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But former US president gets a legal win in battle over what he can say before election fraud trial.

People are already feeling the impact of economic sanctions imposed after a military coup.

The family of Craig Robertson, the man killed by the FBI as they were attempting to serve him a warrant at his home in Utah after he threatened the life of President Joe Biden, said he had been “distraught” by what “he, and many others in this nation, observed to be a corrupt and overreaching government”. In a statement on Facebook, Robertson’s family said they were “shocked and devastated by the senseless and tragic killing of our beloved father and brother”. The FBI raided the home of the Provo resident, who the federal complaint described as “approximately 70-75 years old,” after he had allegedly posted threats online against President Biden, his family, and Barack Obama. According to court documents, Robertson referenced a “presidential assassination” and also allegedly lodged threats against Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, Attorney General Merrick Garland and New York AG Letitia James. “The time is right for a presidential assassination or two. First Joe then Kamala!!!” officials claimed Robertson wrote in a September 2022 Facebook post, according to the filing. Robertson was killed hours before Mr Biden was scheduled to land in the state after he allegedly refused to comply with the FBI and pointed a weapon at the agents. “The FBI takes all shooting incidents involving our agents or task force members seriously. In accordance with FBI policy, the shooting incident is under review by the FBI’s inspection division,” the agency said in a statement. “Craig loved this country with all his heart. He saw it as a God-inspired and God-blessed land of liberty. He was understandably frustrated and distraught by the present and on-going erosions to our constitutionally protected freedoms and the rights of free citizens wrought by what he, and many others in this nation, observed to be a corrupt and overreaching government.” His family wrote that as “an elderly – and largely homebound – man,” he often took to social media to express his frustration. “Though his statements were intemperate at times, he has never, and would never, commit any act of violence against another human being over a political or philosophical disagreement,” the statement read. The FBI revealed that Truth Social tipped off authorities about Robertson in March. Following the tip, two FBI agents approached Robertson at his home; Robertson allegedly dismissed the threat telling the agents: “I said it was a dream… We’re done here! Don’t return without a warrant.” Over the next five months, the FBI uncovered “multiple threats” against Mr Garland, Ms James, and Vice President Kamala Harris. The situation intensified on Sunday, when Robertson reportedly posted, “I heard Biden is coming to Utah,” adding that he was “cleaning the dust off the M24 sniper rifle”. Read More Trump’s Truth Social tipped off FBI about Utah man who threatened to kill Biden before being shot dead in raid Utah man killed after threats against Biden believed government was corrupt and overreaching Man fatally shot during FBI raid in Utah was posting Biden threats ahead of visit

A California candidate for Congress has blamed an aide for sending out an email saying that he was quitting the race in Orange County out of a “lack of joy” - but admitted that he did write it. “Life is short. I believe one should enjoy their work. For the past four months, I have not enjoyed mine,” Aditya Pai wrote in the email, before announcing that he was in fact quitting. In the second email titled “Apologies for the scare. I am not going anywhere” Mr Pai, 31, said the first email was sent by a now-former aide accidentally. He, however, said he had written the email. “I wrote that letter as an emotional processing exercise after an exhausting glimpse into the political machine,” Mr Pai wrote in the second email. “I sent it to some mentors and staff for perspective before getting back to work; it was never supposed to be shared. Now that it was, I see a silver lining in your seeing it.” Mr Pai, who is trying to unseat, Rep Michelle Steel, told the Orange County Register that he was at the gym when the first email was sent. He initially thought it was a test email. But, when he realised the email had gone to “literally everyone” he called his parents and mentors for advice, who told him that he had to get through the campaign “to be in a position to serve and serve as I’ve always enjoyed it.” “In that first email, the only thing that was inaccurate was the resulting decision,” he told the newspaper. Now, with the mask off, Mr Pai said he can run an authentic campaign. “There was a bit of catharsis in that letter coming out,” he told The Hill. “There was a silver lining. I feel free in being myself.” “Rest assured: I am here to run, win, and serve you to the absolute best of my ability,” he wrote in the second email. Mr Pai and three other Democratic candidates are vying for the seat held by Rep Steel which covers California’s 45th congressional district or much of northwestern Orange County. While historically Orange County has mostly voted Republican, demographic shifts have turned the county purple and Ms Steel’s district is regarded as a swing district. Read More CLIMATE GLIMPSE: Here's what you need to see and know today Union leader urges PM to return ‘to real world’ to settle doctors’ pay dispute Prosecutors say a California judge charged in his wife's killing had 47 weapons in his house A brief history of natural disasters in Hawaii, from tsunamis to wildfires Summer camp in California gives Jewish children of color a haven to be different together Maui residents had little warning before flames overtook town. At least 53 people died.

