US DOJ to open grand jury to investigate Obama officials, source says
The Justice Department said late last month it was forming a strike force to assess claims made by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard about "alleged weaponization of the U.S. intelligence community."
Republican U.S. President Donald Trump has leaped on comments from Gabbard in which she threatened to refer Obama administration officials to the Justice Department for prosecution over an intelligence assessment of Russian interference.
Fox News first reported that Bondi personally ordered an unnamed federal prosecutor to initiate legal proceedings and the prosecutor is expected to present department evidence to a grand jury, which could consider an indictment if the Justice Department pursued a criminal case. The report cited a letter from Bondi and a source. A DOJ spokesperson declined to comment.
Referring to the probe in a post on Truth Social, Trump said: "The TRUTH always wins out. This is great news."
Last month, Trump accused Obama of treason, alleging, without providing evidence, that the Democrat led an effort to falsely tie him to Russia and undermine his 2016 presidential campaign. Trump won the 2016 election against Democrat Hillary Clinton.
A spokesperson for Obama had denounced Trump's claims, saying "these bizarre allegations are ridiculous and a weak attempt at distraction."
Gabbard had declassified documents and said the information she released showed a "treasonous conspiracy" in 2016 by top Obama officials to undermine Trump, claims that Democrats called false and politically motivated.
An assessment by the U.S. intelligence community published in January 2017 concluded that Russia, using social media disinformation, hacking, and Russian bot farms, sought to damage Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign and bolster Trump, who won that election.
The assessment determined the actual impact was likely limited and showed no evidence that Moscow's efforts actually changed voting outcomes. Russia has denied it attempted to interfere in U.S. elections.
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The Independent
20 minutes ago
- The Independent
Russian nationalists have long demanded the return of Alaska. Now Trump has invited ICC-indicted Putin to the state
President Donald Trump is set to meet with Vladimir Putin in Alaska next week, the state that Russia once laid claim to and nationalists want to take back. Trump announced Friday that a meeting has been set with the Russian leader on August 15 in the Last Frontier state to discuss the war in Ukraine, which the president claimed he would end 'on Day One.' Despite facing an International Criminal Court arrest warrant, the meeting would mark the first time in a decade that Putin has set foot on U.S. soil. 'The highly anticipated meeting between myself, as President of the United States of America, and President Vladimir Putin, of Russia, will take place next Friday, August 15, 2025, in the Great State of Alaska,' Trump declared on Truth Social. Critics pointed out that Russia once laid claim to the state of Alaska at the beginning of the 1770s—where they mercilessly exploited Alaskan natives to hunt fur for the Russians—and nationalists have long wanted to take it back. Alaska was purchased from the Russians by the U.S. for a sum of $7.2 million in 1867—the equivalent of between $129 million and $153.5 million today. 'Trump has chosen to host Putin in a part of the former Russian Empire. Wonder if he knows that Russian nationalists claim that losing Alaska, like Ukraine, was a raw deal for Moscow that needs to be corrected,' said Michael McFaul, a professor of political science at Stanford University and former. U.S. ambassador to Russia. 'Let's all hope that Putin doesn't ask to take Alaska home with him as a souvenir, or Trump might give that away too,' political commentator David Frum said in a post on X. 'Trump inviting war criminal Putin to America is nauseating enough, but hosting him in Alaska — while Putin's pet propagandists routinely demand it back from the US on state TV — is beyond the pale,' author and commentator Julia Davis wrote on X. 'Unless Putin is arrested upon arrival, there's no excuse.' She posted a series of clips and screenshots of pro-Putin Russian commentators suggesting that Alaska should be part of their country once again. Trump's former national security adviser-turned foe, John Bolton, said the move reminded him of a blunder the president allegedly nearly made in his first term. 'This is not quite as bad as Trump inviting the Taliban to Camp David to talk about the peace negotiations in Afghanistan,' Bolton told CNN's Kaitlan Collins. 'But it certainly reminds one of that.' 'The only better place for Putin than Alaska would be if the summit were being held in Moscow,' Bolton added. 'So the initial setup, I think, is a great victory for Putin.' GOP Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said that she was 'deeply wary' of Putin as she reacted to the news that the summit would take place in her home state. 'This is another opportunity for the Arctic to serve as a venue that brings together world leaders to forge meaningful agreements,' Murkowski said in a post on X Friday. 'While I remain deeply wary of Putin and his regime, I hope these discussions lead to genuine progress and help end the war on equitable terms.' Putin is wanted by the ICC on a warrant dating back to March 2023 for alleged involvement in the abduction of children from Ukraine during the conflict triggered by Moscow's invasion of its neighbor. At least 19,000 Ukrainian children are thought to have been kidnapped and taken to Russia since the invasion began in February 2022, although Ukrainian officials say the total is probably far higher. Putin's children's rights commissioner, Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, is also charged over the same alleged offenses. Putin has traveled overseas since the warrant was issued, including to ICC member state Mongolia. He's also traveled to China and North Korea, which are not court members. During the 2024 presidential election campaign, Trump repeatedly pledged to end the war between Russia and Ukraine on 'Day One,' but later claimed he said it 'in jest.' Negotiations on peace talks have been slow moving and, at times, fraught. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who will not be at next week's summit, was ambushed in the Oval Office earlier this year by Trump and Vice President JD Vance. The vice president attacked Zelensky for not saying thank you enough for U.S. financial and military support and accused him of being 'disrespectful.' Trump has made numerous pro-Putin statements in the past, and said gets along with the dictator 'very well.' His tone changed this month, when he said he was 'disappointed' with Putin as peace talks continued to drag and violence in Europe continued. The most famous meeting between the two presidents took place in Helsinki, Finland, in July 2018, during Trump's first term as president. Following the meeting, Trump publicly contradicted U.S. intelligence agencies and appeared to take Putin's word over their findings regarding Russian election interference. The remarks caused bipartisan outrage in Washington, with many accusing Trump of having 'sided with the enemy.'
