INTERNACIONAL
IRS workforce slashed in half as government shutdown showdown stretches into second week
Senate fails again to end shutdown
House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., joins ‘America Reports’ to discuss the sixth failed vote to re-open the government and the fundamental issues being debated that are keeping it closed.
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Nearly half of the IRS workforce — nearly 34,000 employees — faces furloughs as the government shutdown enters its second week, with the agency rolling out a contingency plan to keep key tax enforcement, data security, and filing-season operations running despite the lapse in congressional funding.
In a letter to staff Wednesday, the agency said most operations would shut down. The contingency plan, which takes effect Wednesday and runs through April 30, 2026, details how the IRS will operate without new congressional funding.
As of July 24, 2025, the IRS employed 74,299 people. During the shutdown, only 39,870 — about 54% — will stay on duty, though it’s unclear which positions will be retained.
Key operations that will continue to include tax processing to safeguard government revenue, IT and data-protection systems, criminal investigations, case work involving bankruptcies and liens, and disaster-relief support. However, taxpayer services — including call centers and most administrative functions not tied to life or property protection — will be suspended.
ICE VOWS ‘NO CHANGE’ TO IMMIGRATION, BORDER POLICY AMID GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN
A sign for the Internal Revenue Service in Washington, DC. ( Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images)
The IRS’s Lapse Appropriations Contingency Plan outlined operations for the first five business days of the shutdown and said the agency would continue limited operations using Inflation Reduction Act funding.
The furloughs stem from a funding impasse between President Donald Trump and Congress that has forced a government shutdown with no clear resolution.
HERE’S WHAT TRUMP WANTS TO DO TO RESHAPE THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT DURING THE SHUTDOWN
Nearly half of the IRS workforce — nearly 34,000 employees — faces furloughs as the government shutdown enters its second week. (Fox News Digital/Emma Woodhead)
National Treasury Employees Union President Doreen Greenwald said the shutdown has cut off Americans from vital IRS services.
«Expect increased wait times, backlogs and delays implementing tax law changes as the shutdown continues,» she said. «Taxpayers around the country will now have a much harder time getting the assistance they need, just as they get ready to file their extension returns due next week. Every day these employees are locked out of work is another day of frustration for taxpayers and a growing backlog of work that sits and waits for the shutdown to end.
SEN RICK SCOTT, REP BYRON DONALDS: TRUMP AND BESSENT’S IRS REFORM: LET’S END JOB-KILLING POLICIES
A sign outside the National Gallery of Art informs visitors of its closure due to the government shutdown in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
«For frontline employees, the complete lack of planning left them in the dark about their work status until their supervisor informed them today,» Greenwald added. «This is not the way our government should treat its dedicated, nonpartisan public servants. We urge the administration and Congress to reach an agreement that reopens government and restores the services that Americans need and deserve.»
According to The Associated Press, the IRS told employees they would receive back pay once the shutdown ends. The Trump administration warned Tuesday that back pay for furloughed federal employees is not guaranteed.
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Earlier this year, the IRS began a series of workforce reductions that brought total employment down from about 100,000 at the end of 2024 to roughly 75,000 before the shutdown.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
government shutdown,congress,donald trump,taxes,politics
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The suspect behind last week’s deadly car and knife terror attack outside a synagogue in Manchester allegedly pledged allegiance to the Islamic State, authorities said.
Jihad Al-Shamie, 35, a British citizen of Syrian descent, allegedly called emergency dispatchers to claim responsibility for the attack before pledging allegiance to the Islamic State.
«We have conducted assessments across our systems, and I can reiterate that Al-Shamie had never been referred to the Prevent program, nor was otherwise known to Counter Terrorism Policing,» Assistant Chief Constable Rob Potts said Wednesday.
NFL HOLDS MOMENT OF SILENCE FOR VICTIMS OF YOM KIPPUR TERROR ATTACK IN ENGLAND
Emergency services escort people to safety after a car and knife terror attack outside Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in Manchester, England, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025. Police said two people were killed, and four others injured before armed officers shot the suspect. ( Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)
UK POLICE ACCIDENTALLY SHOT VICTIM WHILE RUSHING TO STOP SYNAGOGUE ATTACKER
The Prevent program is a U.K. government initiative aimed at offering individuals who are susceptible to radicalization proper interventions to stop them from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism.
Head of Counter Terrorism Policing Laurence Taylor said on Oct. 3 that while Al-Shamie was not known to the counterterrorism team, he was on bail at the time of the attack after being arrested on suspicion of rape.
Potts said that police are now «more confident that he was influenced by extreme Islamist ideology, the 999 call forms part of this assessment.»
While Potts pointed to the call as evidence of Al-Shamie’s motivation, he stressed that authorities needed to look across all evidence gathered to determine the motive behind the attack.
«This assessment continues, and there may be further drivers and motivations identified,» Potts added.
A police vehicle parked outside the Manchester synagogue, where multiple people were killed on Yom Kippur in what police have declared a terrorist incident, in north Manchester, Britain, on Oct. 5, 2025. (Hannah McKay/Reuters)
Al-Shamie was shot by police outside the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue after the attack in which he rammed a car into pedestrians before attacking them with a knife. The attacker was wearing what appeared to be an explosive device, but Potts called it a «hoax device» and said it was later assessed and confirmed to be «non-viable.»
