International

An appeals court disqualifies the prosecutor in the election case against Trump in Georgia

A Georgia appeals court disqualified District Attorney Fani Willis on Thursday in the accusation she was carrying against the now elected president of the United States, Donald Trump, for alleged electoral interference in the 2020 elections.

The court’s decision forces the prosecutor to withdraw from this case and possibly in the long run implies the suspension of the judicial process by which the former president (2017-2021) and 18 other people were accused of wanting to illegally annul the result of that year’s elections in Georgia, where Democrat Joe Biden won by about 17,000 votes.

The appeals court did not dismiss the accusation, which had been paralyzed for months and whose future is now uncertain.

The prosecutor disqualified in the case against Trump

Prosecutor Willis, from Fulton County, was under scrutiny after it was discovered that she was in a romantic relationship with a prosecutor who was part of the team that was taking the case.

The appeals court dismissed a previous decision by District Magistrate Scott McAffee, which allowed Willis to continue to lead this case because the prosecutor in question, Nathan Wade, decided to abandon the process.

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The above, however, did not prevent Willis’ “appearance of incorrectness”, according to the decision of the Court of Appeals, which concluded that McAffee “made a mistake in not disqualifying the prosecutor Willis and his office.”

Trump’s lawyers asked to dismiss the case

The decision is a new victory for Trump, who has already seen how the Federal Prosecutor’s Office withdrew the accusations against him about alleged electoral interference and for his role in the assault on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

Earlier this month, Trump’s lawyers asked the Georgia Court of Appeals to dismiss this case on the grounds that there was no jurisdiction.

“Any ongoing criminal proceedings against a sitting president must be dismissed in accordance with the United States Constitution,” Steve Sadow, Trump’s lawyer, told the media at the time.

Magistrate McAffe had dismissed last September some charges against the Republican, who since then faced eight charges in this process and not the 13 contained in the original accusation.

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International

Two killed in shooting at restaurant near Frankfurt Airport

Two people were shot dead early Tuesday at a restaurant in Raunheim, near Frankfurt Airport, according to local police.

Preliminary findings indicate that an armed individual entered the establishment at around 03:45 local time (02:45 GMT) and opened fire on the victims, who died at the scene from their injuries.

The suspect fled and remains at large, while the motive behind the shooting is still unclear, German media reported. Authorities have launched a large-scale search operation.

International

U.S. counterterrorism chief resigns over opposition to war in Iran

Joe Kent, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, announced Tuesday that he has resigned from his post, citing his opposition to the ongoing war in Iran.

In a post on X, Kent said he could not, “in good conscience,” support the conflict, arguing that Iran did not pose an imminent threat to the United States. He also claimed that the war was driven by pressure from Israel and its lobbying influence in Washington.

In a resignation letter addressed to Donald Trump, Kent alleged that at the start of the current administration, senior Israeli officials and influential figures in U.S. media carried out a disinformation campaign that undermined the “America First” platform and fostered pro-war sentiment aimed at triggering a conflict with Iran.

Kent further stated that he could not support sending a new generation of Americans to “fight and die in a war that provides no benefit to the American people and does not justify the cost in American lives.”

Since the United States and Israel launched attacks against Iran on February 28, at least 13 U.S. service members have been killed, while 10 others have been seriously wounded and around 200 have sustained minor injuries, according to a report published by The Wall Street Journal.

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International

German president warns Iran war could spread and disrupt Strait of Hormuz

The president of Germany, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, warned Monday that the war involving Iran could expand and further disrupt shipping through the strategic Strait of Hormuz. He urged a swift end to hostilities between Iran, United States and Israel.

Speaking in Panama City during a joint appearance with Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino, Steinmeier said available information suggests Iran has significant capacity to disrupt maritime traffic through the key oil route.

“Iran has considerable potential to interfere with shipping through the Strait of Hormuz,” Steinmeier said through an interpreter. “We should therefore reach an end to the hostilities as soon as possible and call on all parties involved to make that happen.”

The remarks came during Steinmeier’s visit to Panama, the first by a German president to the Central American nation.

The German leader described the possibility of the conflict spreading as “very dangerous,” saying recent developments indicate that such a scenario cannot be ruled out.

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Over the weekend, U.S. President Donald Trump urged allied nations to help ensure safe passage for ships through the Strait of Hormuz after Iran moved to block the waterway in response to U.S. strikes. However, several allies—particularly in Europe—have shown little support for the proposal.

“Some are very enthusiastic, others are not, and some are countries we have helped for many years,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “We have protected them from terrible external threats, and they’re not that enthusiastic. And the level of enthusiasm is important to me.”

Meanwhile, Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s top diplomat, said the Strait of Hormuz falls “outside NATO’s scope” and stressed that “the war involving Iran is not Europe’s war.”