September 19, 2026

03 World

U.S. ban on foreign-made humanoid robots targets China over security risks– www.cbc.ca

pgnewser July 30, 2026 1

U.S. ban on foreign-made humanoid robots targets China over security risks– www.cbc.ca
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The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission is banning imports of new foreign-made humanoid robots and power inverters, citing national security risks, in a move that targets China.

Beijing quickly accused the U.S. of protectionism.

The measures are likely to test relations with Beijing ahead of a planned U.S. visit by Chinese leader Xi Jinping to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump in September. China dominates the global market for humanoid robots with an estimated market share of roughly 85 per cent.

The FCC’s ban also includes new imports of quadruped robots, often referred to as four-legged robot dogs. The agency said imports of advanced robots pose cybersecurity and other national security risks. Offshore production of such equipment also leaves U.S. supply chains vulnerable to disruptions.

The ban on power inverters, which are used to convert direct current (DC) electricity into alternating current (AC) electricity and are used in renewable energy systems, data centres and household appliances, could have sweeping ramifications.

Nearly 500 civilians dead in Pakistan-Afghanistan conflict, UN says – National– globalnews.ca

pgnewser July 30, 2026 1

Nearly 500 civilians dead in Pakistan-Afghanistan conflict, UN says – National– globalnews.ca
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Cross-border fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan has killed nearly 500 civilians in Afghanistan and wounded over 1,000 others between October and the end of June, the United Nations said Tuesday.

In a report on the human rights situation, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan said it had documented 499 civilians killed and 1,216 wounded by the fighting between the neighbors that has defied international peace efforts.

In one case, the report said, civilians trying to rescue others from the rubble of an airstrike were hit by a second one.

The report also explores other human rights issues, including a deadly crackdown on protests in western Afghanistan over restrictions on women’s clothing, and decrees that essentially legalize child marriage.

Russia charges Telegram founder with aiding terrorism and puts him on wanted list– abcnews.com

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Russia charges Telegram founder with aiding terrorism and puts him on wanted list– abcnews.com
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Russia’s main domestic security agency said Wednesday that Pavel Durov, founder of the messaging app Telegram, has been charged with “aiding terrorism” and put on an international wanted list.

Telegram’s administration has not removed “numerous channels, chats and bots” that are “actively used by Ukrainian intelligence agencies, terrorist, and extremist organizations to prepare and coordinate acts of sabotage and terrorism, mass murder, and cyberfraud” in Russia, the agency said in a statement Wednesday,

The Federal Security Service is also known as the FSB,

Charges against Durov come as Russia restricts Telegram, one of the most popular messaging apps in the country. Durov earlier this year announced that the Russian authorities opened a criminal investigation against him and accused them of fabricating pretexts to restrict access to Telegram as part of an attempt to “suppress the right to privacy and free speech.”

 

EU crisis chief urges tougher climate action amid France, Spain wildfires | Climate Crisis News– www.aljazeera.com

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EU crisis chief urges tougher climate action amid France, Spain wildfires | Climate Crisis News– www.aljazeera.com
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The European Union’s crisis management commissioner says the bloc needs to invest more in tackling climate change and accelerate its response, as France and Spain prepare for another crippling heatwave that could ignite new wildfires and intensify blazes already burning.

Hadja Lahbib said the EU must ensure its climate strategy remains in lockstep with realities on the ground, as global warming advances faster than scientists previously projected. She has called for increased funding, better education on fire risk and a renewed focus on forest management.

“Climate change is accelerating. So our response must evolve just as quickly,” Lahbib told Reuters.

“We must prepare for risks before disasters strike and not simply react afterwards.”

Lahbib’s comments come as devastating wildfires continue to burn across parts of France and Spain, forcing the evacuation of 330,000 people.

CENTCOM Commander Warns of New Threat Aiding Iran: Cellphone Footage – RedState– redstate.com

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CENTCOM Commander Warns of New Threat Aiding Iran: Cellphone Footage – RedState– redstate.com
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CENTCOM Commander and four-star Navy general Admiral Brad Cooper has identified a threat that helps Iran target U.S. bases in the Middle East: cellphone footage.

Social media posts and videos posted online are giving the Iranians clues to our activities, the commander wrote in a letter Tuesday:

Admiral Brad Cooper, in a previously unreported letter, said Iran was benefiting from being able to see the success or failure of its strikes in near real-time by searching news reports or online posts by journalists referencing “reactions, photos, and footage from the cellphones of our troops.”

