Trump Education Dept launches probe into ‘explosion of antisemitism’ at 5 universities
The Education Department (DoEd) is probing five institutions of higher education with large-scale reports of alleged antisemitism after the 2023 deadly terrorist attack in Israel. The terrorist group Hamas coordinated an attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, provoking an ongoing Israeli military response that in turn prompted anti-Israel protests to break out on college campuses across the U.S. Many protests were not immediately shut down, and Columbia University canceled its main commencement ceremony due to safety concerns. Two weeks after assuming office, Trump’s DoEd is alleging that “the Biden Administration’s toothless resolution agreements did shamefully little to hold those institutions accountable,” prompting a new federal probe into five universities the administration identified as having reports of “widespread antisemitic harassment.” The DoEd announced it will investigate five universities: Columbia University, Northwestern University, Portland State University, the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION DOLED OUT OVER $200M TO UNIVERSITIES TO INJECT DEI INTO COUNSELING COURSES: REPORT “Too many universities have tolerated widespread antisemitic harassment and the illegal encampments that paralyzed campus life last year, driving Jewish life and religious expression underground. The Biden Administration’s toothless resolution agreements did shamefully little to hold those institutions accountable,” Craig Trainor, the acting assistant secretary for civil rights at the DoEd, said in a statement. TRUMP PREPARING TO MAJORLY REVAMP DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AS MATH, READING SCORES SHOW STUNNING LOWS “The Department is putting universities, colleges, and K-12 schools on notice: this administration will not tolerate continued institutional indifference to the wellbeing of Jewish students on American campuses, nor will it stand by idly if universities fail to combat Jew hatred and the unlawful harassment and violence it animates,” Trainor wrote. The investigation comes days after Fox News Digital reported that Trump ordered the potential removal of anti-Jewish protesters with student visas from the country. Northwestern University, Portland State University and the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, told Fox News Digital they would comply with the department’s investigation. “There is no place for antisemitism or any form of identity-based discrimination or hate at Northwestern University. Free expression and academic freedom are among our core values, but we have made clear that these values provide no excuse for behavior that threatens the well-being of others,” Jon Yates, vice president of global marketing and communications at Northwestern University, told Fox News Digital in a statement. “Portland State University is dedicated to upholding a safe, inclusive and respectful community for all community members. We take these concerns seriously,” Portland State University told Fox. “The university continues to support and engage with efforts to combat antisemitism and mitigate the impact of hate and bias.” The school noted that “it is the university’s understanding” that the investigation notice “initiates a directed investigation — which means it is not based on a specific complaint from an individual, but instead is prompted by the new administration.” The University of Minnesota said in a statement that they are “confident in our approach to combating hate and bias on our campus and will fully cooperate with this investigation.” Columbia University did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment at the time of publication. The Committee on Energy and Commerce and the Committee on Education and the Workforce sent a letter, obtained by Fox, to Columbia University in September asking whether the university was “maintaining a safe environment for all members” as a recipient of funding through Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) grants. Columbia University reportedly received $611,173,605 in National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants in fiscal 2024, according to the HHS public page on NIH funding. Fox News Digital’s Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.
