(WILMINGTON, Del.) — A federal judge on Monday rejected the latest attempt by President Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden to dismiss several tax-related charges he faces in Los Angeles, all but ensuring that the case will go to trial as scheduled early next month.
In July, attorneys for Hunter Biden filed a pair of motions seeking to dismiss his cases in both California and Delaware, citing a decision by a federal judge in Florida to dismiss the classified documents case against former President Donald Trump.
But on Monday, U.S. District Judge Mark Scarsi, the Los Angeles-based federal judge overseeing the tax case, denied that bid, concluding in a seven-page ruling that his attorneys’ arguments failed on both procedural and factual grounds.
Scarsi, in denying the motion, cited Hunter Biden’s previous ill-fated efforts to dismiss the case.
“As he concedes in his notice of the motion, Mr. Biden plainly seeks reconsideration of issues already decided upon his February motion,” Scarsi wrote, concluding that “there is no valid basis for reconsideration of the court’s [prior] order denying Mr. Biden’s motion to dismiss the indictment.”
The judge, however, determined that Hunter Biden will not face sanctions after Scarsi earlier threatened to sanction him after Hunter Biden’s attorneys suggested in court filings that special counsel David Weiss only brought the charges after he was elevated to special counsel. Biden’s legal team acknowledged in a subsequent filing that their claim had been “inartfully” articulated.
On Monday, Scarsi wrote that he would not sanction Hunter Biden, in part because of a recent shakeup of his legal team, but issued a warning, saying, “Counsel’s conduct warrants an admonition: candor is paramount.”
Hunter Biden faces nine felony and misdemeanor charges stemming from his failure to pay $1.4 million in taxes for three years during a time when he was in the throes of addiction. The back taxes and penalties were ultimately paid in full by a third party, identified by ABC News as Hunter Biden’s attorney and confidant, Kevin Morris.
The trial is scheduled to begin on Sept. 5. Hunter Biden has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
The president’s son was found guilty on three firearm-related charges in a separate case in Delaware earlier this summer.
(LOS ANGELES) — Charges were announced Monday against four men in connection with the fatal shooting of “General Hospital” actor Johnny Wactor in May.
Robert Barceleau, 18, was charged with one count of murder with special circumstances and personal use of a firearm, one count of attempted robbery with personal use of a firearm, and one count of grand theft with an allegation of principal armed with a firearm, according to Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón, who announced the charges at a news conference. The DA alleged Barceleau shot Wactor one time in his chest.
Sergio Estrada, 18, was also charged with one count of murder “with an allegation of principal armed with a firearm”; one count of attempted robbery “with an allegation of principal armed with a firearm”; and one count of grand theft “with an allegation of principal armed with a firearm,” the DA announced.
Leonel Gutierrez, 18, was charged with attempted robbery and grand theft with an allegation of a principal armed with a firearm.
Frank Olano, 22, was charged with three counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm, as well as receiving stolen property and being an accessory to murder.
If convicted, Barceleau faces a life sentence without the possibility of parole. Estrada faces a maximum sentence of life in prison with the possibility of parole. Olano faces five years and eight months in prison, and Gutierrez faces four years and eight months in prison if convicted.
Barceleau is being held without bail; Estrada is being held on $2,070,000 bail; Olano is being held on $1,080,000 bail; and Gutierrez on $120,000 bail.
Gascón said at Monday’s news conference that he was “committed to seeking justice for Mr. Wactor and ensuring that those responsible are held accountable for their actions.”
“The loss of this talented young actor, who was in the prime of his life and had so much to offer the world, is deeply felt by all of us,” Gascón said. “Mr. Wactor’s work and presence touched the lives of many, and our hearts go out to his family, friends and the entire community who mourn this devastating loss.”
All four suspects have “very lengthy criminal records” and were allegedly affiliated with a gang, Los Angeles Police Department Lt. Ryan Rabbett said at the press conference.
Wactor, 37, was fatally shot “without provocation” in the early morning hours of May 25, after he ended his shift at a bar and was walking to his car, according to police. Police said the suspects had his car “raised up with a floor jack and were in the process of stealing the catalytic converter.”
Just before he was shot, Wactor had been with a female co-worker, and he immediately stepped in front of her to try to protect her, according to his family and friends.
“They had a mask on and they pulled out a gun,” Wactor’s friend, Colin Flynn, told ABC News. “And from what I understand, Johnny literally stood in between himself and his colleague. And the shooter just pulled the trigger and ran away.”
Following an extensive search, police announced Thursday they had arrested four suspects in the actor’s death.
After the arrests, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement that “we must ensure that those who are responsible for this brazen and heinous act are held fully accountable.”
For months, family and friends of Wactor had pushed for arrests to be made in the case.
“I’m here because one of the best men — if not the best man — I’ve ever known, was tragically and brutally taken from this earth,” Wactor’s friend, Micah Parker, said at a news conference in June. “He was taken from his mother, his brothers, his extended family, his friends and his fans.”‘
In a press conference last week, Wactor’s mother, Scarlett Wactor, urged the mayor and district attorney to strengthen the criminal justice system.
“It needs to start with LA. People watch you from across the country. And this is where change needs to start,” she said.
Scarlett Wactor told reporters how the loss of her son has affected her.
“I’m beginning to sound like a broken record, but grief is my constant companion,” she said.
(NEW YORK) — As the Israel-Hamas war continues, cease-fire discussions are occurring in the Middle East, with officials hoping to bring an end to the conflict.
The United States and its allies continue to plead for a cease-fire deal, with discussions set for this week.
Here’s how the news is developing:
Senior Hamas official throws cold water on Blinken’s announcement
Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s talk about approving an updated proposal means that the U.S. administration failed to convince Netanyahu of the previous deal that Hamas had already agreed to back on July 2.
Hamdan made the comments during an interview with Al Jazeera on Monday evening local time after Blinken’s meeting with Netanyahu in Israel and announcement that Netanyahu had voiced support for the U.S.-backed bridging proposal.
Hamdan said that all the U.S. side is doing is buying time for Israel to “continue its crimes of genocide.”
-ABC News’ Nasser Atta and Guy Davies
Wife of American-Israeli hostage and former hostage ‘happier and more optimistic’ after Blinken meeting
Freed Israeli hostage Aviva Siegel, whose husband Keith is still held captive, said she was feeling “happier and more optimistic than before” after meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday. After hearing from Blinken, Siegel said she wants to believe that her husband, an American-Israeli citizen, will be home soon.
Siegel said Blinken gave her the impression that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants the deal that’s on the table, but cautioned that it sounds like hard work needs to be done to close the gaps with Hamas.
Outside of the building where families of the hostages met Blinken, crowds chanted “SOS USA” and waved American flags, with a message to Blinken that the U.S. government is their main lifeline to bring the hostages home.
Despite the optimism from the Biden administration, momentum appears to have slowed. Talks in Doha did not end with any major breakthrough, and a U.S.-presented “bridging proposal” has been dismissed by Hamas, who accuse Netanyahu of adding new conditions and obstacles, including the rejection of a permanent ceasefire.
Blinken travels to Egypt tomorrow, where he says he’ll get the latest from Egyptian and Qatari leaders on Hamas’ intentions.
-ABC News’ Britt Clennett, Guy Davies, Anna Burd and Tomer Slutzky
3:50 PM EDT 8 injured from Israeli strikes in Lebanon
At least eight people have been injured from Israeli strikes on the Beqaa Valley, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health said Monday.
Among the wounded are six Lebanese citizens, a 5-year-old Syrian girl and a 15-year-old Syrian girl. All of them were treated in the emergency room at nearby hospitals, the Ministry of Public Health said.
There were seven Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon on Monday, according to Lebanese local media.
In two separate statements Monday, the IDF acknowledged conducting operations “in the area of Houla in southern Lebanon,” “in the area of Beqaa in Lebanon” and in “the area of Tayibe in southern Lebanon.”
