INTERNACIONAL
Democrat’s swearing-in tips scales for House battle to unseal Epstein documents
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Rep. Adelita Grijalva, D-Ariz., was sworn into office on Wednesday, unlocking the needed support to force the House of Representatives into a vote over the Epstein files.
Now having received the oath of office, Grijalva is free to become the 218th — and final signatory — to advance a discharge petition on a bill to instruct the Department of Justice (DOJ) to release its documentation on Jeffrey Epstein. If successful, the petition would bring the bill to the floor over the objection of the chamber’s leadership.
EPSTEIN VICTIMS SET TO BREAK SILENCE AMID BIPARTISAN PUSH TO RELEASE FILES: ‘PEOPLE ARE GOING TO BE OUTRAGED’
Rep. Adelita Grijalva, a Democrat from Arizona, speaks to members of the media at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Sept. 30, 2025. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Grijalva, who now fills the seat formerly held by her father, the late Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., said signing the petition would be her first act as a member of Congress.
«I will sign the discharge petition right now to release the Epstein files. It’s past time for Congress to restore its role as the check and balance on this administration and fight for we, the American people,» Grijalva said.
Epstein, a former businessman and financier, died in 2019 while jailed on federal sex-trafficking charges involving minors. During his career, he accrued an impressive social circle that included rich and powerful figures like former President Bill Clinton, President Donald Trump and the United Kingdom’s Prince Andrew.
His sudden death, ruled a suicide by investigators, left unanswered questions about whether he had used his expansive social circle to facilitate illegal sexual encounters for some of his contacts.
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Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell were both indicted on federal sex trafficking charges stemming from Epstein’s years of abuse of underage girls. (Joe Schildhorn/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)
After disappointing announcements from the DOJ that the investigation met a dead end earlier this year, lawmakers led by Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., demanded Congress vote to force the DOJ to release its documentation on the matter.
Those demands went unheeded by House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who said the DOJ was already conducting its own internal evaluation and complying with congressional requests for information.
For Massie and three other Republicans, that wasn’t good enough.
Massie joined Reps. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., — and all House Democrats — in signing the petition, falling just one signatory short of putting it over the needed 218 threshold.
EPSTEIN VICTIMS PRESS LAWMAKERS TO SUPPORT BILL TO RELEASE HIDDEN FILES, SAY AMERICANS WILL BE ‘APPALLED’
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene speaks with Reps. Thomas Massie and Ro Khanna during a news conference with alleged victims of the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein outside the U.S. Capitol on Sept. 3, 2025. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Two of Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged victims joined lawmakers in the House chamber for Grijalva’s swearing in.
«Our democracy only works when everyone has a voice. This includes the millions of people across the country who have experienced violence and exploitation — including Liz Stein and Jessica Michaels, both survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse. They are here in the gallery here this evening,» Grijalva said.
Johnson has said he supports the measure in principle but believes aspects of it are poorly written or may provide insufficient protections for Epstein’s potential victims.
With Grijalva’s support, Democrat leadership believes the petition will come to the floor sometime in December.
Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., the ranking member on the House Rules Committee, noted that Johnson might try to derail its timeline.
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«It should ripen in early December. That doesn’t mean that the speaker of the House [won’t] try to do some shenanigans, but if all goes the way we want it to go, early December,» McGovern said.
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INTERNACIONAL
El Índice de Confianza de la Actividad Económica de Honduras sube a 63.2 puntos en febrero, según el Banco Central
El índice de Confianza de la Actividad Económica (ICAE) de Honduras experimentó una mejora significativa en febrero de 2026, alcanzando los 63.2 puntos según la más reciente Encuesta de Expectativas de Analistas Macroeconómicos (EEAM), publicada por el Banco Central de Honduras (BCH). Este resultado representa un salto notable respecto al mes anterior, cuando el índice se situó en 53,8 puntos, y evidencia una percepción marcadamente optimista sobre el desempeño presente y futuro de la economía hondureña.
