INTERNACIONAL
Pakistan: America’s most complicated ally — and why Trump is betting on it again
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As Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, emerged as a key intermediary in negotiations tied to the escalating Iran crisis, Washington once again found itself relying on a country that American officials have spent decades accusing of playing both sides in the war on terror.
Munir has emerged as a key intermediary in negotiations aimed at preventing renewed conflict with Iran, placing Pakistan — despite decades of accusations involving Taliban safe havens, nuclear proliferation and Osama bin Laden — back at the center of U.S. diplomacy in the Middle East.
The latest negotiations have again exposed one of the biggest contradictions in U.S. foreign policy: Washington keeps turning to Pakistan even after years of tension, distrust and accusations that elements of the country’s security establishment supported militant groups fighting American troops.
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Pakistan’s renewed diplomatic role has come under heightened scrutiny — and exposed divisions among Republicans — after allegations that Iranian military aircraft may have been moved into Pakistani territory during the recent conflict, claims Islamabad has denied.
«I don’t trust Pakistan as far as I can throw them,» Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said May 12. «If they actually have Iranian aircraft parked in Pakistan bases to protect Iranian military assets, that tells me maybe we should be looking for somebody else to mediate.»
Trump, however, publicly praised Pakistan’s leadership the same day.
«They’re great,» Trump told reporters May 12. «I think the Pakistanis have been great. The field marshal and the prime minister of Pakistan have been absolutely great.»
«Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir have been helpful mediators, and the United States is grateful for Pakistan’s efforts to bring an end to the conflict. When Iran’s nuclear threat is removed for good, the entire world will be safer and more stable,» White House spokesperson Olivia Wales told Fox News Digital in a statement.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf meets with chief of Defence Forces of Pakistan, Field Marshal Asim Munir, in Tehran, Iran, May 23, 2026. (Iranian Parliament Speaker Office/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via Reuters)
Where Pakistan burned the US
Pakistan has long occupied an uneasy place in American foreign policy.
The nuclear-armed country borders both Iran and Afghanistan, maintains deep ties across the region’s security landscape and has historically been viewed by U.S. officials as too strategically important to fully isolate.
Even critics who accuse Pakistan of double-dealing acknowledge Washington has struggled to disengage from Islamabad because of the country’s nuclear arsenal, geographic position and influence over regional militant networks.
But distrust between Washington and Islamabad deepened dramatically after U.S. forces killed bin Laden in Abbottabad, Pakistan, in 2011 — a military town located near the country’s premier military academy.
«The fact that we had to do that operation without Pakistani support speaks volumes as to how much we trusted them,» Bill Roggio, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and editor of the Long War Journal, told Fox News Digital.
Critics and former U.S. officials long questioned whether Pakistani intelligence could have been unaware of bin Laden’s presence in Abbottabad, though Pakistan has repeatedly denied knowingly sheltering him.
Analysts say Pakistan’s military establishment also spent years viewing Afghanistan through the lens of its rivalry with India, seeing a Taliban-friendly government in Kabul as a form of strategic leverage against Indian influence in the region.
«They view Afghanistan as strategic depth,» Roggio said.
Vice President JD Vance walks with Pakistan’s Chief of Defense Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir, Deputy Prime Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar, U.S. Embassy Charge d’Affaires Natalie A. Baker, and Interior Minister Mohsin Raza Naqvi after arriving for talks with Iranian officials in Islamabad, Pakistan, on April 11, 2026. (Jacquelyn Martin/Reuters)
Analysts say Pakistan’s security establishment historically differentiated between militant groups targeting Pakistan itself and groups viewed as useful against India or in Afghanistan — a strategy critics argue led Islamabad to tolerate or maintain ties with some Taliban-linked and anti-India groups even while cooperating with U.S. counterterrorism operations after 9/11.
Pakistani officials also have argued the country paid a heavy price for aligning with Washington after 9/11, pointing to years of suicide bombings, insurgent attacks and instability inside Pakistan itself.
Pakistan’s defense minister recently acknowledged the country had done «dirty work» for the U.S. and the West during decades of regional conflict, arguing policies tied to the anti-Soviet war in Afghanistan and the post-9/11 era ultimately destabilized Pakistan itself.