-ABC News’ Ghazi Balkiz
2:39 PM EDT Netanyahu would accept US cease-fire proposal, will send negotiators to new talks: Blinken
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Monday afternoon that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed in their earlier meeting that he supports and would accept the U.S.-backed bridging proposal that emerged after meetings in the region last week, and that Israel would send negotiators.
“It’s now incumbent on Hamas to do the same,” Blinken told reporters on his ninth trip to the region since Oct. 7. “And then, the parties, with the help of the mediators — the United States, Egypt and Qatar — have to come together and complete the process of reaching clear understandings about how they’ll implement the commitments that they’ve made under this agreement. But the next important step is for Hamas to say yes.”
Blinken acknowledged the “complex issues” would still “require hard decisions by the leaders,” but said he still felt “a real sense of urgency, here, across the region, on the need to get this over the finish line and to do it as soon as possible.”
But given Hamas’ unwillingness to engage in the latest round of negotiations, the secretary was pressed on whether there was any real hope the militant group would sign on to the proposal.
“Tomorrow, when I see the leaders of both Egypt and Qatar, I’ll get the latest from them on what they are hearing,” he responded. “I can’t speculate on exactly what Hamas’ intentions are. We’ve seen public statements, but we’ve seen public statements before that don’t fully reflect where Hamas is.”
Blinken will then travel to Qatar after visiting Egypt on Tuesday, he said.
-ABC News’ Shannon K. Kingston
12:15 PM EDT Hamas takes responsibility for attack in Tel Aviv that injured one
Hamas’ military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, took responsibility for an attack in Tel Aviv on Sunday evening that left one person injured and the bomber dead.
In a joint statement released Monday, Israeli Police and Shin Bet said the explosion had been a terror attack.
“It can now be confirmed that this was a terror attack involving the explosion of a powerful explosive,” the Israeli police and Shin Bet said. “As a result of the explosion, a passerby was moderately injured (according to medical sources) and was transported to receive medical treatment.”
11:58 AM EDT American Airlines suspends Tel Aviv flights through March 2025
American Airlines has extended their suspension of flights to and from Tel Aviv until March 29, 2025, the airline said Monday.
American Airlines said they would allow customers whose travel plans are impacted by the extension to rebook their flights without a fee or cancel and receive a refund.
“We will continue to work closely with our partner airlines to assist customers traveling between Israel and European cities with service to the U.S.,” the airline said in a statement.
11:38 AM EDT Colleagues mourn another journalist killed in Gaza
Journalist Ibrahim Muhareb was killed by an Israeli airstrike while on duty in the Khan Younis area on Sunday, his employer, the online newspaper BDN, said in a statement.
A video filmed by Muhareb’s friend and colleague, Abdallah Alattar, showed the moment the journalist’s body — his press vest laid on top of him — arrived at Nasser Hospital after being found in Hamad Town early on Monday morning.
Muhareb had been covering the events in western Khan Younis with other colleagues when they were targeted, BDN said.
“His traces were lost after occupation artillery targeted a group of journalists in the place yesterday,” BDN said in a statement, adding that Muhareb had been working regularly with them throughout the war while also freelancing for others.
As of Aug. 19, the Committee to Protect Journalists’ preliminary investigations showed at least 113 journalists and media workers have been killed since the war began, making it the deadliest period for journalists since CPJ began gathering data in 1992. Of those killed, 108 were Palestinian, two were Israeli and three were Lebanese.
Palestinian journalists strongly protested what they say is the deliberate targeting of the media and the lack of support from international colleagues on July 31, following the killing of Al Jazeera’s Ismail Al-Ghoul and Rami Al Refee by an Israeli strike while they were working in Gaza City. Israel alleges that Al-Ghoul was a member of Hamas, an allegation that the network denied.
“Even before the start of the Israel-Gaza war, CPJ had documented Israel’s pattern of accusing journalists of being terrorists without producing credible evidence to substantiate their claims,” said CPJ Program Director Carlos Martínez de la Serna. “Smear campaigns endanger journalists and erode public trust in the media. Israel must end this practice and allow independent international investigations into the journalists’ killings.”
-ABC News’ Camilla Alcini
11:58 AM EDT Blinken meets with Netanyahu and Herzog
Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for three hours on Monday, Netanyahu’s press office said in a release.
The meeting was “positive and was held in a good atmosphere,” the release said.
“The meeting lasted approximately three hours. The Prime Minister reiterated Israel’s commitment to the current American proposal on the release of our hostages, which takes into account Israel’s security needs, which he strongly insists on,” the release said.
The meeting between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US Secretary Antony Blinken has concluded; the meeting was positive and was held in a good atmosphere. pic.twitter.com/vVfnWvi9ih
Blinken also met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Monday, according to the U.S. State Department.
“The Secretary reaffirmed the United States’ ironclad commitment to Israel’s security and efforts to de-escalate tensions in the region,” a spokesperson for the State Department said in a statement. “The Secretary reiterated the urgent need to finalize the ceasefire agreement that would release the hostages, allow a surge of humanitarian assistance, and create the conditions for broader regional stability.”
Blinken is expected to head to El Alamein, Egypt, on Tuesday for additional meetings.
3:37 AM EDT Blinken ‘intensely’ focused on hostages, cease-fire in Israel visit
Israeli President Isaac Herzog welcomed Secretary of State Antony Blinken to Tel Aviv on Monday morning as President Joe Biden’s administration presses for a cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Blinken touched down in Israel on Sunday night, beginning his ninth visit to the Middle East since Hamas’ surprise Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel sparked the current conflict.
“The focus of my visit is intensely on getting the hostages back, getting the cease-fire done,” Blinken said. “It is time for everyone to get to ‘yes’ and to not look for any excuses to say ‘no.'”
Blinken said that he was working to make sure there was “no escalation…no provocations…no actions that in any way could move us away from getting this deal over the line, or, for that matter, escalating the conflict to other places and to greater intensity.”
Reaffirming support for Israel, Blinken said, “As you heard [Herzog] say, the United States has taken decisive action to deploy forces here to deter any attacks, and if necessary, to defend against any attacks.”
Herzog said that in the last 24 hours, they have witnessed “ongoing terror attacks by Palestinian terrorists.”
“This is the way we are living these days. We are surrounded by terror from four corners of the Earth, and we are fighting back as a resilient and strong nation,” Herzog said.
Herzog said that hostage negotiations have been held up by Hamas’ “adamant refusal to move forward,” but that Israel is “very hopeful” to continue working on a deal. The president then thanked the U.S., Egypt and Qatar for their role as mediators.
-ABC News’ Lauren Minore
6:35 PM EDT Hamas says there may still be ‘obstacles’ to cease-fire talks
As cease-fire talks are set to begin again in Cairo this week, Hamas said it fears Israel will put up more “obstacles” that could prevent them from reaching an agreement with Israel.
In a statement Sunday, Hamas leaders accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of putting “more conditions and obstacles in the way of reaching an agreement, in a way that serves his strategy to gain time and prolong the aggression.”
“We hold Netanyahu fully responsible for thwarting the mediators’ efforts, obstructing reaching an agreement, and fully responsible for the lives of his prisoners who are exposed to the same danger that our people are exposed to, as a result of his continued aggression and systematic targeting of all aspects of life in the Gaza Strip,” Hamas said in the statement.
Bomb blast kills 1 in Tel Aviv
One person was killed in a bomb explosion in Tel Aviv, Israel, Sunday night, according to Israeli police.
The blast occurred around 8 p.m. local time on Lahi Street in southern Tel Aviv, police said.
It was not immediately clear who or what set off the explosive.
A second person received moderate injuries in the incident and was being treated in a hospital, police said.
The name of the person killed was not immediately released.
Police forces from the Ayalon Region and the Tel Aviv District quickly arrived at the scene and launched an investigation.
All investigative avenues are being explored, police said.
-ABC News’ Will Gretsky
Blinken arrives in Israel ahead of new round of cease-fire talks
Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel on Sunday evening local time ahead of cease-fire talks that are scheduled to resume in Egypt this week.
