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New York City filed a sweeping federal lawsuit Wednesday against several major social media companies, alleging that their platforms have fueled a youth mental health crisis by intentionally designing addictive products that exploit the psychological vulnerabilities of minors. The 327-page complaint, lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, names Meta Platforms Inc., ByteDance Ltd., Alphabet Inc., and Snap Inc. as defendants. City officials accuse the companies o

President Donald Trump said Friday that he’s placing an additional 100% tax on Chinese imports starting on Nov. 1 or sooner, potentially escalating tariff rates close to levels that in April fanned fears of a global recession. The president said on his social media site that he is imposing these new tariffs because of export controls placed on rare earth elements by China. The new tariffs built on an earlier post Friday on Truth Social in which Trump said that “there seems to be no reason” to m

United States President Donald Trump has announced that Israel and Hamas have agreed on the first phase of a peace framework that aims at a Gaza ceasefire, and the release of Israeli captives and Palestinian prisoners. The announcement follows from Trump’s 20-point plan to end the war on Gaza, which he announced last week, and which Israel, Hamas and most of the world broadly welcomed. More than 67,000 people have been killed in Israel’s war on Gaza, described by many international rights orga

Indirect talks aimed at reaching a final agreement on a US peace plan to end the war in Gaza have begun in the Egyptian city of Sharm El-Sheikh.  Palestinian and Egyptian officials have told the BBC that the sessions are focused on "creating the field conditions" for a possible exchange that would see the release of all Israeli hostages in return for a number of Palestinian prisoners. Hamas has said it agrees to the peace plan proposals in part, but has not responded to several key demands - i

The US Treasury Department is considering minting a one-dollar coin that features President Donald Trump, in order to commemorate the country’s 250th independence anniversary, officials said Friday. In a social media post retweeted by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, US Treasurer Brandon Beach shared early drafts of the coin. Beach posted “first drafts” of the design on X, adding that he was “looking forward to sharing more soon, once the obstructionist shutdown of the United States governmen

Sean “Diddy” Combs has been sentenced to 50 months in federal prison following his conviction on prostitution-related charges. The 55-year-old Bad Boy Records founder was convicted under the Mann Act, a federal law prohibiting the transportation of individuals across state lines for prostitution. While jurors acquitted Combs of more serious charges — including racketeering and sex trafficking — the guilty verdict on two counts of transportation secured the prison sentence. On Thursday, a feder

The US Supreme Court has ruled Lisa Cook can stay on as a Federal Reserve governor for now, a setback for President Donald Trump in his fight with the central bank. In an unsigned order, the court turned down Trump's request to immediately remove Cook and said it would hear arguments over her firing in January. Trump, who has blasted the Fed for not cutting interest rates as much as he would like, said in August he was removing Cook over claims of mortgage fraud, which she denied.  Cook immed

A viral video showing a confrontation between Harlem rapper English McFly and the New York Police Department (NYPD) has ignited outrage and renewed debate over police crowd-control tactics.  According to the rapper’s social media account, the crowd in Harlem was in support of a music video shoot. The footage, which began circulating on social media on September 20, captured moments of escalating tension as officers attempted to disperse a gathering in Harlem. NYPD OFFICERS OVERSTEP AUTHORITY A

The U.S. lurched toward a government shutdown on Tuesday as a vote to extend funding past a midnight deadline failed in the U.S. Senate and President Donald Trump threatened to extend his purge of the federal workforce. The 55-to-45 vote in the Senate, falling short of the 60 votes needed to advance the legislation, all but ensured that U.S. government agencies will have to discontinue all but "essential" activities such as law enforcement starting on Wednesday, potentially disrupting everythin