⢠The Trump administration announced plans to withdraw approximately 5,000 US troops from Germany over the next 6-12 months.
⢠The troop withdrawal fulfills an earlier Trump threat and reflects tensions over Germany's stance on the Iran conflict.
⢠The move signals a broader shift in US military posture in Europe and could weaken NATO presence in a key strategic location.
German government calls redeployment of 5,000 troops āanticipatedā and reminder of Europeās need to invest in its own defenceāWe love our Americansā: the German town rocked by Trumpās plan to withdraw US troopsNato is seeking to āunderstand the detailsā of a US decision to withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany, a redeployment ordered by Donald Trump amid a feud with the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz.The German government sought to play down the severity of Trumpās move, describing it as āanticipatedā, and a reminder of Europeās need to invest in its own defence. The US withdrawal, which the Pentagon said would take place over the next six to 12 months, comes after criticism from Merz over Trumpās war with Iran and his handling of subsequent talks with Tehran. Continue reading...
German defence minister responds to US presidentās announcement that 5,000 US troops will leave bases in GermanyHello and welcome to our live coverage of events in the Middle East.The German defence minister, Boris Pistorius, said that it was āforeseeableā that the US would withdraw troops from Europe, after the Pentagon announced it would pull thousands of American soldiers from Germany.Trump said he is ānot satisfiedā with a new proposal from Iran on ending the war, as peace talks remain stalled despite a weeks-long ceasefire. Iran delivered the proposal text to mediator Pakistan on Thursday evening, Iranian state news agency Irna reported, without detailing its contents.The US state department said it was approving military sales totalling more than $8.6bn to Middle Eastern allies Israel, Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates. It came as Washington warned European allies including the UK, Poland, Lithuania and Estonia to expect long delivery delays for US weapons as it scrambles to replenish stockpiles depleted by the Iran war, according to a report in the Fianancial Times citing multiple sources.In Lebanon, 12 people were killed in Israeli strikes in the south, Lebanonās health ministry said, including in the town of Habboush, where the Israeli army had issued an evacuation order despite the continuing ceasefire. Israeli warplanes ālaunched a series of heavy strikes ⦠less than an hour afterā the warning, the state-run National News Agency said.The US Treasury Office warned that any shipping companies that paid tolls to Iran for passage through the strait of Hormuz, including charitable donations to organisations such as the Iranian Red Crescent Society, would risk punitive sanctions. Tehran has proposed charging fees on vessels passing through the strait, as part of a deal to end the war.Trump wrote to US lawmakers on Friday declaring hostilities with Iran āterminatedā, despite no change in the US military posture, as he faces continuing pressure at home to seek congressional authorisation for the war.The state departmentās announcement on Friday included approving military sales to Qatar of Patriot air and missile defence replenishment services costing $4.01bn and of advanced precision kill weapon systems (APKWS) costing $992.4m. They also included approval of the sale to Kuwait of an integrated battle command system costing $2.5bn and to Israel of APKWS costing $992.4m.Iranās supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei urged his people to wage economic battle and ādisappointā its enemies, as the war and years of sanctions take a toll. In a written statement he also said āthe owners of damaged businesses should avoid, as much as possible, layoffs and separation of their workforceā. Continue reading...
US president says European countries are āabsolutely horribleā to refuse to support operations in strait of Hormuz Europe live ā latest updatesDonald Trump has threatened to withdraw US troops from Italy and Spain a day after saying he was looking at reducing the number deployed in Germany.The US presidentās threat to Germany came after the countryās chancellor, Friedrich Merz, said America was being āhumiliatedā by Iran. Continue reading...
The US president said he would carry out of a review of US military presence in Europe after public criticism of the US-Israeli war on IranItaly and Spain have joined a growing list of countries that US president Donald Trump is threatening with pulling US troops from as part of a broader review of the US military presence in Europe.Responding to a question from a reporter, Trump said he would āprobablyā consider such a move, linking it to the two countriesā criticism of the US campaign in Iran.āLook, why shouldnāt I? Italy has not been of any help to us and Spain has been horrible, absolutely horrible.ā Continue reading...
⢠In the first quarter of 2026, AIādriven insurance technology firms attracted significant capital, including Harper Groupās $47 million seed plus Series A and Indigo Technologiesā $50 million Series B, both focused on AIāautomated underwriting and claims workflows.
⢠Platforms such as Mea Platforms, Pasito, General Magic, and Qumis raised between $4.3 million and $50 million to automate documentāheavy processes, reduce loss ratios, and compress quote and bind times for small and midsize businesses.
⢠Investors are backing U.S.ābased vendors that use AI to scale distribution without proportional headcount growth, reduce friction in benefits selection, and improve risk selection in commercial lines.
US president said he was instead nominating radiologist and Fox News contributor Dr Nicole Saphier for the postSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxDonald Trump on Thursday pulled his nominee to become the US surgeon general, Casey Means, and replaced her.The US president said that Means will continue to fight for the so-called Make America Healthy Again (Maha) movement spearheaded by health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr. He stated this was despite opposition from Bill Cassidy, the Republican US senator of Louisiana, to Meansās nomination. Continue reading...
⢠The United Arab Emirates withdrew from OPEC yesterday, marking a historic split from Saudi Arabia during the escalating regional crisis.
⢠This decision coincides with the Strait of Hormuz being almost entirely shut down due to a US naval blockade aimed at halting Iranian oil exports.
⢠The US is threatening to cut off major Chinese banks from its financial system to prevent processing of Iranian oil, intensifying global energy tensions.
⢠Backers introduced over three dozen bills in statehouses to expand raw milk access, despite public health warnings and at least five outbreaks in the past year.
⢠Current E. coli outbreak linked to raw milk cheddar cheese from California-based Raw Farm has sickened nine people, half children under 5, with one developing lifelong kidney complications.
⢠Public health officials warn unpasteurized milk harbors risky germs, alarming experts as more states legalize sales.
At the heart of the case was the question of how much lawmakers are allowed to consider race when they redraw districtsSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxThe US supreme court has ruled that Louisiana will have to redraw its congressional map, in a landmark voting rights case.At the heart of the case, Louisiana v Callais, was a thorny question of how much lawmakers are allowed to consider race when they redraw districts to ensure that Black voters are adequately represented. The supreme court initially heard oral arguments in the case last March, but took the unusual step of asking lawyers to re-argue the case last fall. In setting the case for a re-argument, the justices raised the stakes of the case, asking lawyers to focus on whether section 2 of the Voting Rights Act was constitutional. Continue reading...