INTERNACIONAL
Trump brings new heat to controversial UN agency as alleged Hamas ties engulf scores of employees
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President Donald Trump recently amplified a report about a U.S. government investigation that referred more than 100 current or former UNRWA employees over alleged ties to Hamas — as a new watchdog report accuses the U.N. agency of overstating how much it has reformed.
The scrutiny, which included Trump sharing the report on Truth Social in August, comes as Geneva-based UN Watch released a report Monday challenging UNRWA’s claim that it has completed 41 of the 50 reforms recommended by an independent review led by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna.
UN Watch says that when it compared UNRWA’s claims with what Colonna actually recommended, at most 13 of the 50 reforms had been completed as prescribed. The group argues that UNRWA repeatedly counted drafting policies, launching pilot programs or creating plans as completed reforms even when full implementation had not occurred.
UN AGENCY ACCUSED OF HAMAS TIES SEES ANOTHER EUROPEAN NATION CUT FUNDING
United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) building in Gaza, June 2023. (Ahmed Zakot/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
«UNRWA is grading its own homework — and giving itself credit for reforms that exist mainly on paper,» UN Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer told Fox News Digital. «A policy is not a reform if it is ignored, unenforced or blocked by staff unions dominated by Hamas.»
Among the examples cited in the report is staff vetting. UNRWA lists a «Commercial Vetting Pilot & Costed Plan» as completed, along with other screening measures. UN Watch argues that a pilot and implementation plan do not amount to a fully operational outside vetting system.
The report also challenges UNRWA’s education reforms. UNRWA lists systematic textbook reviews and randomized classroom inspections among completed steps, while a policy prohibiting problematic educational content is still described as «in progress.»
Colonna herself said when presenting her review in April 2024 that some educational content remained problematic, citing «glorification of jihad,» incitement to violence and maps that did not show Israel, while calling for a zero-tolerance approach.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION TOUTS MORE THAN $1B IN UN BUDGET CUTS AS REFORM PUSH GAINS MOMENTUM
UNRWA’s headquarters in Gaza City, Gaza on Feb. 21, 2024. (Dawoud Abo Alkas/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Pressed by Fox News Digital at Tuesday’s U.N. briefing over who independently verifies whether the reforms are actually working on the ground, U.N. spokesman Stéphane Dujarric defended the process.
«It is not just checking boxes for the sake of checking boxes,» Dujarric said, «It’s about the implementation of those things.»
Dujarric said UNRWA regularly reports to the General Assembly, holds integrity meetings open to member states and gives governments opportunities to scrutinize what the agency is doing.
WATCHDOG DEMANDS APOLOGY AFTER UN MEMORIAL ERRONEOUSLY HONORS HAMAS TERRORIST
This picture taken during a media tour organized by the Israeli army on February 8, 2024, shows Israeli soldiers inside an evacuated compound of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in Gaza City. (Jack Guez/AFP via Getty Images)
Asked specifically about staff screening, he said UNRWA relies in part on countries where it operates.
«We rely on the member states also, where we operate, who have the capacity to check people to do so,» Dujarric said, adding that UNRWA shares staff lists with Israeli, Jordanian, Lebanese and Syrian authorities. «If there are concerns, they need to be shared directly with UNRWA. When they are, they take action.»
The Colonna review was commissioned by U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres in February 2024 after allegations that UNRWA employees had participated in the Oct. 7 attacks. Guterres accepted all 50 recommendations in April 2024 and agreed with UNRWA leadership to establish an action plan to implement them.
Neuer rejected the idea that the disagreement is merely about terminology.
Heavy machinery operates as Israeli forces dismantle the Jerusalem headquarters of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), in East Jerusalem, Jan. 20, 2026. (Ammar Awad/Reuters)
«This is not a semantic disagreement over the meaning of ‘completed,’» he said. «UNRWA says the job is done, yet teachers tied to terrorist organizations remain in classrooms, Hamas-dominated unions obstruct discipline, and children continue to be exposed to incitement. Those are real-world consequences, not technicalities.»
united nations, hamas, world, middle east
As the Trump administration desperately tries to cut costs for Americans ahead of November’s midterm elections, one critical demographic to U.S. food supplies is becoming increasingly fed up.
President Donald Trump in August announced that the U.S. would import 300,000 metric tons of foreign beef trim, well over half a billion pounds, from nations around the world, leaving some cattle ranchers in red states typically aligned with the president’s agenda uneasy heading into a high-stakes election for Republicans.