Following discussions in Doha, Qatar, last week, senior officials are due to meet again this week in Egypt. Israel has said it will send a team to Cairo to continue talks, but Hamas has dismissed any hint of progress as an “illusion.”
While in Israel, Blinken is scheduled to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior officials to press for a cease-fire agreement. Netanyahu has expressed “cautious optimism” about the talks, but said Sunday that “there are things we can’t be flexible about.”
-ABC News’ Joe Simonetti
Netanyahu says Israel ‘can’t be flexible’ on some issues
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that Israel “can’t be flexible” about certain things while cease-fire talks continue.
Netanyahu commented on the cease-fire talks during his weekly cabinet meeting and ahead of Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s scheduled arrival in Israel on Sunday evening local time.
“We are conducting very complex negotiations when on the other side is a murderous, uninhibited and recalcitrant terrorist organization,” Netanyahu said, referring to Hamas. “But I want to emphasize — we are conducting negotiations, not negotiation. There are things we can be flexible about, and there are things we can’t be flexible about — and we insist on them. We know very well how to differentiate between the two.”
Following discussions in Doha, Qatar, this week, senior officials are due to meet again next week in Egypt. Israel has said it will send a team to Cairo to continue talks, but Hamas has dismissed any hint of progress as an illusion.
“Therefore, besides the great efforts we are making to return our abductees, we stand firm on the principles we have established, which are essential for Israel’s security. These principles — I repeat — are consistent with the May 27 outline, which received American support,” Netanyahu said Sunday.
Netanyahu said Hamas has refused to negotiate, noting it did not send a representative to the talks in Doha.
“Therefore, the pressure should be directed at Hamas and Sinwar, and not at the Israeli government,” he said, referring to Yahya Sinwar, the newly named political leader of Hamas and one of the key architects of Hamas’ Oct. 7 surprise attack on Israel. “The strong military pressure, and the strong political pressure, this is the way to achieve the release of our abductees.”
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller
Blinken heads to Tel Aviv as parties work on ‘specific details’ in cease-fire negotiations
Secretary of State Antony Blinken will land in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Sunday evening as talks over a Gaza cease-fire hang in the balance.
Following discussions in Doha, Qatar, this week, senior officials are due to meet again next week in Egypt. Israel has said it will send a team to Cairo to continue talks, but Hamas has dismissed any hint of progress as an illusion.
Vedant Patel, the State Department’s principal deputy spokesperson, told reporters at a Thursday briefing that the parties are yet to settle “some specific details, some specific implementing factors,” but that there is “broad agreement on the contours” of a proposal set out by President Joe Biden in May.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expressed “cautious optimism” of progress, though one Israeli official said that “gaps” remain on sensitive topics, including whether or not Israeli forces will withdraw from key strategic areas within Gaza.
Meanwhile, the death toll continues to grow in the devastated strip. This weekend, more than 60 people were killed in Israeli airstrikes, according to the Hamas-controlled Health Ministry.
-ABC News’ Joe Simonetti and Tom Soufi Burridge
Biden: ‘No one in the region should take actions to undermine’ cease-fire deal
With a cease-fire deal “now in sight,” President Joe Biden said in a statement Friday that “no one in the region should take actions to undermine this process.”
Biden said his teams will “report to me regularly” as they remain on the ground over the coming days. Senior officials “will convene again in Cairo before the end of the week,” he said.
The expectation is for a cease-fire to go into place soon after there is agreement between the parties, a source familiar with the talks told ABC News.
-ABC News’ Justin Gomez
First case of polio confirmed in 10-month-old Gazan baby
A 10-month-old baby has become the first confirmed case of polio in Gaza, as international aid organizations and the United Nations push for a temporary humanitarian cease-fire to administer polio vaccinations, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
The baby, located in is in Deir al-Balah, had not received a polio vaccination.
“The continued brutal Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip has resulted in a health disaster, as attested by international organizations. The lack of basic hygiene needs, the lack of sanitation services, the accumulation of waste in the streets and around the places where displaced persons are sheltered, and the lack of safe drinking water have created an environment conducive to the spread and transmission of many epidemics, including waterborne diseases such as the vaccine-derived polio virus,” the ministry said in a statement.
Blinken to travel to Israel
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to Israel on Saturday amid reports Hamas and Israel are close to a cease-fire deal.
Blinken will head to Israel Saturday to “continue intensive diplomatic efforts to conclude the agreement for a ceasefire and release of hostages and detainees through the bridging proposal presented today by the United States, with support from Egypt and Qatar,” according to the state department.
Cease-fire talks ‘in the end game,’ senior US official says
Cease-fire negotiations are “now in the end game,” according to a senior U.S. official, who discussed what to expect over the next week as a deal is on the brink of finalizing.
The main elements of the proposal that President Joe Biden laid out on May 31 remain, but negotiators have taken the areas of disagreement and “bridged those in a way that we think basically is a deal that is now ready to close and implement and move forward.”
“There is still more work to do, and over the course of this week, there are working group engagements to talk about everything from the list of hostages and the sequence by which hostages would be released, the list of Palestinian prisoners, because ultimately, this is an exchange, similar to what you saw in the November cease-fire deal,” the official told reporters Friday.
Getting to this point has been “extremely complicated” and the portion of the deal focusing on the exchange of prisoners and hostages was a “large basis” of the talks in Doha, Qatar.
“There was some gaps there, and some trade space between the parties, which I think we’ve now gone a long way to bridge,” the official said.
With tensions remaining high as Iran weighs a retaliatory attack on Israel, the official said if Iran really does want to see a cease-fire deal reached, “now is an opportunity to put their money where their mouth is and to basically work towards the conclusion of this.”
“It’s just ironic, it was Hamas, a proxy of Iran, started this war on Oct. 7, and it would be ironic if Iran were to do something to basically derail what we think is the best opportunity for the comprehensive cease-fire and hostage during these deal that we have had in many months.”
Biden says negotiations are ‘closer than we’ve ever been’
President Joe Biden says negotiators are “closer than we’ve ever been” on reaching a deal and “much, much closer” than they were three days ago.
3 Gazan children present symptoms of polio
Three children have presented with suspected acute flaccid paralysis, a common symptom of polio, weeks after poliovirus was detected in environmental samples from Khan Younis and Deir al-Balah.
International aid groups are calling for temporary humanitarian pauses in order to launch polio vaccination campaigns across the Gaza Strip at the end of August and September to prevent the spread of the circulating variant type 2 poliovirus.
“During each round of the campaign, the Palestinian Ministry of Health (MoH), in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) and partners, will provide two drops of novel oral polio vaccine type 2 (nOPV2) to more than 640 000 children under ten years of age,” the WHO and UNICEF said in a statement.
Hamas said it supports a humanitarian pause in order to vaccinate thousands of children against quadriplegia.
“At least 95% vaccination coverage during each round of the campaign is needed to prevent the spread of polio and reduce the risk of its re-emergence, given the severely disrupted health, water and sanitation systems in the Gaza Strip,” the aid groups said.
Qatar, Egypt, US say new proposal was given to Israel, Hamas
A new “bridge proposal” was presented to Israel and Hamas, according to a joint statement from Qatar, Egypt and the U.S.
Israeli sources told ABC News progress has been made in negotiations and some of the gaps have narrowed. But Hamas said that the Israeli side did not abide by what was agreed upon on July 2 and Netanyahu even backed down from what was stated in the Israeli paper on May 27.
More talks will be held in Cairo next week to bridge the gap and complete the deal, the three countries said.
“Working teams will continue technical work over the coming days on the details of implementation including arrangements to implement the agreement’s extensive humanitarian provisions as well as specifics relating to hostages and detainees,” Qatar, Egypt and the U.S. said.
“There is no further time to waste nor excuses from any party for further delay,” the countries said.
