In a surprising move, the judge overseeing the corruption trial of former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan instructed the jury on Monday to disregard all testimony from Illinois state Rep. Bob Rita, D-Blue Island. Judge John Robert Blakey gave no explanation for the decision, despite Rita’s brief testimony on October 24.
Chicago experienced another violent weekend, with at least 16 people shot, including four fatalities, under Mayor Brandon Johnson’s leadership. Gun violence continues to plague the city, which has already seen 544 homicides in 2024, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
The National Association of Independent Schools’ (NAIS) annual “equity and justice” conference has been criticized as a “festival of Jew hate” by attendees and parents, after Jewish students reported feeling unsafe and unwelcome due to inflammatory rhetoric from speakers.
Several European nations are exploring financial incentives to encourage Syrian refugees to voluntarily return to their home country, as the prolonged cost of hosting them on welfare programs weighs heavily on national budgets.
Russia unleashed a large-scale aerial bombardment on Ukraine early Friday, targeting critical energy and transportation infrastructure in what Moscow described as retaliation for Ukraine's use of U.S.-supplied ATACMS missiles on a Russian air base earlier this week. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the assault one of the heaviest since the war began nearly three years ago.
Dutch populist leader Geert Wilders was awarded the Jabotinsky Prize for Liberty during his visit to Israel, where he affirmed his unwavering support for the Jewish state. Speaker of the Knesset Amir Ohana presented the award, commending Wilders for his decades-long advocacy against radical Islam and support for Israel’s sovereignty. Wilders met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Isaac Herzog, and other senior officials during his diplomatic visit.
The Kremlin commended President-elect Donald Trump for opposing Ukraine's use of U.S.-supplied weapons to strike Russian targets, hours after Russia launched a massive missile attack on Ukraine's energy infrastructure. The attack, one of the largest of the war, underscores escalating tensions as both sides vie for advantage ahead of potential ceasefire talks.
Attorneys general in Minnesota and New Jersey filed lawsuits against Glock on Thursday, accusing the firearms manufacturer of enabling handguns to be easily converted into illegal machine guns using an inexpensive device known as a "Glock switch."
