A huge mob of masked anti-Israel rioters violently broke into an academic building at Columbia University and seized it early Tuesday – rebranding the iconic hall named after founding father Alexander Hamilton and draping it with a Palestinian flag.

Dozens stormed into Hamilton Hall and sealed themselves in shortly before 1 a.m., with some using metal barricades, chairs and tables to block others from getting inside, footage posted on social media shows.

One shocking video captured a violent, hammer-wielding demonstrator smashing two glass windows of a door and placing what appeared to be a bike lock around the door’s handles. Others covered security cameras inside the building with tape and black trash bags, according to the student-led Columbia Daily Spectator.

As of 6:30 a.m., the rogue protesters were still occupying the South Lawn building, which has been the scene of the school’s anti-Israel encampment for over a week, the paper reported.

Meanwhile, hundreds more swarmed outside the campus building, with some linking arms to form a human chain blocking the entrance.

“Hey hey, ho ho, the occupation has got to go,” protesters outside the building could be heard chanting during the wild scenes, according to footage posted to X by an independent news blog.

Columbia protesters have completely crossed the line. They’re smashing into Hamilton Hall. pic.twitter.com/BtvVuDihfm

— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) April 30, 2024

“We will not leave until Columbia meets every one of our demands,” others raged.

Students at Columbia University have occupied Hamilton hall. Today the university president explicitly said to students the school would not be divesting and threatened to suspend students protesting. The last time this building was taken over by student protesters was in 1968 pic.twitter.com/IhoWVYlocB

— Lama Al-Arian (@lalarian) April 30, 2024

The dramatic takeover of the building – which was also occupied during 1968 civil rights and anti-Vietnam War protests on the campus — came hours after Columbia finally began suspending students who refused to vacate the tent encampment that brought campus life to a halt.

When the group initially barged into the building in the early hours, several campus facilities workers were still inside. The protesters removed some of the barricades to let them out.

One of the workers yelled, “They held me hostage” as he left the building and smacked somebody’s camera, the student newspaper reported.

.@Columbia University — Organized rioters dressed in black bloc broke and entered into a campus building in Manhattan. Hamilton Hall had had been smashed up and occupied by masked far-left extremists saying they’re doing it for Palestine. pic.twitter.com/ffBXmPCKxa

— Andy Ngô 🏳️‍🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) April 30, 2024

Four protesters wearing masks over their heads then lowered a banner reading “Hind’s Hall” from a window overlooking the cheering crowd.

“An autonomous group reclaimed Hind’s Hall, previously known as ‘Hamilton Hall,’ in honor of Hind Rajab, a martyr murdered at the hands of the genocidal Israeli state at the age of six years old,” CU Apartheid Divest, a student-led anti-Israel group, posted on X.

Hind Rajab, a 6-year-old Palestinian girl, was killed in Gaza alongside the two paramedics from the Palestine Red Crescent Society who tried to rescue her in January when the car she was in was allegedly struck by Israeli gunfire.

The ambulance was bombed as it was “just meters” from reaching the vehicle, the Red Crescent said in a statement at the time. The little girl’s body was found 12 days later in the car riddled with bullet holes.

After the banner was unraveled, the group at Columbia broke out into chants of “Free Palestine,” “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” and “Columbia, you will see — Palestine is almost free.”

Columbia officials haven’t publicly addressed the latest wave of violence.

The wild escalation erupted nearly 12 hours after hundreds of Columbia students defied the Ivy League’s 2 p.m. ultimatum to vacate their sprawling tent encampment.

That followed the deadline repeatedly being pushed back at the school, which has already been forced to hold all classes virtually for the rest of the semester because of safety fears.

The school’s embattled president Minouche Shafik had warned students would be suspended if they didn’t clear out — but it still took several hours past deadline for the punishments to be doled out.

“We have begun suspending students as part of this next phase of our efforts to ensure safety on our campus,” school vice president of public affairs Ben Chang said at a 5.30 p.m. press conference.

Still, hordes of defiant and pampered protesters — including some who were munching protein bars and beating tambourines — dug their heels in and refused to vacate.

NYPD officers stationed nearby were not called in to clear them.

The dramatic escalation at Columbia’s campus comes as universities across the US are grappling with how to clear out similar encampments.

Unlike at Columbia, dozens of people were cuffed and hauled away by cops Monday during protests at universities in Texas, Utah and Virginia.

Four law enforcement officers were killed, and four other officers were wounded by a suspect opening fire in a warrant-related gunfight in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Monday afternoon.

The shooting began when a U.S. Marshals Task Force attempted to serve a warrant for firearm possession by a convicted felon. During a Monday evening press briefing, authorities said the recipient of the warrant was the one who initially opened fire. That suspect, who was later identified as 39-year-old Terry Clark Hughes, Jr., was killed in the shootout, police said.

Hughes was also wanted for two counts of felony flee to elude out of Lincoln County, North Carolina, according to Charlotte police.

Police believe two shooters may have been involved. They said two persons of interest, a 17-year-old and a woman, were taken to the police station for further investigation.

“We have two people of interest at the police station that are being questioned right now,” Police Chief Johnny Jennings said during the presser.

“And we have confirmed that the individual that was set up that we were serving the warrant on was the individual who fired the initial shots and was deceased in the front yard at the end of all of this.”

Three officers from the U.S. Marshals Task Force – one deputy and two task force officers – were killed in the shootout.

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) confirmed to Fox News Digital that an officer from its department also died from his injuries later Monday evening.

A total of eight law enforcement officers were shot. Three CMPD officers and a U.S. Marshals Task Force officer were injured and are still recovering from their wounds.

At a press conference before the fourth death was announced, Jennings called the incident “the most tragic one that I’ve been involved in.”

Officer Joshua Eyer has passed away tonight from his injuries after being shot in the line of duty this afternoon while assisting other officers with the apprehension of a suspect. Officer Eyer faithfully served the CMPD’s North Tryon Division for six years and was a member of… pic.twitter.com/TwrINLkJUT

— CMPD News (@CMPD) April 30, 2024

“I’ve been with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department for 32 years. I can’t remember an incident where three law enforcement officers were [injured] and also three that were killed in the same incident,” he said.

The CMPD initially reported that “numerous” officers were shot at the scene in the 5000 block of Galway Drive, which is in the Shannon Park neighborhood.

All officers who were injured were transported to hospitals. At 2:23 p.m., police confirmed that a SWAT team was on the scene and urged residents to stay inside their homes.

“Avoid the area,” the police department said. “Many roads are closed for faster ambulance transport. Please cooperate with authorities.”

On Monday afternoon, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper confirmed that his office was aware of the shooting.

“I am in contact with law enforcement concerning the tragic shooting in the Charlotte area, and we have offered state resources to help,” Cooper wrote on X.

Former FBI special agent in charge and Fox News contributor Nicole Parker spoke to Fox News Digital about the situation.

“These officers on this U.S. Marshals Task Force are the best and the brightest and the bravest. Each day when you walk out the door for work, you understand you may never make it home,” she explained.

