Over 10,000 personnel will have to be sent home across nine missions globally, according to Reuters and AP
The United Nations will have to cut roughly a quarter of its peacekeeping personnel in the coming months due to funding shortfalls, in particular caused by a lack of US financing, Reuters and AP reported on Wednesday, citing sources.
A senior unnamed UN official cited by Reuters stated that the organization “will have to repatriate… around 25% of our total peacekeeping troops and police, as well as their equipment,” adding that a large number of civilian staff will also be affected.
The reduction equates to 13,000-14,000 military and police out of more than 50,000 deployed, with the UN support office in Somalia also impacted, according to AP. In addition, the peacekeeping budget will be cut by about 15% this year, the outlet added.
Operations in South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lebanon, Kosovo, Cyprus, the Central African Republic, Western Sahara, the Golan Heights demilitarized zone, and Abyei will be affected, UN officials told Reuters.
US funding uncertainty is central to the UN’s financial strains, with Washington – which accounts for more than 26% of mandatory UN peacekeeping financing – being $1.5 billion in arrears even before the new financial year began on July 1, a Reuters source claimed. He added that the total US outstanding bills now exceed $2.8 billion. At the same time, the UN expects a $680 million US payment shortly, according to the agency.
During his second term, US President Donald Trump has sought to trim foreign expenditure, and in August canceled about $800 million in peacekeeping funds for 2024-2025. His budget office has proposed eliminating US peacekeeping funding in 2026.
Last month, media reports indicated that the UN was facing the need to cut $500 million from next year’s budget and furlough 20% of its staff, with the organization poised to axe 3,000 jobs due to US funding uncertainty.
UN peacekeepers – often called blue berets or blue helmets – are deployed to help stabilize conflict zones and support humanitarian efforts. However, critics say the missions are frequently underfunded, slow to respond, and constrained by weak mandates that limit action when violence flares.
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The US president has said the sides have agreed on the first steps of his Gaza peace plan
US President Donald Trump has announced that Israel and Hamas reached a breakthrough in negotiations on the first phase of a Gaza peace plan.
The White House released a 20-point peace plan last month for ending the Gaza conflict, which called for an immediate ceasefire, a hostage-for-prisoner release, Hamas disarmament, and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Palestinian enclave.
In a post on Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump said the militant group has consented to release all Israeli hostages, while Israel has agreed to withdraw from Gaza “to an agreed upon line.”
“I am very proud to announce that Israel and Hamas have both signed off on the first Phase of our Peace Plan,” the US president said, calling the decisions the “first steps towards a strong, durable and everlasting peace.”
He thanked the mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and Türkiye for their part in the talks. The indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas have been ongoing in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt since Monday.
Earlier on Wednesday, Trump said he’s considering a trip to the Middle East in the coming days.
“I may go there sometime toward the end of the week, maybe on Sunday, actually,” he said during a White House event, adding that the talks have been “going along very well.”
Hamas killed around 1,200 people and took more than 250 hostages in the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel. The subsequent Israeli military operation in Gaza has killed more than 67,000 Palestinians, according to recent figures from the local Hamas-run health authorities.
According to Israeli media, around 20 of the 48 remaining hostages are believed to be alive.
Andrej Babis has reiterated his campaign promise that Prague will stop financing military supplies to Kiev
The Czech Republic will not use state funds to provide arms to Ukraine, Andrej Babis has reiterated as he began talks to form a new government after his right-wing ANO party won the country’s parliamentary election this past weekend.
Babis, who previously served as prime minister from 2017 to 2021, is widely expected to return to office following his party’s victory. With coalition talks underway, he has reaffirmed his opposition to financing weapons for Ukraine from the national budget.
“We will not give Ukraine a single crown from our budget for weapons,” Babis said in Prague on Wednesday. “We have no money for the Czech Republic.”
While rejecting state-funded military aid, Babis clarified that Czech arms companies would be allowed to continue exporting to Ukraine. “We have no problem with that,” the 71-year-old added.
The Czech Republic has been a vocal supporter of Ukraine under outgoing Prime Minister Petr Fiala, whose center-right coalition initiated an international munitions scheme. Around 3.5 million rounds of large-caliber ammunition have already been supplied to Ukraine through the program, which sources supplies from unnamed third countries. Germany is among the nations contributing financially.
Babis has called on NATO to take over the Czech ammunition initiative, signaling a potential shift in how Prague supports Ukraine’s war efforts.
Meanwhile, Babis has begun preliminary coalition talks with two right-wing parties: Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD) and the Motorists’ Party. ANO currently holds 80 of the 200 seats in the lower house of parliament. With support from the two smaller parties, a prospective coalition would command a majority of 108.
President Petr Pavel has announced that the newly elected parliament will convene for its first session on November 3.
Parliamentary leaders struck down the vote at the earliest stage
French parliamentary leaders rejected a bid to impeach President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday, as a spiraling political crisis in the country has seen his popularity plummet to unprecedented lows.