«These markets have been very volatile the last month,» Greg Gunthorp, a farm-to-table cattle farmer in northeast Indiana, told Digital. «The ranchers have lost a lot of equity. The markets are down substantially.»
‘WHY WOULD HE DO THIS TO US?’: TRUMP’S FOREIGN BEEF PUSH IS HURTING HIS BASE, REPUBLICANS WARN
Gunthorp said the current uncertainty makes it difficult to decide whether to retain heifers for breeding or sell them as feeder cattle. Complicating matters is the fact that cattle herds in the U.S. have already thinned to their lowest level in 75 years, which could spell disaster for ranchers and consumers. Part of that shortage stems from a prolonged drought that has decimated some of the Midwest herd populations.
Additionally, spiking diesel costs stemming from the war in Iran means cattle ranchers are already operating on thinner margins and being forced to raise their prices.
Jaclyn Wilson, a cattle rancher in western Nebraska, told Digital that how much of the 300,000 metric tons is actually imported, another unanswered question, is critical to assessing the impact that the Trump administration’s move will have on the industry.
TRUMP WANTS CHEAPER BEEF. REPUBLICANS IN KEY RACES WARN HIS PLAN GOES TOO FAR
«The only thing that really concerns me and continues to concern me, is that the market volatility is definitely there,» she said.
«It seems like any time that we have significant prices in the beef industry and our administration says something, we do see that market fluctuate and that can be devastating for producers that are selling calves right now or even yearling,» Wilson continued.
Wilson said she sold some yearling steers just after the announcement was made, and got $175 less per head than she would have normally.
«And that’s pretty significant for a producer,» she said.
Another common theme shared by ranchers who spoke with Digital is that they want the government to incentivize producing cattle, or at least stay out of the market and let cattle ranchers do it on their own.
BROOKE ROLLINS, MONICA CROWLEY: AMERICA’S FAMILY FARMS HAVE KEPT US STRONG FOR 250 YEARS
«You can relieve a price temporarily today, but they’re not going to put cattle back in Mississippi pastures,» said Mississippi cattle rancher Mary Jo Perry. «And that’s the problem, is that we have a cattle shortage. So, something needs to be done to encourage farmers and incentivize them, enable them to retain heifers.»
Perry, who runs a grass-fed, farm-to-table beef operation, said the White House’s policy proposal hasn’t affected her business. She sells beef to health-conscious customers who want to know that their food is high quality and that their beef was raised without feeding on corn or soy.
Wilson would just as much prefer the government to stay out the business altogether.
«I think that’s what’s so discouraging for me as a cattle producer is that I’m trying to do what my family has done for generations, and somebody else is dictating it right now, she said. «I’m not given those opportunities to make that choice, and that’s what’s really disappointing.»
NEBRASKA RANCHERS STRUGGLE TO RECOVER FROM HISTORIC WILDFIRES AS DROUGHT WORSENS CRISIS
«We talk about herd rebuilding, and that’s something this administration is also talked about — which I agree, we do need to rebuild our cowherd — but keep the government out of it,» she said. «Let it naturally happen. Mother Nature, of course, is the biggest component of that.»
Digital spoke with Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins at the GOP Midterm Convention in Dallas last week about the cattle ranching conundrum.
The secretary said she’s spoken with «hundreds and hundreds» of cattle ranchers to explain Trump’s thinking in importing beef.
«So, hearing from those ranchers directly was really important,» Rollins said. «But what we did — and we’ve already done a whole lot of pro-rancher stuff a year ago — battling for private property rights, taking out the weaponization that the left had put in against our ranchers [and] working to take their land away … so all of that was already in motion.»
TRUMP ADMIN SCRAPS ‘WEAPONIZED’ WILDLIFE RULE THAT BECAME ‘BURDEN’ ON AMERICAN FAMILIES AND BUSINESSES: BURGUM
«But what that decision, as frustrated as our ranchers were, what that decision allowed was really an opportunity for us at USDA and also work across the cabinet — which this Cabinet is very unusual in that way — to put together the most pro-rancher agenda in American history,» she continued.
On Sept. 4, 2026, Trump signed two executive orders related to cattle ranchers and beef production. One, «Supporting America’s Ranchers,» is aimed at strengthening the cattle industry by ordering federal agencies to cut red tape and regulations, expand cattle grazing and look into predator management. The latter will determine whether certain species of wolves that prey on cattle have grown enough to be delisted from endangered species lists.
