West Point disbands student clubs related to gender and race
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(WEST POINT, N.Y.) — The U.S. Military Academy at West Point has disbanded a dozen clubs on campus related to gender and race, ABC News has confirmed.
The National Society of Black Engineers, the Society of Women Engineers Club, the Latin Cultural Club and the Native American Heritage Forum were among the clubs ordered to cease operations.
The changes were made “in accordance with recent Presidential Executive Orders, Department of Defense guidance, and the Department of the Army guidance,” according to a memo obtained by ABC News.
The memo, dated Tuesday, comes amid President Donald Trump’s sweeping eradication of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in the federal government.
The directive “cancels all sections, meetings, events, and other activities associated with these clubs,” according to the memo.
Websites for the various clubs are no longer available online.
The memo also suggests a full review of other clubs on campus is underway.
West Point did not immediately respond to a request for comment from ABC News.
(WASHINGTON) — A former CIA analyst arrested in November and charged with leaking highly classified records showing Israeli plans to launch a retaliatory strike on Iran pleaded guilty Friday in a federal court in Virginia.
Asif Rahman, 34, pleaded guilty to two counts of transmission of national defense information, according to court records.
Rahman faces up to 10 years in prison for the first count and up to three years for the second count. His sentencing was set for May 15.
Rahman admitted to accessing and printing out two documents regarding Israel’s retaliatory strike plans on Oct. 17 and transporting them to his residence, where he later uploaded images of them and provided them to “multiple individuals he knew were not entitled to receive them,” according to the plea agreement.
He later took various steps to try and conceal his involvement in the leak, even as authorities were able to track him down remarkably quickly given he was the only individual found to have printed out the documents, according to logs reviewed by investigators.
Rahman was arrested in Cambodia and later brought to Guam, according to the charging documents.
Rahman, a U.S. citizen, worked as an employee for the CIA starting in 2016.
In the days after the disclosure, Rahman deleted “approximately 1.5 gigabytes” of data from his personal folder in the Top Secret system, including scores of highly classified materials he had downloaded over the years — largely relating to the Middle East, according to prosecutors.
(NEW YORK) — The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has reached a settlement with Amazon over allegations of hazardous workplace conditions, ABC News first reported Thursday. The settlement requires that Amazon adopt “corporate-wide ergonomic measures” to reduce the risk of injuries to workers.
The 10 facilities cited in the settlement, located in New York, Florida, Idaho, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Illinois and New Jersey, all had a high number of complaints of workplace injury. Amazon will have to pay a $145,000 penalty, adopt workplace safety measures and allow OSHA access to inspect those facilities for the next two years, according to the terms of the settlement.
Though the settlement only mandates oversight on those 10 facilities, all Amazon facilities will be required to adopt new safety measures and provide procedures for their employees to voice their concerns about workplace conditions.
A Department of Labor official said the settlement is the “largest of its kind” and “will resolve all outstanding ergonomic litigation” by the agency against Amazon. The official noted, however, that the settlement will not affect the investigation into the company by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York over allegations Amazon conspired to conceal injuries and risks to workers at its warehouses. Amazon has denied those allegations.
“Today’s agreement acknowledges our progress and notes that we should keep implementing and following our existing comprehensive ergonomics policies and procedures,” Amazon said in a statement following the announcement of the settlement. “There isn’t a claim of wrong-doing on Amazon’s part for the withdrawn citations, nor a directive to adopt new safety controls. We appreciate OSHA’s willingness to consider all the facts and reach today’s agreement with us, and we look forward to continuing to work with them going forward.”
ABC News reached out to Amazon for additional comment.
This settlement comes as Amazon workers have gone on strike at facilities across the country, citing low pay, lack of benefits and poor conditions.
(OHIO) — An Ohio doctor has been charged with arson after allegedly setting fire to another doctor’s house, officials said.
Andrew Campbell, 33, was arrested following an investigation into the Dec. 7 blaze, which police told ABC News they “determined to have not been accidental in nature.”
On Tuesday, a grand jury indicted Campbell on six counts of aggravated arson.
Authorities are looking into a possible connection between the fire and an alleged affair between Campbell’s wife and Dr. Tahir Jamil, who was targeted with the arson.
Jamil told police he and Campbell’s wife had an affair from late July to early August 2024, according to the police report. On Aug. 7, she allegedly told Jamil her husband had discovered their relationship.
A spokesperson for the University of Toledo confirmed Campbell is a fellow in their Hematology-Oncology program.
He was placed on unpaid administrative leave after the school was informed of the charges, the spokesperson said in a statement to ABC News.
“The University will decline further comment at this time as authorities conduct their investigation,” the spokesperson said.