Two congregants, identified as Adrian Daulby, 53, and Melvin Cravitz, 66, died in the attack, which took place on Yom Kippur, Judaism’s holiest day.
Police later said that it was likely one of the two victims was accidentally shot by officers who were rushing to stop the attack, as Al-Shamie did not have a gun on him. Reports indicate Daulby was the one shot.
Emergency services on scene after a car and knife attack outside Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in Manchester, England, on Oct. 2, 2025. (Peter Byrne/PA via AP)
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Potts informed reporters on Wednesday that three people injured during the attack are still hospitalized.
While investigating whether Al-Shamie acted alone, police arrested three men and three women on suspicion of the «commission, preparation and instigation of acts of terrorism,» The Associated Press reported.
The people arrested have not been identified and police have not revealed their ties, if any, to Al-Shamie. The AP reported that on Saturday a court gave police five more days to hold four of the suspects, while two, a man and a woman, were released without further action.
world,terrorism,counter terrorism,anti semitism
INTERNACIONAL
Israel-Hamas peace deal reached soon after Trump says it’s ‘very close’ in White House note pass with Rubio
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President Donald Trump said Secretary of State Marco Rubio handed him a note indicating the United States is «very close to a deal in the Middle East,» a revelation he made Wednesday at the White House during a roundtable on Antifa.
«Yeah, I was just given a note by the Secretary of State saying that we’re very close to a deal in the Middle East, and they’ll get to need me, pretty quickly,» Trump said.
Nearly two hours later, Trump posted on Truth Social that a deal had been struck.
«I am very proud to announce that Israel and Hamas have both signed off on the first Phase of our Peace Plan,» he said. «This means that ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their Troops to an agreed upon line as the first steps toward a Strong, Durable, and Everlasting Peace.»
TRUMP SAYS ‘REAL CHANCE FOR GREATNESS’ AS NETANYAHU WHITE HOUSE MEETING LOOMS FOR GAZA TALKS
Secretary of State Marco Rubio whispers to President Donald Trump, who is holding the note Rubio handed to him, during a roundtable meeting on Antifa in the State Dining Room at the White House, Wednesday, in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
«All Parties will be treated fairly!» Trump added. «This is a GREAT Day for the Arab and Muslim World, Israel, all surrounding Nations, and the United States of America, and we thank the mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, who worked with us to make this Historic and Unprecedented Event happen. BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS!»
Israeli TV Channel 12 reported the agreement will be signed at noon local time on Thursday, and the release of hostages and prisoners will take place Saturday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also weighed in, saying, «With God’s help we will bring them all home.»
HAMAS ACCEPTS TRUMP PEACE PLAN ENDING 2 YEARS OF WAR IN GAZA, RETURNING HOSTAGES
President Trump greets Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu outside the White House on Sept. 29, as the pair works to achieve peace in Gaza. (Annabelle Gordon/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Trump said earlier Wednesday he might travel to the Middle East as Gaza peace negotiations continued. He said he might make the trip on Sunday, adding there is a «great team» of negotiators already there.
«It’s something I think that will happen,» Trump said. «Got a good chance of happening.»
U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are in Egypt negotiating details of a potential peace agreement between Israel and Hamas in the war that began Oct. 7, 2023.
TRUMP ANNOUNCES ISRAEL AGREES TO GAZA ‘INITIAL WITHDRAWAL LINE’ AS ‘3,000 YEAR CATASTROPHE’ NEARS END
U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff is in Egypt negotiating details of a potential peace agreement between Israel and Hamas. (Getty Images)
Later Wednesday, Trump signaled that negotiations are going well.
«I was just dealing with people from the Middle East, our people and other people, on the potential peace deal for the Middle East,» he said. «Peace for the Middle East. That’s a beautiful phrase, and we hope it’s going to come true, but it’s very close and they’re doing very well.»
TRUMP’S PEACE DEAL COULD END THE WAR IN GAZA OR NETANYAHU’S CAREER
Trump unveiled a 20-point plan to end the Gaza war on Sept. 29, when Benjamin Netanyahu visited the White House. The plan includes granting Hamas terrorists who give up their arms in favor of peace «amnesty,» establishing Gaza as a «deradicalized, terror-free zone,» and redeveloping the area so it no longer poses a threat to its neighbors and residents.
Trump warned Hamas that if it did not agree to the peace deal, the terrorists would face «massive bloodshed.»
Hamas announced Friday that it agreed to release all Israeli hostages, dead or alive, as part of Trump’s peace proposal.
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Israeli and Hamas officials met Monday in the Egyptian resort city of Sharm El Sheikh at the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula. Kushner — Trump’s son-in-law, credited with helping facilitate the Abraham Accords during his first administration — and Witkoff remain in Egypt to help negotiate an agreement.
Fox News Digital’s Emma Colton contributed to this report.
conflicts,donald trump,politics,israel,middle east,marco rubio
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