Roggio argued Pakistan’s security establishment spent years publicly cooperating with Washington while simultaneously tolerating or supporting Taliban-linked groups fighting American troops in Afghanistan.
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«Pakistan supported the Taliban knowing that they were killing Americans,» he said.
Pakistan’s latest diplomatic role has also drawn renewed scrutiny after allegations that Iranian military aircraft may have been moved into Pakistani territory during the recent conflict — claims Islamabad has denied.
Pakistan’s nuclear history has fueled concern in Washington for decades as well. Abdul Qadeer Khan, the architect of Pakistan’s nuclear program, later admitted operating a proliferation network that transferred nuclear technology and expertise to countries including Iran, Libya and North Korea.
Counterterrorism analysts and former U.S. officials have long warned that al Qaeda operatives and affiliated groups continued finding sanctuary in parts of Pakistan’s tribal regions even after the 9/11 attacks, though the scale of those networks remains debated.
Pakistani officials have long denied supporting terrorist organizations and argue the country has itself suffered heavily from Islamist violence, including attacks by ISIS-K and the Pakistani Taliban. Islamabad also has denied allegations that Iranian military aircraft were sheltered inside Pakistan during the recent conflict.
Why Trump is betting on Pakistan again
More than a decade after the bin Laden raid shattered trust between Washington and Islamabad, Pakistan’s military leadership has again emerged as a critical diplomatic channel for Washington — this time during the escalating crisis involving Iran.
Trump increasingly has engaged Munir directly in recent weeks, reinforcing longstanding perceptions that Pakistan’s military — rather than its civilian government — remains the country’s dominant power center.
Munir, a former intelligence chief, has leveraged Pakistan’s longstanding relationships across the region to position himself as a channel between Washington and Tehran.
Roggio argued Pakistan is also attempting to rehabilitate its international image by presenting itself as a stabilizing force in the region.
«They’re trying to present an image of being a purveyor of peace in the region,» he said.
Earlier rounds of diplomacy tied to the Iran conflict were also hosted in Islamabad, elevating Pakistan’s role as a regional intermediary.
Pakistan and Qatar appear to have emerged as complementary diplomatic channels rather than competing ones during the latest negotiations involving Iran.
Analysts say Pakistan’s military leadership has increasingly positioned itself as a political and security intermediary between Washington and Tehran, while Qatar has remained central to the more formal diplomatic and financial dimensions of regional negotiations.
This is a locator map for Pakistan with its capital, Islamabad, and the Kashmir region.
Qatar, which hosted negotiations between the U.S. and the Taliban that led to the 2020 Doha agreement laying out the framework for the eventual U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, has again emerged as a central diplomatic channel as talks intensified over the weekend.
Pakistan also played a behind-the-scenes role in those negotiations, reflecting Washington’s longstanding reliance on Islamabad’s ties to the Taliban leadership during the Afghanistan war.
Critics of the Doha agreement argued it sidelined the U.S.-backed Afghan government while strengthening the Taliban ahead of its return to power in 2021.
Pakistan’s relationship with the Taliban also has become increasingly strained since the group returned to power in Afghanistan. Pakistani officials have accused Taliban authorities of failing to stop militants launching attacks into Pakistan from across the border, and Islamabad has threatened military action against some groups operating near Afghan territory.
The divide over Pakistan reflects a broader debate that has shaped U.S. foreign policy for decades: whether Washington’s strategic need for Islamabad outweighs longstanding concerns over the country’s relationships with militant groups and regional adversaries.
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More than a decade after the bin Laden raid shattered trust between Washington and Islamabad, Pakistan has once again become a diplomatic channel the U.S. appears unable — or unwilling — to avoid during one of the region’s most volatile crises.
afghanistan, middle east foreign policy, pakistan, foreign policy, iran
INTERNACIONAL
Trump-backed ‘McCongressman’ wins Oklahoma Senate primary, vows push for stalled SAVE Act
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Deep in Trump country, a Republican vying for a seat in the Senate is wondering why his possible future colleagues can’t pass a key voter ID and citizenship verification bill.
