(WASHINGTON) — Israeli special forces were disguised as Palestinian refugees looking for a place to live when they entered the buildings where hostages were being held during the Israeli rescue operation this weekend, two Israeli security sources told ABC News.
Special forces were already in position near the buildings where the hostages were being held before they were given the “go” command by Israeli forces, the sources added.
The “go” command was given Saturday at 11 a.m. local time, sources said.
The helicopters carrying the hostages and wounded police officers landed at Sheba Medical Center in Israel starting at 12:15 p.m. local time and the last helicopter landed at 12:45 p.m. local time.
The Shin Bet, Israel’s internal security forces, Israel Defense Forces and Israeli SWAT team members, called YAMAM, participated in the rescue operation, now called “Operation Arnon” by the Israeli military. The name of the operation was given to honor the one security officer who was killed during the operation.
The rescued hostages — Almog Meir Jan, 21; Noa Argamani, 25; Andrey Kozlov, 27; and Shlomi Ziv, 40 — had all been abducted from the Nova music festival in Israel on Oct. 7.
They were in “good medical condition” when they were rescued, IDF officials said.
Physically the hostages were “in less severe condition” than the Israeli hospital and doctors treating the hostages “prepared for,” Professor Itai Pessach, head of the medical team who has been taking care of the hostages at Sheba Medical Center near Tel Aviv, told ABC News’ Tom Soufi Burridge on Monday.
“They’ve endured physical, abuse. Throughout the period,” Pessach told ABC News. “They underwent continuous, psychological abuse.”
The hostages were rescued from two separate locations in Nuseirat, in central Gaza, the IDF said. The three male hostages were rescued from one location, and Argamani was rescued from a separate location. That camp has become home to thousands of refugees who’ve fled fighting throughout Gaza.
Officials with the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry said on Sunday that at least 274 Palestinians, including dozens of children, had been killed or wounded during the IDF operation in Nuseirat.
(NEW YORK) — Planetary researchers announced a major discovery from the solar system’s Red Planet on Monday – patches of water frost equating to “60 Olympic-size swimming pools” have been detected on Mars.
The thin yet widespread layers of water frost were discovered atop three of Mars’ Tharsis volcanoes, located on a plateau at the planet’s equator, according to a new study published in the journal Nature Geoscience.
The Tharsis volcanoes, a string of 12 large peaks, are the tallest volcanoes in our solar system, according to the study, which notes that the water frost was discovered on the volcanoes Olympus, Arsia Ascraeus Mons, and Ceraunius Tholus.
“The researchers calculate the frost constitutes at least 150,000 tons of water that swaps between the surface and atmosphere each day during the cold seasons,” researchers from Brown University reported in a press release Monday, adding, “That’s the equivalent of roughly 60 Olympic-size swimming pools.”
The European Space Agency’s ExoMars and Mars Express missions orbiting the planet captured over 30,000 images of the water frost, which were then analyzed by a team of international researchers, according to the study.
Researchers discovered that the thin layer of frost – approximately “one-hundredth of a millimeter thick or about the width of a human hair,” according to the study – forms during sunrise and then evaporates during daylight hours.
“We thought it was improbable for frost to form around Mars’ equator, as the mix of sunshine and thin atmosphere keeps temperatures during the day relatively high at both the surface and mountaintop — unlike what we see on Earth, where you might expect to see frosty peaks,” Adomas Valantinas, a postdoctoral fellow at Brown University who led the study, said in a press release.
“What we’re seeing may be a remnant of an ancient climate cycle on modern Mars, where you had precipitation and maybe even snowfall on these volcanoes in the past,” Valantinas said.
The water frost sits in the calderas of the volcanoes, which are massive depressions at the top of the summit that formed after past eruptions, according to the study.
Researchers hypothesize the air circulating above the calderas creates a “unique microclimate that allows the thin patches of frost to form.”
The findings challenge scientists’ previous understanding of Mars’ climate and offer an exciting avenue for further Martian exploration, according to researchers.
Valantinas, who began analyzing the images in 2018, said, “This notion of a second genesis, of life beyond Earth, has always fascinated me.”
(MIAMI) — Firefighters are battling a large fire at a Miami residential building while a man who works at the complex was also found shot inside, authorities said.
The fire was reported around 8:15 a.m. Monday at Temple Court Apartments, according to Miami Mayor Francis Suarez.
Responding firefighters rescued more than 40 people, including some from their balconies, the mayor said, calling their actions “heroic.” There was an “explosion” following the evacuation, he said.
