NEW DELHI: India’s exports to China rose 37% to $14.2 billion between April and December, with shipments jumping 67% to over $2 billion in the last month of 2025, the government told the Indian Parliament on Friday. The latest data from the Ministry of Commerce showed that imports increased by 13.5% in the first nine months, reaching nearly US$96 billion. Parliament, Deputy Minister of Commerce and Industry Jitin Prasada Said that most of the goods imported from China are capital goods, intermediate products and raw materials. Replying to a question, he said that during the last financial year (2024-25), imports from China in industries such as fertilizers (61.4%), chemicals (19.7%), steel (10.3%) and artificial yarn (9.5%) have declined in 2024-25. Replying to a question on India’s trade balance with China, Prasada said: “In 2024-25, imports from China declined across several sectors as compared to the previous year.” He also said active pharmaceutical ingredients, auto parts, electronic components and components, and mobile phone parts are imported and then used to manufacture finished products. “These goods are imported to meet the needs of India’s rapidly expanding industries such as electronics, pharmaceuticals, telecom and power. The growth in imports of electronic components, computer hardware and peripherals, telephony components, etc. can be attributed to India’s transformation towards a digital society and knowledge economy,” the minister said.
New Delhi: On the occasion of the so-called ‘Kashmir Solidarity Day’, there was a coordinated escalation of hostilities between Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba Lashkar-e-Taiba has used inflammatory anti-India rhetoric during public rallies in Pakistan and Pakistani-occupied Kashmir, inciting direct violence against India and global powers.The comments, which included open calls for jihad and threats to attack major Indian cities, have triggered heightened alert among Indian intelligence agencies and the military is bracing for potential cross-border spillover. The speech by Syed Abdul Rahman Naqvi, Lashkar-e-Taiba’s top ideologue, was particularly shocking because of its specific geographical targeting, shouting to cheering crowds that the group would “set Agra on fire, wake up the Deccan and shake Delhi”.In Rawalakot, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Tehreek-e-Insaf commander Masood Ilyas Kashmiri addressed a large rally and persuaded young Pakistanis to join the ranks of the terrorist group. Kashmiri said his supporters were ready to “crush the enemy with all force and terror”. He also warned that a “message” would be sent to Delhi and global powers, particularly the United States, Britain and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.The rally featured the public appearance of a “next generation” cadre of newly recruited terrorists. Kashmiri is the same agent who previously acknowledged the devastating impact of India’s attack on the Bahawalpur headquarters of Tehreek-e-Insaf and described how the blast left the terrorists “in pieces”. In Lahore, Syed Abdul Rehman Naqvi is the commander of the Pakistan Markazi Muslim League, Pakistan’s political front. Hafiz SaeedLashkar-e-Taiba poses a chilling threat to India’s territorial integrity. Naqvi, who maintained close ties with Saeed and his son Talha Saeed, vowed to fulfill the “witnesses of his elders” by disbanding Akhand Bharat.
Several MAGA and conservative commentators, including Laura Loomer, posted the full video, a clip of which Donald Trump Shared his Truth Society profile to defend the president amid racism controversy. This comes after the White House was forced to remove a racist video depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes.
Barack Obama talks to Donald Trump before the state funeral service for former US President Jimmy Carter (AFP)
Trump retweeted the video on Thursday. It baselessly claims that voting machines in swing states were “rigged” during the 2020 election, which the 79-year-old president lost to Joe Biden. It was the final seconds of the clip that sparked controversy. Photos emerged of the Obama family depicting them as apes. The background music is “The Lion Sleeps Tonight”.
The White House issued a statement as Trump came under fire from Democrats and Republicans, including his key ally Tim Scott. “This is an internet meme video that depicts President Trump as the king of the jungle and Democrats as characters from ‘The Lion King,'” said press secretary Carolyn Leavitt.
A White House official said a staffer posted the late-night post in error. Another added that the president had not seen the video and was upset that it was released.
“Pray it’s fake because it’s the most racist thing I’ve ever seen in the White House. The president should delete it,” Tim Scott wrote on the X (formerly Twitter) platform.
“Wow! White House says Trump doesn’t write his own tweets??? Auto pen!” wrote California Governor Gavin Newsom, a 2028 presidential candidate.
Full “The Lion King” video surface
Meanwhile, MAGA commentators shared the full video, claiming it also showed former President Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Hakeem Jeffries and other Democrats. Trump is portrayed as the Lion King.
“Barack Obama’s full ‘monkey video’ depicts numerous elected officials, Republicans and Democrats, as a Lion King-like figure and Trump as a lion and the King of the Jungle. Funny that this fact is not being reported,” one person wrote on Twitter.
“This is the full video posted by Trump’s Truth social account, which features a 1 second clip of the Obamas playing Lion Music. The clip is about election fraud and this brief clip appears at the end of the clip. Not sure if this was intentional or the person who posted the clip didn’t see it to the end,” another person added.