Rachel Morin’s mother has broken her silence as the mother-of-five’s killer remains at large. Morin, 37, was last seen heading to the Ma & Pa Trail in Bel Air at around 6pm Saturday. Her boyfriend Richard Tobin reported her missing that night after she failed to return home and her body was found the following day. Her death is being investigated as a homicide. On Thursday, Harford County Sheriff’s Office said investigators had been made aware of potential witnesses who may have seen Morin on the trail that night. The witnesses – either three men, two women and two dogs or two men, three women and two dogs – were urged to come forward. Morin’s family has invited members of the community to meet on 19 August at the William Street entrance of the Ma and Pa trail. Attendees will walk to the end of the first half of the trail and back. “We are hoping to have a “Trail of Flowers and Light” to line both sides of the trail,” Morin’s sister Rebekah Morin wrote on Facebook. “If you are able to, we ask that you bring flowers ... as we walk Rachel’s last steps.” Read More Rachel Morin was found dead on a popular Maryland hiking trail. Her sister says she ‘did not go willingly’ Rachel Morin’s boyfriend says he ‘would never do anything to her’ as homicide probe launched Rachel Morin’s chilling Facebook post before mother-of-five found dead on Maryland hiking trail

A Black deckhand caught in the middle of the Alabama riverfront brawl revealed he was berated with threats by white boaters after he asked them to move their vessel so a dinner cruise could dock. Damien Pickett detailed the frightening moments in a written deposition to Montgomery police that was obtained by NBC News. The Harriott II’s senior deckhand said he had tried to reason with the pontoon boat occupants when he asked them to move, but was instead met with an attack that was captured on video. Mr Pickett recalled being pummeled by the boaters who yelled, “I’m gonna kill you, motherf*****, beat your ass, motherf*****.” “I can’t tell you how long it lasted,” he wrote in the deposition. “I grabbed one of them and just held on for dear life.” The Harriott II, which was carrying 227 passengers, had been trying to dock on Saturday evening in Montgomery but a pontoon boat was blocking their spot. After many calls over the PA system asking for the boat owners “five or six times” to move, Mr Pickett wrote, the men on the pontoon responded by “giving us the finger” for about three minutes. Mr Pickett said he and another dockhand then untied the pontoon boat and moved it “three steps to the right” and tied it back to a post so the Harriott II could dock. “By that time, two people ran up behind me,” Mr Pickett wrote. He added that one of the men, in a red hat, yelled to him, “Don’t touch that boat motherf***** or we will beat your ass.” “I told them, ‘No, you won’t,’” he continued, adding that the men kept threatening him, so he told them: “Do what you’ve got to do, I’m just doing my job.” Mr Pickett said the men appeared to be drunk and the boat’s owner, who was wearing a grey shirt and red shorts with a sun visor, “started getting loud … He got into my face. ‘This belongs to the f****** public.’ I told him this was a city dock.” The brawl broke out seconds later and Mr Pickett said that by that time, “a tall, older white guy came over and hit me in the face. I took my hat off and threw it in the air. Somebody hit me from behind. I started choking the older guy in front of me so he couldn’t anymore, pushing him back at the same time. “Then the guy in the red shorts came up and tackled me … I went to the ground. I think I hit one of them.” Finally, help had arrived, Mr Pickett said as he recounted a tall Black man and a security guard coming to his aid. “Two people were pulling them off me,” he said. But then before he knew it, “one of my co-workers had jumped into the water and was pushing people and fighting.” As the Harriott II finally docked, Mr Pickett’s said his nephew “ran off the boat and went after them. I was screaming for him to come back.” “The security guard was trying to get the lady in red to leave; she wouldn’t listen. People from off the boat and spectators were coming down the back end of the dock. The guy who started it all was choking my sister. I hit him, grabbed her and moved her … I turned around and MPD had a Taser in my face. I told him I was the one being attacked and could I finish doing my job.” Mr Pickett did just that as he helped passengers off the cruise boat and apologised to them “for the inconvenience. They all said I did nothing wrong,” he wrote. “Some of them were giving me cards with their names and numbers on it. Some said they had it all on film, so I pointed them out to MPD.” He was eventually transported to the hospital where he was treated for minor injuries. Five people have been arrested for their alleged involvement in the brawl. Reggie Gray, 42, turned himself in to Montgomery Police on Friday, three days after the police chief asked him to get in contact with authorities for further questioning. He was charged with disorderly conduct, police said. Mary Todd, 21, was charged with assault in the third degree. She is currently behind bars in the Municipal Jail, the police added. She joins three other men who were arrested following the wild riverfront fight. It’s unclear whether she and Allen Todd, a 23-year-old man who turned himself in on Wednesday, are related. Zachary Shipman, 25, also turned himself in on Wednesday night after police asked him and Mr Todd to turn themselves in no later than Tuesday. Richard Roberts, 48, was also held in custody in Selma as of Tuesday. Police have previously said that the three men who were arrested were members of the pontoon boat, which was blocking the Harriott II riverboat from docking in its designated space. It’s unclear if Ms Todd was also aboard the craft. The captain of the Harriott II said he believes this interaction was “racially motivated,” but the massive brawl that transpired afterwards was not. Capt Jim Kitrell also noted earlier this week that he has had “trouble” with the pontoon boat owners in the past, and had considered pressing charges against them years ago, yet was talked out of it. Read More Fourth suspect charged with assault in Alabama riverfront brawl as she turns herself in to police Alabama dockside brawl was racially motivated, riverboat captain says Alabama riverboat captain reveals past ‘trouble’ with pontoon boat owners after brawl