“I cannot say it enough – Americans need to back the blue… They aren’t making huge sums of money, but their sacrifices are infinite and priceless.”

Parker said violence against law enforcement officers must not be tolerated.

“We must restore full support, respect and honor to those who courageously wear the badge every day and fearlessly carry out their duties,” she said.

George Alan Kelly, the Arizona rancher charged with murder in the shooting of a Mexican national on his border property, will not be retried, prosecutors with the Santa Cruz County Attorney’s office said.

The state charged Kelly, 75, with second degree murder after he allegedly shot and killed a migrant, Gabriel Cuen-Buitimea, on his land in January 2023.

The decision not to retry Kelly comes a week after a mistrial was declared following a deadlocked jury.

Kelly’s defense confirmed to Fox News Digital that there was “one, lone holdout” juror who wanted to convict, while the remaining jurors sought an acquittal.

The case centered around the death of Cuen-Buitimea, who was found shot to death on Kelly’s 170-acre cattle ranch near Keno Springs outside Nogales, Arizona, on Jan. 30, 2023.

“Because of the unique circumstances and challenges surrounding this case, the Santa Cruz County Attorney’s Office has decided not to seek a retrial,” Deputy County Attorney Kimberly Hunley told Santa Cruz County Superior Court Judge Thomas Fink on Monday.

Cuen-Buitimea had illegally entered the country multiple times previously and had been deported as recently as 2016.

Kelly’s defense countered the prosecution’s argument that Cuen-Buitimea was an unarmed migrant and has suggested cartel influence tainted the death investigation.

During the trial, prosecutor Mike Jette said Kelly recklessly fired nine shots from an AK-47 rifle toward a group of men, including Cuen-Buitimea, about 100 yards away on his property. Kelly said he fired warning shots in the air, but claimed he did not shoot at anyone directly.

“He escalates the situation. His wife is fine,” Jette said Thursday. “You do not have the right to use deadly physical force to protect a person who didn’t need protecting. You don’t have the right to use deadly force when there is no threat to home or yard, and you don’t have the right to initiate, instigate or escalate with deadly force. No right whatsoever.”

The defense maintained Kelly only fired warning shots into the air from his patio earlier in the day, and his wife, Wanda Kelly, testified about dialing their Border Patrol ranch liaison upon spotting two armed men dressed in camouflage and carrying rifles and backpacks walking about 100 feet from their home.

The fatal bullet was never recovered from the scene.

“Long story short, this is simply not somebody who’s looking for the American dream. There’s no evidence that this person is here for those kinds of benign purposes,” Kelly’s defense attorney, Brenna Larkin, said during her closing argument on Thursday. “And we bring that up, not, you know, to be judgmental about Gabriel or to not have compassion for him. But when people are involved in a criminal lifestyle, it’s dangerous. It’s more inherently dangerous than simply being a migrant who’s coming here. So it’s relevant for that reason.”

Kelly also rejected a deal from prosecutors earlier this year that would have reduced the charge to one count of negligent homicide if he would agree to plead guilty.

White House communications staff has had to correct President Joe Biden’s public remarks at least 148 times since the beginning of 2024, a review of official White House transcripts shows.

The White House releases an official transcript anytime the president gives a speech or takes questions. Communications staff frequently correct, add to or alter Biden’s official remarks in order to either bring them into compliance with official White House policy or, in some cases, reality, a Daily Caller analysis showed. In several cases, official statements had to be changed to convey the exact opposite of what Biden actually said.

Through 118 statements, speeches and chats with reporters spanning from Jan. 1 to April 24, the White House has officially updated its transcript with corrections to what the president said out loud at least 148 times.

Some of the modifications include corrections to names, dates and titles of organizations. Others change verbs and modify the meaning of the president’s statement entirely. Words that the president didn’t say, but should’ve, according to the White House staff, have also been added to the transcripts.

“It was then, through no — through my American Rescue Plan — which every American [Republican] voted against, I might add — we made the largest investment in public safety ever,” the White House transcript of Biden’s March State of the Union address read.

“I’ve always believed we’ve [they’ve] got it all wrong. America is rising. And we have the best economy in the world, which we do,” the White House transcript of Biden’s April 17 remarks on his new initiatives to protect U.S. steel in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, read.

“We must be honest: The threat to democracy must be defended [defeated],” another State of the Union excerpt reads.

In at least one case, the White House put out a transcript that falsely portrayed what Biden said out loud.

At an event last week, Biden seemingly read the word “pause” off of his teleprompter, but the original White House transcript of the president’s remarks did not include the word “pause” — it said “(inaudible).” An updated version of the transcript now includes the president’s “pause” as well as the “(inaudible).”

“Folks, imagine what we could do next,” Biden said, touting his economic policies throughout his administration.

“Four more years … Pause,” he continued before the crowd began to take the cue and chant.

In other instances, Biden relayed false information or data which the White House transcript later corrected.

“We vaccinated the vast bulk of America. We got through that pandemic with less than 200 million — with less than 2 million people being vaccinated when I came to office. Today, 720 [270] million Americans have gotten COVID vaccine,” the White House transcript reads from a Jan. 30 campaign reception. (America’s total population is about 333 million, according to the United States Census Bureau.)

“I was at a town meeting in Northern Virginia, and a very — a very together lady stood up with her two daughters and said, “My daughters have stage 2 [Type 1] diabetes. They need insulin. And I — I have insurance, but I can’t afford what it’s costing me — $700 a month for two of them,” the White House transcript of Biden’s Feb. 7 campaign remarks says.

“Since I’ve been to office, we’ve created 14 million new jobs — 440 [thousand] new jobs in North Carolina alone, just since I came to office. (Applause.) And that’s because of this guy right here. Nearly 800,000 manufacturing jobs nationwide,” another transcript reads.

Biden also forgot words during some of his remarks, leading the White House to edit the transcript to make the president’s comments accurate.

“I kept my promise to appoint the first Black [woman] Supreme Court justice,” the White House transcript reads from a Feb. 22 campaign reception.

One White House transcript from Biden’s March 9 campaign event adds “historic” in front of a reference to Vice President Kamala Harris.

“Because unlike Donald Trump, I know who we are as Americans. (Applause.) It’s why I promised to have an administration that looks like America. (Applause.) The most diverse Cabinet and administration in American history led by a [historic] Vice President,” the transcript reads.

Another White House transcript from Jan. 5 modifies Biden’s omittance of the “T” from “LGBTQ.”

“And look at what these autocrats are doing to limit freedom in their countries. They’re limiting freedom of speech, freedom of press, freedom to assemble, women’s rights, LGB[T]Q rights, people are going to jail, so much more,” the transcript shows.

The Daily Caller compared the number of changes in Biden’s transcripts to a sampling of public remarks from former President Donald Trump.

The Biden White House corrected the president’s State of the Union transcript 13 times. The Trump White House didn’t modify the former president’s State of the Union address transcript at all.

For Biden’s remarks at the national prayer breakfast, the White House corrected the transcript eight times. The Trump White House adjusted the transcript once when the former president missed one word in a quote.