Experts rally around Trump’s under the radar executive order unlocking ‘critical’ project blocked by Biden
President Trump signed an executive order overlooked by some in the media on his first day of office that experts tell Fox News Digital will play a critical role in developing mineral resources in the United States. On the first day of his presidency, Trump signed an executive order advancing the Ambler Access Project, a 211-mile industrial road through the Brooks Range foothills that enables commercial mining for copper, zinc and other materials in a remote Arctic area in Northwest Alaska. That executive order, one of dozens signed by Trump in the early hours of his administration, reverses a move by former President Biden to block the project and represents a significant change in energy policy, according to experts who spoke to Fox News Digital. “President Biden issued 70 executive actions that discouraged tapping into Alaska’s natural resources and public lands access,” Gabriella Hoffman, Independent Women’s Forum Center for Energy & Conservation Director, told Fox News Digital. “Unlike his predecessor, President Trump recognizes Alaska’s potential to meet domestic energy and national security needs for reliable energy and critical minerals—including restoring the Ambler Access Project connecting to the Ambler Mining District.” EXPERTS SOUND ALARM ON BIDEN’S OFFSHORE DRILLING BAN HAVING REVERSE EFFECT ON ENVIRONMENT: ‘DISGRACEFUL’ “The Ambler Access Project has endured extensive environmental review and would bring economic development to rural communities in dire need of it without despoiling Alaska’s natural beauty,” Hoffman added. “Those who would benefit from employment by Ambler also hunt, fish, and enjoy public lands.” Research by the University of Alaska Center for Economic Development on the economic impact of the project concluded that the development of the Ambler Mining District could create thousands of direct, indirect, and induced jobs and the project could mean a projected $1 billion for the state in revenue, mining license tax revenue, corporate income taxes, and production royalties. “Ambler Road is the equivalent of a shoelace on a football field: a blip in the vast remoteness of Alaska’s wilderness,” Power The Future founder and Executive Director Daniel Turner told Fox News Digital. “Yet somehow bureaucrats in DC who do not live there and cannot find it on a map have the authority to prevent Alaskans from developing their own land and growing their economy. It’s insanity.” AMERICA’S ENERGY CRISIS IS HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT AND IT’S WORSE THAN YOU KNOW Unlocking the project comes under the backdrop of China’s emergence in the market for critical minerals as the country controls roughly 60% of the world’s production of rare earth minerals and materials, prompting warnings from U.S. officials on the over-reliance on foreign suppliers. Turner explained that projects like Ambler Road being held up by the Biden administration have increased US dependency on China. “Critical projects in Alaska like Ambler Road and Pebble Mine and oil and gas exploration in ANWR which are held up by radical green ideologues have forced our dependency on China for these raw materials, compromised our national security, but also prevented our fellow Americans in Alaska from the prosperity and economic opportunities they deserve,” Turner said. “So many raw materials we need are in Alaska, and Governor Dunleavy is hamstrung by green insanity in San Francisco and Washington, DC from developing them and growing his state’s prosperity. The Trump Administration could be the most pro-Alaskan Presidency since Lincoln bought it.” Hoffman told Fox News Digital that “critics” of the Ambler project “ignore” that “access to the Ambler Mining District is guaranteed by the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) of 1980.” “My fellow Lower-48ers treat Alaska as a national preserve to be untouched and unexplored–dismissing locals and their perspectives,” Hoffman said. “President Trump is actually listening to Alaskans and their needs.” In a statement to Fox News Digital, Alaska GOP Sen. Dan Sullivan said he looks forward to “working with President Trump’s administration and Alaskan leaders in the region to fully implement President Trump’s Alaska-specific EO, which includes reversing Biden’s denial of the Ambler road.” “After enduring a four-year onslaught of 70 executive orders and actions by the Biden administration targeting my state, Alaskans have a new sense of hope and optimism for our future across a whole host of sectors and projects, including in our ability to develop our vast deposits of critical minerals and metals—many of which the United States is almost wholly dependent on China for,” Sullivan said. Sullivan added that he worked “closely” with the first Trump administration to approve a road to the Ambler Mining District before the Biden administration “issued an order that killed that road last June, even though federal law mandates it.” “Ironically, during Joe Biden’s final overseas trip as president, he announced $600 million in aid to build a railroad in Angola to help that country produce and market its critical minerals. That’s insane.” Trump also signed an executive order which he said will “unleash American energy” by directing agencies to revise and rescind actions that impose undue burdens on domestic mining. “The Trump Administration is unwavering in its commitment to securing America’s energy future, strengthening national defense, and fostering economic growth,” White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly told Fox News Digital. “By unlocking one of the world’s largest undeveloped mineral belts, President Trump is ensuring a domestic supply of critical minerals, reducing our reliance on foreign adversaries, and creating thousands of American jobs. This project is a win for national security and the American people.”