Authorities are working to determine how many residents of the complex, most of whom are elderly, were home at the time of the fire.
Suarez said it was too dangerous to fight the three-alarm fire — the first of that level in the city in 25 years — from within the building and all firefighters had been pulled out.
After working to contain the fire in one section of the residential building, firefighters are continuing to fight the blaze “thankfully under much better circumstances,” Suarez said during a press briefing Monday afternoon.
Firefighters discovered the fire on the third floor of the apartment building, according to Miami Fire-Rescue spokesperson Lt. Pete Sanchez.
The building is a wood-frame structure, which “explains the intensity and the rapid spread of the fire,” he said.
The cause of the blaze remains under investigation.
Three firefighters were transported to a local hospital in stable condition for further evaluation, according to Sanchez. Two have since been released, he said Monday afternoon.
A resident was also transported to a hospital for smoke inhalation, Sanchez said.
A man was additionally found shot inside the building and transported to a local hospital with a gunshot wound to the torso in critical condition, authorities said.
The person shot is an employee of the complex, according to the property’s manager, Atlantic Housing Foundation, which said it was “shocked and saddened” by the fire and shooting.
“We are still determining the cause of these events, and we are checking for other injuries,” Atlantic Housing Foundation said in a statement. “Police are investigating, and we will help in whatever ways we can.”
The shooting is believed to be an isolated incident and the investigation is ongoing, authorities said.
“Whatever we tell you now would be pure speculation,” Miami Commissioner Manolo Reyes told reporters during the press briefing Monday afternoon. “In due time, I know and I promise you we will get to the bottom of it.”
“The most immediate problem that we have now are the people that are without the homes,” he continued.
The Red Cross is helping provide the displaced residents with meals and a place to stay.
(WASHINGTON) — The United Nations Security Council on Monday afternoon adopted a U.S. draft resolution urging Hamas to accept the latest cease-fire and hostage release deal.
Fourteen members of the council voted in favor of the measure and only one — Russia — elected to abstain. Russia is one of the five permanent members of the Security Council with veto power over resolutions.
Nate Evans, spokesperson for the U.S. mission to the United Nations, noted in a statement ahead of the vote that the deal would enable a pause in fighting, the freeing of a number of hostages and an immediate surge in humanitarian assistance, among other things.
“Israel has accepted this proposal and the Security Council has an opportunity to speak with one voice and call on Hamas to do the same,” his statement continued. “Doing so would help save lives and the suffering of civilians in Gaza as well as the hostages and their families. Council Members should not let this opportunity to pass by and must speak with one voice in support of this deal.”
U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield made a similar case just before the vote, saying that every day the war goes on, “needless suffering continues.”
“Colleagues, after eight months of devastation and pain and trauma, what is needed now more than ever is for the fighting to end in a sustainable way,” she said. “The United States and every single country in this chamber wants to see an immediate cease-fire with the release of hostages. We’ve heard those calls time and time again since Oct. 7. Now the opportunity is here. We must seize it.”
Hamas released a statement following the vote saying they “welcome” what was included in the draft resolution “regarding a permanent cease-fire in Gaza.”
President Joe Biden backed the deal in late May, announcing Israel had degraded Hamas’ capabilities and it was “time for this war to end” and the “day after to begin.”
Biden also outlined the plan’s three phases, the first lasting for six weeks and consisting of a cease-fire, withdrawal of Israeli forces from populated areas of Gaza, the release of a number of hostages and the release of Palestinian prisoners.
The second phase would usher in a “cessation of hostilities permanently,” Biden said, should Hamas abide by the commitments laid out in the agreement, as well as the release of all remaining living hostages. The last phase would include a reconstruction of Gaza and the return of remains of hostages to their families.
The State Department said it was consulting with Israel on the U.N. draft resolution last week, even though Israel is not a member of the council.
The vote comes as Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in the Middle East to further negotiate the cease-fire and hostage agreement.
As he departed Cairo earlier Monday for Tel Aviv, Blinken called it a “critical moment.”
“My message to governments throughout the region, to people throughout the region: If you want a cease-fire, press Hamas to say yes,” Blinken told reporters. “If you want to alleviate the terrible suffering of Palestinians in Gaza, press Hamas to say yes.
“If you want to get all the hostages home, press Hamas to say yes,” he continued. “If you want to put present Palestinians and Israelis alike on the path to more durable peace and security, if you want to prevent this conflict from spreading, press Hamas to say yes.”