“On Easter Sunday, just days after he lost his church, Reverend Toussaint preached about what it all meant. What does it mean? ‘The Easter season,’ he said, ‘is a fitting metaphor for recent events. It was dark the day that Jesus was crucified. It was dark [at] night when they burned our church. What has happened since is like a resurrection.’ Old things are gone, but it’s going to be a brand-new start, and it’s going to be better than ever, Reverend. (Applause.) Better than ever. Fantastic,” the transcript reads.

Biden’s 2024 Earth Day remarks were modified eight times by the White House in their final transcript. Trump’s transcript was not corrected at all.

The Daily Caller also examined five speeches at random from the first few months of 2020. In those, Trump’s White House did not correct the transcripts with the same frequency or manner as Biden’s. The former president’s remarks did contain some corrections, primarily him mispronouncing or stumbling over words.

“Over the last three years, under my leadership, our economy is stronger than ever before and America has achieved energy independence. These historic accompliments [accomplishments] changed our strategic priorities,” the White House transcript on Trump’s 2020 remarks on Iran reads.

“For the time being, we will redirect global health and directly work with others. All of the aid that we send will be discussed at very, very powerful lettel [sic] — letters and with very powerful and influential groups and smart groups — medically, politically, and every other way,” another transcript read from a Trump April 2020 press briefing.

In total, Biden flubbed the names or titles of individuals, places and groups 20 times spanning from Jan. 1 to April 24, according to a Daily Caller analysis. The president misrepresented the numbers of his accomplishments and often confused the difference between thousands, millions, billions and trillions, 12 times.

When recounting stories, a Daily Caller analysis found that Biden often confused pronouns, for example, sometimes saying “we” instead of “he” when referencing former President Donald Trump. The White House transcripts corrects this 13 times.

The president has also had twenty mix-ups when referencing healthcare that the White House corrected. He confused seniors with disabilities as seniors with “diabetes” and called Roe v Wade “Roe v Ward.”

Biden refers to Laken Riley — a 22-year-old Georgia student murdered by an illegal alien his administration let in — as “Lincoln.” pic.twitter.com/oVokg8n2IX

— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) March 8, 2024

The Daily Caller’s analysis does not include times that the White House altered transcripts without indicating there was a change.

During Biden’s State of the Union address, the president attempted to say the name of 22-year-old Laken Riley, who was allegedly killed by an illegal immigrant in Georgia while on a run. Biden, however, called the slain 22-year-old “Lincoln.”

The White House transcript writes that Biden said “Lanken” and corrects it to “Laken.”

A man wielding a sword went on the attack in London early Tuesday, killing a 13-year-old boy and injuring at least four others, including two cops, after first driving a van into a house, according to authorities.

Shocking images show the unidentified suspect in a yellow hoodie holding the terrifying-looking weapon around 7 a.m. while walking through a street near Hainault Tube station in north-east London.

He was “running around with a samurai sword,” one witness told the Telegraph.

Another heard a woman’s terrifying scream and then “the words, ‘he’s got a massive knife,’ or ‘he’s got a massive sword.’”

The first people stabbed were at a house where the suspect crashed his van into, according to cops, who did not elaborate on whether the property or its occupants were deliberately targeted.

The suspect “went on to attack other members of the public and two police officers,” said a rep for the police force.

Stuart Bell, the chief superintendent of London’s Metropolitan Police, later announced “with great sadness” that a 13-year-old boy had died from his injuries.

“He was taken to hospital after being stabbed and sadly died a short while after,” he said, according to the Telegraph, sending thoughts to the boy’s family “at this unimaginably difficult time.”

A 36-year-old man was arrested at the scene, police said without identifying him.

“We are not looking for more suspects,’’ Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan said. ”This incident does not appear to be terror-related.”

The top cop acknowledged the shock and alarm” the attacks sparked, saying: “This must have been a terrifying incident for those concerned.”

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said he was “absolutely devastated” by the attack, while stating that additional cops will patrol the area.

“The police officers and emergency services showed the best of our city — running towards danger to protect others and I thank them from the bottom of my heart,” he said.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called it a “shocking incident” and said that “such violence has no place on our streets.”

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) accused MSNBC’s Katy Tur of being an “apologist” for former President Trump on Monday.

During an appearance on the network, Pelosi touted President Biden’s record on the economy, saying, he “created 9 million jobs in his term in office. Donald Trump has the worst record of job loss of any president. So we just have to make sure people know.”

Tur briefly interjected, telling Pelosi “there was a global pandemic” during Trump’s presidency.

Pelosi paused, looking shocked, before shooting back at Tur that “he had the worst record of any president. We’ve had other concerns in our country.”

“If you want to be an apologist for Donald Trump, that may be your role, but it ain’t mine,” she added.

Tur pressed back, saying, “I don’t think anyone can accuse me of that.”

🚨If you only watch ONE video today, watch Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi stuffing Katy Tur into a locker for being “an apologist for Donald Trump” after Tur attempted to defend his abysmal job loss record.

Extremely satisfying!🔥🔥pic.twitter.com/hPkVtfKr1o

— Really American 🇺🇸 (@ReallyAmerican1) April 29, 2024

MSNBC frequently draws the ire of Trump and his allies, featuring leading progressive hosts who regularly criticize the former president and his policies.

El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele shocked his entire cabinet by summoning them to announce they’re under investigation for corruption.

President Bukele posted a video to X, revealing him requesting the Attorney General, the only one present not on his government’s executive branch, to investigate all of them for bribery.

The officials’ stunned reactions were evident as they gathered for the announcement.

The video has since gone viral online and earnt the praise of right-wing commentators and activists.

“This is how you lead. Whether it is well executed or not, we shall see. But this is how you lead,” Former CIA Ops Officer Bryan Dean Wright wrote on X.

Watch:

No es el primero, y tampoco será el último.

Sí Dios lo permite, nuestra guerra contra la corrupción será tan exitosa como nuestra guerra contra las pandillas. https://t.co/gNIHTZZ3O4 pic.twitter.com/nNPVSVW58J

— Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele) April 26, 2024

TurningPointUSA Founder and CEO Charlie Kirk praised the move as a “master class for all the world to see on how to be a transformative, once in a generation leader”.

Five West Virginia middle school students who protested a trans athlete’s participation in a shot put competition have been banned from future competitions.

Becky Pepper-Jackson, 13, competed in the Harris County Middle School Track and Field Championship on April 18, two days after a federal appeals court ruled West Virginia’s transgender sports ban violates the teen’s right under Title IX.

Five girls from Lincoln Middle School stepped up to the circle for their turn, then refused to throw the ball.

West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey has filed a lawsuit against the Harrison County Board of Education on the student’s behalf after they were banned from future events.

‘I will do everything in my power to defend these brave young girls. This is just wrong. We must stand for what’s right and oppose these radical trans policies,’ Morrisey said on Monday.

The Attorney General posted his tweet in response to Women’s rights activist and former college swimmer Riley Gaines, who has stood by female athletes who have refused to compete against transgender athletes.

‘These girls stood up for what they believed and their coach barred them from competing. Insane,’ Gaines said.

