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The Independent
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Kilmar Abrego Garcia says he was beaten and subjected to psychological torture in El Salvador jail
Kilmar Abrego Garcia said he suffered severe beatings, severe sleep deprivation and psychological torture in the notorious El Salvador prison the Trump administration had deported him to in March, according to court documents filed Wednesday. Abrego Garcia was living in Maryland when he was mistakenly deported and became a flashpoint in President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown. The new details of Abrego Garcia's incarceration in El Salvador were added to a lawsuit against the Trump administration that Abrego Garcia's wife filed in Maryland federal court after he was deported. The Trump administration has asked a federal judge in Maryland to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing that it is now moot because the government returned him to the United States as ordered by the court.
Reuters
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Iranian nuclear program degraded by up to two years, Pentagon says
WASHINGTON, July 2 (Reuters) - The Pentagon said on Wednesday that U.S. strikes 10 days ago had degraded Iran's nuclear program by up to two years, suggesting the U.S. military operation likely achieved its goals despite a far more cautious initial assessment that leaked to the public. Sean Parnell, a Pentagon spokesman, offered the figure at a briefing to reporters, adding that the official estimate was "probably closer to two years." Parnell did not provide evidence to back up his assessment. "We have degraded their program by one to two years, at least intel assessments inside the Department (of Defense) assess that," Parnell told a news briefing. U.S. military bombers carried out strikes against three Iranian nuclear facilities on June 22 using more than a dozen 30,000-pound (13,600-kg) bunker-buster bombs and more than two dozen Tomahawk land attack cruise missiles. The evolving U.S. intelligence about the impact of the strikes is being closely watched, after President Donald Trump said almost immediately after they took place that Iran's program had been obliterated, language echoed by Parnell at Wednesday's briefing. Such conclusions often take the U.S. intelligence community weeks or more to determine. "All of the intelligence that we've seen (has) led us to believe that Iran's -- those facilities especially, have been completely obliterated," Parnell said. Over the weekend, the head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog, Rafael Grossi, said that Iran could be producing enriched uranium in a few months, raising doubts about how effective U.S. strikes to destroy Tehran's nuclear program have been. Several experts have also cautioned that Iran likely moved a stockpile of near weapons-grade highly enriched uranium out of the deeply buried Fordow site before the strikes and could be hiding it. But U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said last week he was unaware of intelligence suggesting Iran had moved its highly enriched uranium to shield it from U.S. strikes. A preliminary assessment last week from the Defense Intelligence Agency suggested that the strikes may have only set back Iran's nuclear program by months. But Trump administration officials said that assessment was low confidence and had been overtaken by intelligence showing Iran's nuclear program was severely damaged. According to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, the strikes on the Fordow nuclear site caused severe damage. "No one exactly knows what has transpired in Fordow. That being said, what we know so far is that the facilities have been seriously and heavily damaged," Araqchi said in the interview broadcast by CBS News on Tuesday.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
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Riley Gaines hits back at Lia Thomas and Keith Olbermann after Penn bows to Trump in transgender battle
Conservative commentator Riley Gaines snapped back at former competitor Lia Thomas and ex-ESPN star Keith Olbermann after the University of Pennsylvania bowed to President Donald Trump. On Tuesday, Penn updated its athletic record books in line with the NCAA's adopted policies of transgender athletes, which include three marks set by Thomas during the 2021-22 season. The move to add asterisks to Thomas' records comes after the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced it reached an agreement with the school over Title IX violations related to Thomas' participation. Those updated records also come as Trump has called on the NCAA to ban biological men, who identify as transgender, from competing in women's sports. Gaines, who competed against Thomas, has built her career off the fame she gained from dissenting to Thomas' participation. Olbermann wanted to be the first to congratulate Gaines, in his own way, after the changes were made. 'Wanted to congratulate Whiny Gaines on now being able to say she finished tied for FOURTH not tied for FIFTH in the Lia Thomas race,' Olbermann said on X. Thomas won a national championship in the 200-meter freestyle in 2022. Gaines tied for fifth in that race. 'Thank you! And while you're keeping track, make sure to congratulate Emma Weyant, the right National Champ in the 500 freestyle, too,' Gaines replied. '(If you're insinuating 5th in the nation is bad, what do you call a man who ranks 462nd nationally in the men's category?)' Thomas became the first openly transgender NCAA champion with the victory and has become the face of the discussion about whether biological men should compete in women's sports. Earlier this year, a Quakers' statement said the school and athletic department will comply with the NCAA's new policies. 'The University will not – on the basis of sex – exclude female students from participation in, deny female students the benefits of, or subject female students to discrimination under, any athletics programs,' a Penn statement read. 'In addition, in providing to female student-athletes intimate facilities such as locker rooms and bathrooms in connection with Penn Athletics, such facilities shall be strictly separated on the basis of sex and comparably provided to each sex.' Gaines has garnered recognition from those who approve of the ban of transgender athletes in women's sports from the decision to add asterisks to Thomas' records. The win for Gaines comes less than a month after she was in a feud with Simone Biles over the subject, which also played out on social media.