“The direct, unavoidable cost of this open-source intelligence could be measured in the lives of American service members and civilian residents in targeted Gulf countries,” Cooper, head of U.S. Central Command, wrote in his July 28 letter, a copy of which was obtained by Reuters.

He called on troops to “redouble our focus on operational security,” without prescribing specific steps in the memo.

UK slows AI data center roll-out over energy crunch — RT World News– www.rt.com

pgnewser July 30, 2026 0

UK slows AI data center roll-out over energy crunch — RT World News– www.rt.com
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The British energy regulator plans to stop firms from reserving electricity capacity for “speculative” projects

British energy regulator Ofgem on Wednesday proposed fees and stricter rules for AI data center developers to cull “unviable, stalled or speculative projects” that are taking up scarce grid capacity amid skyrocketing electricity demand.

It comes as the UK moves to grow its cloud computing and artificial intelligence industries but grapples with a sharp spike in grid connection requests – which Ofgem says have more than tripled in less than a year.

The amount of electricity capacity being sought by firms wanting to plug into the UK’s grid spiked from 41 gigawatts to 125 gigawatts between November 2024 and June 2025, driven largely by demand from data center projects, the regulator said in a press release on Wednesday.

The figure is nearly triple the UK’s 2025 peak electricity demand of around 46 gigawatts.


Under the proposed rules, developers would have to pay a refundable fee of between £237,500 and £712,500 ($316,000 to $947,000) per megawatt of electricity, Ofgem said. The fee would be forfeited if a project exits the grid connection queue before reaching energization.

The measure is expected to “tackle unviable, stalled and speculative projects,” according to the regulator.

In March, the UK government announced reforms aimed at clearing speculative grid connection requests, which it said more than quadrupled in the six months prior.


The reforms come as Brits face an ongoing energy price crunch; electricity and gas prices more than doubled in the UK in 2022 following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict, when most European nations imposed sanctions on Russia and began phasing out cheap Russian gas supplies for more expensive alternatives. According to Ofgem, this year’s average household energy bill is expected to be around £1,862, almost 50% higher than in 2021.

While the Western restrictions had a detrimental impact on the Russian economy, it has adapted to them and learned to “minimize their effects,” according to Moscow. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has warned that “sanctions are a double-edged sword” and hurt both Russia and the countries that impose them.

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US, Gulf Allies Launch Strikes On Iranian Proxies Following ‘Surprise’ Attack On US Base– trendingpoliticsnews.com

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US, Gulf Allies Launch Strikes On Iranian Proxies Following ‘Surprise’ Attack On US Base– trendingpoliticsnews.com
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The United States and Saudi Arabia on Tuesday evening conducted joint precision airstrikes targeting Iran-backed militias in Eastern Iraq. The strikes follow a “surprise” missile attack on a U.S. base in Jordan earlier in the day.

According to a statement from U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), U.S. and Saudi fighter aircraft struck multiple logistics and weapons sites. CENTCOM described the targets as belonging to Iran-aligned groups that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) had directed to carry out attacks on U.S. forces and Saudi energy infrastructure.

Tuesday’s operation was launched in response to more than 30 IRGC-directed aerial drone attacks over the preceding 72 hours. Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Defense stated that its air defenses had intercepted and destroyed several drones launched from Iraqi territory that targeted petroleum facilities in the Eastern Province and Riyadh regions.

Saudi Arabia’s statement framed the strikes as precise and targeted actions against objectives linked to those attacks, conducted in coordination with CENTCOM, and emphasized the kingdom’s right to self-defense while stating it does not seek escalation.

Iraq’s Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF), an umbrella organization that includes Iran-backed groups integrated into Iraq’s security structure, reported that the strikes hit headquarters and facilities in multiple locations, including Baghdad and sites in other provinces. The PMF said at least 20 of its members were killed and 32 wounded, with damage to buildings and facilities.

Netanyahu Will Attend UN General Assembly in New York City– legalinsurrection.com

pgnewser July 30, 2026 0

Netanyahu Will Attend UN General Assembly in New York City– legalinsurrection.com
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed he will attend the UN General Assembly in New York City in September.

I figured Netanyahu would, even though communist Mayor Zohran Mamdani threatened to arrest him and encouraged people to “protest” him.

Netanyahu told Sean Hannity:

But I’m definitely going there. I’m going to speak the truth in front of this, you know. There’s just hate spewing elected official who’s pitting one group of New Yorkers against the others. He’s turning them against New York Jews. I mean, what, are we in the 1930s? What is this? You know, so much hate, so many lies.