A fifth suspect was charged following the violent Mongtomery riverfront brawl. Reggie Gray, 42, turned himself in to Montgomery Police on Friday, three days after the police chief asked him to get in contact with authorities for further questioning. He was charged with disorderly conduct, police said. Mr Gray is currently being housed in the Municipal Jail. The police chief previously described him as the man seen “wielding that folding chair” in footage of the incident. Mr Gray seemed to pick up a folding chair and whack people on the dock over the head with it, videos show. His arrest comes one day after 21-year-old Mary Todd turned herself in, and was charged with assault in the third degree. Before that, Richard Roberts, 48, Zachery Shipman, 25, and Allen Todd, were also charged for their alleged involvement in the fight on the dock. The fight broke out after the Harriott II riverboat was trying to park in its designated space, but a pontoon boat was blocking. After numerous attempts to get in contact with the pontoon boat owners over a PA system, senior deckhand Dameion Pickett approached them in person. Chaos ensued. One of the members of the pontoon boat began attacking Mr Pickett. Soon afterward, a massive fight broke out along the dock. Police said on Friday that the investigation is ongoing. Read More Alabama riverboat captain reveals past ‘trouble’ with pontoon boat owners after brawl Fourth suspect charged with assault in Alabama riverfront brawl as she turns herself in to police Alabama riverfront brawl suspects finally turn themselves in

Michael Cohen, former President Donald Trump’s former attorney, is reportedly weighing a run for Congress. “I am interested and there’s a multitude of folks encouraging me to run,” the former president’s former fixer told Semafor. Mr Cohen told the outlet that he would run as a Democrat. “I’m still contemplating the run,” Mr Cohen confirmed to The Independent, but said he wouldn’t be divulging any further details, like a timeline or what would sway his decision one way or another, at this time. Mr Cohen told The Independent that he has been living in Manhattan since 1991. He lives on the East side of Manhattan, according to Semafor, meaning he would run against Rep Jerry Nadler in the 12th congressional district. Mr Nadler is the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee and has served in Congress since 1992. A potential congressional run for Mr Cohen would be particularly interesting during the next election cycle, as he is likely to be a key player in the Manhattan trial against Mr Trump involving hush money payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels. Mr Cohen admitted to paying Ms Daniels hush money payments during Mr Trump’s 2016 campaign — after being directed by Mr Trump to do so. The former president was indicted in March by a grand jury and pleaded not guilty to 34 felony charges for falsification of business records. Mr Cohen has been an outspoken critic of Mr Trump in recent years, and the pair have been engaged in ongoing legal battles. Earlier this month, Mr Trump was called to sit for a September deposition as part of his $500m lawsuit against his former attorney, claiming that he has “suffered vast reputational harm as a direct result of Defendant’s breaches.” Last month, Mr Trump reached a settlement with Mr Cohen over $1.3m in unpaid legal bills. Read More All of Trump’s lawsuits and criminal charges and where they stand Michael Cohen claims Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner ‘probably a cooperating witness’ in probe Trump called for deposition in $500m lawsuit against Michael Cohen