De acuerdo con el informe, “el índice de Confianza de la Actividad Económica alcanzó 63.2 puntos, ubicándose en zona de expansión (mayor a 50.0 puntos) por segundo mes consecutivo, explicado en 47.1% por el resultado de la actividad económica actual y en 52.9% por la actividad económica futura”. Esto implica que la confianza no solo está sustentada por la coyuntura actual, sino también por una expectativa positiva hacia los próximos meses.
La encuesta fue compilada por el BCH entre el 9 y 17 de febrero de 2026 y, aunque reúne opiniones de analistas independientes y no constituye una proyección oficial del banco emisor, es una herramienta clave para medir el pulso macroeconómico del país. Según los analistas consultados, el dinamismo económico de este año se fundamenta en varios factores: “la dinámica del consumo privado -apoyada en parte por la captación de remesas familiares-, mayor inversión pública y privada, inflación baja y estable, reservas internacionales en niveles sólidos y la reducción en la medición del riesgo país son elementos que brindan certidumbre sobre el desempeño esperado de la economía nacional”.
En este sentido, los consultados prevén que el Producto Interno Bruto (PIB) hondureño podría crecer alrededor del 3,7% en 2026, lo que se mantendría dentro del rango de estimación de la Revisión del Programa Monetario 2025-2026. Para 2027, las expectativas también son positivas, con una proyección de crecimiento del 3,8%. Estas cifras se sustentan en la valoración de los analistas respecto a las políticas macroeconómicas implementadas, que han favorecido la captación de inversión y la recuperación de la actividad económica.
Respecto a la estabilidad de precios, la encuesta indica que las expectativas de inflación para cierre de año se ubican en torno al 4,37%, es decir, dentro del rango de tolerancia de 4.0% ± 1.0 pp establecido por el BCH. Los consultados consideran que “la tendencia decreciente de la inflación para los horizontes analizados se explicaría por la aplicación oportuna de medidas de política monetaria y menores presiones inflacionarias externas”. Sin embargo, advierten que factores como “el incremento de precios de los alimentos, de los combustibles y su impacto en las tarifas de la energía eléctrica, y de ciertos bienes importados” aún podrían incidir en la evolución de los precios durante el año.
En cuanto a riesgos y posibles desafíos, los analistas señalan que la reducción en los precios internacionales del café, los efectos adversos del cambio climático y los actuales conflictos internacionales podrían afectar las perspectivas económicas. Sin embargo, se mantiene la expectativa de que las autoridades continúen priorizando la calidad del gasto y la inversión pública, lo cual podría amortiguar parte de estos impactos.
Finalmente, es de destacar que la mayor confianza también está ligada a “los acercamientos con el gobierno de los Estados Unidos de América”, pues los analistas esperan que ello “logre beneficios para Honduras en términos de política arancelaria y migratoria”. Así, el repunte del ICAE en febrero de 2026 representa no solo un reflejo del entorno actual, sino también de las apuestas a futuro en política económica e integración internacional del país.
Cabe recordar que la opinión de los analistas consultados por la EEAM refleja exclusivamente el consenso de expertos del sector privado, financiero y académico del país. Sin embargo, la solidez de la mejora registrada en el índice constituye una señal relevante para inversionistas, empresarios y tomadores de decisiones sobre la ruta hacia la consolidación económica de Honduras para los próximos años.
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The suspect authorities say killed an ROTC instructor at Old Dominion University had previously been convicted of providing material support to ISIS but received a shorter prison sentence than federal prosecutors sought before his release in 2024, according to court records.
Mohamed Jalloh, a naturalized U.S. citizen originally from Sierra Leone, entered a classroom Thursday at the Norfolk school and opened fire after confirming it was an ROTC class, killing Lt. Col. Brandon Shah, authorities said. The FBI’s Norfolk Field Office said ROTC cadets physically subdued Jalloh and stopped the attack, adding that their actions «rendered [him] no longer alive.»