IDF issues new evacuation orders, moves humanitarian zone in Khan Younis
Israel is calling on Palestinians sheltering in the humanitarian zone in northern Khan Yunis and eastern Deir al Balah to temporarily evacuate to the adjusted humanitarian area.
“The adjustment is being made following accurate intelligence information according to which the Hamas terrorist organization has established terrorist infrastructure in an area defined as a Humanitarian Area,” the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement.
Hamas said forcing thousands of Palestinian civilians to repeatedly displace has led to their overcrowding in harsh conditions that threaten their lives and exacerbate the humanitarian crisis.
“Forcing our people in northern Khan Yunis and eastern Deir al-Balah by the criminal Zionist occupation army to flee to the so-called ‘humanitarian and safe areas’ is nothing but another means to deepen the collective punishment and genocide that our people have been subjected to for more than ten months. The occupation uses displacement as a weapon in its war against defenseless civilians, in an attempt to break their will and increase their human suffering,” Hamas political bureau member Izzat al-Rishq said in a statement.
Israel has continued to conduct strikes on humanitarian areas despite official designations that they are safe zones for civilians.
Hamas says Israeli evasion is obstacle to cease-fire agreement
As negotiations between Hamas and Israel continue in Qatar, Hamas said the obstacle to reaching a cease-fire in Gaza is continued Israel evasion.
Hamas said that any agreement must include a complete withdrawal from Gaza, the return of displaced people and the reconstruction, in addition to a prisoner exchange deal, according to Husam Badran, a member of the Hamas’ political bureau.
At least 1 dead, several injured after Israeli settlers raid West Bank village
At least one person was killed and several others were injured after Israeli settlers raided Jit, a village in the West Bank.
Dozens of Israeli citizens, some of them masked, entered the village of Jit in Samaria Thursday evening and set fire to vehicles and buildings in the village, threw stones and threw Molotov cocktails, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
IDF and Magav forces jumped into the village within minutes of receiving the report, dispersed demonstrations and shot into the air, and removed the Israeli citizens from the village.
Security forces arrested one Israeli citizen, who was handed over to the Israel Police for further treatment.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a statement on the attack saying “those responsible for any criminal act will be caught and prosecuted.”
Benny Gantz, chairman of Israel’s National United Party, also said those who commited acts of violence on Thursday should be behind bars and said they are “harming the state of Israel.”
“They deserve unequivocal condemnation from all parts of society and from the entire leadership in Israel,” Gantz said in a statement.
IDF claims more than 17,000 militants ‘eliminated’ in Gaza
The Israeli Defense Forces claimed it has “eliminated over 17,000 terrorists” in Gaza on Thursday.
More than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Oct. 7, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
Negotiations between Israel, Hamas have started, US says
Negotiations are “just starting there in Doha,” Qatar, despite Hamas saying it will not attend the talks, White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told reporters during a call Thursday.
“We’re at a point now where the framework is generally accepted and where the gaps are in the execution of the deal, the individual muscle movements that go with putting the deal in place,” Kirby said.
“In the past, it has worked very similar to how it’s working in Doha today, where mediators will sit and discuss work things out, and then those mediators will be in touch with Hamas, and then the Hamas leaders in Doha then communicate directly with Mr. Sinwar for final answers,” Kirby said.
Netanyahu, IDF chief at odds over withdrawing from Gaza
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Forces chief Herzi Halevi are at odds over a key provision amid cease-fire negotiations — IDF withdrawing from the Gaza Strip.
The IDF chief of staff said that holding on to any part of Gaza or the Philadelphi corridor are conditions Israel should not break a potential deal with Hamas over. The IDF can deal with being out of Gaza and giving up the control on Philadelphi, Halevi said.
Meanwhile, Netanyahu firmly stands by the principle that the IDF will remain physically on the Philadelphi axis, according to a source close to Netanyahu.
Cease-fire talks resume in Qatar
A U.S. delegation is in the Qatari capital of Doha for the resumption of cease-fire talks related to Israel’s war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
CIA chief Bill Burns is part of the U.S. group, while the head of Mossad — David Barnea — is with the Israeli delegation. High level Egyptian officials are also in attendance.
The talks are being hosted by Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani. Discussions will take place over two days.
Hamas is not taking part in the negotiations. The group announced on Wednesday it would not send a representative in protest of what it said was Israel’s failure to commit to negotiating on the basis of a July 2 cease-fire proposal.
Grim milestone of 40,000 killed in Gaza, says Hamas-run Health Ministry
Israel’s war in Gaza has hit another grim milestone after the Hamas-run Health Ministry in the strip declared that the death toll had passed 40,000 since the start of the war on Oct. 8.
On Thursday, officials in Gaza said a total of 40,005 people had been killed in the conflict.
That figure does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. However, Gaza’s Hamas-run Health Ministry said there were more than 11,000 women and more than 16,000 children among the dead.
The true death toll in Gaza, after more than 10 months of war, could be significantly higher than the Health Ministry’s figure because officials in Gaza estimate that an additional 10,000 people in Gaza are unaccounted for because of the war.
Latest on the state of play for high-stakes Gaza cease-fire talks
On the eve of what is supposed to be a critical, final push to seal the Gaza cease-fire/hostage release deal, Secretary of State Antony Blinken is working the phones with key mediators as the U.S. works to make sure negotiations will indeed press on.
In his conversations with his Qatari and Egyptian counterparts, Blinken discussed efforts to reach an agreement and stressed that “no party in the region should take actions that would undermine efforts to reach a deal,” according to readouts of the calls.
This comes as Hamas continues to assert that it will not participate in the talks in Doha, Qatar — accusing Israel of moving the goal posts and insisting it will only move forward with the version of the deal it agreed to in early July.
Qatar has assured the Biden administration that it will drum up some sort of Hamas representative to fill the group’s seat at the negotiating table, U.S. officials said. However, Qatar has made no promise about the quality of said representation. Getting messages to Hamas’ ultimate power and deciding vote, Yahya Sinwar, can take days or even weeks, so to be effective in the talks, the intermediary needs to have a good idea of what Sinwar might ultimately sign off on and what’s a nonstarter.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is insisting on maintaining operational control over the Philadelphi Corridor — a narrow strip of land separating Gaza from Egypt — through the duration of any cease-fire, as well as implementing additional procedures for Gazans that would be returning to their homes in the North, according to officials familiar with the matter.
As for Hamas, the group has called for more than two dozen changes to the framework that was rolled out in May, which U.S. officials have repeatedly insisted is “nearly identical” to a deal Hamas previously agreed to.
Regarding Iran, U.S. officials don’t have a crystal-clear view of Tehran’s position, but the administration does put stock into the idea that Iran doesn’t want to do anything to jeopardize a peace deal and sees the looming talks as a potential reason there hasn’t yet been retaliation against Israel for the killing of Hamas’ political leader Ismail Haniyeh.
Two Hezbollah fighters killed, IDF and Hezbollah say
Israeli forces said they killed two Hezbollah members in Lebanon on Wednesday.
Hezbollah also confirmed the death of two of their fighters in statements released on Wednesday.
The IDF said an Israeli Air Force aircraft “eliminated two Hezbollah terrorists” in the area of Marjayoun in southern Lebanon.
Netanyahu gives negotiating team more flexibility: Israeli official
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expanded the mandate and positions of the Israeli negotiators, an Israeli official told ABC News, giving the team more flexibility ahead of the cease-fire talks in Doha, Qatar, on Thursday.
The development comes as he faces growing criticism to reach a cease-fire deal.
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller
White House expects cease-fire talks to ‘move forward as planned’
The White House expects Thursday’s cease-fire negotiations in Doha, Qatar, to “move forward as planned” and said the announcement of Hamas not sending a delegation is just “public posturing” in advance of those discussions.
“We expect these talks to move forward as planned. [CIA] Director [Bill] Burns and Brett McGurk, [White House coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa], will both travel to Qatar for these discussions. There’s always a lot of public posturing in advance. We’ve seen that before. It’s not new of these talks, and I’m not going to certainly weigh in on any of that, just like I’m not going to discuss the details of the negotiation,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters Wednesday.
