International News Briefs for Friday, September 26, 2025
HAVANA TIMES – We bring you some of the top international news stories compiled by Democracy Now on Friday, September 26, 2025.
Ex-FBI Director James Comey Indicted as Trump Escalates Campaign of Retribution on Opponents
Sep 26, 2025
A federal grand jury has indicted former FBI Director James Comey on two criminal charges, which include making a false statement to Congress and the obstruction of a congressional proceeding during his testimony back in 2020 about Russian interference in the 2016 election. Thursday’s indictment of Comey comes just days before a statute of limitations on the charges was due to expire and less than a week after President Trump installed Lindsey Halligan, his personal lawyer, as the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia to replace her predecessor, Erik Siebert, who resigned under pressure from Trump because he refused to bring charges against Comey. Here’s Comey responding to his indictment.
James Comey: “My family and I have known for years that there are costs to standing up to Donald Trump, but we couldn’t imagine ourselves living any other way. We will not live on our knees, and you shouldn’t either. Somebody that I love dearly recently said that fear is the tool of a tyrant. And she’s right. But I’m not afraid.”
Comey’s son-in-law Troy Edwards Jr. resigned from his position as a national security prosecutor in the Eastern District of Virginia immediately after the indictment was announced. Earlier this year, the Justice Department fired Comey’s daughter, Maurene Comey, from her position as a prosecutor in the Southern District of New York. She has sued, claiming that she was fired for political reasons. Maurene Comey successfully prosecuted Jeffrey Epstein co-conspirator and convicted sex offender Ghislaine Maxwell, and she was involved in the investigation of Epstein.
Meanwhile, The New York Times is reporting the Justice Department is calling on federal prosecutors to investigate the billionaire George Soros’s philanthropic group the Open Society Foundations. The DOJ’s directive lists possible charges ranging from arson to material support for terrorism. In response, Soros called out the Trump administration for “politically motivated attacks on civil society.”
Israeli Attacks Kill Dozens in Gaza City as Some Palestinians Resist Forced Evacuation
Sep 26, 2025
Israel’s military has issued new evacuation orders for neighborhoods of Gaza City as Israeli ground forces pushed deeper into the Gaza Strip’s largest urban area. Israeli attacks have killed at least 29 Palestinians since dawn, 11 of them civilians seeking aid, including two children. Many Palestinians continue to resist Israel’s forced displacement, moving from one place to another within Gaza City rather than leaving entirely. This is Samia al-Samry, a Palestinian mother whose family is sheltering at a tent after an Israeli bomb flattened her home, killing her 9-year-old son.
Samia al-Samry: “My son was martyred in front of my eyes, and I could not carry him. I was worried that my children would be martyred, as well, and I was injured. My son over here was also injured. I suffered. That’s why I became worried about my children. Whenever there is a threat, I run away. I get scared, carry my children and run.”
After headlines, we will speak with Al Jazeera reporter Hani Mahmoud, who has just left Gaza City.
Israel Bombs Yemen’s Capital, Killing 8 and Wounding 142
Sep 26, 2025
Israeli strikes bombarded Yemen’s capital Sana’a on Thursday, killing at least eight people and wounding 142. Israel has repeatedly targeted residential areas.
Sana’a resident: “They have targeted a residential neighborhood that is known to all people: al-Raqqas neighborhood. They only frighten women and children. They only make us stronger and more steadfast. And we say to Netanyahu, we swear to tear out his eye.”
The attack comes a day after the Houthis claimed responsibility for a drone attack on Eilat in southern Israel, injuring 22 people. Earlier this month, Israeli strikes on Sana’a and the province of al-Jawf killed more than 40 people — and was the largest single attack on journalists the world has seen in 16 years.
“No Justice If Palestine Is Not Freed”: Mahmoud Abbas Addresses U.N. General Assembly
Sep 26, 2025
The president of the Palestinian Authority has condemned Israel’s assault on the Gaza Strip as a “war of genocide, destruction, starvation and displacement.” Mahmoud Abbas made the remarks in a video address Thursday to the United Nations General Assembly.
President Mahmoud Abbas: “Today we say clearly: Peace cannot be achieved if justice is not achieved, and there can be no justice if Palestine is not freed.”
Abbas spoke by video link after the Trump administration refused to grant him a visa to travel to New York in person. Abbas said he was ready to work with world leaders to implement a peace plan announced by France on Monday. He condemned Hamas’s actions on October 7, 2023, and said the group would not have a role to play in any future governance of an independent state of Palestine.
Benjamin Netanyahu’s Jet Is Diverted to Evade Potential Arrest in Europe on ICC Warrant
Sep 26, 2025
Abbas’s U.N. speech came as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu flew to New York, where he’s set to address the General Assembly today. For the first time, Netanyahu’s flight route was diverted over the Mediterranean Sea to avoid overflying a country that would be obliged to arrest him. An International Criminal Court warrant seeks Netanyahu’s arrest for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Gaza, including using starvation as a weapon of war. This morning, protesters are gathering at Times Square for a march to the U.N. to demand the arrest of Benjamin Netanyahu.