NEET PG 2024: SC issues notice to Centre to conduct fresh round 3 counselling, check details
The petition, filed by approximately 50 candidates, seeks fresh conduct of counselling. The petitioners have alleged that during the initial round of counselling, some candidates were given undue advantages, which resulted in others being deprived of seats.
Trump’s proposed US takeover of Gaza Strip elicits positive response across administration
Support for President Donald Trump’s vision for the U.S. to “take over the Gaza Strip,” level it and rebuild the area came flooding in on Tuesday after a news conference announcing the plan. The comments were made following a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in which Trump claimed the U.S. would take over the Strip and make it safe again. “The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it, too,” Trump stated. “We’ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous, unexplored bombs and other weapons on the site.” Trump’s sentiments were echoed by many officials across the social media platform X. ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER LAUDS TRUMP’S LEADERSHIP WHEN ASKED IF BIDEN SHOULD TAKE CREDIT FOR CEASEFIRE “Trump’s proposed USA takeover of the Gaza Strip may sound out of the box, but it is brilliant, historic and the only idea I have heard in 50 years that has a chance of bringing security, peace and prosperity to this troubled region,” Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman wrote. White House Deputy Chief of Staff and Cabinet Secretary Taylor Budowich also expressed that it was “Time to think different, stop the killing!” “Pres. Trump’s pursuit of peace and prosperity for all is truly visionary. Gaza shouldn’t be a pile of rubble that provides refuge to terrorists, especially when it so easily can become Dubai 2.0. Time to think different, stop the killing!,” he wrote on X. In a second post, he said that there is a need for lasting peace. “President Trump’s bold and unwavering pursuit for peace continues with a humanitarian’s heart. The killing must stop, the war must end, and we must realize lasting PEACE. That’s why the United States will work with Israel to secure Gaza and find a lasting home for the Palestinian people,” Budowich stated. Secretary of State Marco Rubio agreed with the president, saying that “Gaza MUST BE FREE from Hamas. As @POTUS shared today, the United States stands ready to lead and Make Gaza Beautiful Again. Our pursuit is one of lasting peace in the region for all people.” ‘LEVEL IT’: TRUMP SAYS US WILL ‘TAKE OVER’ GAZA STRIP, REBUILD IT TO STABILIZE MIDDLE EAST Netanyahu said during the news conference with Trump that the Gaza Strip has become “a symbol of death and destruction for so many decades and so bad for the people anywhere near it.” He also lauded Trump’s tenacity and ability “to think outside the box” during his comments to the press. Sen. Rick Scott seemingly agreed with Netanyahu, writing in an X post, “Hamas terrorists murdered babies and burned people alive. They are evil monsters. Thank God we finally have a president who is committed to standing with Israel and working with Netanyahu on how to support their efforts to get terrorists out of Gaza and bring every hostage home.” Congresswoman Beth Van Duyne is one of many who stand for the president’s radical movement to change how this country is being run and agrees this is the right move for peace. “The world is looking to the United States for leadership and President @realDonaldTrump is delivering lasting peace! Today’s announcement put Hamas, Iran, and all our enemies on notice — the U.S. will NOT continue the status quo that has empowered terrorists and created a humanitarian disaster,” she said. Not everyone is onboard, though Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry issued a statement to Trump, noting a call for an independent Palestinian state was a “firm, steadfast and unwavering position.” “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs affirms that the position of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on the establishment of the Palestinian state is a firm, unwavering position, and His Highness the Prime Minister – may God protect him – has affirmed this position in a clear and explicit manner that does not allow for any interpretation under any circumstances,” the statement said. ‘PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH’: TRUMP AND NETANYAHU EXPECTED TO DISCUSS IRAN, HAMAS AT WHITE HOUSE MEETING Saudi Arabia and the U.S. are in negotiations over a deal to diplomatically recognize Israel in exchange for a security pact among other terms. “The duty of the international community today is to work to alleviate the severe human suffering endured by the Palestinian people, who will remain committed to their land and will not budge from it,” the Saudi statement said. Hamas also wrote a statement criticizing Trump’s comments. “We reject Trump’s statements in which he said that the residents of the Gaza Strip have no choice but to leave, and we consider them a recipe for creating chaos and tension in the region,” the group said. Hamas has recently reaffirmed control over the Gaza Strip following the start of the ceasefire and has said they will not release hostages without an end to the war and Israeli forces’ full withdrawal.