Rep. Kevin Hern, R-Okla., cruised to a primary victory Tuesday night in the Sooner State, where he told Fox News Digital in an interview that the one thing he hears from voters constantly is whether Congress will pass the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act.
«They’re saying we need to work on, you know, the SAVE Act,» Hern said ahead of primary Election Day. «I mean, this is time and time again.»
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Rep. Kevin Hern, R-Okla., talks with reporters outside the U.S. Capitol on Sept. 11, 2025. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc)
But the legislation has been stuck in the Senate, where all Democrats have vowed to block it. A cohort of Republicans have voted against the bill in various forms, too.
«This is something I’m not real sure why Republican senators are not supporting,» Hern said. «I understand why Democrats don’t support it. They don’t support anything that protects America.»
Hern has served five terms in the House, where he’s moved up the chain into the fourth-highest role in House GOP leadership as House Republican Policy chair. He also ran for Speaker of the House when former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., was ousted.
His decision to leave the House and seek a seat in the Senate came after President Donald Trump nominated fellow Oklahoman, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, to lead the DHS.
HOUSE GOP LEADER LAUNCHES SENATE BID AS TRUMP TAPS MARKWAYNE MULLIN FOR DHS
Since jumping into the race earlier this year, Hern has amassed a bevy of endorsements from senators and Trump, who lauded the lawmaker as being «strongly supported by the fiercest MAGA Warriors in Oklahoma, and the most Highly Respected Leaders in the United States Senate!»
And Hern knows that Oklahoma is Trump country, noting that voters there «love the president. They love the fact that I support the president and I work with the president.»
Hern likely won’t face strong headwinds in November against one of a half dozen Democratic candidates seeking the nomination in the Sooner State, given that Trump has won the state — and all 77 of its counties — three times.
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President Donald Trump spoke during a proclamation signing in the Oval Office of the White House on June 11, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
That doesn’t mean he intends to rest on his laurels until November. Hern, who grew up without indoor plumbing, said he knows the value of work and preparation. It’s what landed him his own McDonald’s franchise empire in Oklahoma, where he owned 24 restaurants — his past life in business also earned him the nickname «McCongressman.»
«I just respect the idea of work. I think working hard gives you a chance to compete with anybody,» Hern said. «And so, same thing with the Senate race. I came out strong, set a tone from day one.»
«The president endorsed me in the first 48 hours because of the work I’ve done over the last eight years,» he continued. «And I think it goes back to that common word of work and working hard.»
And if successful in November, Hern isn’t shutting down the option of seeking a spot in Senate GOP leadership.
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Hern said that throughout his business career he would tell anyone that «if you wait till something comes available, and you start working hard, it’s too late because there are other people like me that have started out in the proverbial parking lot.»
«We’ve got people on third base who think they’re ready to be in leadership, and I’m running right past them, and they say, ‘Who’s this guy?’ And it’s a guy like me that’s just been working hard, positioning, building relationships,» Hern said. «And I think that’s important going forward, and we’ll see what comes open.»
midterm elections, donald trump, republicans elections, markwayne mullin, senate elections
El Senado, de mayoría republicana, rechazó el martes una resolución para impedir que el presidente Donald Trump ordenara nuevos ataques estadounidenses contra Irán, días después de que ambos países alcanzaran un acuerdo limitado para poner fin a meses de combates e iniciar negociaciones más amplias.
La votación supone un revés para los demócratas en su intento de obligar a Trump a concluir el impopular conflicto, a pesar de que algunos republicanos se han desmarcado de su partido y han votado con los demócratas.
El Senado aprobó por un estrecho margen una resolución similar sobre poderes de guerra el mes pasado, después de que cuatro republicanos se desmarcaran de su partido y varios otros se ausentaran de la votación. La Cámara de Representantes aprobó su propia resolución este mes para obligar a Trump a poner fin a la guerra.
Sin embargo, la resolución del martes del senador Raphael G. Warnock (demócrata por Georgia) fue rechazada por 48 votos contra 47 en una votación de procedimiento.
