Israel to pause Gaza fighting ahead of US hostage Edan Alexander’s release by Hamas
Office of NJ Governor Phil Murphy
LONDON — American-Israeli hostage Edan Alexander — held captive by Hamas in the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, 2023 — was set to be released Monday after successful negotiations between the U.S. and the Palestinian group.
Israeli security officials told ABC News there would be a temporary pause in combat, airstrikes and aerial reconnaissance in the area of Gaza where Alexander is to be released.
The pause will last until Alexander crosses into Israeli territory, officials said, which is expected to take less than 30 minutes.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(WASHINGTON) — The nonprofit corporation that oversees National Public Radio and the Public Broadcasting Service is firing back at President Donald Trump’s executive order to pull funding for the two popular media outlets.
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting pointed out that Congress controls its funding, not the president.
“CPB is not a federal executive agency subject to the President’s authority,” Patricia Harrison, president and CEO of the CPB, said in a statement Friday. “Congress directly authorized and funded CPB to be a private nonprofit corporation wholly independent of the federal government.”
She continued, “In creating CPB, Congress expressly forbade ‘any department, agency, officer, or employee of the United States to exercise any direction, supervision, or control over educational television or radio broadcasting, or over [CPB] or any of its grantees or contractors.'”
On his way to Florida aboard Air Force One on Thursday, Trump signed an executive order instructing the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to “cease direct funding to NPR and PBS.”
The order blocks federal funding to NPR and PBS to the maximum extent allowed by law, according to a fact sheet from the White House. It also prevents indirect funding to PBS and NPR by prohibiting local public radio and television stations, and any other recipients of CPB funds, from using taxpayer dollars to support the organizations.
The order mandates that the CPB revise its 2025 General Provisions to explicitly prohibit direct or indirect funding to NPR and PBS. It directs all federal agencies to terminate any direct or indirect funding to NPR and PBS and to review existing grants and contracts for compliance. Additionally, it instructs the Federal Communications Commission and relevant agencies to investigate whether NPR and PBS have engaged in unlawful discrimination.
In the fact sheet, the White House claims the two news organizations “have fueled partisanship and left-wing propaganda with taxpayer dollars.”
“I hear, respect and understand your concerns regarding bias and whether public media is relevant in a commercial landscape,” NPR President and CEO Katherine Maher said at the hearing. “It is critical for NPR’s newsroom to operate with the highest journalistic standards. That means they do their jobs independently, and as CEO I have no editorial role at NPR.”
Minutes later, PBS President and CEO Paula Kerger added: “PBS stations are focused on the needs and interests of the viewers they serve. Especially in rural areas, PBS stations are the only outlets providing coverage for local events, for example high school sports, local history and culture content, candidate debates at every level of the election ballot and specialized agricultural news.”
NPR and PBS are primarily funded through a combination of public and private sources. The CPB, a federal agency, provides a portion of the funding, along with private donations from individuals, foundations and corporations. The CPB oversees dozens of media organizations in addition to NPR and PBS, including everything from American Public Media to Native Public Media and Public Media in Mid-America.
Those in the Senate and House quickly responded along party lines.
“The fact that taxpayers are forced to subsidize far-left propaganda outlets like NPR is an outrage,” Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., wrote on X. “I commend President Trump for his common-sense order ending taxpayer funding for liberal media outlets.
“President Trump is once again walking us towards authoritarianism, by eliminating funds for PBS and NPR, claiming it will stop ‘biased and partisan news coverage,'” Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., wrote on X. “NPR and PBS is how 160 million Americans find their fact-based, impartial news each month.”
“These organizations were created under an act of Congress, and therefore cannot be eliminated in an executive order,” he continued. “We need these programs and must challenge this ruling in the courts.”
ABC News’ Max Zahn and Lalee Ibssa contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — In a social media post on the day of Canada’s election, President Donald Trump suggested that Canadians should vote for him in order for Canada to become the 51st state.
“Elect the man who has the strength and wisdom to cut your taxes in half, increase your military power, for free, to the highest level in the World, have your Car, Steel, Aluminum, Lumber, Energy, and all other businesses, QUADRUPLE in size, with ZERO TARIFFS OR TAXES, if Canada becomes the cherished 51st. State of the United States of America,” Trump said on Monday, seeming to refer to himself as the candidate.
He added, “America can no longer subsidize Canada with the Hundreds of Billions of Dollars a year that we have been spending in the past. It makes no sense unless Canada is a State!”
