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In the news today: Trump officials texted war plans to a group chat in a secure app that included a journalist; the Trump administration invoked a “state secrets privilege” and refused to give a federal judge any additional information about the deportation of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador; and an Oscar-winning Palestinian director is attacked by Israeli settlers and detained by the army. Also, the Webb Space Telescope has captured images of a star in the making.
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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth does a television interview outside the White House, Friday. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
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Trump officials texted war plans to a group chat in a secure app that included a journalist
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Top national security officials for President Donald Trump, including his defense secretary, texted war plans for upcoming military strikes in Yemen to a group chat in a secure messaging app that included the editor-in-chief for The Atlantic, the magazine reported in a story posted online Monday. The National Security Council said the text chain “appears to be authentic.” Read more.
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The material in the text chain “contained operational details of forthcoming strikes on Iran-backed Houthi-rebels in Yemen, including information about targets, weapons the U.S. would be deploying and attack sequencing,” editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg reported. Just two hours after Goldberg received the details of the attack on March 15, the U.S. began launching a series of airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen.
It was not immediately clear if the specifics of the military operation were classified, but they often are and at the least are kept secure to protect service members and operational security. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in his first comments on the matter attacked Goldberg as “deceitful” and a “discredited so-called journalist” while alluding to previous critical reporting of Trump from the publication. -
The sharing of sensitive information comes as Hegseth’s office has just announced a crackdown on leaks of sensitive information, including the potential use of polygraphs on defense personnel to determine how reporters have received information. The administration’s handling of the highly sensitive information was swiftly condemned by Democratic lawmakers. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer called for a full investigation.
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Trump administration invokes state secrets privilege in case over deportations under wartime law
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The Trump administration on Monday invoked a “state secrets privilege” and refused to give a federal judge any additional information about the deportation of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador under an 18th century wartime law — a case that has become a flashpoint amid escalating tension with the federal courts. Read more.
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The declaration comes as U.S. District Judge James Boasberg weighs whether the government defied his order to turn around planes carrying migrants after he blocked deportations of people alleged to be gang members without due process. Boasberg has asked for details about when the planes landed and who was on board, information that the Trump administration asserts would harm “diplomatic and national security concerns.”
Circuit Court Judge Patricia Millett said Nazis detained in the U.S. during World World II received better legal treatment than Venezuelan immigrants who were deported to El Salvador this month under the same statute. Millett is one of three appellate judges who will decide whether to lift a March 15 order temporarily prohibiting deportations under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. “We certainly dispute the Nazi analogy,” Justice Department attorney Drew Ensign responded.
- Trump and his allies have called for impeaching Boasberg. In a rare statement, Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts last week said “impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision.” Just after midnight Monday, Trump posted a social media message questioning Boasberg’s impartiality and calling for him to be disbarred.
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Oscar-winning Palestinian director is attacked by Israeli settlers and detained by the army
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Israeli settlers beat up filmmaker Hamdan Ballal, one of the Palestinian co-directors of the Oscar-winning documentary film “ No Other Land,” on Monday in the occupied West Bank before he was detained by the Israeli military, according to two of his fellow directors and other witnesses. Read more. |
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The Israeli military said it detained three Palestinians suspected of hurling rocks at forces and one Israeli civilian involved in a “violent confrontation” — a claim witnesses interviewed by the AP disputed.
Basel Adra, another co-director, witnessed the detention and said around two dozen settlers attacked the village. Soldiers who arrived pointed their guns at the Palestinians, while settlers continued throwing stones. “We came back from the Oscars and every day since there is an attack on us,” Adra told The Associated Press. “This might be their revenge on us for making the movie.”
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Unity Phelan at a rehearsal for her role as Swan Queen in New York City Ballet's "Swan Lake," Feb. 25, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
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Fluttering arms, aching calves, bursting lungs: ‘Swan Lake’ is a ballerina’s Mount Everest
Many across the world know “Swan Lake,” the most iconic of all ballets. Far fewer know just how hard the main ballerina role is to perform. As graceful and ephemeral as it appears, the dual role of Odette-Odile is a dancer’s Mount Everest, requiring stellar technique, prodigious training, uncommon stamina, emotional resilience — and even carbo-loading.
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Please let us know what you think of this newsletter. You can sign up for more and invite a friend here. For news in real time visit APNews.com. - Sarah
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