Cuatro senadores republicanos —Susan Collins (Maine), Bill Cassidy (Luisiana), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) y Rand Paul (Kentucky)— votaron con los demócratas a favor de la resolución. Todos ellos también votaron a favor de la resolución del mes pasado.
Los demócratas necesitaban que al menos un republicano más cambiara su voto el jueves para aprobar la resolución, ya que un demócrata, el senador John Fetterman (Pensilvania), se opuso.
Cinco senadores —Bernie Sanders (independiente por Vermont), Josh Hawley (republicano por Misuri), Mitch McConnell (republicano por Kentucky), Cory Booker (demócrata por Nueva Jersey) y Michael Bennet (demócrata por Colorado)— no estuvieron presentes en la votación, pero su ausencia no fue determinante.
Si todos hubieran votado como lo hicieron en resoluciones anteriores, la resolución del martes habría fracasado por 50 votos a favor y 50 en contra.
El Senado aún puede debatir la resolución sobre poderes de guerra que avanzó el mes pasado, presentada por el senador Tim Kaine (demócrata por Virginia). El líder de la minoría en el Senado, Charles E. Schumer (demócrata por Nueva York), indicó que consideraba la votación del martes como una prueba, ya que los demócratas intentan convencer a suficientes senadores republicanos para aprobar la resolución de Kaine.
“Estamos intentando que algunos republicanos más voten a favor de la resolución de Kaine para poder seguir adelante”, declaró Schumer a la prensa. “Nos falta uno”.
Los demócratas han forzado repetidas votaciones sobre resoluciones similares en ambas cámaras desde el inicio del conflicto, ganando poco a poco más apoyo republicano.
La Resolución sobre Poderes de Guerra de 1973, la ley que los demócratas utilizaron para forzar la votación, exige a los presidentes retirar las fuerzas estadounidenses de cualquier conflicto no autorizado por el Congreso en un plazo de 60 días. Trump cumplió el plazo el 1 de mayo, pero lo eludió argumentando que las hostilidades habían terminado cuando entró en vigor un alto el fuego en abril.
Los obstáculos para que el Congreso impida a Trump ordenar nuevos ataques contra Irán son considerables.
Ambas cámaras tendrían que aprobar la resolución de Kaine antes de que llegara al despacho de Trump. Es casi seguro que Trump la vetaría, lo que obligaría al Senado y a la Cámara de Representantes a anular su veto con una mayoría de dos tercios en ambas cámaras para que la resolución entrara en vigor. Ninguna resolución sobre poderes de guerra ha logrado jamás superar un veto.
(c) 2026 , The Washington Post
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15 Antifa radicals indicted, 12 arrested in sweeping federal probe into Minneapolis anti-ICE operations
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The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota on Tuesday announced that 15 Antifa members have been indicted for their alleged roles in conspiring to hinder federal immigration enforcement operations in Minneapolis earlier this year.
The suspects, 12 of whom are in custody, are all charged with conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer, according to a 94-page criminal complaint, and some are charged with further crimes. Federal prosecutors allege that each suspect took part in a conspiracy to obstruct federal immigration enforcement officers, including ICE personnel, through force, intimidation and threats.
The suspects are alleged members of the Antifa cell Direct Action Minnesota Network (DAMN), a radical far-left group accused of coordinating operations against federal immigration officers.
Protesters used whistles to alert neighborhoods to ICE activity while facing off with Minneapolis police officers on a street in Minneapolis, Minn., on Jan. 24, 2026. (Roberto Schmidt / AFP via Getty Images)
Federal prosecutors maintain that the group use Signal chats to organize and carry out rapid response operations including coordinating street blockades, tracking federal vehicles, surveilling the ICE field office at the federal Whipple Building and other activities meant to stop immigration officials from conducting their business.
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The government says that DAMN served as the hub for participants to share intelligence, plan actions, recruit volunteers and assign roles.