Microsoft Cuts Off Some Services Used by Israeli Military Unit to Spy on Palestinians
Sep 26, 2025
Microsoft says it has barred the Israeli military from using technology it used to spy on millions of Palestinian civilian phone calls made each day in Gaza and the occupied West Bank and stored in Microsoft’s vast Azure cloud computing platform. It’s an unprecedented victory for No Azure for Apartheid, a group of current and former Microsoft workers demanding an end to Microsoft’s work with the Israeli military. But in a statement, the group called Microsoft’s actions insufficient, noting the vast majority of Microsoft’s tech sales to the Israeli military continue to be untouched. Later in the broadcast, we’ll speak with Hossam Nasr, an organizer with No Azure for Apartheid.
Russia’s Foreign Minister Says NATO and EU Have Declared a “Real War” on Russia
Sep 26, 2025
Russia’s Foreign Ministry has ratcheted up tensions with NATO, accusing the Western military alliance of waging war on Russia. Speaking at a G20 conference on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly Thursday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, ”NATO and the European Union want to declare, in fact, have already declared a real war on my country and are directly participating in it.” His comments come days after President Trump suggested that Ukraine could claw back its territory taken by Russia.
Meanwhile, Denmark reported to NATO that “state actors” were responsible for drone incursions that shut down two airports — that’s according to Latvia’s foreign minister speaking to Reuters. Germany’s Defense Minister Boris Pistorius went further and blamed Russia for the drone incursions.
Boris Pistorius: “The suspicion is obvious: This is part of Vladimir Putin’s strategy, without us being able to say anything concrete in this case. But it is part of what we experience every day. We are not at war, but we are also no longer at complete peace. We are being attacked both in disinformation campaigns and now also by drones.”
Trump Administration Readies $20 Billion Bailout of Argentina and Trump Ally Javier Milei
Sep 26, 2025
The Trump administration is negotiating a $20 billion financial bailout for Argentina amid a worsening economic crisis, largely due to austerity measures enacted by embattled far-right Argentinian president, and Trump ally, Javier Milei. Critics say the move contradicts Trump’s so-called America first policies by offering a lifeline to Milei ahead of Argentina’s midterm elections in October, which are critical to Milei retaining power.
Video Shows ICE Agent Assaulting Ecuadorian Mother Inside 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan
Sep 26, 2025
Image Credit: Stephanie Keith/Getty Images
Here in New York, outrage is mounting after a federal agent in plainclothes was caught on video shoving and pushing an Ecuadorian mother to the ground as her two young children watched and screamed in panic inside 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan. Video shows the woman crying as she begs authorities not to take her husband, who was detained during the family’s asylum hearing at the federal building. The woman is heard telling agents in Spanish, “They are going to kill him,” if her husband is deported to Ecuador. The agent is also heard mocking the woman, telling her “adios” repeatedly, the Spanish word for “goodbye,” before ramming her against the wall and shoving her to the floor. The family reportedly arrived from Ecuador last year.
This came as protesters gathered outside 26 Federal Plaza Thursday, where immigrants have described being imprisoned for days or weeks without due process in overcrowded cells, without access to medication and proper sanitation, being forced to sleep on the concrete floor and left hungry without outside contact. This is New York Assemblymember Jessica González-Rojas.
bq. Assemblymember Jessica González-Rojas: “We are done with this administration and their cruelty. We will demand that ICE is out of New York, and we need to fight to make sure that we are passing laws here in New York that will protect our immigrant neighbors, because we are all the child of immigrants.”
Amazon Reaches $2.5 Billion Settlement with the Federal Trade Commission
Sep 26, 2025
Amazon has reached a $2.5 billion settlement with the Federal Trade Commission over allegations that the company tricked users into paying for Prime membership. Amazon is set to give $1 billion to the FTC and another $1.5 billion back to customers impacted by the company’s practices. Amazon still faces a legal case with the FTC over allegations that the company is illegally stifling competition in the e-commerce market.
Trump Signs Executive Order Allowing TikTok to Keep Operating in the U.S.
Sep 26, 2025
President Trump signed an executive order Thursday that would allow TikTok to keep operating in the U.S. The order enables a group of investors to buy the American operations of the app from the Chinese company ByteDance. China still has to approve the deal. The company Oracle will reportedly take over security operations and cloud computing for TikTok’s U.S. firm. Oracle’s co-founder and chair, Larry Ellison, has a decadeslong history with the Republican Party, has frequented Trump’s Mar-a-Lago for dinners and has met Trump in the Oval Office. He’s also an ally of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, donating money to Israel’s military through the nonprofit Friends of the Israel Defense Forces.
Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates-backed investment firm MGX is also reportedly set to win a major stake in TikTok’s U.S. business. Back in May, MGX made a $2 billion investment in the Trump family’s cryptocurrency business World Liberty Financial.