‘It’s dangerous to teach young girls to ignore the threats their eyes and ears are warning them of. How do some call this “progress”?’

It’s unclear why the school or district banned the girls from future events for their recent protest that saw them walk up to the box to throw the shot put before leaving without a toss.

On Wednesday, Gaines posted a video of one of the five athletes that was involved in the protest speaking at a press conference about the incident.

The teen said: ‘Luckily, I found four lovely young girls willing to take a stand with me.’

‘We hope that it opens eyes to many more to see that this is not right and the situation is eventually going to kill women’s sports forever,’ she added.

After the competition, Pepper-Jackson took home first place in the shot put competition with her 32-foot effort, three feet further than second place, and she placed second in discus.

Despite being legally allowed to compete, the five athletes protested Pepper-Jackson’s participation by refusing to play against her.

Gaines previously tweeted a video of the protest and said ‘It’s a sad day when 13-14 year old girls have to be the adults in the room, but I couldn’t be more inspired by and proud of these girls.’

🚨🚨FIVE middle school female athletes in West Virginia refuse to throw shot put against male, Becky Pepper-Jackson.

This comes just 2 days after the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals blocked the WV law that says you must compete in the category that matches your sex.

It’s a… pic.twitter.com/RzMgh4jVRU

— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) April 19, 2024

Pepper-Jackson won her years-long struggle to compete in sports after West Virginia Governor Jim Justice banned transgender athletes from competing in middle school, high school and college in May 2021.

On April 16, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the ban cannot be applied to the 13-year-old.

The court previously blocked the state’s attempt to kick the teen from her middle school cross-country and track and field teams in February 2023.

The decision does not overturn the ban as it applies only to Pepper-Jackson’s case – but the law could be in limbo if other transgender student athletes choose to challenge it.

The court noted that Pepper-Jackson has lived as a girl for more than five years. She began identifying as female in the third grade and has participated strictly on girls’ sports teams.

In addition to taking puberty blockers and estrogen hormone therapy, Pepper-Jackson has legally changed her name, and the state of West Virginia has issued her a birth certificate listing her as female.

Offering the teen a ‘choice’ between not participating in sports and participating only on boys’ teams ‘is no real choice at all,’ Judge Toby Heytens wrote in the ruling.

‘The defendants cannot expect that B.P.J. will countermand her social transition, her medical treatment, and all the work she has done with her schools, teachers, and coaches for nearly half her life by introducing herself to teammates, coaches, and even opponents as a boy,’ Heytens wrote.

In a statement, ACLU West Virginia attorney Josh Block deemed the ruling a ‘tremendous victory.’

Morrisey thought otherwise and said that he was ‘deeply disappointed’ and vowed to continue fighting to safeguard Title IX.

‘The law was passed more than five decades ago and was meant to address sex discrimination in education by ensuring that women had equal opportunities to participate in federally-funded programs.’

‘We must keep working to protect women’s sports so that women’s safety is secured and girls have a truly fair playing field,’ Morrisey said on Tuesday. ‘We know the law is correct and will use every available tool to defend it.’

In the ruling, the appeals court reaffirmed that government officials had the authority to establish separate sports teams for boys and girls and can enforce the line between them.

‘We also do not hold that Title IX requires schools to allow every transgender girl to play on girls teams, regardless of whether they have gone through puberty and experienced elevated levels of circulating testosterone,’ the court proclaimed.

‘We hold only that the district court erred in granting these defendants’ motions for summary judgment in this particular case and in failing to grant summary judgment to B.P.J. on her specific Title IX claim.’

In a dissenting opinion, Judge G. Steven Agee wrote that the state can separate teams by gender assigned at birth ‘without running afoul of either the Equal Protection Clause or Title IX.’

West Virginia is among the 24 states barring transgender women and girls from competing in sports consistent with their gender identity.

Pepper-Jackson told NBC News in October that she would not give up on her fight to compete in girl’s sports.

‘I want to keep going because this is something I love to do, and I’m not just going to give it up,’ she said. ‘This is something I truly love, and I’m not going to give up for anything.’

Her mother, Heather Pepper-Jackson, said, ‘She likes to do the best in everything, be it algebra or running or shot put or discus.’

‘She tries to excel in everything that she does, just like any other kid… if she didn’t start the fight, who’s going to?’

Hunter Biden’s legal team reportedly sent a letter threatening to sue Fox News “imminently” over the alleged “unlicensed commercial exploitation” of the president’s son.

Mark Geragos, an attorney for the younger Biden, warned Fox Corporation and Fox News Digital of their preparation to seek damages over the network’s alleged “conspiracy and subsequent actions to defame [Hunter] Biden and paint him in a false light, the unlicensed commercial exploitation of his image, name, and likeness, and the unlawful publication of hacked intimate images of him,” according to NBC News. No lawsuit has currently been filed.

The April 23 letter is signed by Tina Glandian, a partner at the Geragos and Geragos law firm working on the case, according to NBC News. The firm gave Fox News until April 26 to respond, though the network has reportedly not responded.

The younger Biden’s legal team has reportedly been planning to sue Fox for over a year, according to NBC News. Geragos said the network “relentlessly attacked” his client for good ratings and “financial gain.”

“For the last five years, Fox News has relentlessly attacked Hunter Biden and made him a caricature in order to boost ratings and for its financial gain,” Geragos said in a statement. “The recent indictment of FBI informant Smirnov has exposed the conspiracy of disinformation that has been fueled by Fox, enabled by their paid agents and monetized by the Fox enterprise. We plan on holding them accountable.”

The letter mentions Fox News’ coverage of the Biden bribery allegations raised by Alexander Smirnov, who told the FBI that executives at Burisma—a Ukrainian energy company—discussed paying millions of dollars to Hunter and his father in order for the elder Biden to use his political clout to protect the company, NBC reported. The FBI charged Smirnov for allegedly fabricating the story about then-Vice President Joe Biden and Burisma, where Hunter served on the Board of Directors from 2014 to 2019.

The letter accused Fox News of intentionally labeling the allegations as “highly credible” despite the information being unverified, the outlet reported.

The letter demanded retractions and corrections from several anchors, including Sean Hannity, Maria Bartiromo and Jesse Watters, who the legal team said participated in this practice while covering the Smirnov allegations, according to the outlet.

The network is also accused of airing “intimate images” that were “hacked, stolen, and/or manipulated,” according to NBC News. The letter said many of these images were published during the six-part “mock trial” titled “The Trial of Hunter Biden” that aired in October 2021. Hunter’s legal team is demanding the “mock trial” series be removed from all streaming services.

“While using certain true information, the series intentionally manipulates the facts, distorts the truth, narrates happenings out of context, and invents dialogue intended to entertain. Thus, the viewer of the series cannot decipher what is fact and what is fiction,” the letter reportedly reads.

The letter is reportedly the second form of communication by Hunter’s legal team to Fox News this month, as they allegedly hand-delivered a previous letter to the network weeks ago, according to NBC News. Fox’s legal counsel reportedly asked for more time to give a response.