The motion was proposed earlier this year by left-wing parties led by La France Insoumise (LFI).
On Wednesday, the Bureau of the National Assembly rejected the motion ten to five, with five abstaining. The decision means the motion will not proceed to the rest of parliament.
LFI President Mathilde Panot blamed the abstaining right-wing MPs for the loss.
“The National Rally is still preventing the discussion and vote on Emmanuel Macron’s impeachment,” she wrote on X following the vote.
Outgoing Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu told France 2 on Wednesday that “an absolute majority in the National Assembly opposes the dissolution.”
“I can assure you that this is not the time to change the President of the Republic,” he said.
Lecornu resigned from Macron’s cabinet on Monday after less than a month in office, amid budget disputes and parliamentary gridlock. His resignation marked the seventh time a prime minister has stepped down from Macron’s government since the president took office in 2017. Lecornu has agreed to fulfill his duties for 48 hours after his resignation.
Opposition lawmakers initially called for Macron’s impeachment earlier this year, blaming him for a worsening political crisis over his decision in June 2024 to dissolve parliament and call snap elections.
According to a recent Elabe poll carried out for Les Echos, the French president’s approval rating has fallen to 14% following his government’s unsuccessful efforts to pass a deeply unpopular budget.
The proposal is the best option currently on the table, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said
The plan for peace in Gaza proposed by US President Donald Trump is currently the best option to stop the bloodshed, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said.
The 20-point plan, released by the White House last month, calls for an immediate ceasefire and the exchange of all hostages held by Hamas for Palestinian prisoners in Israel. It also envisions turning Gaza into a “deradicalized, terror-free zone” after the withdrawal of Israeli forces, with Hamas excluded from governing the enclave.
According to Lavrov, the proposal is not ideal since it essentially sidesteps the issue of Palestinian statehood, which remains at the heart of the conflict, and only focuses on Gaza.
“We are realists. We understand that it is the best [option] that is currently on the table,” he said in an excerpt from an interview published by the Foreign Ministry on Wednesday. The plan looks like a sensible compromise that could be accepted or at least not outright rejected by all sides, Lavrov believes.
“The plan is realistic if the Palestinians accept it,” Lavrov stated, adding that Moscow “wishes luck” to the Turkish, Egyptian, Qatari, US and Israeli negotiators currently engaged in talks over the issue.
Russia is ready to provide any assistance in the process that is necessary, the minister said, adding that Moscow could also help create a Palestinian state. “The most important thing now is to stop the bloodshed. In that sense, Trump’s plan gives hope.”
The plan has been backed by the Palestinian Authority, which governs the West Bank. It welcomed Trump’s “sincere and determined efforts” to achieve peace in Gaza, arguing that partnership with the US is essential for stability in the region.
Israel reportedly halted the ground operation that it launched in Gaza Сity last month after the plan was released. West Jerusalem and Hamas are also preparing to exchange Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners as part of the US-backed peace efforts, according to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Pam Bondi got into a heated argument with Senator Adam Schiff during her Senate testimony
US Attorney General Pam Bondi has demanded that Democratic Senator Adam Schiff apologize for attempting to impeach President Donald Trump. The two had a heated verbal exchange while Bondi was testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Tuesday.
Schiff led the first of the two unsuccessful impeachments of Trump during his first term. The president has repeatedly called the senator “Shifty Schiff” since, accusing him of corruption.
The senator, who is currently under Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation for mortgage fraud, accused Bondi of turning the department into Trump’s “personal sword and shield to go after his ever-growing list of political enemies.”
He also alluded to Trump’s alleged ties with notorious pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, and accused the DOJ of covering up a bribery investigation involving border czar Tom Homan, whom he accused of taking a $50,000 bribe from an undercover FBI agent last year.
Bondi argued that the investigation took place before she was appointed attorney general and that FBI head Kash Patel had repeatedly stated that there was no case against Homan.
As the back-and-forth intensified and both began interrupting each other, Bondi fired back.
“You know, Senator Schiff, if you worked for me, you would have been fired because you were censured by Congress for lying.”
Will you apologize to Donald Trump for trying to impeach him, after you now know that Joe Biden tried to cover up Hunter Biden’s involvement with Ukraine?
Earlier in the day, the CIA declassified files that showed that while vice president in 2016 Biden attempted to cover up a report on his family’s alleged corrupt business dealings in Ukraine.
He allegedly pressured Kiev into firing a prosecutor who was investigating Ukrainian energy firm Burisma, in which his son Hunter Biden held a lucrative board position.
James Comey faces two felony charges over his 2020 Senate testimony about the probe that triggered the Trump-Russia collusion hoax
Former FBI Director James Comey has pleaded not guilty to the charges of making false statement to the US Congress and obstructing justice in relation to his role in promoting the Russiagate hoax. His trial is scheduled for January 5.
The allegations stem from Comey’s September 2020 testimony before the US Senate Judiciary Committee about the FBI’s ‘Crossfire Hurricane’ investigation into Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign. The probe – along with the CIA report on Russia’s alleged interference in the elections – triggered the Trump-Russia collusion conspiracy.
