Lest he forget
The US, Iran, Libya, France, India, Thailand, and Cambodia.
Hello,
Here are the five things you need to know today:
UNITED STATES. Trump’s selective memory comes in for examination.
IRAN. Sanctions and drought divide the regime.
LIBYA. FRANCE. Sarkozy and Gaddafi Jr are granted bail.
INDIA. Bombs, elections, protests, and a new ambassador rattle the BJP.
THAILAND. CAMBODIA. Ahead of a visit to Beijing, Bangkok gives war a chance.
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UNITED STATES. Loyalty test
Trump’s selective memory comes in for examination.
Donald Trump welcomed Syria’s Ahmed al-Sharaa to the White House Monday, noting “we’ve all had rough pasts.” Trump issued a largely symbolic pardon to Rudy Giuliani and at least 76 others accused of seeking to overturn the 2020 election.
INTELLIGENCE. Iraq veterans may squirm that a former Al Qaeda commander is now being feted, but such is war and politics. The administration’s ahistoricity is more bracing than most, and whether from Confederate statues, to a tolerance of Holocaust denial, to the questioning of furloughed air controllers’ patriotism, the MAGA movement is even more tendentious. Still, realities could truly clash when Congress resumes, and Jeffrey Epstein is due for debate.
FOR BUSINESS. The shutdown has let a vacuum on the alleged Epstein files be filled by unfalsifiable rumour. Reports Epstein’s girlfriend will seek commutation from Trump, having already been transferred to a low-security facility, have added fuel, and led to clashes between Trump and ex-loyalists like Marjorie Taylor Greene. As more stalwart acolytes urge him to disregard the courts on a likely tariff overturn, the court of public opinion may prove harder to ignore.
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IRAN. Oil and water
Sanctions and drought divide the regime.
IAEA inspectors visited last week, Iran said Monday, a turnaround from previous statements. Donald Trump last week said Iran had asked for sanctions to be lifted. Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran may need to be evacuated due to drought.
INTELLIGENCE. Iran has proposed moving the capital (Tehran is its 32nd) for years.