Asuka Couture Expands Its Luxury Menswear Presence with a Grand Store Opening in Ahmedabad
Founded in 2022 under Tessile Clothing Pvt Limited, Asuka Couture is redefining luxury menswear by fusing heritage-rich craftsmanship with contemporary sophistication,
US military plane with 200 illegal Indian immigrants to land in Amritsar as immigration crackdown escalates
After Donald Trump assumed office as the US President last month, the country’s law enforcement agencies have launched a crackdown against illegal immigrants. Many people from Punjab, who entered the US through “donkey routes” or other illegal means, are now facing deportation.
Shatrughan Sinha demands non-veg ban to highlight UCC challenges: ‘Waha khao toh yummy…’
The TMC MP also emphasised the need for an all-party meeting to discuss the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) provisions, highlighting the complexities and loopholes in the code.
Several Noida schools receive bomb threat, students sent home
According to preliminary information, Step By Step School, Mayoor School, and Heritage School were among those that received the threat emails.
Unions sue Trump administration over ‘arbitrary and capricious’ federal employee buyout offers
As a deadline looms for government employees to fold to an ultimatum given by the Trump administration to either accept a buyout or return to the office, unions representing those workers have filed a lawsuit, calling the offer “arbitrary and capricious.” The Trump administration is offering buyouts for nearly 2 million federal employees, including those who work remotely, as part of President Donald Trump’s efforts to get employees back into the office, but they only have until Feb. 6 to opt-in. Under the buyout offer, the employee will stop working this week and receive pay benefits through Sept. 30. Exempt from the offer are public safety employees, like air traffic controllers. ‘GET BACK TO WORK’: HOUSE OVERSIGHT TO TAKE ON GOVERNMENT TELEWORK IN 1ST HEARING OF NEW CONGRESS During Trump’s first week in office, he issued several directives to the federal workforce, including a requirement that remote employees must return to in-person work. With a deadline quickly approaching, the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and two other unions filed a complaint, claiming the buyout offer is “arbitrary and capricious” and violates federal law.” The unions allege the administration cannot guarantee the plan will be funded and has failed to consider the consequences of mass resignations, including how it may affect the government’s ability to function. TRUMP TO SIGN MEMO LIFTING BIDEN’S LAST-MINUTE COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS On Tuesday, AFGE filed a lawsuit calling for a temporary restraining order (TRO) to halt the Trump administration’s “Fork Directive” deadline of Feb. 6 and require the government to articulate a policy that is lawful, not arbitrary and unlawful. The union said the “Fork Directive” is the administration’s latest attempt to remove public service workers and replace them with partisan loyalists. The group also says the directive amounts to a clear ultimatum to a sweeping number of federal employees: “resign now or face the possibility of job loss without compensation in the near future.” But the unions say the package being offered violates the law because the funds used to pay the employees who accept the offer have not been appropriated for that reason. TRUMP ADMINISTRATION OFFERS BUYOUTS TO FEDERAL EMPLOYEES, INCLUDING REMOTE WORKERS: ‘DEFERRED RESIGNATION’ “AFGE is bringing this suit with our partners today to protect the integrity of the government and prevent union members from being tricked into resigning from the federal service,” AFGE National President Everett Kelley said. “Federal employees shouldn’t be misled by slick talk from unelected billionaires and their lackeys. Despite claims made to the contrary, this deferred resignation scheme is unfunded, unlawful, and comes with no guarantees. We won’t stand by and let our members become the victims of this con.” Last week, a government-wide email was sent out to ensure all federal workers were on board with the Trump administration’s plan. The email pointed to four pillars that Trump set forth, to bring accountability back to the federal government, including a return to in-person work, restored accountability