Hunter is charged with three counts of illegally purchasing a Colt Cobra revolver in October 2018 while under the influence of drugs. He is charged in a separate indictment with nine counts related to his failure to pay over $1 million in taxes over a four-year period.

Three US Marshals were killed Monday and five other officers wounded when they were met with a hail of bullets while trying to serve a warrant in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Chief Johnny Jennings said Tuesday called it the bloodiest day for law enforcement he’s seen in his 32 years on the job.

“Today we lost some heroes that were out there simply trying to keep our communities safe,” Jennings said at a press conference shortly after the situation settled.

“To me it’s the most tragic [day] that I’ve been involved in,” he added.

Gunfire broke out around 1:30 p.m. in a tree-lined residential street about 20 minutes west of downtown Charlotte as officers attempted to serve a warrant for a convicted felon in possession of a firearm.

Upon arriving at a home on Galway Drive, bullets started flying from within the house prompting the US Marshals to return fire.

When the gun smoke cleared, the suspect — the subject of the warrant — was dead on the front lawn, cops said. When officers approached the home again, more fire erupted from within, they said.

SWAT teams and patrol units from CMPD arrived to assist and were eventually able to clear the home, securing two other suspects in the process. There was at least one juvenile in the home, CMPD said.

It is unclear at what point during the violent exchange the officers were killed.

In addition to the fatalities, one US Marshal was wounded, as were four CMPD officers. One of the city police officers remains in critical condition. Their injuries vary from serious gunshots to graze wounds.

Exactly how many guns or what kind were involved remained unclear, but Jennings said one of the shooters opened fire with a “high-powered rifle.”

“They lost their lives after they gave us the opportunity to be in safe place,” said Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles, fighting back tears.

“The most I can ask of our community is that we honor and respect them for all the work that they’ve done, for all the work that we’ll do, to make it possible for our city to be safer.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked President Biden Sunday to help prevent the International Criminal Court from issuing arrest warrants for senior Israeli officials in connection with the war in Gaza, two Israeli officials told Axios.

Israeli officials have grown increasingly concerned over the last two weeks that the ICC is preparing to issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Israel Defense Forces chief of staff Herzi Halevi.

The officials said Netanyahu expressed his concern to Biden in a phone call on Sunday, where the two leaders also discussed hostage negotiations, Israel’s defense against Iran’s missile attack, and the need to increase humanitarian aid to Gaza, according to a White House readout.

The ICC, which is based in The Hague, Netherlands, has been investigating possible war crimes by both Israeli forces and Palestinian militants dating back to the 2014 Israel-Hamas war.

U.S. officials said they do not have a clear indication whether the ICC is going to issue arrest warrants, but said the prosecutor’s office is under pressure from NGOs and several ICC member states to do so.

“Under my leadership, Israel will never accept any attempt by the ICC to undermine its inherent right of self-defense,” Netanyahu said in a statement on X Friday.

“While the ICC will not affect Israel’s actions, it would set a dangerous precedent that threatens the soldiers and officials of all democracies fighting savage terrorism and wanton aggression,” he added.

A spokesperson for the White House National Security Council declined to comment on the contents of Netanyahu’s call with Biden, but told Axios: “As we have publicly said many times, the ICC has no jurisdiction in this situation and we do not support its investigation.”

In March 2023, the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin over his alleged involvement in the abduction of Ukrainian children and teenagers.

The International Court of Justice, a separate body also located in The Hague, is hearing a case brought by South Africa that alleges Israel is committing genocide with its military campaign in Gaza.

Israel has denounced the case as “baseless,” and U.S. officials have defended Israel in proceedings at the ICJ.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky revealed that the United States and Ukrainian governments are “working on a bilateral security agreement” that would result in sending additional monetary aid to Ukraine over the next ten years.

In a statement issued on Sunday, Zelensky noted he had spoken to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) thanking “him and all the congressmen for their support” of Ukraine and for voting to send a $61 billion aid package out of a $95 billion foreign aid package.

Zelensky added that during his conversation with Jeffries, he had “emphasized the need for Patriot systems.”

This is not the first time Zelensky has begged for more American-made Patriot missile systems to be sent to Ukraine.

Currently, Ukraine has three Patriot systems, one from the U.S. and two reportedly from Germany, according to the Washington Post.

On Friday, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin revealed that the U.S. would be sending Ukraine more Patriot systems as part of an additional $6 billion foreign aid package.

“Also, our teams, Ukraine and the United States, are currently working on a bilateral security agreement, and we are already working on a specific text. Our goal is to make this agreement the strongest of all. We are discussing the specific foundations of our security and cooperation,” Zelensky said.

“We are also working on fixing specific levels of support for this year and for the next ten years, including armed support, financial, political, and joint arms production.”

“The agreement should be truly exemplary and reflect the strength of American leadership. I am grateful to both our team and the team of the American side for the progress in drafting the agreement.”

On top of the $61 billion in foreign aid recently approved by the United States, United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak vowed to send an additional £500 million in foreign aid to Ukraine.

CBS is benching a pair of former New York quarterbacks.

Boomer Esiason and Phil Simms are out at the “The NFL Today” as the NFL studio show undergoes a huge makeover with Matt Ryan and JJ Watt joining James Brown, Nate Burleson and Bill Cowher.

The former Jets quarterback announced on Monday morning that he is “stepping away” from the position and that he signed a long-term deal to remain with WFAN as co-host of their morning show with Gregg Giannotti.

“More their decision than maybe mine,” Esiason, 63, said of CBS before thanking all the behind-the-scenes staff that made his job possible.

“I had been there for 22 years. The guy who hired me back in 2001 was a guy by the name of Sean McManus, who was the CBS Sports Chairman… I never in my wildest dreams it would have lasted 22 years. With all the people that I’ve worked with CBS and the ‘NFL Today’ it’s been an amazing run.”

Watch:

Boomer Esiason announces he is leaving The NFL Today on CBS, but signed an extension to continue his WFAN morning show with Gio pic.twitter.com/91E0OzmGx9

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) April 29, 2024

McManus is stepping down from his role as chairman this year.

Simms, who helped the Giants win two Super Bowls, announced the news on X.

“Great 26 yrs run with CBS SPORTS. Even though that part of my career is over I look forward to what is next..,” Simms wrote.

The Post reported in January that changes could be coming with Esiason, Simms, Cowher and Brown all at the end of their contracts.

Simms was previously part of the No. 1 broadcasting booth alongside Jim Nantz before being replaced by Tony Romo in 2017.

Simms, 68, said in January that even if his time at CBS ends, he still plans on working in football broadcasting.

“I’m never going to get out of it,” Simms told The Post. “I don’t know what I’ll do if I don’t go back to CBS. But I’m definitely going to continue to work with or in the NFL — somewhere, somehow, whatever it is. I’m just not going to go, ‘OK, I’m done. I’m retired.’ ”

Brown, the show’s longtime host, was expected to get a new deal with his contract up.

Islamist extremists reportedly set fire to several Christian houses and businesses in southern Egypt last week.