Israel closes humanitarian route through Rafah
Israeli forces “temporarily” closed the humanitarian route in the area of Rafah, in southern Gaza, on Tuesday, saying Hamas operatives “opened fire” toward the route.
This is the second time the IDF has closed this route in the past week.
The route is an 8-mile road going from the Kerem Shalom crossing, near Rafah, north near Khan Younis and the humanitarian zone.
Hamas not attending cease-fire negotiations in Qatar
Hamas said it will not be attending cease-fire negotiations in Doha, Qatar, on Thursday.
“The movement demands a clear commitment from the occupation to what was agreed upon on July 2, according to the clarifications conveyed by the mediators, and if that happens, the movement is ready to enter into the mechanisms for implementing the agreement,” Hamas Political Bureau Member Dr. Suhail al-Hindi told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed TV.
Israel to send delegation to Qatar to negotiate cease-fire
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved the sending of an Israeli delegation to Doha, Qatar, on Thursday to continue negotiations for a cease-fire agreement.
This comes as Netanyahu is receiving pushback internally and externally amid reports he changed the parameters of what he would agree to.
Biden expects Iran to hold off on retaliatory attack if a cease-fire deal is reached
President Joe Biden addressed the rising tensions in the Middle East Tuesday after U.S. officials warned Iran could launch a retaliatory attack on Israel as early as “this week.”
Biden told reporters he expects Iran to hold off on carrying out a retaliatory attack against Israel if a cease-fire deal with Hamas is reached.
“That’s my expectation, but we’ll see,” Biden said after arriving in New Orleans, LA.
Last week, Biden along with the leaders of Egypt and Qatar jointly called for Israel and Hamas to return to the negotiating table and reach an agreement that would free hostages and end the war in Gaza.
Hamas leaders declined the new set of cease-fire conditions on Sunday, asking for negotiations to resume around what was presented in July.
US approves $20 billion more in arms sales to Israel
The U.S. State Department has signed off on several large arms transfers to Israel, notifying Congress on Tuesday that it has approved the sale of more than $20 billion worth of weaponry and military equipment.
All of the sales surpass the value threshold that requires the State Department to formally notify Congress 15 days before initiating the transfer process. Congress can move to reject the transaction by adopting a joint resolution of disapproval within that timeframe.
Some of the items aren’t scheduled to arrive in Israel for years.
Israeli forces kill two Hezbollah fighters, IDF says
Israeli forces killed two Hezbollah fighters from its Southern Front on Tuesday, the Israeli Defense Forces said in a statement. Hezbollah has confirmed the death of two of their fighters on Tuesday.
These attacks come as Israel awaits a response from Hezbollah and Iran for killings in recent weeks.
CIA director, Biden aide to head to Middle East to salvage hostage talks
Several U.S. officials are headed to the Middle East this week in a bid to de-escalate regional tensions and try to salvage hostage negotiations, as the window for a deal appears to be closing.
CIA Director Bill Burns is expected to arrive in Doha, Qatar, this week, where he will lead a crucial meeting on the hostages, according to a U.S. official. It’s not clear, however, whether a representative of Hamas will attend.
Meanwhile, Brett McGurk, Biden’s top adviser on the Middle East at the White House, was expected to travel separately to Cairo, according to the U.S. official.
Axios first reported the travel plans for Burns and McGurk, noting that McGurk’s plan was to nail down a security plan for the Egypt-Gaza border.
The diplomatic trip also comes as the U.S. has been scrambling to revive a coalition of countries that helped to defend Israel last April during an attack by Iran.
Israel has been bracing for Iran to launch a retaliatory attack following the assassination of a senior Hamas official in Tehran.
The U.S. official acknowledged “there have been complications” with getting some of the Arab countries on board but added they’ve been “able to put in place preparations” to defend Israel successfully.
-ABC News’ Anne Flaherty
Western leaders call on Iran to ‘stand down’
The leaders of the U.S., U.K., France, Germany and Italy called on Iran to “stand down” and expressed their support for Israel’s defense “against Iranian aggression” during a call on Monday, according to a joint statement released by the White House.
“We called on Iran to stand down its ongoing threats of a military attack against Israel and discussed the serious consequences for regional security should such an attack take place,” the statement said.
The leaders also expressed their support for ongoing efforts to reach a cease-fire and hostage release deal in Gaza, according to the statement.
-ABC News’ Justin Gomez
Hostage deal talks expected to move forward: State Department
As the Middle East continues its uneasy wait for Iran’s response to the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh, the State Department is pressing on with its high-stakes diplomatic campaign to constrain military action from Tehran amid fresh waves of uncertainty.
“We continue to work diplomatically to prevent any major escalation in this conflict,” deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters Monday. “We obviously don’t want to see any kind of attack or response happen in the first place.”
Multiple officials within the State Department said they are still cautiously optimistic that Iran will limit the scope of its retaliation, but that they increasingly expect the country will strike at Israel before Thursday — the date the Biden administration, along with Egypt and Qatar, set to relaunch hostage/cease-fire deal talks in hopes of bringing Israel and Hamas back to the table for a final push.
A joint statement issued by the mediators last week was designed not only to pressure the parties involved, but as a message to Iran that an agreement was in the offing meant to persuade the country against military action that could scuttle a deal, according to an official.
National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby also publicly warned Monday that Iranian military action could impede progress at a critical point in the negotiations.
However, Hamas’ earlier announcement that it would not participate in the round of negotiations and public infighting among top Israeli officials have cast significant doubt over whether the Thursday meeting will even happen — undercutting the administration’s intended message to Tehran.
At the podium Monday, Patel said mediators “fully expect talks to move forward as they should” in order to “bring this deal to conclusion.”
He declined to say whether Hamas or Israel was the bigger impediment.
“I’m not going to color it one way or the other,” Patel said while noting that “the prime minister of Israel immediately welcomed this initiative and confirmed that the Israeli team will be there, and they’ll be prepared to finalize the details of implementing the deal.”
-ABC News’ Shannon K. Kingston
Retaliatory attack on Israel could come ‘this week’: Kirby
A United States assessment shows a retaliatory attack by Iran and its proxies against Israel could be launched “this week,” the White House said Monday.
“We share the same concerns and expectations that our Israeli counterparts have with respect to potential timing here. Could be this week,” National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told reporters. “We’re continuing to watch it very, very closely.”
Kirby said it’s difficult to ascertain what a potential attack could look like at this time but that “we have to be prepared for what could be a significant set of attacks.”
Meanwhile, Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Daniel Hagari told reporters on Monday that Israel remains “on high alert.”
“We take seriously the threats of our enemies and that is why we are on high alert offensively and defensively,” he said.
Hagari said the IDF will “work hard to give the public time to get organized.”
-ABC News’ Justin Gomez
Netanyahu accuses defense minister of ‘adopting anti-Israel narrative’
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant appeared to take a swing at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a Knesset committee meeting about Israel’s response to ongoing cross-border tensions with Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
“I hear all the heroes with the war drums, the ‘absolute victory’ and this gibberish,” Gallant reportedly said, alluding to Netanyahu’s slogan through the war, according to Israeli media.
Netanyahu’s office released a statement shortly after, saying Gallant too is bound by the policy of “absolute victory.”
“When Gallant adopts the anti-Israel narrative, he hurts the chances of reaching a deal for the release of the abductees,” the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office said. “He should have attacked [Hamas leader Yahya] Sinwar, who refuses to send a delegation to the negotiations, and who was and remains the only obstacle to the kidnapping deal.”
National Unity Party Chairman Benny Gantz warned about internal divisions in Israel during an address on Monday.
“If we don’t come to our senses, there will be a civil war here,” Gantz said.
He said there have been “heroes,” from soldiers to volunteers, in the wake of the Oct. 7 attack, but also “leadership that dissolves, networks that poison the well from which we live.”