On the same day, he signed another order focused on meat processing and market competition. It demands stricter enforcement of the Packers and Stockyards Act against unfair, deceptive or monopolistic practices in the livestock industry, along with expanding opportunities to sell meat across state lines through cooperative meat safety inspections.
«President Trump has repeatedly affirmed his support for America’s great farmers and ranchers,» White House spokeswoman Olivia Wales told Digital. «While the Administration is addressing a short-term supply crunch in the beef market, we are simultaneously working closely with ranchers to grow America’s cattle-herd size, which is currently at a multi-decade low.»
Gunthorp said the problem should have been tackled decades ago by previous administrations, but that doesn’t mean trying to fix it today won’t harm consumers or ranchers.
«Once you fix the problem that should have been attacked 30 years ago, it’s gonna cause somebody pain,» he said. «It’s gonna cause the consumer pain [or] the rancher pain. Maybe both.»
Digital reached out to the USDA for further comment but did not hear back at time of publication.
donald trump, politics, republicans elections, economic policy
INTERNACIONAL
El-Sayed grilled on Piker, Israel and socialist ties after Mike Rogers skips Senate debate
Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed faced roughly an hour of pointed questions Tuesday over his ties to controversial streamer Hasan Piker, his views on Israel, campaign money and his socialist ties after his Republican rival Mike Rogers declined to participate in a scheduled debate in Detroit Tuesday night.
El-Sayed offered one of his most explicit condemnations yet of Piker’s controversial rhetoric, declined to give a yes-or-no answer when pressed on U.S. recognition of Israel as a Jewish state and pushed back on questions about his relationship with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) during the wide-ranging conversation with the moderator.
Rogers did not attend Tuesday’s event after declining the station’s invitation earlier in the day, leaving El-Sayed to field questions from moderator Roop Raj, viewers and members of the studio audience.
2 said both campaigns were invited on Aug. 5, the day after Michigan’s primary, and that El-Sayed quickly accepted, while Rogers did not formally decline until the morning of the Tuesday debate due to objections over Raj serving as the moderator, arguing he was biased.
EL-SAYED’S LIBERAL AGENDA CLASHES WITH MUSLIM VOTERS WHO BACK HIM ANYWAY: ‘MALE VERSION’ OF ILHAN OMAR
On Tuesday evening, Raj pressed El-Sayed on whether he could «completely, 100%» disavow offensive comments Piker had made. The question came just two days after El-Sayed resisted questioning about Piker during an appearance on CBS News’ «Face the Nation.»
«Absolutely,» El-Sayed responded to Raj about disavowing Piker’s controversial comments, before specifically addressing the streamer’s recent remarks about Jewish Americans.
«When Hasan made these comments about Jewish Americans and Jewish Michiganders, I disavowed them entirely,» El-Sayed said.
EL-SAYED DISTANCES HIMSELF FROM HASAN PIKER AFTER DISTURBING REMARKS ABOUT JEWISH AMERICANS
El-Sayed went further Tuesday when Raj continued pressing him, saying there were «many, many things» Piker has said that he disagreed with and specifically pointing to the streamer’s comments about 9/11 and Jewish Americans. Still, El-Sayed defended his decision to engage with Piker, arguing that speaking with someone does not amount to endorsing all of that person’s views and saying he wanted to offer Piker’s millions of followers «a pathway back into our politics.»
Meanwhile, El-Sayed declined to give a yes-or-no answer when pressed on whether the United States should continue recognizing Israel as a Jewish state, instead saying he believes «in equal rights to peace, dignity and self-determination for Palestinians and Jewish Israelis alike.»
«People ask this question about the right of the state that actually exists to exist, but I never get asked about the right of the state that does not exist to exist,» he continued. «I don’t get asked about whether or not the state that exists has a right to use our tax dollars to do heinous things. I don’t get asked about whether or not the kids in Detroit have a right to their tax dollars, so I just think the premise of the question is built around trying to ask people to agree to the current status quo that we have seen become a deeply unstable, deeply violent equilibrium.»
ABDUL EL-SAYED PROTESTED AGAINST ‘EX-TERRORISTS’ WHO CONVERTED TO CHRISTIANITY, UNEARTHED REPORT REVEALS
At another tense point, El-Sayed accused Rogers of trying to turn the race into a «culture war» focused on El-Sayed’s ethnicity and Muslim faith. The accusation came as El-Sayed bypassed a direct answer on whether he would return campaign contributions from individuals affiliated with the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR).