Daily Mail
21 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Teen girl mauled by pack of ten or more dogs while jogging in California
A brutal dog mauling in California left a teenage girl with devastating injuries after she was attacked by a pack of 'large-breed dogs' while out on a morning run. Tracy Azpeitia, 17, was out jogging near her home in Newberry Springs on July 17 when she was surrounded and mauled by at least 10 dogs, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department. The girl's mom remembers her daughter asking a gut-wrenching question the moment she saw Tracy at the scene of the attack. 'I got close to her and [she asked me] "Mom, am I still pretty?" and I said, "Yeah, you're beautiful,"' Maria Azpeitia, told ABC7. The incident happened just after 8 a.m. along the 30000 block of Newberry Road in a sparse, desert area of Southern California. 'I thought she was going to be fine because she walks to her bus stop every morning,' the mom added. 'I never thought anything would happen to her.' Tracy was headed to a workout facility near the community center. A neighbor heard the young girl's screams and called 911. 'Deputies spoke with the victim's parents and learned the victim had been out jogging when she was attacked by 10 or more large breed dogs,' sheriff's officials said in a written statement. 'The dogs bit the victim several times on her legs and arms. The bites caused large lacerations, abrasions, and removed flesh.' A total of 16 dogs were seized from the area by San Bernardino County Animal Control following the attack. Investigators say the dogs were not leashed or fenced and are believed to have belonged to a nearby resident. Tracy's stepfather, Carlos Ramirez, said the teen suffered hundreds of bites across her body, requiring more than 500 stitches to close lacerations and wounds from the attack. 'It was not one dog or two dogs, it was a lot,' Ramirez said. 'I mean, they bit every part of her body you could think of except for her ankles.' The dogs bit the victim several times on her legs and arms. The bites caused large lacerations, abrasions, and removed flesh The attack left her so badly injured that her own mother said she was unrecognizable when she arrived at the scene. 'I didn't know who she was,' Tracy's mom said. 'She was so dirty, covered in dirt, so I couldn't recognize my daughter. I recognized her bra, that's what I recognized.' 'I thought they ripped her arms off,' the distraught mother added. 'That's what it looked like.' Tracy was hospitalized at Loma Linda Children's Hospital and has since been released, though she still cannot walk on her own. A GoFundMe has been set up by Tracy's family to help with her recovery and ongoing medical care. 'She was getting ready to do her senior year of high school this year. Now, because of this, she has to stay home and go to several doctor's appointments and rehab. Due to the trauma, she cannot sleep at night; she's having nightmares,' the fundraising page reads. Local residents have since voiced growing concern about stray and unrestrained dogs in the area. 'We have been in situations where we're out walking, and all of a sudden dogs rush out from a fence, or out of nowhere, and start circling around us,' Kristine Watson, a Newberry Springs resident, told ABC7. The dogs are currently being housed at the Barstow Humane Society - about 17 miles from the attack site. An investigation into the incident is ongoing. The attack occurred just two weeks before a separate fatal mauling in San Bernardino, where a 51-year-old woman was killed by a pack of dogs near a local park, the Victorville Daily Press reported.
Sky News
21 minutes ago
- Sky News
It's been four years since a US president met Putin - and Trump will have a lot of ice to break
Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin will meet where their countries brush shoulders. But why Alaska and why now? A US-Russia summit in Alaska is geography as metaphor and message. Alaska physically bridges both countries across the polar expanse. Choosing this location signals strategic parity - the US and Russian leaders face to face in a place where their interests literally meet. Alaska has surged in geopolitical importance due to its untapped fossil fuels. Trump has aggressively pushed for more control in the Arctic, plans for Greenland and oil access. Holding talks there centres the conversation where global energy and territorial stakes are high, and the US president thrives on spectacle. A dramatic summit in the rugged frontier of Alaska plays into his flair for the theatrical. It is brand Trump - a stage that frames him as bold, unorthodox and in command. It was 2021 when a US president last came face-to-face with a Russian president. The leaders of the two countries haven't met since Russia invaded Ukraine. But Trump is in touch with all sides - Russia, Ukraine and European leaders - and says they all, including Putin, want "to see peace". He's even talking up the potential shape of any deal and how it might involve the "swapping of territory". Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly insisted he will not concede territory annexed by Russia. Moscow has sent the White House a list of demands in return for a ceasefire. 0:23 Trump is attempting to secure buy-in from Zelenskyy and other European leaders. He styles himself as "peacemaker-in-chief" and claims credit for ending six wars since he returned to office 200 days ago. There's much ice to break if he's to secure a coveted seventh one in Alaska.
