TV News LIES

A US district judge has barred Donald Trump’s administration from deporting an Indian academic from Georgetown University after the Department of Homeland Security accused him of having ties to Hamas.

On Thursday, US district judge Patricia Giles in Alexandria, Virginia, prohibited federal officials from deporting Badar Khan Suri, a postdoctoral fellow at the university, in an order that is to remain in effect until it is lifted by the court, Reuters reports.

Giles’s order comes after Suri, whose wife is of Palestinian heritage, filed an emergency court request to prevent deportation.

Department of Homeland Security agents on Monday detained Suri, a postdoctoral fellow at the university’s Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, saying that his visa was revoked. Suri’s attorney said that he was arrested on the same spurious legal grounds as Columbia University student Mahmoud Khalil, according to Politico.

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As a bird flu outbreak continues to run rampant through US poultry farms, pushing eggs to record-high prices, federal officials announced funding for avian influenza research projects, including money for new vaccine projects and potential treatments.

The US agriculture secretary, Brooke Rollins, said on Thursday that her department would invest $100m in these research efforts, as part of a $1bn initiative to fight bird flu and stop rising egg prices, the Iowa Capital Dispatch reported.

The funds will prioritize research into bird flu generally and biosecurity plans. “Our pilot programs have proven that biosecurity is the most important thing that our farmers can do to protect our flocks against the disease, at least right now,” the news outlet quoted Rollins as saying.

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The Department of Defense restored a story on its website highlighting Jackie Robinson's military service Wednesday after deleting it as part of President Donald Trump's efforts to purge references to diversity, equity and inclusion through a "digital content refresh."

While it does not make any references to DEI, the story on Robinson was among a swath scrubbed from government websites in recent days. Before the story on Robinson's service was restored, the URL had redirected to one that added the letters "dei" in front of "sports-heroes."

In a statement sent by the Pentagon at 1:24 p.m. ET Wednesday, press secretary John Ullyot cited Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth in saying "DEI is dead at the Defense Department" and said the Department of Defense was "pleased by the rapid compliance" that led to the erasing of stories on Robinson, Navajo Code Talkers and Ira Hayes, one of six Marines who raised the American flag at Iwo Jima.

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The Pentagon restored some webpages highlighting the crucial wartime contributions of Navajo Code Talkers and other Native American veterans on Wednesday, days after tribes condemned the action.

The initial removal was part of a sweep of any military content that promoted diversity, equity and inclusion, or commonly referred to as DEI. Following President Donald Trump’s broader executive order ending the federal government’s DEI programs, the Defense Department deleted thousands of pages honoring contributions by women and minority groups. Department officials say the Navajo Code Talker material was erroneously erased.

“In the rare cases that content is removed — either deliberately or by mistake — that is out of the clearly outlined scope of the directive, we instruct the components and they correct the content so it recognizes our heroes for their dedicated service alongside their fellow Americans, period,” Pentagon press secretary John Ullyot said in a statement.

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Germany has updated its travel advisory for the United States to emphasize that a visa or waiver allowing entry does not guarantee Germans to enter the U.S. after several of its citizens were detained at the border.

According to an advisory on Germany’s Foreign Office website, the country warned that entry through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) system or a U.S. visa is not guaranteed every time and that the U.S. border control has final decision.

“It is recommended that you bring proof of your return journey upon entry,” the office said.