U.S. walks out on UN meeting following France’s human rights criticism – National– globalnews.ca

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U.S. walks out on UN meeting following France’s human rights criticism – National– globalnews.ca
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U.S. diplomats walked out as their French counterparts were speaking at the United Nations on Monday after America’s close European ally criticized the Trump administration’s human rights record.

The surprise move during a U.N. Security Council meeting on Ukraine followed U.S. opposition to giving U.N. human rights chief Volker Türk another four-year term. The reappointment on Friday got overwhelming support, including from France.

The U.S. walkout reflects not only the more strained relations between President Donald Trump and his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, but also wider tensions between the U.S. and Europe. These include questions over Trump’s commitment to NATO, possible changes to U.S. troop deployments in Europe, and Trump’s desire to control Greenland, which belongs to NATO member Denmark.

Trump has complained that Europeans, who weren’t consulted, did not help the U.S. during the Iran war. Amid the tensions, Macron has taken a lead in trying to build up Europe’s military and ensure a nuclear umbrella as one of the continent’s two nuclear powers, along with Britain.

Khanna: Call to Arrest Netanyahu ‘Not Talking About Americans Who Are Subject to Our Own Law’– www.breitbart.com

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Khanna: Call to Arrest Netanyahu ‘Not Talking About Americans Who Are Subject to Our Own Law’– www.breitbart.com
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On Tuesday’s broadcast of CBS’s “The Takeout,” Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) said that “We should not allow people in our jurisdiction who have an arrest warrant by the ICC.” But this isn’t a danger for Americans because “They don’t have any American arrest warrants. This is not talking about Americans who are subject to our own law. But that seems to be a consistent principle of international law, and I’d apply it to Putin like I’d apply it to Netanyahu.”

Khanna said, “Now, my view on Netanyahu is the same as my view on Putin, if you have a warrant for your arrest by the ICC, and you’re coming here — not to the U.N., because the U.N. has its own rules — but you’re coming to the United States, then you should be arrested. We should not allow people in our jurisdiction who have an arrest warrant by the ICC.”

He added, “People say, what about Americans? They don’t have any American arrest warrants. This is not talking about Americans who are subject to our own law. But that seems to be a consistent principle of international law, and I’d apply it to Putin like I’d apply it to Netanyahu.”

John Thune Isn’t Bowing to Trump’s Pressure: ‘Show Me How This Ends’– time.com

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John Thune Isn’t Bowing to Trump’s Pressure: ‘Show Me How This Ends’– time.com
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“If I thought there was a path to getting a result, I’m all for it,” Thune told reporters this week.

The Senate is racing toward an August recess with a packed to-do list that seems doable: a sanctions bill targeting Russia, a stopgap funding measure to keep the government open through Election Day, movement on a catch-all reconciliation bill, and a bunch of nominees, including one that on Wednesday seemed to inch closer to giving Trump an up-or-down on his imperiled pick for Attorney General. But Trump says the upper chamber should not leave town until it gives him the SAVE America Act, his voting bill. He also wants the Senate to change its threshold for moving most legislation from 60 votes to 51 votes, ending the delay machine of the filibuster. 

“John Thune should not allow the United States Senate to ‘leave town’ until it passes The Save America Act or, far better still, TERMINATES THE FILIBUSTER, where Republicans can then quickly pass everything they ever dreamed of, including a full and deep throated SAVE AMERICA ACT, the Budget, and the ever looming Debt Ceiling disaster, 1929!” the President wrote on his social media platform. “The Dumocrats will do it on day one, and can’t believe how lucky they got with this Senate leadership.”


California’s largest AI data center is suing for access to 287 million gallons of Colorado River water a year– www.techspot.com

pgnewser July 30, 2026 0

California’s largest AI data center is suing for access to 287 million gallons of Colorado River water a year– www.techspot.com
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A hot potato: Once again, an AI data center is embroiled in controversy. This time, it’s not land, electricity, or tax breaks under the spotlight, but water – specifically, water from the Colorado River. And the company behind the facility is suing to get it.

Imperial Valley Computer Manufacturing (IVCM), the company behind what could become California’s largest AI data center, is suing the Imperial Irrigation District (IID) after the publicly owned utility rejected its application for water.

The proposed $10 billion, 950,000-square-foot, 330-megawatt facility would require roughly 750,000 gallons per day for cooling, or about 287 million gallons annually.

That amount equals around 880 acre-feet, just 0.03% of IID’s 3.1 million-acre-foot annual entitlement. However, the Colorado River is Imperial Valley’s only source of fresh water and supplies between 35 million and 40 million people across the West. Federal officials are preparing new operating rules as reservoirs remain under pressure from prolonged drought and weak runoff.

