INTERNACIONAL
Everything you need to know about Ayatollah Ali Khamenei , supreme leader of Iran
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A week after Israel launched a surprise attack on Iran aiming to wipe out its nuclear program, all eyes are now on the country’s reclusive supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
On Thursday, following an Iranian missile strike that hit an Israeli hospital, Israel Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement that «Khamenei will be held accountable for his crimes,» adding during a visit to one of the impact sites that «a person like that should not exist,» later calling him «the modern day Hitler,» according to the Times of Israel.
Over decades of rule, Khamenei has built an impenetrable circle around him both inside and outside of Iran. Now, with Israel taking out some of his closest aides and senior security figures, as well as significantly weakening its militant Islamic allies across the region, the supreme leader is beginning to look increasingly isolated.
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Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is standing with military leaders. (AP)
«He calls himself a revolutionary, not a diplomat,» Dr. Meir Javedanfar, a lecturer in Iran Studies at Reichman University near Tel Aviv who grew up in Tehran, told Fox News Digital, adding that he sees himself as a «revolutionary.»
On Wednesday, that militancy and determination to stay in power came through in statements by Khamenei, who said the «Iranian nation will not surrender» and «war will be met with war, bombing with bombing, and strike with strike,» according to local media reports.
Born in 1939 to a religious but modest family in Mashad, eastern Iran, Khamenei was among the Islamist activists who played an instrumental role in the pivotal 1979 revolution to overthrow the U.S.-backed shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was President of Iran twice and a close ally of the country’s first supreme leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeni. (Getty images)
A close ally of Iran’s first supreme leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who led the revolution and founded the Islamic Republic, Khamenei emerged as a trusted lieutenant, helping to promote the new regime’s concept of religiously-dominated governance.
For much of the 1980s, he served as Iran’s president, a largely ceremonious role. Additionally, when Khomeini died in 1989, Khamenei, who according to some reports was not yet qualified for the position, rose to become the country’s supreme leader.
Since then, Khamenei has worked to consolidate his absolute power, tightening his grip on the country’s political, military and security apparatus, while cracking down on dissent and taking a firm stand against progressive ideas, the West and Israel.
Lisa Daftari, an expert on Iran and editor-in-chief of The Foreign Desk, told Fox News Digital, «Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s rule has been marked by unrelenting brutality and repression, both within Iran and beyond its borders. Under his direct command, the regime has executed hundreds of prisoners in just the past year, including women, and continues to hold the world record for executions and torture.
«The state police and notorious ‘morality police,’ all under Khamenei’s control, enforce a severe interpretation of Sharia law, violently suppressing dissent and targeting women and minorities. His apparatus has not only silenced opponents at home through mass arrests, torture, and extrajudicial killings, but has also orchestrated assassinations of dissidents abroad and exported terror across the region.»
Daftari concluded, «Khamenei’s regime is responsible for the deaths of countless Iranians and even Americans, with blood on his hands from both domestic crackdowns and international violence. For almost five decades, Iran has been run as a police state, where fear, surveillance, and systematic human rights abuses are tools of governance and methods of regime survival.»
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, greets then-Syrian President Bashar Assad in Tehran, Iran, on Feb. 25, 2019. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP, File)
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Khamenei has also invested heavily in the so-called axis of resistance across the region, including backing the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthi movement in Yemen and other militant militias. Many of these allies, as well as the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria, have collapsed over the last year and a half under Israeli military pressure.
Inside Iran, Khamenei’s conservative-style of leadership has faced challenges over the years, including briefly in 2009 following elections where Khamenei declared victory for the incumbent president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, sparking massive popular demonstrations – with some protestors calling for Khamenei’s downfall.
Mass protests also broke out in the autumn of 2022 after Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old, died while detained by the morality police for allegedly wearing her headscarf improperly. The protests were brutally put down, with many of those arrested put to death by his regime.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, right, meets Secretary General of the Islamic Jihad Movement Ziyad al-Nakhalah, left, and the former head of the Hamas terror group Ismail Haniyeh, who was assassinated one day after this photo was taken, Tehran, Iran, on July 30, 2024. (Iranian Leader Press Office / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)
However, according to the Council For Foreign Relations, Iran’s supreme leader remains «leader for life» under a clerical ruling system that puts him at the head of state and affords him vast control derived from religious authority.
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«When he was a young man, he studied the writings of the founders of Muslim Brotherhood, and always believed in militant Islam,» said Javedanfar, adding that he has also «always been anti-Israel to the point of antisemitism.»
