INTERNACIONAL
Omar allies tied to massive Minnesota COVID meal fraud scheme involving Somali community
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Members of the inner circle of Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., personally profited from the $1 billion welfare-fraud scandal in her district that has placed her Somali constituency under the White House microscope.
Omar held events at one of the restaurants named in the fraud, knew one of its now-convicted owners, and had a staffer who was also convicted, the New York Post reported.
In addition, Omar introduced the legislation that led to $250 million being defrauded from federal child-nutrition programs in COVID-19 aid, according to the newspaper.
FEDERAL PROBE TARGETS ALLEGED MINNESOTA SOMALI FRAUD ‘NETWORK’ AS COVID-AID CRIME RINGS PERSIST
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., has been engulfed with questions over the rampant fraud in Minnesota. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Around $250 million in state funds was distributed beginning in 2020 to provide meals to schoolchildren during the pandemic. However, the money was allegedly pocketed by Salim Ahmed Said, the co-owner of Safari Restaurant, where Omar held her 2018 congressional victory party.
Said was convicted in March for his role in the scheme, with the Justice Department stating that the funds—intended to feed children—were used to finance a lavish lifestyle.
He spent much of the money on a $2 million Minneapolis mansion and a $9,000-per-month shopping habit at Nordstrom, according to prosecutors.
The free meals were made possible by the 2020 MEALS Act, introduced by Omar and passed with bipartisan support, the Post said.
Much of the funding was funneled through the now-defunct nonprofit Feeding Our Future, according to the DOJ. Omar appeared in a video promoting the program.
LIZ PEEK: MASSIVE MINNESOTA WELFARE HEIST PROVES DEMOCRATS CAN’T POLICE THEIR OWN MESS
A week after FBI agents raided the offices of Minnesota nonprofit Feeding Our Future after accusations the group’s partners defrauded the federal government of millions of dollars, evidence of the raid is seen in the offices. (Shari L. Gross/Star Tribune via Getty Images)
The congresswoman has not been directly linked to the fraud. Fox News Digital has attempted to reach her office for comment.
«The alleged fraud scheme orchestrated by Feeding Our Future is reprehensible. Using the guise of feeding children to funnel millions of dollars toward extravagant expenses is abhorrent, and anyone who participated in this scheme must be held accountable,» she told a local Minnesota news outlet at the time.
During an appearance on CNN this week, Omar was pressed to explain how fraud became so rampant within her state.
FBI raid Twin Cities nonprofit Feeding our Future, in St. Anthony, Minn., on Jan. 20, 2022. The FBI says the St. Anthony-based nonprofit was part of a broad scheme to defraud the USDA of millions, funneling money from federally funded child nutrition programs to an array of entities to launder the money and use it for personal real estate, cars and other luxury items. (Elizabeth Flores/Star Tribune via Getty Images)
«I think what happened, um, is that, you know, when you have these, kind of new programs that are, um, designed to help people, you’re oftentimes relying on third parties to be able to facilitate. And I just think that a lot of the COVID programs that were set up — they were set up so quickly that a lot of the guardrails did not get created,» she said.
In August, Guhaad Hashi Said, a Democratic activist and former Omar campaign official, pleaded guilty to running a fake food site, Advance Youth Athletic Development.
MINNESOTA GOVERNMENT WORKERS BLAME WALZ FOR ‘MASSIVE FRAUD’ AMID ALLEGATIONS AGAINST SOMALI COMMUNITY
President Donald Trump, left; Rep. Ilhan A. Omar, right. (Pete Marovich/Getty Images; Tom Williams/Getty Images)
He claimed the group served 5,000 meals a day to children, pocketing millions, the Justice Department said.
Said worked on Omar’s 2018 and 2020 campaigns as an «enforcer» who oversaw voter turnout efforts in the Somali community.
As of November, at least 78 defendants have been charged in what has widely been considered the largest pandemic relief fraud scheme in the United States.
The Trump administration has blamed Minnesota officials for the lack of oversight.
The Small Business Administration is investigating a network of Somali groups in Minnesota that it says is tied to the scandal and a House Oversight Committee has opened an investigation into Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s role.