The violence broke out on Tuesday night in the village of Al-Fawakher, which is home to about 3,000 Christian families. The local Christian community had recently received a permit to construct a new church building, prompting backlash from some Muslim hardliners.

“The attacks are believed to have been triggered by an attempt to build a new church in Al-Fawakher village in Minya [province],” one local source, who asked to remain anonymous, told The New Arab. “When religious fanatics failed to expel Christians from their homes as a form of punishment, the extremists [reportedly] burned down their houses while they were still inside.”

Mobs are out on the streets and burning down homes of Egyptian Coptic Christians in Al-Fawakher in Minya, Egypt. Beside the widespread antisemitism we see in the world there is also sadly a lot of christian persecution happening.
pic.twitter.com/HcTLO2wffR

— Brian BJ (@iamBrianBJ) April 24, 2024

Video circulating on social media appears to show crowds of people dancing and celebrating in front of the burning buildings.

“The extremists attacked Coptic homes with stones and chants, and a number of homes were set on fire, amid the screams of women and children,” Copts United, a religious advocacy group, reported. “The attack continued for a long time before the security forces arrived.”

“Security forces arrived and brought the situation under control, arresting the instigators and perpetrators,” Coptic Bishop Anba Macarius said in a public statement on Wednesday: “State agencies will compensate those affected and hold the perpetrators accountable.Calm prevails in the village now. May God protect our dear country, Egypt, from all harm.”

Christians have long been a persecuted minority in Egypt. Conversion from Islam to Christianity is illegal and Christians are barred from holding certain public offices, and terror attacks against churches and religious minorities are fairly common. Minya province in particular has been a hotbed of violence, with at least 77 incidents recorded between 2011-2016, according to the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights.

According to Copts United, a similar attack took place on Friday in the village of Al-Kom Al-Ahmar, after a local Evangelical group was given permission to build a church there.

Bishop Macarius himself survived an assassination attempt in 2013.

The exact number of Christians within the country is contested, and the officially Islamic Egyptian government has been accused of trying to downplay the size of its Christian minority – estimates range anywhere from 5-15% of the country’s 111 million people, although it is generally agreed that the share is shrinking – likely as a result of conversion, migration, or lower fertility rates compared to Egypt’s Muslim majority.

The majority of Egypt’s Christians belong to the Coptic Orthodox Church, which claims descent from the Patriarchate of Alexandria, one of the 5 major centers of early Christianity, alongside Rome, Constantinople, Antioch and Jerusalem. The Coptic Church broke away from what would become the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches in 451 AD after the Council of Chalcedon, over theological differences, and remained the dominant religion in Egypt until the country was conquered in 641 by Muhammed’s immediate successors in the Rashidun (“rightly guided”) Caliphate.

Egypt is also home to hundreds of thousands of Eastern Orthodox Christians, Protestants and Catholics.

“An unacceptable culture of intimidation and discrimination is still far too prevalent in this region despite positive steps taken by the Egyptian authorities in recent years, and the personal commitment of President Sisi to fight sectarian extremism and promote equality of citizenship,” Christian Solidarity Worldwide President Mervyn Thomas said in a press statement. “Egyptian citizens should all be free to practice any religion or belief of their choosing without fear of threats or physical violence.”

Humza Yousaf, Scotland’s first minister, resigned on Monday after just 13 months in office following a series of muddled progressive policies that culminated in him torpedoing his own governing coalition.

Yousaf, who became the first Muslim leader of a Western democracy, stepped down on Monday after his decision to rip up an agreement between his Scottish National Party and the Green Party, known as the Bute House Agreement, cost him a working majority.

Scottish Green co-leader Lorna Slater said that Yousaf’s decision to stop the agreement was a “spectacular breach of trust.”

In the aftermath of Yousaf’s decision, a vote of no confidence was called for this week. And although he gave no indications he would resign last Friday, he changed his mind over the weekend.

“I’ve concluded that repairing our relationship across the political divide can only be done with someone else at the helm,” an emotional Yousaf said Monday during his resignation speech in Edinburgh, Scotland’s capital.

“I have therefore informed the SNP’s national secretary of my intention to stand down as party leader.”

Humza Yousaf confirms he is quitting as Scotland’s first minister, triggering leadership race

Follow live https://t.co/oRMyI5FLJ7 pic.twitter.com/mIr2ARmQVs

— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) April 29, 2024

Furthermore, he paid tribute to his family and said politics can be a “brutal business.”

Yousaf’s tenure as leader of the pro-independence party has included multiple obstacles and controversial policies.

He became leader of the SNP and first minister in March 2023 after longtime party leader Nicola Sturgeon stepped down. Her resignation came during a police investigation into alleged misuse of campaign funds. Her husband, former SNP treasurer Peter Murrell, was charged with embezzlement earlier this month, while Sturgeon herself was questioned and released without charge last year. Both deny any wrongdoing.

Yousaf’s short-lived tenure will be remembered, however, for controversial legislation that would make it easier for people to change their gender, which was at odds with the Conservative-led Westminster government.

His party also introduced a hate crime law that made transgender identity a protected characteristic. The law generated criticism from the likes of Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling, who lives in Edinburgh, and even X owner Elon Musk.

In the end, Yousaf’s tenure was made untenable after he scrapped the Bute deal with the Greens over climate change policy disagreements.

Douglas Ross, the leader of the Scottish Conservatives who tabled the motion of no confidence, told STV that Yousaf was “forced … out of office for repeatedly failing Scotland.”

He added: “There is no doubt that he wanted to continue as First Minister to continue with his reckless policies that have damaged Scotland.

“But facing a vote of no confidence brought forward by the Scottish Conservatives, he looked on course to be defeated and he has jumped before he was pushed.”

Anas Sarwar, the leader of the Scottish Labour Party, said: “The SNP are a divided party which is out of ideas and incapable of rising to the challenges Scotland faces.”

Keir Starmer, the leader of the United Kingdom’s Labour Party, told the BBC: “I despair of the situation in Scotland. It’s absolute chaos now from the Scottish Parliament from the SNP.”

Yousaf will stay on as leader until a successor can be elected. If the SNP cannot agree on a new leader within 28 days, an emergency general election will be triggered. The SNP has been the party of power in Scotland since 2007, sometimes in a coalition and sometimes with an outright majority.

An OnlyFans creator and TikTok star has claimed she was paid to spread “political propaganda” for the Biden administration on social media — and that she was asked to hide the fact it was advertising.

Farha Khalidi said she’d been asked to help boast about then-Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to her tens of thousands of social media followers after Brown Jackson was nominated to the Supreme Court by President Biden.

“I was doing full-on political propaganda,” the social media personality said during a recent podcast interview with commentator Richard Hanania.

“The funny thing is they’re, like, ‘Do not disclose this as an ad’ because they [were], like, ‘Technically, it’s not a product, so you don’t have to disclose it’s an ad.’ Because I think they just wanted, like, some edgy girl of color to just tell people — like when they nominated Ketanji Brown Jackson, they’re, like, ‘Can you say “as a person of color,” you know, that you feel “reflected”?’”