Developer Sebastian Rucci argues that the project wouldn’t increase overall demand. IVCM has leased 160 acres of nearby farmland and plans to stop irrigating it, redirecting roughly the same amount of water to the data center.

Trump Announces Anti-China Influence Campaign

pgnewser July 30, 2026 0

The Trump administration is preparing to activate a nearly billion dollar worldwide influence campaign designed to counter China’s advance. Part of this campaign will include funding the rebuilding of critical infrastructure, like international underseas communications cables, to assure China doesn’t come in to do the job for them.

US looks to boost anti-China spending worldwide, documents say– abcnews.com
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WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is preparing to ramp up funding by hundreds of millions of dollars for programs designed to counter China’s growing influence around the world, after it had put a halt to many of those initiatives last year during a flurry of budget and personnel cuts.

The administration notified Congress late last week that it intends to spend $175.8 million to replace outdated and aging undersea telecommunications cables in the Caribbean and Central America to prevent China from moving in. The Associated Press obtained a copy of the notification on Monday.

The administration has expressed deep concern about China’s activities in the Americas, pushing back on Chinese ownership of ports at either end of the Panama Canal, infrastructure projects funded by China’s Belt and Road initiative in the region, and Chinese investment in the telecommunications sector.

A State Department official said China’s economic activities in the Western Hemisphere pose risks to U.S. national security and prosperity. The official, who was not authorized to speak publicly to the subject and spoke on condition of anonymity, said China’s offerings may seem cheaper but in the end wind up being more expensive due to cost overruns, hidden maintenance fees and poor performance.

The underseas cable funding appears to be part of a broader push to restore support for initiatives aimed at blunting Chinese influence globally that would cost many hundreds of millions of dollars more. That is even as President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping put on a show of cooperation and Xi prepares to visit the U.S. this fall.

Major Earthquake Hits Japan

pgnewser July 30, 2026 0

A 7.0 magnitude earthquake hit Japan on July 28, 2026. The epicenter was near Uto, which is on Kyushu Island. The earthquake caused widespread damage to buildings, including a partial collapse of a mall. As of right now, there are 34 dead and 124 injured. More than 10,000 people have been displaced.

Japan earthquake LIVE: Many feared dead as mall collapses after Kumamoto tremor | World | News– www.express.co.uk
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Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has urged people to evacuate to a safe location if they deem it necessary, following the devastating earthquake.

She said: “Power outages and fires have occurred in some ​areas, and there has also been damage to roads and bridges and the collapse of buildings.

“I ask everyone ‌to take action to protect themselves, including evacuating to a safe location.”

She added: “I have instructed relevant ministries to assess the damage, work closely with local government under the policy of putting human life first, wholeheartedly work on the disaster emergency response, and provide information to the people regarding tsunamis and evacuation.”

 

How Mexico Locked In Its Militarized Police State– warontherocks.com

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How Mexico Locked In Its Militarized Police State– warontherocks.com
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In 2021, Andrew Ivey wrote, “‘I Have Other Data’: The Guardia Nacional and the Entrenchment of Mexico’s Militarization’,” where he warned Mexico was headed toward a militarization trap. Five years later, amidst increased pressure from the Trump administration and the election of a new Mexican president, we asked Andrew to revisit his arguments…

Has formalizing militarization in the Constitution changed anything in practice?The constitutional change locks in what was already happening on the ground, but also goes a little further. It’s right to note the transition from de facto to legal and formal military control. The National Guard is also under the control of the Secretariat of Defense, which is headed by an active-duty general. Guardia officers and troops are even educated in army universities.

The consequence of fully militarized federal-level policing means that future post-Sheinbaum governments will have very few — if any — opportunities to create alternative policing institutions. The constitutional change has locked Mexico into a path of militarization that frankly is much deeper than other large democracies in the region.However, it remains an open question if the Guardia can be retrained and repurposed. Though the Guardia is in the Secretariat of Defense’s educational system, attending the same schools, it could very well be that their curriculum is more police-like, or perhaps even gendarmerie-like, than soldier-like. That would be one significant step away from relying on soldiers and marines for public security, and even then, it would remain to be seen how a force educated in the military system, instructed and

Labour Retakes the Lead in Britain

pgnewser July 29, 2026 1

A new poll shows the new Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, has a bigger bounce for his party than expected, with Labour now leading reform in the latest political polls. Labour took the lead by four over Reform. It is the first lead it has had since March 2025. Restore Britian was not offered as one of the choices in the poll.

Poll shows Labour ahead of Reform UK for first time since Burnham became PM – UK politics live | Politics– www.theguardian.com
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Labour has regained its lead over Reform UK in More in Common polling, Luke Tryl, its director, says.

