January 9, 2026 – Short News

Trump attacks his own party after vote on war powers!

Donald Trump publicly attacked five Republican senators after they voted for a war powers resolution intended to limit his room for maneuver against Venezuela. In a post on Truth Social, the president said Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Rand Paul, Josh Hawley and Todd Young should never be re-elected. He called their vote stupidity. The resolution invokes the War Powers Act from the Vietnam era and requires congressional approval for further military strikes. Trump declared the law unconstitutional and rejected any limitation of his authority. In the Senate, Democrats and five Republicans voted 52 to 47 in favor of the measure. This secures a final vote next week. Actual passage is considered unlikely, however, because Trump would veto it and the House of Representatives is dominated by Republicans. Even so, the vote is seen as a clear signal of internal party unrest. The background is the nighttime seizure of Venezuela’s president Nicolás Maduro by the U.S. military. Trump’s administration is now openly pursuing the goal of exerting influence over Venezuela’s government and oil resources. The resolution would bind further attacks to congressional approval.

“This is tyranny” – Two injured, a pattern – Federal agents’ shots shake Portland

Portland experienced another serious incident involving federal agents after two people were injured by gunfire on Thursday afternoon. The operation occurred just one day after the fatal shooting by immigration officers in Minneapolis and hit an already tense atmosphere. At around 2:18 p.m. local time, police responded to reports of a shooting and shortly thereafter confirmed the involvement of federal forces. A short time later, a man contacted first responders himself and asked for help because he had been shot. Police eventually found a man and a woman with gunshot wounds, who were taken to a hospital. City officials later said the injured were a married couple and that both are alive. According to the Department of Homeland Security, Border Patrol agents were involved and claimed self-defense. The driver of a vehicle allegedly attempted to run over the agents, prompting a shot to be fired.

Federal authorities said the injured were linked to a Venezuelan gang, without presenting evidence. When asked, we received the same answer, which naturally raises questions. In the city, this account caused unrest and pushback. City Council President Elana Pirtle-Guiney spoke of hope but made clear how many questions remain unanswered. Council member Jamie Dunphy openly expressed his anger about the incident and spoke of neighbors now lying in the hospital. The Portland city councilor sees Thursday afternoon’s shooting not as an isolated event but as part of an emerging pattern. Speaking to local station KGW8, Dunphy accused the federal government of deliberately escalating nationwide. He announced that Portland’s residents would protest and said this behavior by the federal government was unacceptable for the city. He explicitly described the approach as tyranny. Police Chief Bob Day called for calm and referred to ongoing investigations. Mayor Keith Wilson demanded that all ICE operations in Portland be suspended until the incident is fully clarified. He said Portland is not a place for militarized operations and warned of the consequences of hardline federal policy. The district attorney’s office confirmed FBI involvement and announced a comprehensive investigation. The case joins other shootings by federal agents in recent months and intensifies the concerns of many cities. Portland once again faces the question of how much violence should be accepted in the name of enforcement.

Das Netzwerk hinter dem Oltanker Tanker The network behind the oil tanker Bella 1

The tanker Bella 1, later Marinera, seized by U.S. forces on January 7 in the North Atlantic, now belongs, according to investigations, to Burevestmarin. Ilya Bugai is the owner of the company, which has been active in the trade of petroleum products for years. Burevestmarin was registered only six months ago and outwardly operated as a normal shipping company. Bugai also heads Rusneftekhimtorg, a firm whose revenues collapsed sharply after 2020 and which most recently reported losses. Investigations show that Rusneftekhimtorg supplied fuel to foreign companies linked to Ukrainian politician Viktor Baranskyi. Baranskyi is considered a confidant of Putin ally Viktor Medvedchuk. Companies from this environment were already sanctioned by the United States in 2021 for transporting Venezuelan oil. Further connections lead to the company Diamond Estate, which controlled Moldovan television stations and lost its licenses in 2024. Diamond Estate is associated with Alexei Goncharenko, who also holds stakes in Chisinau airport. For a time, Moldovan oligarch Ilan Shor served as chairman of the board there. Shor was convicted in Moldova for massive bank fraud and is living as a fugitive. The ship was stopped after a three-week pursuit, before a Russian submarine could intervene.

Philadelphia district attorney draws a clear line for ICE

Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner issued an unambiguous warning to ICE agents after the fatal shooting in Minneapolis. Anyone coming to Philadelphia as a federal agent to commit crimes should leave, he said. Krasner announced he would criminally prosecute any ICE agent who violates the law. Arrest, charges and court proceedings would follow. A conviction in a state court could not be pardoned by a president. Donald Trump would have no influence over that, Krasner made clear. His message was explicitly directed at those who believe they are above the law. At the same time, he emphasized that there are honest and law-abiding officers within ICE. They are not the target. The warning applies solely to those colleagues who would seek to cross boundaries. Philadelphia will not tolerate lawless zones. The death in Minneapolis has shown where a lack of oversight can lead. Krasner made clear that state power in his city remains bound by law.

