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Powys County Times
32 minutes ago
- Powys County Times
Keir Starmer chairs Cobra meeting as Donald Trump says he ‘may' strike Iran
Sir Keir Starmer has chaired an emergency Cobra meeting as Donald Trump considers whether to join Israeli strikes against Iran. The high-level meeting follows the Prime Minister's return from the G7 summit in Canada at which he and other world leaders reiterated their 'commitment to peace and stability'. But the US president, who left the summit a day early, told reporters outside the White House on Wednesday that he was considering strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities. He said: 'I may do it. I may not do it. I mean, nobody knows what I'm going to do.' Israel and Iran have exchanged fire over the past six days after air strikes which Tel Aviv said were aimed at preventing Tehran developing a nuclear weapon. Iranian officials insist the country's nuclear programme is peaceful, and claim Israel has caused hundreds of civilian casualties. Israeli jets continued to attack Tehran on Tuesday night, but the Iranian response appears to have diminished, with only 10 missiles intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome defence system during the night. Mr Trump said Iran had 'got a lot of trouble and they want to negotiate', adding it was 'very late to be talking' but 'we may meet'. On Tuesday night, the president had used his Truth Social platform to describe Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as an 'easy target'. He later posted the words 'Unconditional surrender', prompting Mr Khamenei to warn that any American military involvement would result in 'irreparable damage' to the US. Amid questions over potential American involvement in the conflict, Sir Keir convened his senior ministers for a meeting of the Government's emergency Cobra committee to discuss the deteriorating security situation in the Middle East. The Foreign Office has evacuated family members of embassy staff from Israel, but has not advised British nationals to leave the country. The department said the evacuation was temporary and a 'precautionary measure', with staff remaining at the embassy in Tel Aviv and the consulate in Jerusalem. A spokesperson for the Foreign Office said: 'Our embassy in Tel Aviv and consulate in Jerusalem remain fully staffed and continue to provide consular services to those who require assistance.' Downing Street would not say whether British nationals should attempt to leave the country. A Number 10 spokesman would only say that the Government's 'key message' was to 'follow the advice of local authorities on staying close to shelter'. Britons have already been advised against all travel to Israel, and those already in the country have been urged to register their presence with the embassy. The Foreign Office has also said land borders with Jordan and Egypt remain open, and consular teams are in position to provide assistance to British nationals who choose to leave Israel by land. The Number 10 spokesman added: 'This is a fast-moving situation. We are keeping all our advice under constant review and the FCDO (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) continues to plan for a variety of developments, as you would expect.' Sir Keir had earlier insisted that Mr Trump was interested in de-escalation in the Middle East, saying 'nothing' he had heard from the president suggested Washington was poised to get involved.
The Independent
33 minutes ago
- The Independent
‘My mission is to make him so angry:' E Jean Carroll reveals plans for her $83m judgement against the president
E Jean Carroll, the woman who beat President Donald Trump in two separate court cases, has vowed to make him 'so mad' by spending her multimillion-dollar windfall on 'things that Trump hates.' In 2019, Carroll accused the commander-in-chief of raping her in the changing rooms of New York's Bergdorf Goodman department store in 1996, resulting in a civil case in 2023 in which he was found liable for sexual abuse and ordered to pay her $5m in compensation. She then sued him again for defamation after he repeatedly protested his innocence and denied knowing her, which resulted in a jury awarding her an astonishing $83.3 million payout in early 2024. A U.S. appeals court last week rejected Trump's attempt to overturn the first verdict. He is still appealing the second, claiming presidential immunity. Carroll, 81, is currently promoting a new book, "Not My Type," a title taken from the president's notorious slur against her. She told Newsweek that she's setting up a charitable foundation in her own name to manage the money and distribute donations to anti-Trump causes. 