“The patriotic Israeli majority should stop the hatred and make amends,” Gantz said.
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller
Hezbollah says it is still determined to attack Israel
While the weekend passed with no direct retaliation from Hezbollah for the killings of several top leaders by Israeli strikes, the group said it still plans to strike.
“The response is coming and inevitable and there is no turning back from it,” Ali Damoush, the deputy chairman of the Executive Council of Hezbollah, said Monday.
The Hezbollah official saif America, Great Britain, Germany and everyone who supplies Israel with weapons is a partner in the Gaza massacres.
“Israel does not find any practical and serious response to its massacres, and this is what encourages it to continue committing crimes and massacres, and without effective pressure Netanyahu will not stop his crimes,” Damoush claimed.
Israeli Air Force bans travel abroad
Amid fears that an attack from Iran may be imminent, the commander of Israel’s Air Force, Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar, has issued an order barring servicemembers from traveling abroad. The directive applies to career officers and non-commissioned officers, not conscripts, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
US is ‘strengthening’ military force in Middle East over ‘escalating’ tensions
The U.S. is “strengthening” its capabilities in the Middle East by sending an additional guided missile submarine to the region “in light of escalating regional tensions,” according to a statement from Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder issued on Sunday.
The update comes the same day Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III spoke with Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant.
“Secretary Austin reiterated the United States’ commitment to take every possible step to defend Israel,” according to the statement.
Secretary Austin ordered the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group, equipped with F-35C fighters, to accelerate its transit to the Middle East, which was previously expected to get there by the end of the month.
The Lincoln was already en route to replace the USS Theodore Roosevelt, but will now add to the capabilities of the Roosevelt
Additionally, Austin has ordered the USS Georgia guided missile submarine to the Middle East.
The statement doesn’t say how soon the Lincoln or the USS Georgia will arrive in the region.
Israeli forces intercept ‘projectiles’ crossing from Lebanon, no injuries: IDF
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) intercepted approximately 30 “projectiles” that were identified as crossing from Lebanon into northern Israel early Monday morning local time, the IDF said in a statement.
No injuries were reported from the attacks, the IDF said.
“The IDF is striking the sources of fire,” the IDF added.
(MILWAUKEE) — The family of D’Vontaye Mitchell, who died on June 30 after he was pinned down by four hotel workers outside a Hyatt Regency in Milwaukee, reached a settlement with the hotel on Monday after the workers, whose actions were seen in security video, were charged in his death.
Family attorneys Ben Crump, Will Sulton and B’Ivory Lamarr said in a joint statement on Monday that the Mitchell family’s legal team “entered good faith conversations” with Hyatt “with the goal of helping to achieve resolution for the family of D’Vontaye Mitchell.”
“We are pleased to share that we have reached an amicable settlement,” they added. “The terms of an agreement will be confidential. The parties are pleased that they were able to resolve this matter outside of court and will have no further comment about the settlement.”
A spokesperson for Aimbridge Hospitality – the hotel management firm that manages the Hyatt in Milwaukee – confirmed the settlement to ABC News in a statement on Monday.
“The settlement announced today is a result of the good faith discussions with the representatives of the family of D’Vontaye Mitchell with the goal of bringing the family some comfort as they mourn this tragic loss,” the statement said.
The announcement of the settlement comes after a court official in Milwaukee on Monday denied motions to dismiss charges of felony murder filed against four hotel workers in connection to Mitchell’s death.
The attorneys for the four hotel workers – security guard Todd Alan Erickson, front desk agent Devin W. Johnson-Carson, bellman Herbert T. Williamson, and Brandon Ladaniel Turner, a security guard who was off-duty during the incident – argued during a preliminary hearing on Monday that there was no probable cause for felony murder and asked for the charges to be dismissed.
Milwaukee County Court Commissioner Rosa Barillas ordered the four men to stand trial, saying, “I am going to find that the state has met their burden, find that there is probable cause to believe that there — a felony was committed by Mr. Erickson, Mr. Carson, Mr. Turner and Mr. Williamson, and they are all bound over for trial to the Circuit Court.”
Craig Johnson, an attorney representing Johnson-Carson, told ABC News in a statement on Monday that he and his client “respectfully disagree with the probable cause finding.”
“This situation was a tragedy, but not every tragedy has a villain, and not every tragedy is a crime,” Johnson added. “In this case, we expect to contest the connection between any action of Mr. Johnson-Carson and the death of Mr. Mitchell. Mr. Johnson-Carson was responding to a volatile and potentially dangerous situation that could have threatened the safety of hotel staff and guests. His actions were not criminal, and did not contribute to the death of Mr. Mitchell.”
Meanwhile, attorney Matt Last, who represents Turner, told ABC News in a statement on Monday that they are “disappointed” that the charge against his client was not dismissed.
“We contend the testimony provided in court did not support such a finding,” Last said. “We further believe the testimony showed Mr. Turner was acting in a lawful and appropriate matter and intend on proving this to a jury.”
ABC News reached out to the attorneys representing Williamson and Erickson, but requests for comment were not immediately returned.
According to court records reviewed by ABC News, the defendants have not yet entered pleas in this case and are scheduled to be arraigned on Thursday.
The Milwaukee District Attorney’s Office announced on Aug. 6 that it filed a felony murder charge against each of the four individuals related to Mitchell’s death on June 30 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Milwaukee.
“These charges are based on an extensive review of the evidence collected by the Milwaukee Police Department, the autopsy conducted and the report produced by the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office, and information received from members of the community,” the Milwaukee District Attorney’s Office said in a statement.
The Milwaukee County medical examiner ruled Mitchell’s death was a homicide, the result of restraint asphyxia and toxic effects of cocaine and methamphetamine.
ABC News’ Sabina Ghebremedhin contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — Former Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., on Monday pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, telling reporters outside the courthouse the guilty plea was the “right thing to do.”
“This plea is not just an admission of guilt,” Santos told the media. “It’s an acknowledgment that I need to be held accountable like any other American that breaks the law.”
In court, Santos, wearing gray slacks and a black sports coat, told the judge he was “committed to making amends and learning from this experience.”
He is due to be sentenced on Feb. 7.
Santos pleaded guilty to claiming relatives had made contributions to his campaign when, in fact, they had not. Santos conceded he was trying to meet the fundraising threshold to qualify for financial help from the National Republican Congressional Committee.
Santos also stipulated that he committed other fraud, including charging donor credit cards without authorization and convincing donors to give money by falsely stating the money would be used for TV ads. He also stipulated he stole public money by applying for and receiving unemployment benefits during the pandemic to which he was not entitled.
Santos conceded in a statement to the court his actions “betrayed” his constituents and others.
In addition to potential prison time, Santos must pay restitution of nearly $374,000 and forfeiture of more than $200,000.
Santos faces a sentence of 75-87 months, including a mandatory minimum two-year sentence for aggravated identity theft.
Fighting back tears outside the courthouse after his plea, Santos said he was “flooded with deep regret” for his conduct. He vowed to accept responsibility for his actions while apologizing to his former constituents for allowing “ambition to cloud [his] judgment.”
“It is clear to me now that I allowed ambition to cloud my judgment, leading me to make decisions that were unethical,” Santos said. “Pleading guilty is a step I never imagined I would take, but it is a necessary one, because it is the right thing to do.”
Santos acknowledged he failed his constituents and said he hoped to be a part of “restoring the integrity” he diminished through his lies.
“It has been the proudest achievement of my life to represent you, and I believe I did so to the best of my abilities, but you also trusted me to represent you with honor and to uphold the values that are essential to our democracy, and in that regard, I failed you,” Santos said.
While Santos vowed to accept full responsibility for his conduct, his lawyers flagged in the final moments of his plea hearing this afternoon that the former congressman may not be able to pay over $200,000 in restitution.
Santos is required to pay the restitution 30 days before his sentencing on Feb. 7 and could face additional sanctions if he fails to pay in time.