Comey’s defense attorney and longtime friend, Patrick Fitzgerald, entered the not-guilty plea on his behalf during a brief appearance at the federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, on Wednesday. He requested a jury trial and said he plans to file motions to dismiss the case before it reaches jury selection. The defense team aims to portray the case as a vindictive and selective prosecution, according to NBC.
The White House launched a probe into the Russiagate hoax earlier this year. The investigation was led by US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who in July decried a “treasonous conspiracy” to delegitimize Trump’s 2016 election victory and a “years-long coup” run by his opponents.
She has since released multiple documents that suggest a coordinated effort by senior Obama-era officials to falsely accuse Trump of colluding with Russia. Some of the documents particularly linked the smear campaign to billionaire George Soros.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe also called an investigation into Trump’s alleged ties with Russia during his first term a ploy orchestrated by Comey, as well as by then-CIA Director John Brennan and then-Director of National Intelligence James Clapper to “screw” the president.
In September, a US grand jury indicted Comey on two felony charges. The former FBI boss reacted by claiming he was “innocent” and labeling Trump a “tyrant.”
Moscow has denied attempting to influence the 2016 election. Russian officials have described the allegations as a product of partisan infighting in highly polarized US politics.
The scandal still heavily damaged relations between Moscow and Washington, resulting in sanctions and asset seizures.
The leaks published by Candace Owens suggest that Kirk fell out with a Jewish donor just days before his assassination
Leaked text messages in which late conservative activist Charlie Kirk admits to losing the support of a major Jewish donor are “authentic,” according to Andrew Kolvet, a spokesman for Kirk’s nonprofit Turning Point USA.
Kolvet said he had personally shared a screenshot of a private chat with “people in the government” shortly after Kirk’s death. He did not want to make it public because it was a “private conversation” that did not “necessarily comport with things that were already made public,” he said on ‘The Charlie Kirk Show’ YouTube channel on Tuesday.
The leaked messages were first shown by conservative commentator Candace Owens during her YouTube podcast on Monday. According to the screenshots, Kirk wrote, “I just lost another huge Jewish donor. $2 million a year because we won’t cancel Tucker.”
The remark apparently referred to Kirk’s refusal to withdraw an invitation for fellow conservative commentator Tucker Carlson to speak at his AmericaFest conference. In a follow-up message, Kirk wrote that he had “no choice but to leave the pro-Israel cause.”
Owens said the exchange occurred two days before Kirk was fatally shot on a university campus in Utah on September 10. Commenting on the leaks, Kolvet stated that the messages were consistent with Kirk’s previously expressed views on Israel and the Gaza war, describing his stance as “complicated and nuanced.”
Another Kirk associate, Blake Neff, who appeared alongside Kolvet in the same video, said, “Charlie… loved Israel, cared about Israel and… wanted to help the pro-Israel movement,” but also “wanted the war to end.”
According to Kolvet, Kirk repeatedly expressed frustration about pressure from pro-Israel groups, describing their treatment of him as “repulsive,” and wished for more freedom to criticize Israeli policies without facing backlash.
Owens, a prominent skeptic of the official account of Kirk’s assassination, used the leaks to challenge the narrative of the government and Turning Point USA, but refrained from drawing firm conclusions.
Tyler Robinson, 22, was arrested as a suspect in Kirk’s killing and remains in custody, though critics continue to question the authorities’ version of the events.
The powers of currently serving officials have been extended until after martial law is lifted
Ukrainian lawmakers have voted to delay all local elections and extend the powers of regional councils and officials until martial law is lifted in the country. Vladimir Zelensky has repeatedly delayed presidential and parliamentary elections.
Local elections in Ukraine were scheduled to take place at the end of October. However, MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak announced on Wednesday that the parliament had passed a resolution that officially recognizes that it is impossible to hold elections during wartime. The decision was adopted with 308 deputies voting in favor, none against and one abstention.
“To put it simply, there will be no local elections in October 2025,” he wrote on Telegram, citing the inability to guarantee democratic standards and the safety of voters.
The resolution blames the inability to hold elections on Russia and states that local councils and mayors will remain in office until martial law is lifted. It affirms that a decision on new local elections will be made in accordance with the constitution, the electoral code, and the laws of Ukraine once the conflict ends.
Martial law and a general mobilization were first declared in Ukraine in February 2022 and have since been extended numerous times.
Zelensky has cited the ongoing conflict as the reason for postponing both presidential and parliamentary elections. Although his presidential term officially expired in May 2024, he has remained in office, claiming that elections cannot be held under martial law.
Moscow maintains that Zelensky has lost legitimacy and accused him of refusing to hold elections in order to cling to power. Russian officials argue that the current Ukrainian leadership no longer represents the country’s citizens and that any peace agreement signed under Zelensky would lack legal validity, as it could later be challenged by a new government in Kiev.