Hunter Biden, son of U.S. President Joe Biden, departs the J. Caleb Boggs Federal Building and United States Courthouse on July 26, 2023 in Wilmington, Delaware. (Photo by Mark M
(WILMINGTON, Del.) — President Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden is on trial in Delaware on three felony charges related to his efforts to obtain a firearm in 2018 while allegedly addicted to drugs.
The younger Biden, who pleaded not guilty last October after being indicted by special counsel David Weiss, has denied the charges. The son of a sitting president has never before faced a criminal trial.
The trial comes on the heels of former President Donald Trump’s conviction on felony charges related to a 2016 hush money payment made to boost his electoral prospects in the 2016 presidential election.
The frequency of updates may be limited due to federal court restrictions.
Jun 10, 4:44 PM Day 1 of jury deliberations ends with no verdict
The jurors in Hunter Biden’s federal gun trial have been dismissed for the day, after deliberating for one hour with no verdict.
Hunter Biden left the courthouse after the jury was dismissed.
The jurors will be back tomorrow at 9 a.m. ET to resume their deliberations.
Jun 10, 3:44 PM Jury begins deliberations
The jury has begun deliberations on the three felony counts Hunter Biden faces in his federal gun case.
Prior to the jury getting the case, the government rebutted defense attorney Abbe Lowell’s closing argument by asserting again that Hunter Biden was a drug addict when he bought the gun at the center of the case and that he knew it — beyond a reasonable doubt.
There are “seven ways to Sunday” to show Hunter Biden was an addict and it was “preposterous” that he — a “Yale-educated lawyer” — didn’t know he was buying a gun while knowingly addicted, prosecutor Derek Hines argued.
Hines rebutted Lowell’s characterization of the government’s treatment of Hunter Biden’s daughter Naomi Biden as “cruel.”
Naomi Biden was “completely uncomfortable” because “she couldn’t vouch for the defendant’s sobriety,” Hines argued.
Hines closed by saying that if the jury doesn’t determine Hunter Biden is a crack addict based on the evidence in the case, “then no one is a crack addict of unlawful use.”
Judge Maryellen Noreika then delivered the final portion of her instructions and sent jurors to begin their deliberations.
The judge indicated that she would not keep jurors past 4:30 or 4:45 p.m. ET today.
Jun 10, 3:00 PM Defense calls government’s case ‘conjecture and suspicion’
Defense attorney Abbe Lowell, in his closing argument, urged jurors to dispense with the government’s “conjecture and suspicion” and find his client not guilty on all three counts.
“We have had Hunter’s life in our hands” until now, Lowell said, referring to his legal team. “And now we have to give it to you.”
Lowell repeatedly referred to prosecutors’ case as a “magicians’ trick” — to “watch this hand and pay no attention to that one,” as he said — arguing that prosecutors failed to “fill in the gaps” about Hunter Biden’s drug use around the time of his firearm purchase “because they don’t have the proof.”
Lowell also referred to prosecutors’ strategy of showing Hunter Biden’s pattern of drug use as an “accordion,” meant to “compress” the timeline and make it seem to jurors that he was actively using drugs in October 2018, when he said on a government form that he was not addicted to drugs in order to purchase a Colt handgun.
The defense attorney also attacked some of the tactics prosecutors used, calling their treatment of Hunter Biden’s daughter Naomi Biden “extraordinarily cruel” and saying that many of their questions and evidence were introduced with the intention of “embarrassing Hunter.”
He also asked jurors to recall gaps in the recollections of Hunter Biden’s then-girlfriend Hallie Biden, and suggested they should remember the immunity agreement she struck with prosecutors for her testimony.
“These are serious charges that will change Hunter’s life,” he said of the three felony charges the president’s son faces, adding that “it’s time to end this case.”
Following Lowell’s closing, the government was scheduled to have a short rebuttal, at which point the judge was to finish her jury instructions before the jury gets the case.
Jun 10, 1:40 PM Evidence supports ‘only one verdict’ prosecutor tells jury
Prosecutor Leo Wise used witness testimony and Hunter Biden’s own words from his memoir and text messages to argue that the president’s son “knew exactly what he was doing” when prosecutors say he falsely claimed he was not addicted to drugs in order to purchase a Colt handgun in 2018.
“Take the defendant’s word for it,” Wise said as he showed the jury excerpts from Hunter Biden’s book that described his drug use and addiction.
Wise, showing the jurors a side-by-side comparison of testimony regarding his truck from his daughter Naomi Biden and then-girlfriend Hallie Biden, said their testimony is “circumstantial evidence ” that shows “the defendant used crack in the truck” days after purchasing the firearm.