“At this time, he does not have the money,” defense attorney Andrew Mancilla told federal judge Joanna Seybert.
Defense attorney Joseph Murray insisted that Santos would make his “best effort” to make the money over the next five months.
“We will see how it goes, but I see substantial problems if he can’t comply,” Seybert said before accepting Santos’ plea. “That sounds like we just have to hope.”
Santos, 36, was charged in May 2023 with 13 counts of wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and making materially false statements to the House of Representatives following months of news reports about lies the Republican congressman told in his past.
In October 2023, the then-congressman faced 10 more charges in the Eastern District of New York, including wire fraud, making materially false statements to the Federal Election Commission and aggravated identity theft.
He had previously pleaded not guilty to the charges and his trial had been scheduled to start in September.
In July, a judge denied Santos’ motion to dismiss certain fraud charges, ruling he failed to meet the legal standards.
Two of Santos’ associates, his former campaign finance chief Nancy Marks and fundraiser Sam Miele, have already pleaded guilty to charges.
Santos survived an expulsion vote on Nov. 1, 2023, in the wake of the superseding indictment.
His support among Republicans wavered after the release of a damning report from the House Ethics Committee two weeks after surviving the expulsion vote.
“George Santos cannot be trusted,” declared the 56-page report. “At nearly every opportunity, he placed his desire for private gain above his duty to uphold the Constitution, federal law, and ethical principles.”
Santos allegedly reported fictitious loans to get wealthy donors to make contributions, according to the ethics report, used his connections to obtain yet more donations, including to make “purported ‘repayments’ of those fictitious loans,” and diverted campaign money for his own use.
Santos’ expenses ranged from spending $2,280 in Atlantic City, where he allegedly liked to play roulette with his husband; $2,900 spent on Botox; approximately $10,000 spent at high-end Ferragamo and Hermes stores; and about $3,330 at a rental property, according to the report.
Exactly one month after surviving the first expulsion vote, Santos became just the sixth member of Congress to ever be expelled on Dec. 1, 2023.
He had, until that point, represented New York’s 3rd Congressional District, which includes parts of Queens and Nassau counties, since January 2020.
Santos ended a long-shot comeback bid to represent New York’s 1st Congressional District in April.
Following court this afternoon, United States Attorney Breon Peace described Santos’ crimes as a “fraud of unprecedented proportions.”
“Today, … or what may seem like the first time since he started his campaign for Congress, Mr. Santos told the truth about his criminal escapes,” Peace said about today’s plea.
-ABC News’ Leah Sarnoff contributed to this story.
A Coast Guard aviator observes from the helicopter the Coast Guard ship Visalli during its usual controls to protect the coastal marine environment, pleasure boating, safety and protection of human life at sea and bathing establishments on August 14, 2024 in Catania, Italy. (Photo by Fabrizio Villa/Getty Images
(ROME and LONDON) — A 183-foot sailboat carrying 22 people sank early on Monday off the coast of the Italian island of Sicily following stormy weather in the area, killing at least one passenger, according to Italian officials.
Members of the coast guard have rescued 15 passengers, but six — including two Americans — are still missing, according to the coast guard and a local port authority. British and Canadian citizens are also unaccounted for, the coast guard said in a statement.
Of those recovered, eight have been transported to local hospitals, officials said.
The U.K.-flagged vessel — named the Bayesian — sank off Porticello, near the coastal city of Palermo, the statement said. The ship is currently located at a depth of around 164 feet, with firefighter divers now attempting to reach it, the statement said.
One body was recovered and six people were missing, an authority from the Palermo Port Authorities told ABC News. Divers reached the hull of the ship early on Monday and were still searching the water, the official said.
A State Department spokesperson said U.S. officials “are aware of reports that U.S. citizens were on the Bayesian.”
“We are working with local authorities to gather information and we stand ready to provide consular assistance,” the spokesperson said.
Four coast guard vessels, one helicopter and a team of fire brigade divers are involved in the search, which is being coordinated by the Palermo coast guard, the statement said.
#Palermo, naufragio imbarcazione davanti alla costa di Porticello, 15 persone salvate, 7 segnalate come disperse: dall’alba #sommozzatori dei #vigilidelfuoco impegnati nelle ricerche. Relitto individuato a 50 metri di profondità, in arrivo sommozzatori speleo [#19agosto 10:00] pic.twitter.com/IJGP2aRRWB
Fabio La Bianca, who owns the local BAIA Santa Nicolicchia restaurant, told ABC News that he noticed the moored vessel had disappeared when he went to check on storm damage to his business.
“After half an hour with the other guys we realized that it was no longer there and immediately the rescuers were going around to look for the missing, they had also launched two distress rockets in the air before,” La Bianca said.
Local Mayor Giuseppe D’Agostino wrote on Facebook that the “tragedy that struck our community is unparalleled in history.”
“The administration has activated all channels with the police and is taking care of the people recovered alive so far,” D’Agostino said, adding that local authorities are gathering clothes and finding accommodation for the survivors.
“The search continues at sea and all we can do is pray and hope to find someone alive.”
ABC News’ Joe Simonetti and Shannon K. Kingston contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — Hundreds of first-time voters from all over the United States gathered in Washington, D.C., in July for a political experiment: a rare opportunity to discuss the 2024 presidential election’s top issues with strangers for three days straight.
The gathering, called “America in One Room: The Youth Vote,” was a collaboration between Close Up Foundation, Stanford University, the Generation Lab, global problem solving organization Helena and the University of Southern California. ABC News’ Christiane Cordero was there, talking to some of the young voters for “GMA3.”
The group of roughly 500 young adults from a variety of backgrounds spent part of their time together in one room. Otherwise, they gathered in small groups for face-to-face talks about different policy issues. Those issues range from the deeply divisive, like the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, to those with a direct impact on their lives.
For Emilea Johnson from Goodridge, Minnesota, a town with a population of around 112, that issue is health care.
“My dad is a farmer. My mom works at the church, which offers no benefits,” Johnson told Cordero. “So navigating the world of health care is extremely challenging when you have to try and figure it out on your own.”
Despite how personal the issue of health care feels, Johnson said she doesn’t have a problem hearing from someone who disagrees with her. Chardon Black from Cleveland, Ohio, expressed concern that many people in the U.S. consider others disagreeing with them to be a form of insult.
“I’ve learned that disagreements are OK and disagreements are fine, as long as you’re expressing yourself in your opinion and the things you care about,” he said.
Before and after the event, participants were asked to share how they felt about a range of issues.
“This is what polling should be,” Henry Elkus, founder and CEO of Helena, said.
The Deliberative Poll found that the weekend experience increased the participants’ satisfaction with democracy from 29% to 58%.
Opposition to a nationwide ban on abortion medication increased from 78% to 80%, the survey said, including among those who identified as Republican.
However, support for increasing the federal minimum wage dropped from 62% to 48%, according to the survey.
And while many participants said they were committed to climate action, after the event support for the U.S. achieving energy independence increased from 62% to 76%, the survey said.
Elkus highlighted a distinct lack of interest in partisan politics among participants.
“They don’t care about the candidates, they care about the issues,” he told “GMA3.” “We see this over and over and over again. They have a very grounded and felt sense that we need to fix this country.”
The ultimate goal was to reach consensus on one thing: take the lessons learned at the gathering and share them.
“Democracy is collaborative, and I hope that everyone will have access to such safe environments for us to share our stories, conversations and to deliberate,” Elaine Gombos from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, said in a video diary after the event.
These young voters will be polled again closer to Election Day, to see if their views have shifted. The event’s sponsors are considering doing another event in 2025 – one that focuses on views about artificial intelligence. “This will bring potential for isolated severe thunderstorms with damaging wind gusts and localized flash flooding this afternoon into evening,” according to the NWS.
(ELIZABETHTOWN, Ky.) — Three family members were shot, including two fatally, near a courthouse in Kentucky on Monday before attending a hearing on an emergency protective order, officials said.