Here are the figures it has released today.

Opinion poll Photograph: More in Common

Tryl says:

Our latest voting intention sees a cross over. Labour move ahead by 4. Their first lead since March 2025 & highest share since Nov 24

He also says the Greens are on their lowest share of the vote since Zack Polanski became leader.

This is the first poll to show Labour ahead of Reform UK since Andy Burnham became PM. Other polls last week showed Labour narrowly behind Nigel Farage’s party, or Labour and Reform UK neck and neck.

For much of the past year, Reform UK has had a lead of 10 points or more over other parties in most opinion polls. Here are the figures from the Politico poll of polls tracker.

Euthanasia Bill Resurfaces in Britian

pgnewser July 29, 2026 1

A new bill has been introduced in Britian that will legalize euthanasia, physician-assisted suicide. The bill is the same as the one that failed in 2024. This is just the latest effort to legalize the creation of a suicide industry that eventually enables the state to nudge economic liabilities towards death.

The Radical Bill to Legalize Assisted Suicide in Britain is Back– www.lifenews.com
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The following message was sent out by Not Dead Yet UK:

By now you’ll know that the assisted dying bill is back.

On 17 June, Labour MP Lauren Edwards introduced a new version of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill. MPs will vote on whether it should proceed at its second reading on 11 September 2026. That’s less than two months away.

So what’s new?Honestly? Not much.

This is the same bill Kim Leadbeater brought forward in 2024 — the one that spent months being picked apart in the House of Lords, generating more than 1,300 amendments before running out of time in April. The bill fell not because it was defeated, but because Parliament was prorogued. Now it’s back, with two minor Lords amendments incorporated.

The first is a technical Wales amendment. Because delivering health services is devolved to the Welsh Government, the bill now requires the Senedd to give its approval before Welsh Ministers can set up the regulations for assisted dying in Wales. It’s a constitutional housekeeping change. It doesn’t alter what the bill actually does.

The second concerns people with eating disorders. This one is more serious. During the Lords debates earlier this year, peers raised concerns that someone with anorexia could potentially stop eating — deliberately — in order to reach the six-month terminal threshold and qualify for an assisted death. A minor amendment was added in the Lords to address this. But experts who work with people with eating disorders say it doesn’t go far enough. The loophole, they argue, remains. We agree.

AI Capability Races Ahead of the Business Payoff | American Enterprise Institute– www.aei.org

pgnewser July 29, 2026 0

AI Capability Races Ahead of the Business Payoff | American Enterprise Institute– www.aei.org
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The state of the AI revolution can be confusing. At times, it can seem as if the latest artificial intelligence models are showing huge capability increases. One example is when two OpenAI models broke out of the lab, accessed the internet, and broke into another AI company. Or, as a Wall Street Journal headline put it, “The Day the Bots Broke Loose.”

But then you might come across another headline from the Wall Street Journal: “Big Companies Are Starting to Hire Again, Defying Predictions of AI Wipeout.” And from that piece:

The push to expand head count, at least modestly, is a reversal from the prevailing corporate messaging during much of the AI era. Major employers largely held back on adding people due to economic uncertainties or a belief that artificial intelligence could shoulder more tasks on the job. But some executives say the costs and limitations of AI now demand that more people be added; others want to hire people back following layoffs.

Iran releases sick video on ‘where and how’ to kill Melania Trump | World | News– www.express.co.uk

pgnewser July 29, 2026 0

Iran releases sick video on ‘where and how’ to kill Melania Trump | World | News– www.express.co.uk
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A horrifying video released in Iran has sparked outrage after the clip detailed “how and where” to kill First Lady Melania Trump. In the footage, a narrator speaking Farsi discusses “plots” while images show Mr and Mrs Trump on a map, detailing their code names and the precautions the Secret Service takes to secure the streets along their motorcades.

The narrator claims that “the documents used in this video are the result of extracting information from several anonymous security networks and satellite images”. They also propose a potential poisoning plot that could be executed by “freedom fighters” with access to locations the First Lady frequently attends.

The footage implies that Mrs Trump’s “love of fashion” reflects her vulnerability, even suggesting potential bribery schemes tied to her shopping patterns.

Billboards have also appeared on bridges and structures throughout Tehran, Iran, calling for the deaths of Mr Trump and his family members. One featured images of his children, Ivanka and Barron, alongside his wife.

All three were shown with their eyes closed, with the word “KILLED” in red across the top. It added: “Hey, Terrorist! Get ready to die.”