the duties of the inspector general, said that the “preliminary objective” of the internal probe “is to evaluate the [justice department’s] processes for identifying, redacting, and releasing records in its possession as required by the Act”. Continue reading...

Sacked civil servant acknowledges ‘debate’ about release of documents after question about alleged ‘cover-up’Olly Robbins responded to a question about an alleged “cover-up” on Tuesday by confirming that government officials had considered withholding Peter Mandelson’s secretive vetting documents from parliament.Robbins, who was sacked by Keir Starmer as the Foreign Office’s top civil servant last week, appeared to confirm a report in the Guardian that senior officials were debating whether to withhold from parliament sensitive documents that revealed the vetting agency did not believe Mandelson should get clearance. Continue reading...

Whitehall officials are weighing up ‘unprecedented’ disclosure of documents in security clearance scandalStarmer did not gamble with national security over Mandelson, says ministerMinisters are under growing pressure to share the documents from Peter Mandelson’s vetting process with the parliamentary committee tasked with deciding if they should be made public.In February, MPs passed a binding parliamentary motion, known as a humble address, requiring the government to publish “all papers” relating to Mandelson’s appointment as ambassador to the US. Continue reading...

• Cerebras Systems, developer of the wafer-size WSE-3 AI chip, filed to go public on April 17, 2026, amid accelerating revenue. • The company secured a $125 million revolving credit facility from Morgan Stanley, expandable to $850 million post-IPO, plus a $1 billion loan from OpenAI. • This IPO positions Cerebras to capitalize on surging demand for specialized AI hardware in US data centers and enterprises.

Disgraced financier’s links to politicians and civil servants as far back as 30 years ago to be examined The Epstein files have shaken Norway’s faith in democracy, the head of the Norwegian parliament’s oversight committee has said, as a sprawling investigation into the connections between its foreign office and the late sex offender gets under way.An independent commission to look into information brought to light by the Jeffrey Epstein documents released by the US Department of Justice was launched on Wednesday after the Norwegian parliament voted unanimously last month for it to be set up. Continue reading...

Filing seeks to overturn seditious conspiracy charges of Proud Boys and Oath Keepers members who laid siege to US Capitol in 2021The US Department of Justice has requested that a federal appeals judge overturn convictions for members of far-right groups Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers, who were previously found guilty of seditious conspiracy in connection with the violent siege of the US capitol in 2021.Jeanine Pirro, the Donald Trump-appointed US attorney for the District of Columbia, signed separate motions on Tuesday to vacate convictions for a slew of individuals, including the Proud Boys’ leaders Ethan Nordean and Joseph Biggs as well as Stewart Rhodes, a former attorney who founded the Oath Keepers’ militia. Continue reading...

Suspects allegedly bought 14 hospice companies and used stolen identities to fraudulently bill state health planSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxCalifornia authorities have filed felony charges against 21 people, who they say orchestrated a hospice fraud scheme that cost the state $267m, the state’s attorney general, Rob Bonta, announced on Thursday.The suspects allegedly bought personal identifying information for non-California residents from the dark web and used the stolen identities to enroll in Medi-Cal, a state program that gives low-income residents free or low-cost health care. Continue reading...

Justice department says Bondi will not be at the House deposition since she was ousted as US attorney generalPam Bondi, the former US attorney general, will not appear next week for a scheduled deposition before the House oversight and government reform committee to answer questions about the justice department’s handling of the investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and its release of the Epstein files, the committee said.In a statement Wednesday morning shared with the Guardian, a spokesperson for the House oversight committee said “the Department of Justice has stated Pam Bondi will not appear on April 14 for a deposition since she is no longer Attorney General and was subpoenaed in her capacity as Attorney General”. Continue reading...

• SpaceX confidentially filed for a U.S. initial public offering on Wednesday, April 2, 2026, signaling major movement toward going public. • The aerospace company is targeting a $1.75 trillion valuation in the IPO, reflecting investor confidence in the commercial space sector. • The filing comes as Elon Musk's companies face increased market scrutiny, with analyst focus expected to intensify on SpaceX developments.

Hakeem Jeffries predicts Pete Hegseth could be next as party alarmed by damage done by ‘terrible’ attorney generalTrump fires Pam Bondi, a loyalist and ally, as attorney generalUS politics live – latest updatesWith quips, memes and jabs, Democrats cheered Donald Trump’s firing of attorney general Pam Bondi on Thursday, while the president’s Republican allies praised her relatively brief tenure overseeing the justice department.Trump announced Bondi’s departure on Truth Social, saying: “We love Pam, and she will be transitioning to a much needed and important new job in the private sector, to be announced at a date in the near future.” Her deputy Todd Blanche will take over as acting attorney general. Continue reading...

Lebanese-French man Ali Cherri demands investigation into Beirut bombing as possible war crime against civiliansA Lebanese-French artist has filed a legal complaint in a Paris court about an Israeli bombing of his family home in Lebanon that killed his parents and a domestic worker, claiming the attack could constitute a war crime.The suit, filed with the French war crimes unit on Tuesday, is a rare instance of an individual pursuing war crimes charges for an Israeli bombing. It is also the first time a French court has taken a case over Israel’s bombing of Lebanon. Continue reading...

Elon Musk’s rocket company could go public as early as June, Bloomberg reportsSpaceX has confidentially filed for an initial public offering on the US stock market, according to reports from Bloomberg and the Wall Street Journal. The IPO is set to be one of the most closely watched and highly valued listings in market history.Elon Musk’s company, which has become a dominant power in both space travel and satellite communications, could potentially seek a valuation upwards of $1.75tn. The confidential filing will give regulators a period to review and discuss the company’s financial disclosures before investors and the public are able to view them. Continue reading...

Lawmakers on both sides of aisle have criticized justice department’s improper redaction of informationSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxPam Bondi, the attorney general, has been formally subpoenaed to appear before a House panel to answer questions about the justice department’s handling of the investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and it’s release of the Epstein files.The move came amid growing criticism from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle over the justice department’s compliance with a law passed last year requiring the full release of Epstein-related files. Continue reading...