INTERNACIONAL
Witkoff scrambles for peace deal with Russia as sanctions loom targeting India, China
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White House envoy Steve Witkoff is preparing for a trip to Russia on Wednesday, two days ahead of President Donald Trump’s Aug. 8 deadline for Moscow to enter into a ceasefire or face stiff sanctions.
But the escalated deadline, which Trump cut by nearly a month last week after first issuing Russian President Vladimir Putin a 50-day deadline in mid-July, has done little to curb the Kremlin’s violence in Ukraine.
If a peace deal is not reached by Friday, Putin’s chief commodity will become the primary target as the U.S. will begin 100% sanctions on nations that purchase Russian oil in a move to dissuade them from fueling Russia’s economy, and by extension, its war chest.
Steve Witkoff, U.S. special envoy to the Middle East, during an executive order signing ceremony in the Oval Office of the White House on Feb. 3, 2025. (Chris Kleponis/CNP/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
CHINA, INDIA FUEL RUSSIA WAR MACHINE BY IGNORING INTERNATIONAL SANCTIONS: REPORT
But even with the threat of possibly lower oil sales to nations like India and China, which are the world’s top purchasers of Russian oil, reports on Tuesday suggested that Witkoff’s last-ditch effort to talk peace with Putin is not expected to make much, if any, headway.
A report by Reuters said that not only is little expected from Witkoff’s efforts, but Putin is also undeterred by Trump’s threat of secondary sanctions.
Trump on Tuesday told CNBC that he planned to raise the current 25% tariffs on India «very substantially» within the next 24 hours.
«They’re fueling the war machine, and if they’re going to do that, then I’m not going to be happy,» he said.
Given that Trump has already said he plans to hit any nation that trades with Moscow with 100% secondary sanctions, it is unclear if he still plans to hit both India and China with trading fines this high.
Neither the White House nor the Treasury Department returned Fox News Digital’s questions regarding the unclear looming tariff rates.
But India has pushed back on the tariffs, calling them «unjustified and unreasonable.»
President Donald Trump and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi shake hands during a news conference in the East Room of the White House, Feb. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
HOW TRUMP COULD ‘UN-UNITE’ THE XI-PUTIN ALLIANCE
In a statement on Monday, Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for India’s foreign ministry, said following Russia’s invasion and subsequent Western boycotts of Russian oil, the U.S. allegedly encouraged India to import Russian gas «for strengthening global energy markets stability.»
But it is not just financial aid that India is accused of being involved in when it comes to Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Ukraine on Tuesday said it had found «Indian-made components in Russian attack drones – including the Shahed/Geran models.»
«Russia must be denied access to foreign-made parts that enable these weapons and the killing of Ukrainians,» Andriy Yermak, presidential chief of staff, said on X.
These drones have infamously been used to not only hit military points along the front lines in Ukraine, but have routinely targeted Ukrainian civilians, including in a series of overnight strikes.
«Last night, the Russians launched a ballistic missile and nearly 50 UAVs against Ukraine, most of them Russian-Iranian ‘shaheds,’» Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday. «Many drones were shot down by our defenders, but unfortunately, there were hits.»
Zelenskyy confirmed that one person was killed and 10 were injured, including two children, after 25 shahed drones pounded the city of Lozova in the Kharkiv region.
The Zaporizhzhia, Odesa and Sumy regions were also struck, and two others were apparently injured.
Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during their meeting on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in Kazan, Russia, on Oct. 22, 2024. (Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool via Reuters)
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«Once again, the Russian army is hunting civilians in an attempt to terrorize frontline cities and communities,» Zelenskyy said.
Despite concerns that sanctions could have little effect on Putin’s war ambitions, Zelenskyy argued they could «contribute» to ending the war.
«The world now sees that sanctions against Russia, and secondary sanctions against all those who help it profiteer from oil, can work if they are strong enough,» he said. «Therefore, pressure must be increased, and this will undoubtedly contribute to peace.»
Fox News Digital could not immediately reach the Indian Embassy in Washington, D.C., or Witkoff’s team for comment.
vladimir putin,donald trump,russia,ukraine,volodymyr zelenskyy,india,world
INTERNACIONAL
Jaulas, túneles y fosas: familiares de ex rehenes de Hamas en Gaza cuentan su duro cautiverio
El ex rehén israelí Elkana Bohbot junto a su esposa el día que regresa a casa después de salir del hospital, tras su liberación del cautiverio en Gaza, en Mevaseret Zion, Israel. Foto ReutersSin oxígeno
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As it was announced that Vice President JD Vance would visit Israel, President Donald Trump once again warned Hamas, saying the U.S.-brokered Gaza truce must hold, and issued another blunt warning to the terrorist group.