Below is a full list of the suspects and the charges they face:
- Isaac Auman Sant – conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer, interstate stalking
- Emmett James Doyle – conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer
- Cameron Kennedy – conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer
- Callum Robinet – conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer
- Erik Davis – conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer
- Kyle Wagner – conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer, solicitation of violence, interstate threats
- Hannah Margaret Van de Water Davis – conspiracy to impede or injure a federal office
- Treasure Cay Thoreson – conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer
- Nathan Junho Kim – conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer
- Alec Stewart – conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer
- Douglas Misterek – conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer
- Dustin Scott Beisell – conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer
- William Morgan – conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer, interstate stalking, assault on a federal officer, destruction of government property
- Natasha Rakotz – conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer, assault on a federal officer resulting in bodily injury/use of a dangerous weapon
ANTI-ICE MINNEAPOLIS AGITATORS SET UP CHECKPOINT TO TRACK FEDERAL AGENTS
Federal law enforcement agents stand guard facing anti-ICE protesters outside the Bishop Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis, Minn., on Jan. 15, 2026. (Octavio Jones/AFP via Getty Images)
Isaac Sant is portrayed by prosecutors as one of the ringleaders of the conspiracy who allegedly organized meetings between anti-ICE factions, delivered shields and other equipment for «direct actions» against ICE and maintained a database of suspected federal immigration vehicles by tracking license plates.
He also allegedly coordinated «commuters» to follow federal immigration officials.
On May 4, according to the indictment, Sant personally followed a federal immigration officer from the Whipple Building in Minneapolis — a hub of anti-ICE activities — across state lines to Hudson, Wisconsin, leading to the interstate stalking charge.
William Morgan, the only suspect charged with four crimes, is also accused of interstate stalking for allegedly following a federal immigration officer on May 12 from the Whipple Building to near the officer’s home in Hudson.
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Federal agents fire tear gas at protestors in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Jan. 24, 2026. Earlier that day, agents allegedly shot and killed a protestor during a scuffle to arrest him. The Trump administration deployed about 3,000 federal agents to the area to enforce immigration laws. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
Three days later, Morgan allegedly committed two more crimes by confronting an agent who was conducting an interview and physically assaulting him. He later was accused of kicking a federal vehicle, causing $1,000 in property damage, the complaint claims.
Natasha Rakotz was charged with assault on a federal officer resulting in bodily injury for allegedly driving her car into the path of a federal agent, striking and injuring him — similarly to how in a January incident in Minneapolis Renee Good was shot dead during an altercation where she ran her car into a federal immigration officer.
Kyle Wagner has been in custody since February, after encouraging followers to take up arms against federal agents. More charges were announced against him during Tuesday’s press conference.
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On Jan. 8, 2026, Wagner posted a video warning ICE agents, «We’re f—ing coming for you.»
Prosecutors allege he urged followers to «get your guns,» and suggested identifying agents even if it had to be done «at the barrel of a gun.»
President Donald Trump declared Antifa to be a terrorist organization last year.
«Today’s charges and arrests reflect a broad federal effort to address organized, lawless behavior, which seeks to disrupt the execution of federal law, endanger law enforcement, and, importantly, endanger the very communities that these defendants falsely claim to be protecting,» U.S. Attorney Daniel Roden said in a Tuesday press conference announcing the charges.
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He emphasized that the defendants have not been arrested for speech — which is protected by the First Amendment — but for alleged criminal actions.
Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent in Charge Michael McCarthy echoed that sentiment.
A woman confronts a federal immigration officer at the scene of a reported shooting in Minneapolis on Jan. 14, 2026. (John Locher/AP Photo)
«Peaceful protest is a protected right and a cornerstone of our democracy. We respect and defend that right,» he said. «However, there’s a clear line that cannot be crossed when protest turns into rioting, violence or criminal activity, it becomes unlawful and it will not be tolerated.»
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«Working closely with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, our investigation uncovered extensive planning, material support and coordinated attacks against federal personnel and facilities. Our teams have worked tirelessly conducting surveillance, reviewing camera footage, and analyzing large volumes of information to identify those responsible.»
Fox News Digital’s Andrew Mark Miller contributed to this report.
antifa, homeland security, minneapolis st paul, politics, minnesota, enforcement, immigration
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