The New York Times sued the Defense Department on Monday for the second time in five months, arguing that a requirement that journalists be escorted while on Pentagon grounds violates the First Amendment.

The escort policy is “an unconstitutional attempt by the Pentagon to prevent independent reporting on military affairs,” a Times spokesman, Charlie Stadtlander, said in an email to The Associated Press.

“As we have said before: Americans deserve visibility into how their government is being run, and the actions the military is taking in their name and with their tax dollars.”

EPA outlines effort to kill Biden-era rules as critics condemn RFK Jr and Lee Zeldin’s ‘hocus pocus’

The Trump administration has announced a plan to kill Biden-era drinking water limits on four Pfas “forever chemicals”, and to delay the implementation of standards for two other compounds.

The Environmental Protection Agency is proposing two separate rules to delay and rescind the limits. The rules must go through an approval process that can take several years, and almost certainly will be challenged in court.

The Trump administration’s plan comes just two years after the US Environmental Protection Agency set legally enforceable drinking water limits for six of the most dangerous Pfas compounds that have been studied. The chemicals include some of the most toxic substances, and are linked to a range of cancers and other serious health problems.

Health minister in Nuuk condemns doctor’s presence in US delegation as ‘deeply problematic

Greenland’s government has criticised the arrival of a US doctor in Nuuk alongside Donald Trump’s special envoy, Jeff Landry, saying that Greenlanders are not “experimental subjects”.

Joseph Griffin said he had joined the delegation as a volunteer to “assess the medical needs” of the Arctic island, which the US president has repeatedly threatened to invade.

Greenland’s health minister, Anna Wangenheim, immediately condemned his presence, describing it as “deeply problematic”.

“The health sector in Greenland has historically been the subject of geopolitical interest,” she said in a statement hinting at deep sensitivities in the now largely autonomous territory, which as a Danish colony experienced repeated health-related abuses of Indigenous Greenlandic people.

The number of executions worldwide reached its highest level in more than four decades in 2025, driven largely by a sharp increase in Iran, Amnesty International said.

At least 2,707 people are known to have been put to death, according to the rights group's annual review. That marks a 78% jump from 2024 and is the highest figure Amnesty has recorded since 1981, when 3,191 executions were logged.

The figures exclude China, which Amnesty believes executed thousands of people, making it the world's top executioner. The country refuses to disclose data.

The group attributed the surge to governments using capital punishment to project authority, saying they had placed "this cruel punishment at the center of flawed public security and 'tough on crime' narratives to assert control, project state power and score political points."

World shares mostly retreated and oil prices jumped on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump warned Tehran that the “clock is ticking” as U.S.-Iran negotiations over a permanent end to the war stall.

U.S. futures fell and markets in Japan and South Korea pulled back from their records. In early European trading, Britain’s FTSE 100 edged up 0.1% to 10,205.31. France’s CAC 40 lost 0.9% to 7,883.42, and Germany’s DAX dropped 0.1% to 23,925.82.

Proposed IRS data sharing with immigration authorities and ICE raids have made filing risky for those who are undocumented

The Trump administration’s immigration crackdown could cause the US to potentially lose up to $479bn in lost tax revenue over the the next 10 years, with enforcement deterring undocumented workers from filing their taxes this year, according to tax experts.

Tax advisers say major changes, including proposed data sharing with immigration enforcement, have made filing taxes risky for undocumented immigrants. Tax benefits for immigrant parents have also been removed, further removing incentive to file taxes at all.

Experts believe that a drop in tax filings could cost the federal government billions of dollars in lost revenue. According to Yale's Budget Lab, the losses could range from $147bn to $479bn over the next 10 years. At the same time, up to 2.7 million children who are US citizens or lawful permanent residents might lose access to the credit due to these policy changes.

After being excommunicated from the GOP, Geoff Duncan is trying for a comeback on the Democratic ticket

In the Georgia governor’s race, Geoff Duncan’s candidacy tests American politics as much as it tests his political appeal.

The former Republican lieutenant governor of Georgia is a current Democratic candidate for governor, with former Biden official and Atlanta ex-mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms currently holding the lead in Tuesday’s Democratic primary. A Republican is still favored to win, with billionaire Rick Jason up against the secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, and the lieutenant governor, Burt Jones.

Though his candidacy might not prove successful on 19 May, in offering himself to the public, Duncan is asking Democratic voters to consider what the off-ramp for Republican leaders should look like in the waning days of the Trump era. Can it be as simple as switching parties and rearranging one’s political values?

China’s deep relationship with Russia remains a continuing cause for concern in the west, particularly since Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine

Cuba has also discussed plans to use drones to attack US targets such as the naval base at Guantanamo Bay, according to Axios news outlet.

Cuba has acquired more than 300 military drones, according to classified intelligence cited by Axios news outlet.

The report published on Sunday alleges that Cuba had discussed plans to use military drones to attack the US naval base at Guantanamo Bay as well as military vessels and possibly Key West, Florida.

The Trump administration is concerned because of developments in drone warfare and the presence of Iranian military advisers in Havana, Axios cited a senior US official as saying.

Supporters describe the gathering as an affirmation of faith and patriotism ahead of the country’s 250th anniversary, while critics say it promotes a narrow view of American identity.

A proposal to fund $1 billion in security additions for the White House campus and the president’s new ballroom fails to meet procedural rules, according to the Senate parliamentarian, dealing a blow to Republican plans to include it as part of a bill to fund immigration enforcement agencies for the next three years.

The parliamentarian’s ruling, described late Saturday by Senate Democrats, said that funding for a project as large and complex as Donald Trump’s massive East Wing renovation is too broad to be included in the narrow GOP budget bill, which cannot be filibustered and only needs a simple majority to pass.

It’s unclear if Republicans will be able to immediately salvage any part of the billion-dollar Secret Service proposal, which would fund security for Trump’s ballroom along with other parts of the White House, including a new visitor screening center, additional training for agents and extra reinforcements for large events. Republicans said Saturday night that they are revising the legislation based on the parliamentarian’s advice.

Trump has said construction of the ballroom will be funded by private donors. But Senate Republicans are seeking $1bn in taxpayer funding to the Secret Service for security upgrades, including the ballroom, even though the bulk of the legislation is devoted to immigration enforcement.

Trump’s congressional allies are invoking complex budget rules to secure passage without any Democratic support. Democrats have opposed funding for Trump’s signature immigration crackdown absent reforms they have sought since federal immigration agents killed US citizens in separate incidents in Minnesota in January.