NEWS

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Donald Trump has said he wants to be involved in choosing Iran’s next supreme leader, reiterating his goal of helping install leadership that would be friendly to the United States.

Trump opposed the possible appointment of Mojtaba Khamenei, son of Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, saying, “They are wasting their time. Khamenei’s son is a lightweight. I have to be involved in the appointment,” according to reports from Axios.

He also said he would prefer a leader similar to Venezuelan President Delcy Rodríguez, whom he described as an example of a leader who has cooperated with U.S. interests. Trump said, “Venezuela was so incredible because we did the attack, and we kept government totally intact. And we have Delcy, who’s been very good,” while speaking to reporters.

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Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has issued a forceful response to US President Donald Trump after Trump threatened to sever trade ties with Spain. Speaking in a televised address from the prime minister’s official residence in Madrid, Sánchez defended his government’s foreign policy stance and repeated a message that he said defines Spain’s position in the current global climate: “no to war.”

The address came a day after Trump declared he did not want “anything to do” with Spain and warned of a full trade embargo. The threat followed Spain’s refusal to allow the United States to use the jointly operated military bases at Morón and Rota for strikes against Iran. During a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Trump described Spain as a “terrible partner” and criticized the country for not meeting NATO’s target of allocating 5 percent of its gross domestic product to defense spending.

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U.S. President Donald Trump has suggested that once the United States finishes its focus on the conflict with Iran, attention may shift to Cuba, the Caribbean nation already struggling under heavy U.S. pressure.

Speaking at a White House reception, Trump said the Iran situation remains the priority but hinted that efforts involving Cuba are imminent. “We want to fix, finish this one first — but that will be just a question of time before you and a lot of unbelievable people are going to be going back to Cuba,” he told guests, including U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Trump also praised Rubio, the Miami-born son of Cuban immigrants saying he has done “a fantastic job on a place called Cuba.”

The United States has tightened economic pressure on Cuba, including measures that have cut off Venezuelan oil supplies to the island. Cuba’s fuel supply has dropped sharply as a result, forcing airlines to reduce flights and deepening the country’s ongoing energy crisis.

Many observers see Trump’s comments as part of a broader effort to increase U.S. influence in the region. Cuba has been dealing with a severe energy shortage after U.S. actions blocked foreign oil imports, contributing to widespread power outages and economic hardship.

Trump and Rubio have previously signaled that they want to see political change in Havana, and recent remarks have raised speculation that Cuba could become a future focus of U.S. policy once the situation with Iran is resolved.

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Israel and the U.S. intensified their bombardment of Iran’s security forces and other symbols of power Wednesday, as Tehran vowed to completely destroy the Middle East’s military and economic infrastructure — all indications that the war was nowhere near over and risks expanding further.

In addition to striking Tehran on the fifth day of the conflict, Israel hit the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon, while Iran fired on Bahrain, Kuwait and Israel. As

the conflict spiraled, Turkey’s Defense Ministry said NATO defenses intercepted a ballistic missile launched from Iran before it entered Turkey’s airspace. And an Iranian warship sank off the coast of Sri Lanka, though it was not immediately clear what happened.

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Lionel Messi and his Inter Miami teammates visited the White House on Monday to meet with President Donald Trump in celebration of their first MLS Cup title. The team, co-owned by David Beckham, secured the championship in December. The visit took place while the club was in Washington ahead of their match against DC United this Saturday.

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A disgraced Louisiana mayor has been found guilty of having sex with her son’s 16-year-old best friend at a booze-filled pool party.

The jury at Misty Roberts’s trial reached a guilty verdict after deliberating for less than an hour, according to Upper Michigan Source.

Roberts, the 43-year-old former leader of DeRidder, La., was convicted on charges of carnal knowledge of a juvenile and indecent behavior with a juvenile, the outlet reported.

The conviction comes after the boy she had s£x with at the 2024 party testified in front of jurors that he was drunk when the s£x crime unfolded, the outlet said.

Roberts will have to register as a s£x offender. Her sentencing is scheduled for April 17.

Carnal knowledge carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, whereas indecent behavior carries a sentence of up to seven years, according to the report.

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The US government has officially labeled the American AI firm Anthropic a "supply chain risk," marking the first time a domestic company has received this designation. The Pentagon’s decision is an escalation in a dispute over Anthropic's refusal to grant the government unrestricted access to its AI technology. The company has cited concerns that its tools could be used for mass surveillance and the development of autonomous weapons.

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President Donald Trump has threatened to halt all trade with Spain after the country barred the U.S. military from using its bases for operations in Iran. Speaking at the White House, Trump labeled Spain’s actions "terrible" and stated that the administration intended to "cut off all trade." It remains unclear how such a threat would be implemented given Spain’s membership in the European Union.

"We're going to cut off all trade". "We don't want anything to do with Spain," he told reporters.

Trump's comments add to existing tensions between the two countries, including over the Spanish government's resistance to Trump's demand for NATO allies to raise their defence spending.

"I could tomorrow - or today, even better - stop everything having to do with Spain, all business having to do with Spain," Trump said on Tuesday.

Trump and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent both claimed that the US can legally place an embargo on products imported from Spain. But US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer was non-committal when asked by the president for his view on the plan.

"We're going to talk about it with you," Greer said.

"You have the strong power that the Supreme Court clarified - we know you can use it. And if you need to use it to assure national and economic security, we'll do it."