President Donald Trump on Wednesday criticized Omar and blamed the Somali community for the scope of fraud occurring in Minnesota.
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«These Somalians have taken billions of dollars out of our country. They’ve taken billions and billions of dollars. They have a representative, Ilhan Omar, who they say married her brother. She should be thrown the hell out of our country. And most of those people, they have destroyed Minnesota. She should not be — and her friend shouldn’t be allowed — frankly, they shouldn‘t even be allowed to be Congress people, okay? They shouldn’t even be allowed to be Congress people, because they don’t represent the interests of our country,» Trump told reporters.
ilhan omar,us,minnesota
INTERNACIONAL
La Unión Europea sancionó a 16 funcionarios y tres entidades iraníes más por la represión de las protestas de enero
IRGC/WANA (Agencia de Noticias de Asia Occidental)/Handout via REUTERS
La Unión Europea amplió este lunes su lista de sancionados por la represión en Irán con 16 nuevos funcionarios y tres entidades, entre ellos comandantes de la Guardia Revolucionaria Islámica, miembros del poder judicial y el responsable del sistema penitenciario del país. El Consejo de la UE aprobó las medidas en Bruselas en respuesta a la participación directa de estos actores en la supresión violenta de las protestas de enero de 2026, que se saldaron con miles de muertos según diversas estimaciones internacionales.
Las nuevas designaciones elevan a 263 el número de personas y a 53 el de entidades sometidas a medidas restrictivas en el marco del régimen de sanciones que la UE mantiene sobre Irán por violaciones de derechos humanos, vigente desde 2011 y prorrogado hasta el 13 de abril de 2026.
Entre los recién incluidos figura el viceministro del Interior para Asuntos de Seguridad y Orden Público, así como varios comandantes de ramas locales del Cuerpo de la Guardia Revolucionaria Islámica (IRGC, por sus siglas en inglés). El Consejo también sancionó al Cuerpo Mohammad Rasulullah, encargado de coordinar las fuerzas del IRGC y de la milicia Basij en Teherán, y al Cuerpo de la Guardia Revolucionaria Imam Reza, rama provincial del IRGC en Jorasán Razaví, donde la represión fue, según el comunicado, “especialmente brutal”.
Las protestas comenzaron el 28 de diciembre de 2025, desencadenadas por el colapso del rial iraní y décadas de malestar político acumulado. Lo que empezó como una movilización de comerciantes en Teherán se extendió a más de un centenar de ciudades, convirtiéndose en el mayor levantamiento popular desde la revolución islámica de 1979. El régimen respondió con una violencia sin precedentes: las fuerzas de seguridad dispararon munición real contra los manifestantes, con las masacres más mortales los días 8 y 9 de enero, según documentó Amnistía Internacional.
Las cifras de víctimas permanecen en disputa. Las autoridades iraníes reconocieron oficialmente 3.117 muertos. La Relatora Especial de la ONU sobre Irán estimó que el número real podría superar los 5.000 fallecidos. La revista Time, citando documentos del Ministerio de Salud iraní, elevó esa cifra a hasta 30.000 personas solo en los días 8 y 9 de enero, dato que no pudo verificarse de forma independiente dado el bloqueo de internet impuesto por las autoridades desde ese mismo día.
Majid Asgaripour/WANA (Agencia de Noticias de Asia Occidental) vía REUTERS
La nueva lista incluye también a jueces y fiscales que participaron en procesos contra manifestantes, activistas, periodistas y opositores, algunos responsables de obtener confesiones bajo coacción y dictar condenas severas. Figura asimismo el director de la Organización de Prisiones, bajo cuya gestión se documentaron torturas, detenciones arbitrarias, aplicación de la pena de muerte a menores y violencia sexual contra reclusas.
En el ámbito tecnológico, el Consejo sancionó a Naji Research and Development Company (NRDC), empresa que desarrolló la aplicación Nazer, utilizada por las fuerzas del orden como herramienta de vigilancia ciudadana, y al jefe de la Policía Cibernética de Teherán, responsable de la censura en internet.