When probed about the Biden admin, Khalidi, who boasts more than 119,000 Instagram followers, clarified that she was dealing with a “conduit” third-party media company at the time.

“It’s not Biden, but it’s, like, a third party. You know what I mean? It’s, like, a media company that’s doing it on his behalf. I’m not blaming him for this,” Khalidi said.

Farha Khalidi on how surrogates for the Biden administration tried to pay her to engage in identity politics and sell their message.

A case of racial division as a top-down phenomenon. They’re literally buying the TikTok influencers. pic.twitter.com/nJWGvsLlMu

— Richard Hanania (@RichardHanania) April 26, 2024

She went on to say that she ultimately pushed back against the “script” because it was a white woman from the media company telling her what to say.

“And I’m, like, ‘No,’ and she’s like, ‘Please,’ and I’m like, ‘No.’ I’ll talk about the news of it, but I’m not gonna be like — I’m not gonna have a white person tell me to be, like, ‘This is how I feel as a person of color.’ It’s just so — I think that black-pilled me slightly on political propaganda,” Khalidi said.

“Yeah, they’re basically, ‘As, like, another black person, can you just say that you feel reflected by Ketanji?’ I’m like, ‘No, I’ll talk about Ketanji’s background and her accomplishments,’ but you know what I mean? I’ll never — I’m not gonna say, like, the corny stuff, even if it was a brown person emailing it to me.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Khalidi said the political payments were just one way she was raking in cash during college.

“I was taking ads by the time I graduated college from, like, the Biden administration, Planned Parenthood and, like, dating apps and stuff. So it was, like, fully financially sustaining me,” Khalidi said.

It wasn’t immediately clear exactly how much Khalidi was paid.

Former President Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis met privately in Miami on Sunday, multiple Republicans with knowledge of the meeting confirmed to Fox News.

During the several-hour meeting, DeSantis agreed to help Trump as the GOP’s presumptive presidential nominee tries to close his fundraising gap with President Biden in their 2024 election rematch, the sources confirmed.

DeSantis, who was convincingly re-elected in 2022 before launching an unsuccessful bid for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has built up a formidable network of wealthy donors who could be helpful to Trump as the general election campaign heats up.

News of the meeting was first reported by the Washington Post, which said the get-together between the two rivals was orchestrated by Steve Witkoff, a Florida real estate broker known to both Trump and DeSantis.

Sources familiar confirmed to Fox News that the meeting was set up nearly 10 days ago, after DeSantis approached Witkoff.

The meeting appears to be the first time DeSantis and Trump have spoken, let alone met in person, since the governor ended his White House bid in January after a disappointing second-place finish in the Iowa caucuses, far behind Trump.

The former president and his allies spent nearly a year attacking DeSantis as the two squared off for the GOP nomination that also included other contenders.

DeSantis suspended his presidential campaign just two days ahead of the New Hampshire primary and has since endorsed Trump. But to date, DeSantis hasn’t campaigned on Trump’s behalf.

During a February call with supporters, the governor took aim at Trump and his top political advisers.

“I think he’s got people in his inner circle who were part of our orbit years ago that we fired, and I think some of that is they just have an ax to grind,” DeSantis said at the time.

In response, top Trump campaign aide Chris LaCivita called DeSantis a “sad little man.”

While many on Trump’s team and his wider political orbit detest DeSantis, the former president may be more forgiving if it benefits him.

Trump said in January after DeSantis endorsed him that he would “officially retire” the derogatory “Ron DeSanctimonious” nickname he used repeatedly to attack the Florida governor for nearly a year.

Tornadoes killed four people in Oklahoma and left thousands without power Sunday after a destructive outbreak of severe weather flattened buildings in the heart of one rural town and injured at least 100 people across the state.

More than 20,000 people remained without electricity after tornadoes began late Saturday night. The destruction was extensive in Sulphur, a town of about 5,000 people, where a tornado crumpled many downtown buildings, tossed cars and buses and sheared the roofs off houses across a 15-block radius.

“You just can’t believe the destruction,” Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt said during a visit to the hard-hit town. “It seems like every business downtown has been destroyed.”

Stitt said about 30 people were injured alone in Sulphur, including some who were in a bar as the tornado struck. Hospitals across the state reported about 100 injuries, including people apparently cut or struck by debris or hurt from falls, according to the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management.

White House officials said President Joe Biden spoke to Gov. Stitt on Sunday and offered the full support of the federal government.

The deadly weather in Oklahoma added to the dozens of reported tornadoes that wreaked havoc in the nation’s midsection since Friday. On Sunday, authorities in Iowa said a man injured during a tornado that hit the town of Minden on Friday had died, according to local reports.

Authorities said the tornado in Sulphur began in a city park before barreling through the downtown, flipping cars and ripping the roofs and walls off of brick buildings. Windows and doors were blown out of structures that remained standing.

“How do you rebuild it? This is complete devastation,” said Kelly Trussell, a lifelong Sulphur resident as she surveyed the damage. “It is crazy, you want to help but where do you start?”

Carolyn Goodman traveled to Sulphur from the nearby town of Ada in search of her former sister-in-law, who Goodman said was at a local bar before just before the tornado hit the area. Stitt said one of the victims was found inside a bar but authorities had not yet identified those killed.

“The bar was destroyed,” Goodman said. “I know they probably won’t find her alive … but I hope she is still alive.”

Farther north, a tornado near the town of Holdenville killed two people and damaged or destroyed more than a dozen homes, according to the Hughes County Emergency Medical Service. Another person was killed along Interstate 35 near the southern Oklahoma city of Marietta, state officials said.

Heavy rains that swept into Oklahoma with the tornadoes also caused dangerous flooding and water rescues. Outside Sulphur, rising lake levels shut down the Chickasaw National Recreation Area, where the storms wiped out a pedestrian bridge.

Stitt issued an executive order Sunday declaring a state of emergency in 12 counties due to the fallout from the severe weather.

At the Sulphur High School gym, where families took cover from the storm, Jackalyn Wright said she and her family heard what sounded like a helicopter as the tornado touched down over them.

Chad Smith, 43, said people ran into the gym as the wind picked up. The rain started coming faster and the doors slammed shut. “Just give me a beer and a lawn chair and I will sit outside and watch it,” Smith said. Instead, he took cover.

Residents in other states were also digging out from storm damage. A tornado in suburban Omaha, Nebraska, demolished homes and businesses Saturday as it moved for miles through farmland and into subdivisions, then slammed an Iowa town.

The tornado damage began Friday afternoon near Lincoln, Nebraska. An industrial building in Lancaster County was hit, causing it to collapse with 70 people inside. Several were trapped, but everyone was evacuated, and the three injuries were not life-threatening, authorities said.

One or possibly two tornadoes then spent around an hour creeping toward Omaha, leaving behind damage consistent with an EF3 twister, with winds of 135 to 165 mph (217 to 265 kph), said Chris Franks, a meteorologist in the National Weather Service’s Omaha office.

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen and Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds spent Saturday touring the damage and arranging for assistance for the damaged communities. Formal damage assessments are still underway, but the states plan to seek federal help.