Naomi Biden testified that she returned the truck to her father “clean” on Oct. 19, 2018, and Hallie Biden testified that a few days later she found Hunter Biden’s gun in the vehicle along with drug paraphernalia and drug remnants.
Wise also showed the jury a calendar of the month of October 2018 that showed the cash withdrawals made by Hunter Biden. “None of the cash was for rehab,” Wise said.
The evidence, Wise told jurors in conclusion, “supports only one verdict.”
Hunter Biden’s attorney Abbe Lowell then began his closing arguments.
Jun 10, 1:23 PM Hunter Biden ‘knew he was using drugs,’ prosecutor argues
Prosecutor Leo Wise, continuing his closing argument, laid out his case for conviction by telling jurors that the evidence in the case was “ugly” but “necessary” to establish Hunter Biden’s drug use during the time in question — as well as in the months before and after.
“He knew he was using drugs,” Wise told the jury, a reference to the standard the jury must reach for conviction — that Hunter Biden had to “knowingly” lie on the gun-purchase form on which he said he was not addicted to drugs.
“That’s what the evidence shows,” Wise said.
Wise emphasized repeatedly to the jury that the government is not required to show specifically that Hunter used drugs when he owned the gun from the Oct. 12-23, 2018 — but rather they must “establish that pattern.”
To that end, Wise referenced the text messages spanning back to 2015 in which Hunter Biden appeared to purchase drugs or reference his addiction, as well as the testimony from his ex-wife Kathleen Buhle and ex-girlfriend Hallie Biden, who said they either found his drug paraphernalia, saw him use drugs, or talked to him about it.
Wise also pointed to the testimony of ex-girlfriend Zoe Kestan, who testified she saw Hunter Biden using drugs in late September 2018 — just two weeks before he bought the gun.
“You can convict on that alone,” Wise told the jury.
Wise also referenced Hunter Biden’s memoir, “Beautiful Things,” saying it was a “searingly painful” but “honest” description of himself and his addiction.
The evidence showed Hunter Biden “habitually used,” Wise said.
Jun 10, 12:34 PM ‘None of that matters’ prosecutor says of large Biden contingent
Prosecutor Leo Wise began his closing argument by referencing the many Biden family members packed into the courtroom galley today.
“All of this is not evidence,” Wise said to the jury as he gestured toward the gallery where First lady Jill Biden and other members of the Biden family are jammed into the front three rows.
“You may recognize them from the news, from the community,” Wise told them. “None of that matters.”
Wise then reiterated the government’s opening remarks that no one is above the law, telling the jury that the case is no different from others — regardless “of who the defendant is.”
Jun 10, 12:14 PM Biden family members jam into courtroom
Hunter Biden came to court today with what appears to be the largest number of friends and family members yet to appear at his trial.
The first row of the gallery was so packed with members of the Biden family this morning that the security guard on the end nearly fell off. The entire first three rows and some of the fourth row were filled with friends and family members — about 25 in total.
First Lady Jill Biden, her daughter Ashley Biden, and Hunter Biden’s wife Melissa Cohen Biden sat together in the front row, with Ashley Biden at one point comforting the others by putting her arm around her mother and then patting Melissa Biden’s back.
Through the morning’s lengthy sidebars and delays, Hunter Biden repeatedly engaged with them, chatting with them and exchanging hugs when he could.
When the defense rested its case, he stood up and hugged his uncle James Biden in the front row and appeared to say, “Love you.”
After another break, he returned to the courtroom holding the first lady’s hand.
Jun 10, 11:54 AM Jury told not to judge Hunter Biden for not testifying
Judge Maryellen Noreika, in her initial instructions to jurors, explained how they are to apply the law to the facts of the case for the three criminal counts Hunter Biden faces.
“You must not attach any significance to the fact that the defendant did not testify,” she read aloud in the courtroom, after the defense decided not to call Hunter Biden to the stand.
The judge defined “knowingly,” the central term by which jurors must determine if Hunter Biden bought the gun at the center of the case “knowing” he was an addict or user of drugs, after he stated on the gun-purchase form that he was not.
Closing arguments are scheduled to begin at 12:05 p.m. ET, after which the judge will give the jury her final instructions and their deliberations will begin.
Jun 10, 11:36 AM Closing arguments up next after Hunter Biden does not testify
Closing arguments will begin at about noon ET after Hunter Biden chose not to testify in his federal gun case.
The defense rested without him taking the stand, after which prosecutors presented a brief rebuttal case, then the judge gave the jury their initial instructions.
Jun 10, 11:17 AM Judge reads initial jury instructions
Following the prosecution’s rebuttal case, the judge read the jury their initial instructions.
