Author: i2wtc

Paul J. Ingrassia, nominee to lead the Office of Special Counsel.Source: DHSPresident Donald Trump’s nominee to head the U.S. Office of Special Counsel, Paul Ingrassia, was accused of sexual harassment, Politico reported.Ingrassia, who is currently the White House liaison for the Department of Homeland Security, was investigated in connection with an incident in late July in which he told a lower-ranking female colleague on a business trip that she would be sharing a hotel room with him, Politico reported Thursday. The outlet cited five unnamed administration officials.The woman later “discovered that Ingrassia had arranged ahead of time to have her…

CAIRO/WASHINGTON: Israel and Hamas on Thursday signed a landmark ceasefire and hostage-prisoner exchange deal – the first phase of a US-brokered peace plan aimed at ending two years of devastating war in Gaza that has claimed more than 67,000 Palestinian lives and reshaped Middle East politics. The agreement – mediated by the United States, Qatar, Egypt and Türkiye – commits both sides to halt hostilities, facilitate the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, and allow large-scale humanitarian aid into Gaza. At the White House, US President Donald Trump called it “the beginning of lasting peace,” saying he planned to…

A general view of the road signage at Accurate Energetic Systems on Oct. 10, 2025 in McEwen, Tennessee.Brett Carlsen | Getty ImagesMultiple people are dead and several others are unaccounted for after a blast on Friday morning in Tennessee at a military explosives plant, according to law enforcement.The explosion at Accurate Energetic Systems about 50 miles (80 km) west of Nashville occurred at 7:45 a.m. local time (1245 GMT), Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis told a press conference.”We do have several people at this time that’s unaccounted for,” he said, without providing precise figures. “We do have some that are…

MACAO — NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said Friday the WNBA could be next to play games in China. Silver spoke exclusively with CNBC courtside from the first of two NBA games in Macao. “We have to get through a new collective bargaining agreement with our players,” he said. “But once we do, there’s so much interest in women’s basketball here, I think we’d love to bring a WNBA game to Macao or to mainland China.” The games this weekend mark the NBA’s return to China after a six-year hiatus. The league is actively trying to grow its footprint in its No. 2 market,…

The launch of OpenAI’s updated Sora 2 AI video service kicked off another round of anxiety among musicians, actors and other content creators.Sora allows users to generate short videos for free by typing in a prompt. The app is only available on iOS devices and is limited to invitees, meaning people need a code to access it. Still, Sora has climbed to the No. 1 spot in Apple’s App Store, and OpenAI said this week it hit 1 million downloads in less than five days after launch.Major Hollywood groups like the Motion Picture Association have objected to OpenAI’s copyright policies, and top Hollywood agencies…

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) were unable to conclude the second review talks within the deadline due to “outstanding issues” concerning the timing of the publication of a Governance and Corruption Diagnostic Assessment report and differences over flood-loss estimates. Officials said Pakistan estimated the total economic losses from last year’s floods at Rs744 billion, while the IMF’s assessment stood at around Rs585 billion, with fiscal losses even lower. According to negotiators, other unresolved matters included the implications of these revised flood estimates for the primary budget surplus target, and the effect of the upward revision in last…

Applied Digital shares jumped 16% on Friday after the company posted strong first-quarter revenue that was boosted by artificial intelligence data center demand, putting the stock up more than 350% for the year.Here’s how the company did compared to LSEG estimates:Loss per share: Loss of 7 cents vs. a loss of 13 cents expectedRevenue: $64.2 million vs. $50 million expectedFirst quarter revenue of $64.2 million was up 84% from a year ago, when it reported $34.85 million in revenue.The data center company reported earnings after the bell on Thursday.During the quarter, Applied Digital built on its $7 billion lease agreement with…

RAWALPINDI: The security forces launched a major operation against terrorists belonging to Indian proxy Fitna al-Khawarij in Orakzai, eliminating all 30 terrorists involved in the deadly attack that claimed the lives of Lt Col Junaid Tariq, Major Tayyab Rahat, and nine soldiers, the security sources confirmed in a late night statement on Thursday. They said the operation successfully targeted the entire terrorist network behind the Orakzai assault. The security officials reaffirmed that the armed forces remain fully committed to eradicating terrorism from the country and ensuring lasting peace and stability. Fitna al-Khawarij is the state-designated term for the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban…

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado is leading a demonstration against the re-inauguration of authoritarian President Maduro this Friday. Jesus Vargas | Picture Alliance | Getty ImagesThe White House on Friday criticized the Nobel Committee after it declined to pick President Donald Trump for the organization’s vaunted peace prize.But the prize’s actual recipient, Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, said she was partly dedicating the award to Trump for supporting her efforts to promote democracy in her country.Machado said in an X post that her cause of achieving freedom and democracy depends on Trump and other key allies.”I dedicate this…

Morgan Stanley’s office in Canary Wharf financial district on Jan. 30, 2025 in London, UK.Mike Kemp | In Pictures | Getty ImagesMorgan Stanley on Friday told its financial advisors that the firm was broadening access to crypto investments to all clients and allowing such investments in any type of account, including retirement accounts, CNBC has learned.Starting Oct. 15, advisors will be able to pitch crypto funds to any client. Previously, the option was limited to those with an aggressive risk tolerance and at least $1.5 million in assets who wanted crypto in a taxable brokerage account.  The move marks the…