for employees who have policymaking authority, restored accountability for senior executives, and a reformed federal hiring process based on merit. The email noted that the majority of federal employees who have worked remotely since COVID will be required to return to their physical offices five days a week. For those who returned to office, the Trump administration thanked them for their “renewed focus” on serving the American people. But the future of their position could not be guaranteed, according to the email. The buyouts do not apply to military personnel of the armed forces, postal service employees, positions related to immigration enforcement and national security, and any other positions specifically excluded by the agency the federal workers are employed by. The White House is expecting a “spike” in federal resignations ahead of a Thursday deadline for a buyout offer, Fox News Digital has learned. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “The number of deferred resignations is rapidly growing, and we’re expecting the largest spike 24 to 48 hours before the deadline,” a White House official told Fox News Digital on Tuesday morning. Axios reported earlier Tuesday that roughly 20,000 federal employees have taken the offer, accounting for about 1% of the federal government’s workforce. The White House official told Fox News Digital following the report’s publication that the 20,000 figure “isn’t current.” Fox News Digital’s Emma Colton and Brooke Singman contributed to this report.
CIA offering buyouts to its entire workforce: report
The Central Intelligence Agency, in what officials reportedly claimed was an effort to bring the agency in line with Trump’s agenda, offered buyouts to its entire staff on Tuesday. The Wall Street Journal reported that the agency is the first to tell its employees they can quit and get eight months of pay and benefits. Last month, the Trump administration offered about 2 million federal employees buyouts to be paid through September, though the window to accept the offer closes on Thursday. While the Trump administration made offers to some 2 million federal workers, some categories were exempt from taking advantage of the buyout, including federal workers with national security roles. WHITE HOUSE EXPECTING ‘SPIKE’ IN FEDERAL RESIGNATIONS AS AT LEAST 20K TAKE BUYOUTS CIA Director John Ratcliffe reportedly told the White House to extend the same offer to employees within the CIA, hoping it could pave the way for “a more aggressive” agency, an aide told the Wall Street Journal. Fox News learned that even though the CIA was exempt, Ratcliffe personally decided he wanted the agency to participate. On Thursday, he emailed the Office of Personnel Management and asked for a process that would enable the CIA to email its workforce and offer the same opportunity, while also retaining flexibility to work through the timing of employee departures in critical areas. Ratcliffe also chose to offer the option of early retirement to long-tenured officers, while also halting on bringing on any officer offered a job late during the Biden administration to ensure their position aligns with the Trump administration’s priorities. TRUMP TO SIGN MEMO LIFTING BIDEN’S LAST-MINUTE COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS “Director Ratcliffe is moving swiftly to ensure the CIA workforce is responsive to the Administration’s national security priorities,” a CIA spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “These moves are part of a holistic strategy to infuse the Agency with renewed energy, provide opportunities for rising leaders to emerge, and better position the CIA to deliver on its mission.” The Office of Personnel Management, which operates as the federal government’s human resources department, notified roughly 2 million federal employees on Jan. 28 that they would be required to work out of their respective offices five days a week, or they could leave their roles through the equivalent of a buyout offer. The deadline to accept the offer is Feb. 6. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Those who choose to take the offer will retain all pay and benefits and be exempt from in-person work until Sep. 30. During Trump’s first week in office, he issued several directives to the federal workforce, including a requirement that remote employees must return to in-person work.