Court is then expected to break for lunch, with closing arguments currently scheduled for the afternoon.
The judge will then give the jury their final instructions before they begin deliberations.
Jun 10, 11:05 AM Prosecutors rest rebuttal case
The government rested its rebuttal case after a brief cross-examination of FBI special agent Erika Jensen, who testified about location and text message data relevant to the case.
Attorneys then gathered for another sidebar conference.
Jun 10, 10:54 AM FBI witness returns to witness stand
After a lengthy sidebar, overflow room cameras suddenly turned on to show prosecutors questioning a previous witness, FBI agent Erika Jensen, suggesting that the defense has rested its case and prosecutors are introducing a rebuttal case before the trial moves on to closing arguments.
If so, that would indicate that Hunter Biden did not testify in his own defense.
Jun 10, 8:40 AM Judge reviews motions regarding jury instructions
This morning’s proceedings are underway.
Judge Maryellen Noreika began by reviewing with both parties motions by the defense to change proposed jury instructions.
The jury is expected to be brought back into court at 9 a.m. ET.
Jun 10, 8:14 AM Hunter Biden arrives at courthouse
Hunter Biden has arrived at the courthouse for Day 6 of his federal gun trial, accompanied by his wife Melissa Cohen Biden.
First lady Jill Biden arrived shortly afterward.
President Joe Biden’s brother James Biden and sister Valerie Biden also arrived.
The two waited outside until the court opened at 8 a.m. ET.
Jun 10, 7:17 AM The big question: Will Hunter Biden take the stand this morning?
As the second week of Hunter Biden’s gun trial gets underway this morning, defense attorneys will confront their most consequential decision: whether to put their client on the witness stand.
To allow Hunter Biden to testify in his own defense would carry myriad risks, as the president’s son would likely face a grueling cross-examination from a prosecution team that has shows itself adept at eliciting testimony supporting their central contention in the case — that Hunter Biden was addicted to drugs at the time he purchased the handgun at heart of the case.
Jurors witnessed that on Friday, when Naomi Biden, the 30-year-old daughter of Hunter Biden, struggled to explain text messages she sent her father in October 2018 after he had purchased the gun — in which she seemed to express concern about his addiction, despite testifying moments earlier about how “great” her father seemed at the time.
If Hunter Biden decides not to take the stand, jurors could possibly have the case by the end of the day, after closing arguments and jury instructions.
Court is scheduled to get underway earlier than usual today, at 8:15 a.m. E.T.
Jun 07, 2:07 PM Defense to decide if Hunter takes stand as court breaks for weekend
In an unexpected move, court recessed for the day following the lunch break, with the defense telling the judge they are “down to that last decision” — suggesting that they will determine over the weekend if Hunter Biden takes the stand Monday in his own defense.
Defense attorney Abbe Lowell told the court the defense decided not to call one of its expert witnesses.
It also appears defense attorneys reversed course on testimony from Hunter Biden’s uncle James Biden, who was already at the courthouse and who Lowell had earlier indicated would be testifying. James Biden was subsequently seen leaving the building.
Prosecutors said they are “still considering” whether they will put on a rebuttal case after the defense rests.
Judge Maryellen Noreika dismissed the jury, telling them to “enjoy a long weekend.”
“We are starting to wrap the evidence in this case,” she said.
The parties are scheduled to be back in court Monday at 8:15 a.m. ET.
Jun 07, 1:19 PM Naomi Biden says her dad ‘seemed great’ after gun buy
Naomi Biden, the 30-year-old daughter of Hunter Biden, testified that her father “seemed great, he seemed hopeful” when she saw him on Oct. 18 or 19, 2018, in New York, where she was returning his vehicle to him — several days after he purchased the gun at the center of the case and just days before his then-girlfriend Hallie Biden discovered and discarded it.
Earlier, in August, Naomi Biden described visiting him in Los Angeles, where he was in a drug rehab program. “He seemed the clearest I’d seen him since my uncle died,” she said, referring to Hunter Biden’s brother Beau Biden.
It was important testimony for the defense in their attempt to show that Hunter Biden was not using drugs around the time of the gun purchase.
Defense counsel Abbe Lowell asked Naomi Biden about the car trip she and her then-boyfriend took from Washington, D.C., to New York in mid-October 2018 to return her father’s truck — a Ford Raptor — to him.
On cross-examination, prosecutor Leo Wise asked Naomi Biden if she ever witnessed her father using drugs — she said she had not — or whether she would know if he was using drugs based on his behavior.
“I guess not,” she said.