Despite Trump’s suggestion, Canadians cannot vote for him since he is not on the ballot. There are 16 registered political parties in Canada — with the Liberals and the Conservatives being the most dominant. Other parties include the Green Party, the Libertarian Party, the United Party and the Canadian Future Party.
In response to the president’s post, Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre issued a sharp reply, saying Trump should “stay out of our election.”
“The only people who will decide the future of Canada are Canadians at the ballot box. Canada will always be proud, sovereign, and independent, and we will NEVER be the 51st state,” Poilievre wrote in a post on X. “Today, Canadians can vote for change so we can strengthen our country, stand on our own two feet, and stand up to America from a position of strength.”
Canadian Prime Minister and Liberal Party leader Mark Carney posted a video on X on Monday with the message: “This is Canada — and we decide what happens here.”
Latest polls show the Liberals ahead of the Conservatives, when only a few months ago the Conservatives held a 25-point lead.
Canada has a parliamentary system, meaning if the Liberals win a majority of seats in the election, or are able to form a minority government with members of another party, Carney will continue to serve as prime minister.
Nearly all of the polls for the election are expected to close by 9:30 p.m. ET on Monday.
White House “Border Czar” Tom Homan speaks with ABC News while appearing on ‘This Week.’ Via ABC News.
(WASHINGTON) — Trump White House border czar Tom Homan stood by the administration’s position on the return to the U.S. of Kilmer Abrego Garcia, the Salvadoran national the Justice Department said was erroneously deported to a prison in his home country, and waived off responsibility for the migrant’s status in an interview with ABC News.
Homan spoke with “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl in an interview that will air this Sunday about the case and repeated the Trump administration’s allegations that Abrego Garcia is an MS-13 member and a violent threat to the public.
“We removed a public safety threat, a national security threat, a violent gang member from the United States,” he alleged.
Abrego Garcia’s attorneys and family members have denied that he is a member of MS-13, and the gang allegations are being disputed in court.
Watch more of Jonathan Karl’s interview with Tom Homan on “This Week” at 9 a.m. Sunday on ABC.
However, much of the evidence that has been cited by President Donald Trump and his allies, such as clothing they argue symbolizes gang membership, has not been brought up in court since the current administration began litigating this case.
The Supreme Court unanimously ordered the administration to “facilitate” Abrego Garcia’s return to the U.S. for a trial. As of Friday, the administration has not taken active steps to do so.
When asked by Karl about the order, Homan claimed the Trump administration does not have the right or ability to bring Abrego Garcia back to the U.S. and argued Abrego Garcia is under the authority of the El Salvador government.
“I understand that ‘facilitate,’ but he’s also in the custody — he’s a citizen and a national of the country of El Salvador. El Salvador would certainly have to cooperate in that,” Homan said.
“But again, I’m out of the loop on that. I’m not an attorney. I’m not litigating this case. We’ll do whatever the law says we have to do, but I think and I stand by the fact [that] I think we did the right thing here,” he said.
Homan also joined Trump and other Republicans in their criticism of Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., who traveled to El Salvador this week and met with Abrego Garcia.
“You know, what bothers me more than that is a U.S. senator traveled to El Salvador on taxpayer dime to meet with an MS-13 gang member, [a] public safety threat, terrorist,” Homan said, without providing evidence that Van Hollen is using taxpayer money for the trip.
When ABC News reached out to Van Hollen’s office for comment on how the trip was funded, his office replied, “the Senator traveled in his official capacity with bipartisan approval to follow up on the case of a constituent and conduct oversight of U.S. foreign assistance programs. He did fly commercial.”
Abrego Garcia has never been convicted of a crime in the U.S., and his wife, Jennifer Vasquez, told ABC News on Wednesday that her husband has “never been convicted for anything.”
Homan accused the senator of not taking time to meet with victims of MS-13 gang members in his state and inaction under the Biden administration to address border concerns.
“What concerns me is Van Hollen never went to the border the last four years under Joe Biden. … What shocks me is he’s remained silent on the travesty that happened on the southern border. Many people died, thousands of people died,” he said.
Upon returning to the U.S., Van Hollen told reporters his trip was about more than Abrego Garcia’s case.
“This case is not only about one man, as important as that is,” Van Hollen said. “It is about protecting fundamental freedoms and the fundamental principle in the Constitution for due process that protects everybody who resides in America.”