Nearly half of the pro-Palestinian protesters arrested earlier this week at The University of Texas at Austin were not affiliated with the university.

Law enforcement officials arrested 57 protesters during Wednesday’s event organized by the Palestine Solidarity Committee after participants refused to disperse despite demands from authorities and the university. Of those arrested, 26 were neither students nor faculty of the university, according to officials at UT-Austin.

Hundreds of students walked out of class Wednesday in support of Palestinians in Gaza in the midst of the Israel-Hamas war. The war broke out after Palestinian terror group Hamas launched a brutal attack on Israel on Oct. 7, which left 1,200 Israelis dead. Hamas is believed to still be holding 129 hostages from Israel.

The organizers wrote on Instagram that they aimed to follow “in the footsteps of our comrades at Columbia SJP, Rutgers-New Brunswick, Yale, and countless others,” with SJP referring to Students for Justice in Palestine.

The anti-Israel student group demanded that the university “divest from death.”

“Consistent with this broader movement that is impacting so many, problematic aspects of the planned protest were modeled after a national organization’s protest playbook,” UT–Austin President Jay Hartzell said in a campuswide message Thursday evening. “And notably, 26 of the 55 individuals arrested yesterday had no UT affiliation.”

Local news outlet KTBC-TV reported that one of its photojournalists was among those arrested during the clash between police and protesters. He was booked into the Travis County jail on a criminal trespassing charge.

By Thursday evening, all of those arrested had been released. The Travis County prosecutor said it had dropped all criminal trespassing charges, citing “deficiencies” in charging documents. Criminal trespassing is considered a misdemeanor in the state of Texas.

According to the Texas Tribune, the Texas Department of Public Safety has opened a criminal investigation into the arrest of the photojournalist.

The UT–Austin chapter of the American Association of University of Professors denounced Mr. Hartzell for allowing authorities to be deployed on campus during the class walkout.

“We, faculty of UT Austin, condemn President Jay Hartzell and our administrative leaders’ decision to invite city police as well as state troopers from across the state—on horses, motorcycles, and bicycles, in riot gear and armed with batons, pepper spray, tear gas and guns to our campus today in response to a planned peaceful event by our students,” read the statement posted on X on Wednesday night.

Policy Violation

Ahead of Wednesday’s demonstration, university officials warned the organizers that the event violated school policy and would not be allowed to take place in an effort to prevent the “pattern” that has occurred across the nation in recent weeks, leading to hundreds of arrests.

“The University’s decision to not allow yesterday’s event to go as planned was made because we had credible indications that the event’s organizers, whether national or local, were trying to follow the pattern we see elsewhere, using the apparatus of free speech and expression to severely disrupt a campus for a long period,” Mr. Hartzell continued.

Palestine Solidarity Committee (PSC) is a student organization with chapters at colleges and universities across the country.

The group’s website states that it is “dedicated to telling the story of the Palestinian struggle for justice and self-determination on the university campus and in the wider Austin community. We work to promote education, discourse, activism, and awareness of the Palestinian story through lectures by academics and political activists, movie screenings, and events and displays on the UT West Mall.”

The UT–Austin group, which holds biweekly meetings on campus, states under Article 1 of its bylaws that it will comply with school policies.

“This organization is a recognized student organization at The University of Texas at Austin and shall comply with all campus policies as set forth in the ​Institutional Rules on Student Services and Activities and Information on Students’ Rights and Responsibilities,” it says.

UT Suspends Organization

The university suspended the student group from campus after another walkout on Thursday, which was organized in part by the faculty group that condemned the university for enforcing its rules.

Police were present during Thursday’s peaceful event.

“Students and faculty affirmed their commitment to continue struggling for the liberation of Palestine, to demand their university divest, and demand the resignation of President Jay Hartzell for greenlighting the militarized brutality enforced on students,” PSC wrote on Instagram.

PSC has held more than a dozen pro-Palestinian events since October.

“I’m thankful we live in a country where free expression is a fiercely protected Constitutional right,” Mr. Hartzell said in his campuswide message on Thursday. “I’m grateful that our campus has seen 13 pro-Palestinian events take place during the past several months largely without incident—plus another one today. I am grateful that everyone is safe after yesterday, we continue to hold in-person classes, and that today’s events followed our long-standing campus standards for allowed demonstrations.”

Brian Davis, a spokesperson for the university, confirmed on Friday that the student group had been suspended from campus in the wake of this week’s events. The length of the suspension is not immediately clear. Mr. Davis said that the Dean of Students office would make that determination.

It is unknown whether any students have been reprimanded for the events that occurred earlier this week. That information is protected by federal privacy laws.

“I encourage us all to continue to communicate and work together, and to help our students finish this school year in positive, safe and celebratory ways,” Mr. Hartzell said.

George Soros Is Paying Student Radicals Who Are Fueling Nationwide Explosion of Israel-Hating Protests

Dan Rather returned to the CBS News airwaves for the first time since his bitter exit 18 years ago, appearing in a reflective interview on “CBS Sunday Morning” days before the debut of a Netflix documentary on the 92-year-old newsman’s life.

After 44 years at the network, 24 as anchor of the “CBS Evening News,” Rather left under a cloud following a botched investigation into then-President George W. Bush’s military record. Rather signed off as anchor for the last time on March 9, 2005, and exited the network when his contract ended 15 months later.

With continued enmity between him and since-deposed CBS chief Leslie Moonves, Rather essentially became a nonperson at the news division he dominated for decades.

“Without apology or explanation, I miss CBS,” Rather told correspondent Lee Cowan in the interview that aired Sunday. “I’ve missed it since the day I left.”

Rather escaped official blame for the report that questioned Bush’s Vietnam War-era National Guard service but, as the anchor who introduced it, was identified with it. CBS could not vouch for the authenticity of some documents upon which the report was based, although many people involved in the story still believe it was true.

In the documentary “Rather,” debuting Wednesday on Netflix, Rather said he thought he would survive the incident, but his wife, Jean, told him, “You got into a fight with the president of the United States during his reelection campaign. What did you think was going to happen?”

Rather did not retire after leaving CBS, doing investigative journalism and rock star interviews for HDNet, a digital cable and satellite television network. Over the past few years, he has become known to a new generation as a tart-talking presence on social media.

This past week, he posted on X during former President Trump’s hush-money trial: “Is it just me or did today seem sleazy even for Donald Trump?”

“You either get engaged and you get engaged in the new terms … or you’re out of the game,” Rather said in the CBS interview, filmed at his home in Texas. “And I wanted to stay in the game.”

The Netflix documentary traces his career from coverage of President John F. Kennedy’s assassination, the Vietnam War and Watergate, through his anchor years and beyond. It includes some of the then tightly-wound Rather’s odder incidents, including an assault in New York City by someone saying, “What’s the frequency, Kenneth,” then later appearing onstage with R.E.M. when the group performed its song of the same name.

In both the documentary and in the CBS interview, Rather bypasses his career when talk turned to his legacy.

“In the end, whatever remains of one’s life — family, friends — those are going to be the things for which you’re remembered,” he said.