Wise also established that Naomi Biden did not leave any drugs or drug residue in the vehicle before returning it to her father — suggesting that the drug residue and paraphernalia Hallie Biden observed in the car days later arrived there after Hunter Biden retrieved the truck.
Jurors also saw some emotional text messages between Naomi Biden and her father during that mid-October timeframe.
“I’m really sad, I can’t take this,” she wrote her father, adding that “I really want to hang out with you.”
“I’m sorry I’ve been so unreachable,” Hunter Biden replied. “It’s not fair to you.”
On the stand, Naomi Biden spoke quietly, at one point saying, “Sorry, I’m nervous.” Her husband, Peter Neal, sat in the gallery next to first lady Jill Biden, and had his hand over his mouth for much of the testimony.
Hunter Biden appeared emotional and was seen at times touching his face during her testimony.
When her testimony concluded, she embraced her father before leaving the courtroom, and court recessed for lunch.
Jun 07, 12:22 PM Hunter Biden’s daughter Naomi takes the stand
Hunter Biden’s daughter Naomi took the stand as the defense’s third witness.
(WASHINGTON) — Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman was involved in a crash on a Maryland interstate over the weekend, police and his office confirmed on Monday.
The two-vehicle crash occurred on Interstate 70 near Hagerstown shortly before 8 a.m. Sunday, according to Maryland State Police.
Fetterman, 54, was driving a Chevrolet Traverse west on I-70 when, “for unknown reasons,” his vehicle struck the rear of a Chevrolet Impala, according to preliminary information from state police.
Fetterman’s wife, Gisele Barreto Fetterman was also in the vehicle, according to the senator’s office. Both were evaluated at a local hospital “out of abundance of caution” and the senator was treated for a bruised shoulder, according to his office. Both were discharged Sunday afternoon.
“They are doing well and happy to be back in Braddock,” Fetterman’s office said in a statement.
The driver of the Impala was also transported via ambulance to a hospital in West Virginia for unspecified injuries, according to state police.
“No citations were issued. The crash investigation remains active and ongoing,” Maryland State Police said in a statement.
Fetterman, D-Pa., was briefly hospitalized last year after checking himself into an inpatient facility while suffering from depression.
He suffered a stroke during his campaign in 2022 that he has said did not cause any physical limitations or issues with memory or language comprehension.
ABC News’ Matt Foster and Allison Pecorin contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — First lady Jill Biden’s support for Hunter Biden during his trial in Delaware continued on Monday, as she appeared at the courthouse for closing arguments before jury deliberations.
The first lady sat with her daughter Ashley Biden, Hunter’s half-sister, and Melissa Cohen, Hunter Biden’s wife. The three women were dressed in all-black.
The entire first three rows and some of the fourth row were full on Monday of Hunter Biden’s friends and family, approximately 25 people in total.
Prosecutor Leo Wise began his closing argument by referencing the many Biden family members packed into the courtroom gallery.
“All of this is not evidence,” Wise said to the jury as he gestured toward the gallery where Jill Biden and other members of the Biden family were jammed together.
“You may recognize them from the news, from the community,” Wise told them. “None of that matters.”
After one of the breaks, Hunter Biden and Jill Biden entered the courtroom hand-in-hand.
Almost every day during the trial, Jill Biden’s been in court watching the proceedings as details of Hunter Biden’s drug addictions, fraught relationships and other dark aspects of his past were brought up by prosecutors.
The first lady’s commitment to attending the trial was evident as she flew back late last Thursday from France, where she accompanied President Joe Biden to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day, to attend Friday’s court hearings before flying back overseas to attend a state dinner hosted by the French prime minister on Saturday.
President Joe Biden has not appeared at his son’s trial. In a statement on the first day of proceedings, as jury selection was underway, Biden said he wouldn’t comment on the case but expressed “boundless love” for his son.
“I am the President, but I am also a Dad. Jill and I love our son, and we are so proud of the man he is today,” the president said in the statement. “Hunter’s resilience in the face of adversity and the strength he has brought to his recovery are inspiring to us.”
Hunter Biden was indicted in September by special counsel David Weiss on two counts related to false statements in purchasing the firearm and a third count of illegally obtaining a firearm while addicted to drugs. Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty and has denied the charges.
The indictment came after a plea deal with the federal government fell apart at the elventh hour last summer. It marked the first time a child of a sitting president was criminally indicted.
Hunter Biden’s legal issues have put the first family in the spotlight by their critics, particularly among Republicans on the Hill and former President Donald Trump.