«The horrific tragedy that occurred today on ODU’s campus never should have happened,» Rep. Jennifer Kiggans, R-Va., said following the attack.
Court records show Jalloh was arrested in 2016 for providing material support to ISIS.
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Mohamed Bailor Jalloh was identified by authorities as the shooter at Old Dominion University on Thursday, March 12, 2026. (AP Photo)
Federal prosecutors sought a 20-year prison sentence, but Senior U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady ultimately sentenced him to 132 months — roughly 11 years.
According to prosecutors, a now-deceased ISIS member overseas arranged contact between Jalloh and an individual he believed to be a fellow supporter but who was actually an FBI confidential human source. Investigators said Jalloh also traveled to Nigeria in connection with the plot.
The overseas terrorist wanted an attack carried out, while Jalloh told the FBI source he decided not to renew his enlistment with the Virginia Army National Guard after listening to lectures from Al Qaeda terrorist Anwar al-Awlaki — a New Mexico native against whom President Barack Obama ordered a fatal drone strike in 2011.
«The defendant was fully aware of what he was doing, and the consequences of those actions. His only misgivings seemed to be a fear that he would waver at the critical moment,» prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memorandum obtained by the Associated Press.
FBI DISRUPTS ALLEGED ISIS-INSPIRED NEW YEAR’S EVE ATTACK PLOT TARGETING NC GROCERY STORE
O’Grady later handed down an 11-year sentence that included mental health treatment and substance abuse testing, according to the wire service, and Jalloh was ultimately released in 2024.
Jalloh’s release also required no contact with any terrorist organizations and computer monitoring during probation.
«Jalloh was sentenced in 2017 to 132 months in prison for providing material support to ISIS. The [government] had asked for a sentence of 240 months, the statutory maximum,» former federal prosecutor William Shipley wrote on X.
«The Judge who imposed the reduced sentence was Senior Judge Liam O’Grady, in the Eastern District of Virginia, a GWB appointee. Judge O’Grady announced he was taking Senior Status in June 2020 — right in the heart of the start of COVID, meaning there was no chance that Pres[ident] Trump would be able to get his replacement confirmed.»
«Joe Biden ended up nominating his replacement — Judge Patricia Giles.» Giles, he said, controversially ruled in 2024 that Virginia had illegally purged noncitizens from the voter rolls too close to that year’s election and ordered their restoration.
AMERICAN EXTREMIST ADMITS BANKROLLING ISIS TERRORISTS, PLOTTING US VIOLENCE WITH HOMEMADE BOMB: FEDS
Asked whether the spate of recent attacks shows a resurgence of ISIS threats to the homeland or if previously lax immigration policies have played a role, a spokesperson for National Counterterrorism Center Director Joe Kent pointed to recent comments he made after the Iran mission began:
«As the Iran conflict continues to unfold, ODNI’s National Counterterrorism Center is engaged and operating at full capacity, 24/7. We are tracking developments in real time, assessing any potential risks to the homeland, identifying emerging threats, and providing timely, actionable intelligence to the White House, law enforcement, and interagency partners to detect and prevent attacks against the American people,» Kent said.
Old Dominion University campus in Norfolk, Virginia, features academic buildings and landscaped grounds as a public research university serving southeastern Virginia and beyond. (John Greim/LightRocket)
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Kent said counterterrorism officials are «acutely aware» and focused on eliminating «persistent» threats posed by thousands of people with terror ties who «poured into our nation unchecked during four years of open borders under Biden.»
«Constant vigilance is a must. Stay aware of your surroundings, and if you see something suspicious, report it immediately to local law enforcement. Every one of us has a role to play in keeping this nation secure,» Kent said.
A DOJ spokesperson told Fox News Digital there are «no known or credible threats to the homeland» at this time and that federal agents are «maintaining a constant state of vigilance to keep Americans safe.»
Fox News Digital reached out to ODNI, the FBI and O’Grady for comment.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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