Digital previously reported that El-Sayed’s campaign received more than $115,000 from at least 41 individuals who worked for, previously worked for or held leadership roles with CAIR, which has faced longstanding controversy over alleged ties to Hamas and was named as an unindicted co-conspirator by federal prosecutors in the 2007 Holy Land Foundation terrorism-financing case. CAIR has also been designated a terrorist organization by the United Arab Emirates and formally designated or labeled as such in Florida and Texas.
MICHIGAN SENATE HOPEFUL CALLS AIPAC DONATIONS ‘LEGALIZED BRIBERY,’ REMAINS SILENT ON OTHER DONATIONS
El-Sayed defended the organization as a civil rights group and accused Rogers of trying to make the election «about the color of my skin or how I pray.»
The exchange came after El-Sayed repeatedly criticized Rogers over his own campaign funding, accusing the Republican of being beholden to corporations. El-Sayed also questioned Rogers earlier in the event over his attendance at American-Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) fundraisers while discussing Israel.
«I believe in an America that is big enough for all of us: Mike Rogers, Donald Trump, JD Vance,» El-Sayed said Tuesday night. «They believe that some people are more American than others. They think that if you pray a different way, your family comes from a different place, that somehow there’s an asterisk on your American identity.»
Raj, the moderator, followed up, noting that, «JD Vance is the father of the children to an Indian American,» and adding that the «second lady is an Indian woman who came to this country.»
EL-SAYED’S HASAN PIKER PROBLEM FOLLOWS HIM TO DEM CONVENTION AS JEWISH VOTERS BREAK RANKS
«I think there is diversity amongst that party,» he said.
El-Sayed also pushed back Tuesday night when he was questioned about his relationship with the DSA and whether he shares significant values with the group.
«I’m not a part of the organization,» El-Sayed responded before defending his view of capitalism and arguing that corporate consolidation, rather than government regulation, poses the greater threat to free markets.
«We don’t live in capitalism. We live in corporatism,» he continued. «You don’t have to be a socialist to believe that people deserve health care. You don’t have to be a socialist to believe that we need good roads.»
El-Sayed has repeatedly rejected the socialist label and described himself as a capitalist. The DSA did not endorse his Senate campaign, though prominent democratic socialists have supported, or have been affiliated with his candidacy. CBS News reported last month that El-Sayed said he was not part of DSA but believed the group’s supporters should be welcomed into the Democratic Party’s coalition.
Digital previously reported that El-Sayed spoke at six events held by DSA chapters between 2017 and 2020, including a 2019 fundraiser where he served as a keynote speaker. Socialist organizers have also described El-Sayed as a «longtime friend of Detroit DSA,» while El-Sayed told the Wall Street Journal in July that he was «not technically or practically DSA.»
The candidates are scheduled to meet Oct. 8 at WOOD-TV in Grand Rapids and again Oct. 21 at WXYZ in Detroit ahead of the November general election.
elections, abdul el sayed, michigan, senate elections, politics, hasan piker, midterm elections
INTERNACIONAL
Norway faces backlash over ‘deeply racist’ proposal to jail citizens for West Bank business
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Critics are slamming Norway over new legislation that they say singles out Jews. The proposed law could send individuals to prison for up to three years for knowingly conducting certain forms of business with Israeli communities in the West Bank.
The proposal, introduced by Norway’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, would prohibit the importation of goods originating in Israeli communities in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem and the exportation of goods to those communities. It would also restrict certain real estate transactions, construction and engineering services and investments in businesses headquartered and operating there.
Intentional violations could result in fines, imprisonment for up to three years or both, while negligent violations could carry fines, imprisonment for up to six months or both, according to Section 7 of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ official consultation document.
ISRAEL’S E1 PLAN EXPLAINED: THE JERUSALEM-AREA CORRIDOR SPARKING INTERNATIONAL BACKLASH
(L-R) Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas, and Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide addressed the media following the 9th Global Alliance for the Two-State Solution Meeting and the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC) Meeting, focusing on international aid for Palestinians and the revitalization of the peace process. (Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu via Getty Images)
The measure remains under public consultation, with responses due Sept. 19, and has not yet been enacted.
Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon condemned the proposal in a statement to Fox News Digital.
«Norway’s proposal to criminalize trade with Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria is the latest expression of their obsessive and openly hostile policy toward Israel. Instead of contributing to peace or regional stability, Norway has chosen political grandstanding, selective outrage and punitive measures against Israel,» Danon said. «This approach damages bilateral relations, encourages rejectionism, and exposes just how detached Norwegian policy has become from the realities of the Middle East.»
The Israeli Foreign Ministry’s Northern Europe Department also referred Fox News Digital to a statement it posted on X condemning the proposal.
US AMBASSADOR HUCKABEE SLAMS EXTREME GROUP OF ISRAELI SETTLERS FOR SEIZING PALESTINIAN HOMES ON WEST BANK
The Libi Infrastructure and Construction factory in the Israeli settlement of Shilo in the West Bank, April 30, 2026. (Reuters/Ammar Awad)
«Norway’s legislative proposal to criminalize trade with Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria is the latest example of the Norwegian foreign minister’s obsessive anti-Israel activism on the global stage. Norway has repeatedly chosen to sacrifice its bilateral relationship with Israel in favor of one-sided rhetoric and hostile actions that serve domestic interests, undermine efforts to reach peaceful solutions, and are completely detached from the reality in the Middle East.»
In response to a request for comment from Fox News Digital, Norway’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs referred the outlet to its June 19 press release announcing the proposed legislation. The release states that Israeli settlements violate international law and undermine prospects for a two-state solution in which Israelis and Palestinians can live in peace and freedom.
«By proposing legally binding prohibitions, the government makes it clear that Norwegian citizens and Norwegian companies must not profit from or support activities that help sustain Israel’s unlawful settlement activity in Palestine,» Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide said in the release.
Eide also said the settlements contribute to «displacement, extreme violence and a situation that makes a peaceful solution impossible.»
UN AGENCY ACCUSED OF HAMAS TIES SEES ANOTHER EUROPEAN NATION CUT FUNDING
The West Bank, also known as Judea and Samaria, is home to some 500,000 Israelis. (Mahmoud Illean/AP)
The ministry cited United Nations Security Council findings and International Court of Justice advisory opinions supporting its position on the settlements’ illegality. It said the proposed restrictions would cover imports and exports, property purchases, certain property-related services and acquisitions of businesses with headquarters and production in the settlements, while safeguarding legitimate Palestinian activities and humanitarian assistance.
The proposed legislation would exempt humanitarian activities, as well as transactions the government determines have «sufficient Palestinian ties» and do not contribute to the construction, expansion or maintenance of Israeli communities.
Dag Juliussen, national director of the Norwegian branch of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem, said that the exemption could permit business with Palestinian residents while criminalizing comparable transactions involving Jewish residents in the same territory.
Israel’s Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon (bottom-R) speaks during a General Assembly meeting to vote on a two-state solution to the Palestinian question at United Nations headquarters on Sept. 12, 2025 in New York City. (Angela Weiss /AFP via Getty Images)
«The bill is based on a fundamentally misguided understanding of the Middle East conflict, which in turn rests on a rewriting of history,» Juliussen said in a statement to Fox News Digital. «In addition, such a law would effectively serve as a reward for terrorism and, at its core, is deeply racist toward Jews.»
CHRISTIAN ZIONISTS TAKE ON ANTI-ISRAEL ‘PROPAGANDA’ FROM BIBLICAL HEARTLAND
The consultation document does not characterize the proposal as targeting Jews. Instead, it says the measure is intended to prevent commercial activity that helps maintain Israeli communities beyond the pre-1967 lines, while shielding qualifying Palestinian commerce and humanitarian assistance.
Under the proposal, exemptions would be evaluated according to the people involved who benefit from the transaction and whether the activity contributes to the construction, expansion or maintenance of an Israeli community.
Juliussen said purchasing agricultural products from Muslim, Christian, Arab or Bedouin residents could be permitted, while purchasing similar products from Jewish residents could become a criminal offense. He argued that the determining factor would effectively be the identity of the seller.
Norway formally recognized a Palestinian state in 2024 and has become one of Israel’s strongest European critics since the Hamas-led terrorist attacks of Oct. 7, 2023.
Juliussen warned that the proposed legislation would not bring Israelis and Palestinians closer to peace but could instead deepen divisions and encourage extremist forces in the region.
anti semitism, israel, trade, international law, europe
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