The jeers did not appear to deter Jill Biden from showing up in court nearly every day since proceedings began.
The first lady has entered the courtroom with her security detail, sometimes affecting foot traffic in the federal courthouse as the first family has protection needs.
During the first week of the trial, the first lady was attentive and craned her next toward the screen showing exhibits of video, photos or text message data collected by the government.
She was visibly emotional last Tuesday as some of those exhibits included audio excerpts from Hunter’s book — him reading in lurid detail tales of his addiction to crack cocaine and alcohol.
Hunter Biden has been open about his addictions and the effect it had on his entire family, including his parents. In his 2018 memoir, he spoke about how then-Vice President Biden saved his life when he was on a binge and pushed him to get into rehab.
Jill and Ashley Biden sat shoulder-to-shoulder as the clips played out, at times leaning their heads against one another. At one point, as Hunter Biden’s voice was heard describing a raucous 12-day bender in Los Angeles, Jill Biden lifted her left arm and draped it around her daughter’s shoulders.
A person sitting with the family told ABC News they were both “fighting off tears.”
On Friday, Jill and Hunter Biden entered the courtroom arm-in-arm as Naomi Biden, Hunter Biden’s daughter, took the stand for the defense. While she testified, her husband, Peter Neal, sat in the gallery next to the first lady.
Naomi Biden’s testimony included emotional text messages between her and her father from October 2018, around the time he had purchased the gun.
Hunter Biden did not take the stand to testify in his own defense.
The two counts of making false statements carry sentences of up to 10 years and five years, respectively, while the possession charge carries a sentence of up to 10 years.
President Biden told “World News Tonight” anchor David Muir on Thursday that he would accept the outcome of his son’s trial and would not consider pardoning him.
ABC News’ Olivia Rubin and Lucien Bruggeman contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — Former President Donald Trump was slated to give a virtual keynote address to the Life & Liberty Forum hosted by the Danbury Institute, an organization that says it promotes Judeo-Christian values and wants abortion to be “eradicated entirely” on Monday afternoon — instead, he gave a brief message that lasted less than two minutes where he did not utter the word “abortion.”
Trump’s remarks were focused on defending religious liberty and he suggested Democrats are “against religion.”
“These are difficult times for our nation and your work is so important. We can’t afford to have anyone sit on the sidelines. Now is the time for us to all pull together and to stand up for our values and for our freedoms.”
He continued, “You just can’t vote Democrat. They’re against religion. They’re against your religion in particular … We have to defend religious liberty, free speech and innocent life and the heritage and tradition that built America into the greatest nation in the history of the world.”
After suggesting that the nation is in decline, Trump said he understood where the group is coming from and where they are going. He advocated that he’d be by their sides for the next four years.
The Danbury Institute takes a strong stance against reproductive rights, claiming life begins at conception, and “abortion must be ended. We will not rest until it is eradicated entirely,” according to its website.
The Christian organization says on its website that it believes that the end of Roe v. Wade was just the beginning to their life mission.
“We are grateful to God and to the current slate of Supreme Court Justices for the successful overturning of Roe v. Wade. However, the battle is far from won. In many ways, it is only beginning,” the website says.
Abortion rights are a key issue for many voters as Election Day approaches — with both Trump and President Joe Biden working to highlight their platforms as they face off in what is expected to be a tight race.
Trump said in April that abortion should be decided by the states. He has not said if he personally favors a certain number of weeks into pregnancy at which state-level bans should take effect, though he has publicly criticized a six-week ban in Florida and, more recently, talked privately about the idea of a national 16-week ban with exceptions, sources told ABC News in February.
The Biden campaign blasted Trump’s participation in the Danbury Institute event suggesting that his priority is to fight for those who want to eradicate abortion.
“If you want to know who Trump will fight for in a second term, look at who he’s spending his time speaking to: anti-abortion extremists who call abortion ‘child sacrifice’ and want to ‘eradicate’ abortion ‘entirely,'” Biden’s campaign spokesperson Sarafina Chitika said in a statement.
Trump takes credit for the for the U.S. Supreme Court overruling Roe v. Wade in June 2022.
“After 50 years of failure, with nobody coming even close, I was able to kill Roe v. Wade, much to the ‘shock’ of everyone, and for the first time put the Pro Life movement in a strong negotiating position,” Trump wrote on his social media platform last month.
Biden has blamed Trump for the spread of abortion bans since the end of Roe v. Wade, encouraging women voters to back him in November.
“[Trump is] wrong, the Supreme Court was wrong. It should be a constitutional right in the federal Constitution, a federal right, and it shouldn’t matter where in America you live,” Biden said in a speech in April. “This isn’t about states’ rights, this is about women’s rights.”