'My mission is to make him so angry and so mad by taking this $83.3 million and giving it to things that Trump hates. That's what I'm doing,' she explained. Carroll specifically said she would direct her capital to areas like 'women's reproductive rights, binding up the wounds that he's inflicting on democracy and shoring up voting rights.' The former columnist told Newsweek that she found it 'stunning' that Trump had won last November's presidential election after a year of blockbuster indictments and court hearings outlining his long track record of troubling behavior. She said the outcome left her with little choice but to conclude: 'People don't believe women when they're saying one thing and a very, very powerful man is saying something else.' Carroll said she retains 'complete, 100 percent faith' in the legal system as a corrective to executive overreach and corruption, but urged people, particularly women, to continue protesting against the administration in the streets. ' Women have the power. We just have to realize it. We hold, as they say, the purse strings,' she said. Shockingly, the writer also revealed that she is not taking any chances when it comes to her own safety, given the recent wave of political violence in America, and sleeps at night alongside a Mossberg shotgun she has nicknamed 'Aphrodite,' after the Greek goddess of love, and two guard dogs. Not My Type is about her experiences taking on Trump in Manhattan federal courtrooms, an experience she described as 'comedy gold' and which she said she was able to recollect thanks to the voice-accurate notes she recorded after each day's session as reminders, as well as the official court transcripts. Carroll described the transcripts as 'probably the most comedic script ever written since Jonathan Swift published Gulliver's Travels ' and said she relished observing and describing Trump's defense lawyers, particularly the fashion-conscious Alina Habba and the hulking Joe Tacopina, noting the latter was 'built like Popeye' with 'glittering eyes.' 'The whole thing to me was like a high comedy,' she said.
The Herald Scotland
an hour ago
- The Herald Scotland
Keir Starmer chairs Cobra meeting as Donald Trump says he ‘may' strike Iran
But the US president, who left the summit a day early, told reporters outside the White House on Wednesday that he was considering strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities. He said: 'I may do it. I may not do it. I mean, nobody knows what I'm going to do.' Israel and Iran have exchanged fire over the past six days after air strikes which Tel Aviv said were aimed at preventing Tehran developing a nuclear weapon. Iranian officials insist the country's nuclear programme is peaceful, and claim Israel has caused hundreds of civilian casualties. Israeli jets continued to attack Tehran on Tuesday night, but the Iranian response appears to have diminished, with only 10 missiles intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome defence system during the night. Mr Trump said Iran had 'got a lot of trouble and they want to negotiate', adding it was 'very late to be talking' but 'we may meet'. On Tuesday night, the president had used his Truth Social platform to describe Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as an 'easy target'. He later posted the words 'Unconditional surrender', prompting Mr Khamenei to warn that any American military involvement would result in 'irreparable damage' to the US. Amid questions over potential American involvement in the conflict, Sir Keir convened his senior ministers for a meeting of the Government's emergency Cobra committee to discuss the deteriorating security situation in the Middle East. The Foreign Office has evacuated family members of embassy staff from Israel, but has not advised British nationals to leave the country. Sir Keir Starmer at the G7 summit in Canada (Stefan Rousseau/PA) The department said the evacuation was temporary and a 'precautionary measure', with staff remaining at the embassy in Tel Aviv and the consulate in Jerusalem. A spokesperson for the Foreign Office said: 'Our embassy in Tel Aviv and consulate in Jerusalem remain fully staffed and continue to provide consular services to those who require assistance.' Downing Street would not say whether British nationals should attempt to leave the country. A Number 10 spokesman would only say that the Government's 'key message' was to 'follow the advice of local authorities on staying close to shelter'. Britons have already been advised against all travel to Israel, and those already in the country have been urged to register their presence with the embassy. The Foreign Office has also said land borders with Jordan and Egypt remain open, and consular teams are in position to provide assistance to British nationals who choose to leave Israel by land. The Number 10 spokesman added: 'This is a fast-moving situation. We are keeping all our advice under constant review and the FCDO (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) continues to plan for a variety of developments, as you would expect.' Sir Keir had earlier insisted that Mr Trump was interested in de-escalation in the Middle East, saying 'nothing' he had heard from the president suggested Washington was poised to get involved. Asked whether the Prime Minister was confident that Mr Trump would not involve US forces in the conflict, a Number 10 spokesman said the UK's position was still that 'we want to de-escalate rather than escalate'.
