Donald Trump’s close allies and aides have started using the rat emoji in text message discussions about his former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, a report says. The phrase – which can be used to describe an informer – became popular in the former president’s inner circle after Mr Meadows’s lawyer was vague about whether he is cooperating with special counsel Jack Smith, reports Rolling Stone. The federal prosecutor had been eager to question Mr Meadows under oath about Mr Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election, and his handling of top-secret documents. But the magazine states that “it’s been an ongoing mystery to Trump and his team how much Meadows has given the feds, and whether or not he’s actually cooperating.” Mr Meadows’s lawyer gave very few details to media outlets this month on his client’s status with investigators. “Without commenting on whether or not Mr Meadows has testified before the grand jury or in any other proceeding, Mr Meadows has maintained a commitment to tell the truth where he has a legal obligation to do so,” said George Terwilliger. The magazine reported that a source had told them of the rat emoji use, and had provided a screenshot of conversations where it was included. Mr Trump has told his allies that Mr Trump has said he does not know what Mr Meadows is doing and that it would be a “shame” if rumours he is cooperating with prosecutors were true. The magazine states that the allies have told the former president that there is no evidence that Mr Meadows is cooperating and that he may be following his lawyer’s advice to keep a low profile. Mr Trump Trump faces 37 federal felony counts alleging he illegally retained national defence information and concealed classified documents. He has pleaded not guilty and Trump-appointed Judge Aileen Cannon has signed a court order listing the trial as starting on 14 August of this year in Fort Pierce, Florida. Read More Jonathan Turley tells Fox News the Trump indictment is ‘extremely damning’ and a ‘hit below the waterline’ Former Trump chief of staff says ex-president is ‘scared s***less’ Trump described Pentagon ‘plan of attack’ and shared classified military map with PAC member, indictment shows Trump news – live: Judge sets Mar-a-Lago classified papers trial date as Hunter Biden reaches plea deal Hunter Biden’s case throws a wrench in Republican rhetoric about ‘two-tiered’ justice Trump calls Fox News ‘hostile’ as he declines to commit to first GOP debate on network

By Michael Martina and Jason Lange WASHINGTON Bipartisan majorities of Americans favor more tariffs on Chinese goods and

A bridge that crosses Yellowstone River in Montana collapsed overnight, causing portions of a freight train that was traveling over it to plunge into the water below

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said on Thursday his country has developed a weapon that hit a target 700 kilometres (400 miles) away, in an apparent reference to the previous day’s strike on an airport in western Russia. Zelensky said on his Telegram channel the weapon was produced by Ukraine’s Ministry of Strategic Industries but gave no other details. On Wednesday, a four-hour wave of drones that Moscow blamed on Ukraine hit an airport near Russia’s border with Estonia and Latvia, damaging four Il-76 military transport planes, according to local reports. The airport is in Russia’s Pskov region, about 700 kilometres (400 miles) north of the Ukrainian border. In all, six Russian regions were targeted in the barrage amid the 18-month war. The Associated Press was unable to determine whether the drones were launched from Ukraine or inside Russia. Kyiv officials normally neither claim nor deny responsibility for attacks on Russian soil, though they sometimes refer obliquely to them. Zelensky’s remark was the clearest hint that Ukraine was behind the strike. The attack forced the closure of Pskov airport, though it reopened Thursday, according to Russian transport officials. Another drone intercepted overnight near Moscow resulted in flight delays at several airports around the Russian capital, officials said Thursday. No injuries were reported. Russian news agency Interfax reported, meanwhile, that security services killed two people and detained five members of a Ukrainian sabotage group in the Bryansk border region on Wednesday. The apparent Ukrainian drones reaching deep into Russia and cross-border sabotage missions are part of Kyiv’s efforts to heap domestic pressure on the Kremlin, militarily and politically. Meantime, a Ukrainian counteroffensive launched in June is chipping away at some parts of the front line, Kyiv officials claim. Ukraine is aiming to “erode Russian morale and increase pressure on its commanders,” the International Institute for Strategic Studies, a think tank, said in an assessment. The strategy is “to bring Russian forces to a tipping point where combat power and morale may begin to break,” the IISS said in the analysis late Wednesday.

Logan Paul and fellow social media star KSI's PRIME Hydration Drink is one of the Catalan club's official sponsors

Madonna has postponed her career-spanning 2023 “Celebration” tour due to what her manager called a “serious bacterial infection” and her ongoing recovery

A lightening-fast policy reset from Nigeria’s newly elected president has placed Africa’s biggest economy back on the radar

By Renee Maltezou and Angeliki Koutantou ATHENS A wildfire raging on the Greek island of Rhodes forced thousands

North Carolina trial judges have blocked portions of a new law that will eliminate Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s authority to pick election board members

By Ben Blanchard TAIPEI (Reuters) -Taiwan Vice President William Lai managed to walk a fine line on his sensitive trip

Broward County man Cassandritz Blanc was given a life sentence for the murders of his pregnant wife and his father-in-law

Israelis and Palestinians held funerals Wednesday for teenagers killed in a shooting targeting Israelis and an army raid on a Palestinian city, as violence rages...