Organizers of Monday’s event suggested it was hard to schedule Trump’s remarks due to his ongoing court trials, but they were grateful for the video message. The Danbury Institute did not respond to ABC News’ inquiry on the length of Trump’s appearance.
(BELLE CENTER, Ohio) — Some 44 horses were killed and one person seriously injured when a fire engulfed a horse barn Saturday in Logan County, Ohio.
Brant Performance Horses near Belle Center, Ohio, about an hour northwest of Columbus, used a barn that measured about 60,0000 square feet and stabled about 85 horses. It also featured a performing area for the horses and a living space for employees.
Firefighters from Logan, Hardin and Union counties worked together to extinguish the barn fire, according to Jason Johns, assistant fire chief of the Richland Township Fire Department.
The fire was first noticed around noon Saturday by a Brant Performance Horses employee, according to Cathy Brant of Brant Performance Horses.
“An employee was in the barn, saw smoke and yelled fire,” Brant told ABC News. She said an explosion occurred only seconds later and generated a larger fire.
Eric Priest, owner of Priest Performances Horses in Belle Center, who kept some of his horses at the barn, ran inside to attempt to free the horses and was caught in the explosion. He sustained second- and third-degree burns to his arms, back and head, according to Brant, and faces possible surgery.
MORE: Large fire burns at Miami apartment building where man found shot inside Firefighters were at the scene for about 12 hours on Saturday. “Slowly but surely we were getting the fire to calm down,” Johns told ABC News. “The building was already starting to collapse and it wasn’t safe to enter.”
Four employees lived in the building and lost everything, Brant said.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
A GoFundMe page created for the owners of Brant Performance Horses had raised just over $235,000 as of Monday afternoon, while two GoFundMe pages created for the owners of Priest Performance Horses had together raised nearly $40,000 by Monday afternoon.
“The amount of the support is incredible,” said Brant, who added that the money will be used to rebuild the property. In the meantime, the business will operate out of another barn 40 minutes north, she said.
(CUPERTINO, Calif.) — Apple unveiled artificial intelligence-fueled features across several key products on Monday, heralding the long-awaited entry of the tech giant into the high-stakes AI race.
The latest version of Apple’s operating system will deliver customizable tools using generative AI for iPhones, Mac and iPad, Apple said at the Worldwide Developers Conference hosted at the company’s headquarters in Cupertino, California. Language tools will be able to improve or summarize text, and image generators will supplement photos with extra adornment.
The AI capability, called Apple Intelligence, amounts to the “next big step for Apple,” CEO Tim Cook said on Monday. The advance results from an agreement between Apple and OpenAI, the firm behind popular text bot ChatGPT, Cook added.
A revamped Siri, for instance, will draw on generative chat technology to improve its language comprehension and retain context from previous requests, the company said.
Since its launch in 2011, Siri has functioned primarily as a hands-free tool for responses to specific prompts, such as queries about the weather or a user’s upcoming calendar. The new version, Apple said, will carry out extended conversations and aid in intricate tasks.
Further, Siri will be able to take actions within a user’s product, pulling up photos or adding text to the Notes app, the company said.
Apple, the world’s second largest company in terms of market capitalization, has lagged behind its behemoth competitors in the battle to develop and offer AI products.
OpenAI retains a longstanding partnership with Microsoft, which holds a minority stake in the firm and integrates ChatGPT into its Bing search engine. Last year, Google announced its own AI model called Bard, which provides brief summaries in response to some search queries.
The announcement on Monday amounts to the most important decision for Apple — and Cook — over the last decade, Dan Ives, a managing director of equity research at the investment firm Wedbush, told clients in a research note ahead of the conference.
“The pressure to bring a generative AI stack of technology for developers and consumers is front and center,” Ives said.
The fresh product arrives at a moment of relatively sluggish performance for Apple.
In its latest earnings report, Apple last month revealed a sales slump for some of its mainstay products. Smartphone sales dropped 10% over the three months ending in March, when compared with the same period a year earlier. iPad sales fell 17% over that period, the earnings report said.
In recent years, the company has relied on new models of its signature items, instead of transitioning to the next big product, analysts previously told ABC News.
The approach allows Apple to capitalize upon its loyal customer base and popular devices while it develops new products like Apple Vision Pro, the company’s mixed reality headset, analysts said.
With a starting cost of $3,499 and a higher-powered version at around $4,000, Apple Vision Pro remains far from a price point that would make it affordable for a wide audience.