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei waves to the crowd while attending a ceremony marking the 30th death anniversary of the late revolutionary founder Ayatollah Khomeini, shown in the poster at rear, at his mausoleum just outside Tehran, Iran, on Tuesday, June 4, 2019. Ayatollah Khamenei said his country will continue resisting U.S. economic and political pressure on his country. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP)
«I think he believes in confronting Israel in every means possible,» he said, noting that there are no signs Khamenei is interested in backing down.
«I’m sure many people had warned him that supporting Hamas after October 7, and Hezbollah and other groups could bring war to Iran’s territory but he obviously, he didn’t listen,» Javedanfar said.
INTERNACIONAL
Tailandia y Camboya acuerdan una reunión en Malasia para negociar el fin de los combates y la disputa fronteriza
Los enfrentamientos
Vehículos militares en la provincia de Sisaket, mientras Camboya y Tailandia dijeron que el otro había lanzado ataques de artillería en áreas fronterizas en disputa la madruga. Foto ReutersTailandia,Camboya
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Freedom Caucus lawmaker Ralph Norman vows to ‘shake things up’ in South Carolina governor bid
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A lawmaker in the conservative House Freedom Caucus is launching his campaign to be governor of South Carolina.
Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., who came to Congress in 2017, kicked off his Palmetto State bid with a Rock Hill campaign rally on Sunday.
«I am running for governor to shake things up, clean up Columbia, and finally take down the corrupt political establishment once and for all,» Norman is telling voters, according to prepared remarks obtained by Fox News Digital. «I owe nothing to the lobbyists. I owe nothing to the Columbia bureaucratic elite. My allegiance is to you, the people of South Carolina.»
As part of his campaign platform, Norman is promising to establish a Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) «commission» in the state «that roots out waste, fraud, and abuse.»
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Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., is launching his campaign for governor on Sunday (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Norman is also running on the promise of fixing South Carolina’s infrastructure, implementing term limits for state lawmakers, tort reform, and pledging to «let the people vote on judges.»
Currently, a majority of state judgeships in South Carolina are decided by the General Assembly. Some positions, including magistrate judges, are appointed by the governor.
Norman is also promising «to use the bully pulpit to bring my case directly to the people» and to «use the veto pen.»
His campaign speech also touches on socially conservative goals like advocating for school choice, and restricting school bathrooms by gender at birth.
«And if that all doesn’t work, I’m telling you now that any so-called «Republican» RINO legislator that doesn’t stand for reforms the people are calling for doesn’t deserve to be in office and we’ll beat them in Republican primaries if that’s what it takes,» Norman’s speech says.
Norman is joining a crowded Republican primary field with his Sunday announcement. South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette and state Sen. Josh Kimbrell are also in the race.
Meanwhile, Norman’s House colleague, Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., is also said to be considering a campaign for governor.
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Current Gov. Henry McMaster is term-limited (Joshua Boucher/The State/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
And in a state that President Donald Trump won by nearly 20 points in 2024, the commander-in-chief’s endorsement – both in the primary and general election – will likely be critical.
Norman pointed out in his speech that both he and Trump have a background in real estate; both men led development companies that were founded by their fathers.
«We need business leaders – people who have signed both the front and the back of a paycheck. Folks who have built something, taken risks, made money, and yes, lost money too,» Norman said. «Thankfully, we have a great businessman – and fellow developer – back in the White House! Just look what a difference President Trump has made in six months.»
He also cast himself as a disruptor who helped move «the needle by making our budget more conservative,» in reference to the House Freedom Caucus’s push to move Trump’s «big, beautiful bill» to the right.
And while the group was successful in doing that in the House, the Senate watered down several of those wins during its time considering the bill. The Senate version ultimately passed the House, with Norman and other Freedom Caucus members voting in support.
«Some say I have earned a reputation of being uncompromising, always trying to make a bill more conservative,» Norman’s speech says. «Well folks, I’ll take that as a compliment and I am proud of it.»
As a member of Congress, Norman sits on the House Committee on Financial Services, House Budget Committee, and House Rules Committee.
President Donald Trump’s endorsement will be critical in the race (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
A longtime ally of former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, Norman was the only House Republican to formally endorse her before Haley dropped out of the race, after which Norman backed Trump.
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He told Fox News Digital of his endorsement in January 2024, «When I supported Nikki Haley, I had the respect of Donald Trump to call him, and I told him what I was gonna do, and I decided I was going to do it.»
It’s worth noting, however, that Norman had been a vocal supporter of Trump since Haley’s exit – and unlike other House Freedom Caucus allies, he did not incur Trump’s wrath for his loyalty to Haley.