During a White House meeting with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday, Trump warned, «We’re going to eradicate them. If we have to, they’ll be eradicated. And they know that,» he told reporters, and stressed the deal’s broad backing — «59 countries that agreed to the deal» — while insisting the ceasefire remains in place and warning that any further violence would be met with decisive action.
While details of Vance’s trip to Israel have yet to be announced, Washington’s diplomacy is extending beyond Jerusalem, as U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were expected to travel to Egypt from Israel for talks with Hamas representatives, underscoring a push to move from preserving the ceasefire toward negotiating the more fraught next phase.
ISRAEL SAYS HAMAS VIOLATED CEASEFIRE WITH ‘MULTIPLE ATTACKS’ LEADING TO IDF RESPONSE
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, accompanied by President Donald Trump, Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and former National Security Adviser Michael Waltz, speaks during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House on April 7, 2025 in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
At Monday’s meeting with the Australian pm, Trump was asked by a reporter whether the U.S. would put boots on the ground, Trump said his administration does not plan to deploy troops and that other countries — and Israel itself — could act if needed.
«We don’t need to, because we have many countries, as you know, signed on to this deal,» he said. «We’ve had countries calling me when they saw some of the killing with Hamas, saying we’d love to go in and take care of the situation ourselves. In addition, you have Israel — they would go in, in two minutes. If I asked him to go in, I could tell him, go in and take care of it. But right now, we haven’t said that. We’re going to give it a little chance, and hopefully there will be a little less violence.»
He added a blunt warning about Hamas’ capacity and support. «But right now, you know, they’re violent people. Hamas has been very violent, but they don’t have the backing of Iran anymore… They have to be good, and if they’re not good, they’ll be eradicated — because absolutely we can, and we have the capacity to do so.»
The comments came as senior U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met with Israeli leaders to shore up the fragile, Trump-brokered, 20-step ceasefire plan after a weekend flare-up. Hamas terrorists killed two Israeli soldiers, prompting Israeli strikes against the terror group. Despite the violence, both Israel and Hamas publicly recommitted to the truce.
President Donald Trump, left, and Anthony Albanese, Australia’s prime minister, shake hands outside the West Wing of the White House in Washington, Oct. 20, 2025. (Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
HAMAS ACCEPTS TRUMP PEACE PLAN ENDING 2 YEARS OF WAR IN GAZA, RETURNING HOSTAGES
On the ground, the IDF took custody of the coffin of another deceased hostage. A joint IDF–ISA statement asked the public to «act with sensitivity and wait for the official identification, which will first be provided to the families,» while adding that, «Hamas is required to uphold the agreement and take the necessary steps to return all the deceased hostages.» Israeli officials say Hamas could hand over six more bodies immediately out of the 15 still believed in Gaza, though some remains may be impossible to recover amid widespread destruction.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaking in the Knesset, struck a hard line while stressing close U.S.–Israel coordination. He warned the fighting was far from over and said violations would carry a «very heavy price,» while praising the «unprecedented closeness» with Washington.
A group of Hamas terrorists in Deir-el Balah in central Gaza as 20 living Israeli hostages were freed on Oct. 13, 2025. (TPS-IL)
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Separately, the IDF said Southern Command troops have begun marking a so-called yellow line inside Gaza — 3.5-meter concrete barriers topped by yellow poles placed roughly every 200 meters — to establish «tactical clarity on the ground» as part of the ceasefire arrangement. The military said the marking will continue «in the coming period» as forces work to remove threats and defend Israeli civilians.
israel,donald trump,conflicts,middle east,terrorism,jd vance
INTERNACIONAL
Trump admin agencies coordinating to expose Biden admin’s ‘prolific and dangerous’ weaponization of government
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EXCLUSIVE: Trump administration agencies are working to expose the Biden administration’s «prolific and dangerous weaponization of government,» Fox News Digital has learned.
The Interagency Weaponization Working Group (IWWG) is made up of officials from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the Justice Department, the FBI, the CIA and more.
Officials told Fox News Digital that Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard initiated the Interagency Weaponization Working Group, which has been meeting biweekly since April to «share information, coordinate, and execute.»