Iran cuts internet as protests escalate nationwide

As protests against Iran’s Islamic leadership continued to spread, nearly the entire country was cut off from the internet on Thursday. Monitoring groups recorded a sudden collapse in connections, coinciding with growing demonstrations in Tehran and in cities such as Mashhad, Shiraz, Isfahan and Bushehr. Eyewitnesses reported large, mixed crowds taking to the streets despite open threats from the judiciary and security apparatus. In several neighborhoods of the capital, chants for freedom and open slogans against the supreme leader could be heard. Images showed burning government buildings and roadblocks, later followed by violence and fires. In Karaj, gunshots were heard as people scattered. Data from monitoring services show that Iran is almost completely offline. Officials gave no reason, but shutdowns have been used in past crises to isolate protests. Human rights experts describe this as a proven tool of state control.

Iranian demonstrators set a government building on fire in the Iranian capital Tehran after the regime of Ayatollah Khamenei reportedly killed hundreds of protesters.

The current protests began about a week ago and have been supported by various opposition groups. Well-known activists and cultural figures also publicly stated that the demand for freedom cannot be silenced. In several cities, security forces temporarily withdrew while residents openly showed solidarity. Government officials blamed foreign forces for the unrest. Internally, sources report, confusion is growing over the scale of the movement. Human rights organizations speak of dozens of deaths, including children. Strikes in key bazaars additionally threaten to paralyze the economy.

ICE operation escalates near a high school in Minneapolis

Another serious incident involving ICE agents occurred near a high school in Minneapolis. A U.S. citizen was confronted outside the school grounds. Pepper spray was used. At least eight students who were nearby at the time were also affected. Several youths were exposed to the irritant. The operation had no apparent connection to an ongoing investigation at the school. Local authorities confirmed that it was not an arrest on campus. Parents and teachers reacted with shock to the conduct. The allegations add to a growing number of documented ICE incidents. Our files on these operations are piling up. Each new case expands the picture of an agency that increasingly acts without regard for bystanders. Independent review is still pending.

AfD calls for a violence apparatus modeled on the U.S.

Anyone calling for a “German ICE” either does not know or does not want to know what this agency stands for. ICE in the United States is not a harmless administrative body, but a unit with a long series of documented abuses. Raids without cause, violence against uninvolved people, deaths and destroyed families are part of this reality. These cases are publicly documented. We deal with such processes ourselves every day, people innocently imprisoned, file after file. Arrests without legal basis, pepper spray against children, shots fired at people who were not even the targets of operations are no longer exceptions. Numerous AfD politicians, Gottfried Curio, Martin Hess, Stephan Brandner, Björn Höcke, nevertheless demand precisely those structures, powers and methods that define ICE in the United States. That AfD actors openly want to adopt this model is no coincidence. It is not about order, but about intimidation. State violence is deliberately downplayed and politically sold as necessary. Anyone arguing this way accepts injuries and deaths. That has nothing to do with responsibility anymore.

How states enforce their own messengers for control

Authoritarian governments are increasingly pushing their own messaging apps to steer and monitor communication. In Russia, the new service MAX is being enforced with open pressure, for example at schools, universities and residential complexes. Those who refuse risk real disadvantages, up to exclusion from exams. Similar strategies previously existed in Iran, China and Myanmar. In Iran, Rubika was built up alongside harsh internet laws, Western services were blocked and state usage requirements introduced. Despite high official user numbers, many people continue to switch to banned messengers and bypass blocks. China took a different path. WeChat emerged early, grew with state support and is now indispensable for many areas of daily life. Myanmar, by contrast, failed with a state platform due to resistance from civil society. Russia has already made several attempts, including TamTam and ICQ New, which never achieved broad acceptance despite political backing. The difference today lies in the scale of coercion. Laws, administrative directives and technical blocks are intended to displace alternatives. MAX offers no end-to-end encryption and concentrates sensitive data in a central location. Experts warn of new risks of fraud, surveillance and abuse. At the same time, black markets for verified accounts are already emerging. Experience from other countries shows: the stronger the pressure, the greater the adaptation, but also the resistance. Whether habit or rejection prevails will be decided not technically, but politically.

Protest march in Cincinnati and many other U.S. cities sends a signal against ICE

In Cincinnati, a broad protest march against ICE has formed. The march stretched across the city for several hours and was clearly visible from start to finish. From the air, the scale becomes evident. Thousands of people took part in the demonstration. The trigger was the fatal shooting of Renee Good in Minneapolis.

The protest is part of nationwide actions. Participants are calling for consequences for the use of immigration authorities. Many carried signs against violence and arbitrariness. The mood remained determined but controlled. Local groups had called for the demonstration. Organizers emphasized the peaceful nature. Cincinnati thus joins a growing number of cities. The protest is directed against current operations and their consequences.

Minneapolis criticizes exclusion of the state from investigations

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey sharply criticized federal authorities for excluding the state from the investigation. According to him, the FBI and the Department of Justice are blocking the participation of state bodies. Frey described this approach as clearly problematic and openly expressed concern about the development. It is not about jurisdiction, but about trust and oversight. The city wants to ensure that the investigations serve justice and not the internal protection of the federal government. Especially in a case involving deadly force, independent oversight is essential. Without it, public mistrust grows. Frey made clear that Minneapolis expects transparent clarification. Investigations must remain reviewable. The exclusion of the state further exacerbates the already tense situation. See also our article here.