He was most recently at the White House earlier this week with other House Republicans for a reception celebrating their legislative successes.
The South Carolina gubernatorial general election will take place in November 2026.
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Estados Unidos y la Unión Europea alcanzaron un acuerdo comercial: “Es bueno para todos”
Donald Trump anunció este domingo que llegó a un acuerdo comercial con la presidenta de la Unión Europea, Ursula von der Leyen.
“Hemos llegado a un acuerdo. Es un buen acuerdo para todos», dijo el presidente de Estados Unidos a los periodistas tras las conversaciones con la jefa de la Comisión Europea, en su complejo de golf en Turnberry, Escocia.
Von der Leyen también lo calificó como un “buen acuerdo”.
Asimismo, Trump confirmó que la UE se comprometió a 750.000 millones de dólares de compra de energía y a 600.000 millones en inversiones suplementarias en Estados Unidos.
La diplomática alemana se congratuló por el “buen acuerdo, que dará estabilidad y previsibilidad” a ambos lados del Atlántico.
El pacto, firmado en Turnberry, desactiva la amenaza de Washington, que había otorgado a Bruselas como plazo máximo el 1 de agosto para evitar que Estados Unidos aplicara un 30% de aranceles generalizados a las exportaciones europeas a partir de esa fecha.
Desde abril, Estados Unidos mantiene un arancel mínimo del 10% a las exportaciones europeas, una cifra que inicialmente iba a ser del 20%, pero que la administración estadounidense redujo a la mitad como gesto de tregua durante la negociación. Los detalles económicos del nuevo acuerdo todavía no se han difundido.
En la reunión previa al acuerdo, Trump dejó en claro que los aranceles europeos no quedarían por debajo del 15%, una posición que las autoridades comunitarias ya contemplaban como posible.
Trump también señaló que los productos farmacéuticos quedarían excluidos del acuerdo porque, en sus palabras: “Tenemos que fabricarlos en Estados Unidos”.
Estados Unidos mantiene el 1 de agosto como fecha límite para la entrada en vigor de los nuevos aranceles aplicados a decenas de socios comerciales. Howard Lutnick, secretario de Comercio, reafirmó la decisión del gobierno estadounidense el domingo y descartó cualquier prórroga.
“No habrá prórrogas ni más períodos de gracia. El 1 de agosto se fijarán los aranceles. Entrarán en vigor. Las aduanas comenzarán a recaudar el dinero y ya está”, afirmó a Fox News, confirmando que la administración actual no contempla extender el plazo para alcanzar acuerdos bilaterales previos a la imposición de estas tarifas.
La Casa Blanca notificó oficialmente a los líderes de numerosas naciones acerca de la inminente medida. A partir del 1 de agosto, productos importados de países como Canadá, México, Japón, Brasil, Corea del Sur, Camboya y Bangladesh enfrentarán tarifas diferenciadas, con gravámenes que varían entre el 25% y hasta el 50%, de acuerdo con el país y el sector. El propósito, según explicaron funcionarios estadounidenses, consiste en incentivar la firma de acuerdos comerciales individualizados que, si se concretan antes de la fecha límite, permitirán condiciones preferentes frente a los aranceles anunciados, como el caso de la Unión Europea tras el reciente anuncio de Washington y Bruselas.
Lutnick aclaró, no obstante, que la entrada en vigor de los aranceles no eliminará la posibilidad de negociaciones futuras. Sostuvo que el presidente Trump mantiene su disposición a concretar acuerdos aun después del 1 de agosto, especialmente con aquellos países dispuestos a modificar prácticas comerciales consideradas desleales por la administración estadounidense.
Hasta este domingo solo Gran Bretaña, Vietnam, Indonesia, Filipinas y Japón habían firmado acuerdos comerciales con Estados Unidos, aceptando niveles arancelarios superiores al 10% general, aunque lejos de los máximos previstos para naciones que no logran pactos.
El esquema gubernamental prevé aranceles del 50% para Brasil, 35% para Canadá, 30% para México, y 25% para Japón y Corea del Sur. Por su parte, Camboya y Bangladesh, proveedores clave de ropa, se encontrarán con tarifas del 36% y 35%, respectivamente. La portavoz de la Casa Blanca, Karoline Leavitt, indicó que el objetivo es presionar para la firma de acuerdos bilaterales bajo los términos estadounidenses. “El presidente y su equipo comercial quieren lograr los mejores acuerdos para el pueblo estadounidense y el trabajador estadounidense”, sostuvo Leavitt.
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