House Republicans are still scrambling to find a path forward with less than two months until the government runs out of funding, as the right wing of the GOP conference is still insisting it needs to see more spending cuts in order to support a series of bills to avert a government shutdown.

Attorney General Merrick Garland announced that he granted the US attorney investigating Hunter Biden special counsel status. Mr Garland announced that David Weiss, who has served as the US Attorney for Delaware since 2018, would serve as special counsel and he had informed relevant members of Congress about the nomination. The move is a shift from July when Mr Weiss informed Congress that he had not requested special counsel designation for his investigation into the president’s son. But on Tuesday, Mr Weiss requested such status. “I have concluded that it is in the public interest to appoint him as special counsel,” Mr Garland said on Friday. “This appointment confirms my commitment to provide Mr. Weiss all the resources he request.” Mr Weiss had previously been investigating Hunter Biden since 2019. Mr Garland and the Department of Justice allowed Mr Weiss to stay on board as US attorney when Joe Biden took office in 2021 to continue his investigation of Hunter Biden. In July, Hunter Biden looked set to enter into a plea deal for unpaid taxes and lying on a federal application for a firearm. Republicans, including former president Donald Trump, had decried the agreement as a sweetheart deal. Many Republicans argued that Hunter Biden received preferential treatment because he is the president’s son despite the fact that Mr Trump nominated Mr Weiss and Republicans in the Senate voted to confirm him in 2018. Then in late July, Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty to two of the charges after the presiding judge questioned whether the deal would prohibit the federal government from prosecuting him for other crimes he might have committed in the future. The White House referred to remarks from Mr Garland and the Justice Department when asked by The Independent. Mr Garland said that Mr Weiss’s office would not be subjected to day-to-day supervision but would have to comply with regulations, procedures and policies of the Justice Department. Mr Weiss would also be mandated to write a report of his investigation once it concludes. “ As with each special counsel who has served since I have taken office, I am committed to making as much of his report public as possible, consistent with legal requirements and department policy,” he said. “Today's announcement affords the prosecutors agents and analysts working on this matter, the ability to proceed with our work expeditiously and to make decisions indisputably guided only by the facts and the law.” Mr Garland’s announcement comes the same day that former president Donald Trump’s legal team appeared in court in Washington, DC and earned a win as US District Judge Tanya Chutkan ruled that a protective order against Mr Trump would only apply to sensitive material such as jury transcripts, witness interview records and other documents. Mr Trump faces charges for his attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election after a federal grand jury indicted him in response to a presentation from Special Counsel Jack Smith’s office. Mr Garland nominated Mr Smith to investigate Mr Smith to investigate Mr Trump. In addition, the attorney nominated Robert Hur to investigate classified documents found in locations associated with President Biden earlier this year. But House Oversight & Accountability Committee blasted the move by Mr Garland. “Let’s be clear what today’s move is really about,” the statement said. “The Biden Justice Department is trying to stonewall congressional oversight as we have presented evidence to the American people about the Biden family’s corruption. Our Committee will continue to follow the Biden family’s money trail and interview witnesses to determine whether foreign actors targeted the Bidens, President Biden is compromised and corrupt, and our national security is threatened.” Read More Hunter Biden’s plea deal appears at risk of falling apart. What happens next? Hunter Biden pleads not guilty to two tax charges after court chaos around deal with prosecutors Judge shuts down Trump lawyer as he claims protective order would give Biden an ‘advantage’ EXPLAINER: What are special counsels and what do they do? Attorney General Garland will appoint special counsel in Hunter Biden probe Utah man killed after threats against Biden believed government was corrupt and overreaching

Republicans are vowing to continue their investigations related to President Joe Biden's son, Hunter, after Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Friday he is appointing a special counsel to oversee the ongoing criminal probe.

Protesters gather in Niamey after a West African bloc approve intervention against coup leaders.