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard announced on Tuesday the revocation of former intelligence officials’ credentials. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
DOJ TASK FORCE FINDS NUMEROUS INSTANCES OF ANTI-CHRISTIAN GOVERNMENT BIAS UNDER BIDEN
«The American people made a clear choice when they elected President Trump — to stop the Biden administration’s prolific and dangerous weaponization of government agencies against the American people and the Constitution,» Gabbard told Fox News Digital. «I stood up this working group to start the important work of interagency coordination under President Trump’s leadership to deliver accountability.»
She added: «True accountability is the first step toward lasting change.»
Officials told Fox News Digital the group was created to streamline information sharing across the government in support of the Trump executive order.
Attorney General Pam Bondi is sworn in before a Senate Judiciary Committee oversight hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2025. (Jose Luis Magana/AP Photo)
«Joe Biden’s Department of Justice targeted President Trump and anyone close to him, prosecuted pro-life advocates, treated parents at school board meetings as domestic terrorists, and destroyed public trust in federal law enforcement,» Attorney General Pam Bondi told Fox News Digital.
GABBARD FIRES ‘DEEP STATE’ HEADS OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE COUNCIL TO ROOT OUT ‘POLITICIZATION OF INTEL’
«Under President Trump, we are working every day alongside our partners to end weaponization and restore one tier of justice for all,» Bondi said.
Meanwhile, FBI Director Kash Patel told Fox News Digital that, «for years, Biden’s DOJ turned federal law enforcement into a political weapon.»
FLASHBACK: HOUSE WEAPONIZATION PANEL RELEASES 17,000-PAGE REPORT EXPOSING ‘TWO-TIERED SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT’
«Going after President Trump, pro-life Americans, and parents at school boards while letting real criminals run wild,» Patel told Fox News Digital. «Under Preisdent Trump, we’ve ripped that agenda out by the roots.»
Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Kash Patel testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on Sept. 16, 2025 in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Patel added: «We’re restoring equal justice under the law, one standard, one mission: Protect the American people.»
Officials involved pointed Fox News Digital to President Trump’s executive order, which says interagency coordination is needed to «ensure accountability for the previous administration’s weaponization of the federal government against the American people.»
GABBARD ESTABLISHES NEW INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY TASK FORCE TO RESTORE TRANSPARENCY
The executive order had directed Gabbard, in consultation with the heads of other appropriate departments and agencies within the intelligence community, to «take all appropriate action to review the activities of the intelligence community over the last four years and identify any instances» of the weaponization of government.
Officials told Fox News Digital that the interagency group is «working to undo the Biden administration’s whole-of-government approach to abuse the powers of government against the American people.»
«The weaponization of government against Americans did not happen in one agency, one time,» an official explained. «It happened repeatedly over the duration of the Biden administration.»
Attorney General Pam Bondi, left, FBI Director Kash Patel, center, and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, center right, are seen on Wednesday, March 5, awaiting Muhammed Sharifullah’s arrival in the U.S. following his arrest overseas. (Justice Department)
FLASHBACK: FBI INTERVIEWED PRIEST, CHURCH CHOIR DIRECTOR AHEAD OF ANTI-CATHOLIC MEMO, HOUSE GOP FINDS
«That’s why, in order to depoliticize and deweaponize the government, it is important to understand what agencies carried out, what roles, and why,» the official continued. «The IWWG is essential for coordinating across agencies.»
But officials said the media has attempted to «negatively spin lawful oversight and accountability» by claiming it is a way for the Trump administration to weaponize the government against its political opponents.
FLASHBACK: BIDEN CAMPAIGN, BLINKEN ORCHESTRATED INTEL LETTER TO DISCREDIT HUNTER BIDEN LAPTOP STORY, EX-CIA OFFICIAL SAYS
«The irony is, accusing the Interagency Weaponization Working Group of targeting the president’s political opponents is classic projection and could not be further from the truth,» an official said.
The official said that there is «no targeting of any individual person for retribution.»
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«IWWG is simply looking at available facts and evidence that may point to actions, reports, agencies, individuals, and more who illegally weaponized the government in order to carry out political attacks,» the official said.
«The only people who fear accountability are the ones who never expected to face it,» the official continued. «Oversight is not the problem—abuse of power is.»
joe biden,tulsi gabbard,pam bondi,kash patel,justice department,cia,fbi
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