Esta ronda se produce en el marco de una escalada sostenida. El 19 de febrero, el Consejo formalizó la inclusión del IRGC en la lista de organizaciones terroristas de la UE. El 11 de marzo, una ronda previa designó a otras 19 personas y entidades, entre ellas el ministro del Interior Eskandar Momeni y el fiscal general Mohammad Movahedi Azad. Teherán calificó esas medidas de “ilegales” e “inmorales” y acusó a la UE de complicidad con lo que describió como una agresión exterior contra el país.
Con Irán sometido simultáneamente a una ofensiva militar exterior y a una crisis de legitimidad interna, la acumulación de designaciones europeas traza un mapa de responsabilidades que, tarde o temprano, alguien tendrá que responder.
Defense,Middle East
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Cuba plunged into an unprecedented blackout after its entire electrical grid suddenly suffered a total collapse on Monday, briefly leaving roughly 10 million residents in total darkness.
«At 1:54 p.m. local time, there was a disconnection of the national electrical grid resulting in a complete power outage across Cuba which includes the Havana metropolitan area,» the U.S. Embassy in Cuba said.
The nationwide outage comes just two days after a large crowd of protesters, fed up with the island’s energy crisis, were caught on camera attacking a local Communist Party headquarters in Cuba, ransacking the building and attempting to set it on fire.
Efforts to restore electricity are currently underway across the island, with reports indicating that power is slowly returning to some areas.
RUSSIAN ‘DARK FLEET’ TANKER BELIEVED TO BE DELIVERING OIL TO CUBA, DETECTED OFF US COAST AMID TRUMP BAN
A woman with her son signals a car on a dark street during a blackout in Bauta municipality, Artemisa province, Cuba, on March 18, 2024. (Yamil Lage/AFP via Getty Images)
«The causes are being investigated and protocols for restoration are beginning to be activated,» the Ministry of Energy and Mines of Cuba said Monday afternoon, referring to the island’s disrupted National Electrical System of Cuba.
Cuba’s electrical grid has grown increasingly unstable over the years due to aging infrastructure, fuel shortages, and economic restrictions that have limited the country’s access to energy resources – including Washington’s long‑standing oil embargo and recent U.S. actions that disrupted Venezuelan fuel shipments, a key source of the nation’s energy.
Power outages have become a frequent occurrence across the country, disrupting water supply, refrigeration and communications.
«Officials in the US gov must be feeling very happy by the harm caused to every Cuban family,» Cuban Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs Carlos F. de Cossio said in response to Monday’s blackout.
MILLIONS LOSE POWER ACROSS CUBA AS TRUMP SANCTIONS CONTINUE TO FUEL ONGOING ENERGY CRISIS
Neya Perez, 86, paints the nails of her neighbor Reyna Maria Rodriguez, 77, during a mass blackout across most of the country, in Havana, March 4, 2026. (Norlys Perez/Reuters)
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel said Friday that no fuel has entered the country for the past three months. Since then, electricity generation has relied heavily on a «considerable contribution from renewable energy sources.»
The total collapse of the power grid came just as officials announced updates to their solar panel project in Villa Clara, describing it as a «national security necessity» amid ongoing restrictions on fossil fuel imports under the Trump administration.
«Amid a context of severe energy constraints and a recurring economic lockdown, #Cuba takes another firm step towards electric sovereignty,» the Villa Clara Electric Company said Monday morning.
«This connection comes at a critical time: Washington maintains severe restrictions on our country’s access to fossil fuels, funding and technology. Betting on renewables isn’t just environmental — it’s a national security necessity.»
As the island continues to face rolling power outages, residents have been urged to brace for significant disruption and unplug all nonessential equipment, «leaving only essential devices powered on until service stability is restored,» the Villa Clara Electric Company said.
A family has dinner during a blackout in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian in Havana on Sept. 28, 2022. (Alexandre Meneghini/Reuters)
Last Saturday, in a rare display of public dissent driven by frustration over widespread blackouts, anti-government protesters in Cuba reportedly targeted a Communist Party office by hurling rocks, shouting «liberty» and igniting large fires at the scene.
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The rally, caught on video, began peacefully in the city of Morón late Friday but escalated into violence within hours, Reuters reported, citing local sources.
Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment.
Reuters contributed to this report.
cuba,energy,sanctions
INTERNACIONAL
Jasmine Crockett defends her security guard who was killed in police standoff, wanted for impersonating cop
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The man who worked security for Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, but was killed in a standoff with SWAT last week was accused of impersonating a police officer and other offenses, although the congresswoman is defending him, saying his criminal history does not include any violent offenses.
The suspect, who was identified as Diamon-Mazairre Robinson, 39, was shot and killed by Dallas Police SWAT officers on Wednesday. He had barricaded himself inside a vehicle in the garage of a children’s hospital after Dallas Police officers tracked him while investigating an active warrant.
Police deployed tear gas to force him out before the suspect exited the vehicle and pointed a gun at officers, leading officers to shoot him. The suspect did not fire his gun, and no officers were injured.
Dash camera footage of the incident at Children’s Medical Center Dallas was released on Monday.
JASMINE CROCKETT’S ALLEGED SECURITY GUARD KILLED IN STANDOFF WITH DALLAS SWAT TEAM: REPORTS
Dallas police responded to a SWAT standoff at Children’s Medical Center Dallas where officers shot and killed a man who worked as a security guard for Rep. Jasmine Crockett. (FOX ; Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)
He was wanted for impersonating a law enforcement officer and had claimed to be one while recruiting for his business that placed off-duty officers in security jobs.
Robinson was driving a replica undercover car with stolen U.S. government plates, often wore fake police uniforms pretending he was a federal agent and created a fraudulent business where he used fake identifying information to hire legitimate police officers for off-duty jobs. Dallas Police also said 11 firearms were recovered during their investigation, including the handgun he was holding during the shooting, which was reported stolen.
He was also not using his real name, going by the alias «Mike King.»
«The agencies that he reported to work for do not exist. So dignitaries, basically special dignitary police, that agency does not exist within the federal government. So that’s who he portrayed to be. There was no actual federal agency that he worked for that existed. He was very good at hiding his true identity … He had been living like this for many years,» Dallas Deputy Police Chief William Griffith said on Monday.
Dashcam footage of the standoff between SWAT and Diamon-Mazairre Robinson. (Dallas Police Department)
Robinson has a lengthy criminal history, with arrests going back as far as 2010. He has been charged with offenses such as theft and violating probation.
Crockett came to the defense of her former security guard, releasing a statement on Monday saying her office was unable to find any violent offenses in his «limited criminal history.»
«We are saddened and shocked by some of the concerning revelations. Our team followed all protocols outlined by the House to contract additional security. We were approved to use this vendor who also provided security services for additional entities in the local community and worked closely with law enforcement agencies including Capitol Police,» she said in the statement.
The congresswoman said, «the fact that an individual was able to somehow circumvent the vetting processes for something as sensitive as security for members of Congress highlights the loopholes and shortcomings in many of our systems.»
Dallas police officers gather near vehicles outside a hospital parking garage after a SWAT standoff. (FOX 4)
JASMINE CROCKETT CAMPAIGN REPORTEDLY KICKED ATLANTIC WRITER OUT OF RALLY FOR BEING A ‘TOP-NOTCH HATER’
«This is incredibly alarming, especially for those members who receive high volumes of credible and sophisticated death threats,» she said. «This situation reiterates the need for Capitol Police to provide security for members of Congress, especially under this administration’s new normal of inciting attacks on those who dare to speak out. We are fortunate that this is someone who used those loopholes without malice. Furthermore, after an initial review of the limited criminal history of Diamon Mazairre Robinson in Dallas County, we’ve been unable to locate any violent offenses.»
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The progressive lawmaker added that «there was never any reason to suspect that he wasn’t who he held himself out to be,» saying he never endangered her team, worked diligently, coordinated with local law enforcement and maintained positive relationships throughout the community.»
«What we’re now learning about his past doesn’t fit the person we came to know as Mike King,» she wrote. «His death evokes a range of emotions. Our hearts grieve the loss of someone we knew and the lost good that could have come from his redemption.»
texas,us,crime world,police and law enforcement,politics
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