The suspect in the incident — who was dating one of the victims — fled the scene and shot himself during a standoff with police, according to the Elizabethtown Police Department.
The shooting unfolded in a parking lot across the street from the Hardin County Justice Center shortly before 9 a.m. ET, officials said.
Three people were shot in an “ambush-type style” attack, Elizabethtown Police Chief Jeremy Thompson said. The suspect — identified as Christopher Elder, 46 — fled the scene in a vehicle.
The suspect’s girlfriend — 37-year-old Erica Riley of Elizabethtown — was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Her mother, 71-year-old Janet Rylee of Hardinsburg, was also shot and died from her injuries at a hospital, police.
A third person, a man related to the victims, was also shot and remains in stable condition, police said. His name has not been released.
Two children belonging to one of the victims were also at the scene but were unharmed, Thompson said. No additional details on the juveniles were released.
Following a vehicle pursuit in western Kentucky, Elder shot himself during a standoff with police, authorities said. He remains hospitalized in critical condition, police said.
Elizabethtown police have confirmed a shooting near the Hardin County Justice Center. Those in the area should follow guidance from law enforcement. Please join Britainy and me in praying for everyone affected by this senseless act of violence. ^AB
The shooting was an isolated, domestic incident, police said. It occurred prior to a hearing on an emergency protective order those involved were attending at the courthouse, according to Elizabethtown Mayor Jeff Gregory.
“It’s just terrible, it’s a tragedy,” said Gregory, who previously served during a career in law enforcement. “Domestic situations are never predictable. They often end in horrible situations like this. Unfortunately, that happened in downtown Elizabethtown today.”
The investigation is ongoing, police said.
“Please join [my wife] Britainy and me in praying for everyone affected by this senseless act of violence,” Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said in a statement.
(WASHINGTON) — Vice President Kamala Harris has unveiled a comprehensive agenda focused on cooling inflation, but many economists consider the fight against price increases to be nearly finished.
Inflation stands below 3% for the first time since 2021, U.S. government data earlier this month showed. The Federal Reserve is widely expected to cut interest rates at a meeting in September, suggesting that the central bank could retreat from its yearslong battle to slow prices.
Still, consumer prices have climbed more than 20% over the last three years, demoralizing shoppers and straining household budgets. Inflation continues to top lists of voter concerns.
Economists who spoke with ABC News described current price levels as an unfortunate reality that would be nearly impossible to undo, since an outright lowering of prices typically accompanies economic hardship that would require medicine more painful than the ailment.
However, some economists said Harris’ proposals could reduce prices for some essential goods, like food, while slowing inflation for items such as housing that are still seeing rapid price increases. Other economists said the measures amount to a solution for a problem that no longer exists, saying the tardy legislative fixes could stunt economic activity.
“We can’t unwind prices back to a certain place,” Catherine Pakaluk, a professor of economics at the Busch School of Business at Catholic University, told ABC News.
Since overall prices depend on a worldwide tug of war between supply and demand, general cost reductions would demand a significant economic shock to send that balance askew, Pakaluk added.
“All prices are linked together,” Pakaluk said. “We all have a sense, ‘If only we could reset prices back to where they were three years ago.’ But there’s no mechanism for that.”
In response to ABC News’ request for comment, the Harris campaign pointed to a speech that she delivered on Friday.
“When I am elected president, I will make it a top priority to bring down costs and increase economic security for all Americans. As president, I will take on the high costs that matter most to most Americans, like the cost of food,” Harris said.
“We all know that prices went up during the pandemic when the supply chains shut down and failed, but our supply chains have now improved and prices are still too high,” Harris added.
While acknowledging the difficulty of achieving overall price decreases, some economists noted a potential for price reductions in certain industries, especially the food and grocery sector targeted by Harris’ proposals.
Harris points to the market power of large corporations in the grocery industry as a key cause of rapid price increases for food, saying companies use their outsized role to raise prices without fear of a competitor offering a comparable product at a more affordable price. Consumers, the Harris campaign says, are left with nowhere to turn.
“Extreme consolidation in the food industry has led to higher prices that account for a large part of higher grocery bills,” the campaign said in a statement on Friday.
Dan Scheitrum, a professor of agribusiness at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, said Harris’ plan to crack down on potential anti-competitive practices within the food sector could end up lowering prices for some household staples.
“If price fixing is taking place and it gets addressed, I expect that could undo some of the price increases,” Scheitrum said.
While general inflation has moderated, price increases for housing remain highly elevated. Housing prices climbed 5.1% over the year ending in July, soaring at a pace more than twice as fast as the overall inflation rate.
The Harris campaign proposed restoring affordability through a combination of boosting home supply and easing the price pressures for some homebuyers.
Economists who spoke with ABC News largely applauded Harris’ efforts to boost the housing supply but offered mixed opinions about a potential $25,000 subsidy for first-time homebuyers.
“We as economists commonly disagree, but the question of housing supply is something we kind of all agree about,” Pakaluk said
On the other hand, a $25,000 subsidy for some homebuyers could allow them to increase their bids and send prices higher, Pakaluk added. “It might have the opposite effect on price than they want,” Pakaluk said.
Peter Morici, a professor emeritus at the University of Maryland’s School of Business, warned against the economic consequences of any attempt to cool prices when they’re well on their way to normal levels.
“The price increases that we’ve seen are very difficult to reverse,” Morici told ABC News. “It can’t be solved, except with draconian measures.”
Other economists indicated that a wide-ranging effort to address inflation could play an important preventative role, safeguarding the economy against a price spike in the event of an emergency, such as another pandemic.
“Even if you’re back to being on budget rather than on edge, you’re still scared. You’ve had a really terrible experience from no fault of your own,” Isabella Weber, an economics professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst who studies price controls, told ABC News.
“We have to prepare for the next shock,” Weber added.
(HOUSTON, Texas) — A fire that ripped through a home on Sunday in suburban Houston is being investigated as a triple homicide after investigators found evidence that three people discovered dead inside the residence were killed before the blaze started, authorities said.
The fire at the two-story brick home in Cypress, Texas, northwest of Houston, was reported Sunday morning, and while extinguishing the blaze, firefighters made the grim discovery of the three bodies inside and investigators found evidence of foul play, according to Sgt. Michael Ritchie of the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.
The remains found inside the house were those of a mother, her adult son and his girlfriend, Ritchie said during a news conference outside the burned home on Sunday afternoon.
The victims were identified Monday afternoon by the sheriff’s office as 54-year-old Kelly Ann Masciarelli, her 23-year-old son, Kolin Paul Foster, and his girlfriend Cameryn Richards, whose age was not released.
“These individuals look like they were deceased before the fire was started. So, this is definitely a homicide, not accidental death due to fire and smoke,” Richie said.
The fire broke out around 7 a.m. at the home, which sits at the end of a cul-de-sac, prompting neighbors to call 911, the sheriff’s office said in a statement Monday.
“Once firefighters went inside, they immediately located an adult female and removed her from the house into the front yard,” according to the statement. “Once the fire was extinguished, two more bodies were discovered upstairs.”
All three victims were pronounced dead at the scene, officials said.
It remained unclear Monday if anyone else had been staying at the home, officials said.
Richie said trauma on the bodies noticed by firefighters and paramedics led investigators to launch a homicide investigation. He said investigators are waiting for autopsies to determine the exact cause of death.
Before entering the home, homicide investigators obtained a search warrant. The home also needed to be inspected to ensure the fire was completely out and it was safe to go inside, officials said.
Arson investigators advised the sheriff’s office that the blaze looked to have been deliberately started by an accelerant, officials said.
“Unfortunately, we’ve seen this before in homicides where an individual will commit murder and then try to set a fire inside the home to cover their tracks,” Richie said.
No arrests have been announced in the incident. But Richie said investigators are pursuing several leads.
“We are reviewing some video that we’ve been able to recover,” Richie said. “We are looking for some possible suspects.”