New Delhi: Himachal Pradesh government takes action on Friday Supreme Court Questioning the Supreme Court’s decision not to allow it to withdraw all 65 FIRs filed against MPs, MLAs and politicians involving non-serious offences. On July 20, 2023, the Congress government headed by Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking permission to withdraw prosecution against current and former MPs/MLAs of various parties who were named in 65 FIRs on the recommendation of the prosecutor. The HC found that 5 out of 65 FIRs had been disposed of and allowed the withdrawal of prosecution in 15 FIRs after examining the records. With an FIR detail being repeated in the list and four more cases having resulted in acquittals/releases, more than a year after the HC decision, the HP government sought permission from the SC to withdraw prosecution in the remaining 39 cases. Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi issued notice on the petition and posted the matter on March 16. The HP government, through senior advocate V Giri, said it is seeking withdrawal of the prosecution in public interest after consulting the DM and SP and seeking independent opinions from the public prosecutor and district attorney. Supreme Court rules in Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay case 2021 that prosecutors can withdraw prosecution to further broad objectives of justice “These cases/FIRs relate to peaceful public disturbance and did not result in any damage to property or injury to persons,” the HP government said.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Derrick Johnson fulfilled his mother’s wish to have a final resting place where she could care for her grandchildren by burying her ashes under a golden dewdrop tree with purple flowers at his home on Maui’s Haleakala volcano.
Man whose mother was found among 189 decomposing bodies tells his story
Then the FBI called.
It was February 4, 2024, and Johnson was teaching eighth-grade physical education.
“Are you Ellen Lopez’s son?” one woman asked, Johnson recalled in an interview with The Associated Press.
The caller said there was an incident and an FBI agent would fly out to explain. Then she asked: “‘Have you ever used it? Return to nature To a funeral home? ‘”
“‘You should probably Google it,'” she added.
Amid the buzz in the weight room, Johnson typed “back to nature” into his phone. dozens news reports Appeared, appeared out of thin air.
Hundreds of bodies were stacked on top of each other. inches of body breakdown fluid. Swarms of bugs. Investigators were traumatized. governor announced state of emergency.
Johnson felt nauseous and his chest constricted, forcing the breath out of his lungs. He pushed himself out of the building when another teacher heard his cries and ran over.
Two FBI agents visited Johnson the following week, confirming His mother’s remains were among 189 corpses Back to Nature owners Jon and Carrie Hallford hid in a building in Colorado from 2019 until October 4, 2023, when the body was discovered.
this is one of them Biggest discovery of rotting corpses A U.S. funeral home lawmaker has launched an overhaul of the state’s lax funeral home regulations. In addition to delivering fake ashes to grieving families, the Holfords Also admitted to defrauding the federal government Part of nearly $900,000 in aid provided to small businesses during the pandemic.
Although the Holfords’ bills were unpaid, they squandered money on Tiffany jewelry, luxury cars and laser sculpting, pocketing about $130,000 in client cremation costs, authorities said.
They were arrested in Oklahoma in November 2023 and accused of abusing nearly 200 corpses.
Hundreds of families have learned from officials that the ashes they had ritually scattered or kept around them were not actually the remains of their loved ones. The bodies of their mothers, fathers, grandparents, children and babies Rotting in a climate-controlled building in Colorado.
Johnson, 45, who has been panicking since the FBI call, promised himself he would speak at Holford’s sentencing and ask for the maximum sentence.
“When the judge says how long you’re going to jail and you walk away in handcuffs,” he said, “you’re going to hear my voice.”
Jon and Carie Hallford are a couple who promote “green burial,” which eliminates the need for embalming and cremation, at Back to Nature Funeral Home in Colorado Springs.
She greets grieving families and guides them through their loved one’s final journey. His presence is getting less and less.
Johnson called the funeral home in early February 2023, the week his mother died. Johnson said Carrie Holford assured him she would take good care of his mother.
A few days later, she handed Johnson a blue box containing a Ziploc plastic bag containing gray powder, saying it was his mother’s ashes.
“She lied to me over the phone. She lied to me over email. She lied to me in person,” Johnson told the outlet.
The next day, flowers and photos of Ellen Marie Shriver-Lopez were placed around the box at a memorial service at the Holiday Inn in Colorado Springs.
Johnson sprinkled rose petals over it, and as the preacher said, “Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.”
According to the arrest affidavit, on September 9, 2023, surveillance video showed a man suspected to be Jon Hallford walking into a building owned by Return to Nature in Penrose Township, a suburb of Colorado Springs.
Camera footage inside shows a body lying on a gurney, wearing a diaper and hospital socks. The man threw it to the floor.
He then “appeared to wipe the remaining decomposition on the gurney onto the other bodies in the room” before pushing two more bodies into the building, the affidavit said.
“When I made the transfer, I was on people’s radar,” Holford reportedly said in a text message to his wife. court testimony.
Johnson and his mother grew up in an affordable housing complex in Colorado Springs, where she knew everyone.
Johnson’s father was not around. At age 5, Johnson remembers seeing him hit his mother, knocking her into a table and then onto a guitar, shattering it.
Lopez taught Johnson how to shave and yelled it from the stands at his football games.
Neighbor children called her “Mom,” and some slept on the couch when they needed a place to stay and a hot meal. She would chat with Jehovah’s Witnesses because she didn’t want to appear rude. Lopez, who has spent his life in social work, would say: “If you have the ability and the voice to help: then help.”
On Thursday, Johnson was holding a pink Mother’s Day card he had written in high school and discovered it among her belongings. “I think I wrote ‘I love you’ 20 times in there,” he said, “because how many times have I missed the opportunity to say that?”
“It makes me feel good that she kept this.”
Johnson said he talks to his mother almost every day. At age 65, after becoming bedridden and blinded by diabetes, she asked Johnson on the phone to describe what her grandchildren looked like.
It was Super Bowl Sunday 2023, and her heart stopped.
Johnson flew from Hawaii to stay at her bedside, holding her warm hand until it grew cold.
Detective Sgt. Michael Jolliffe and county deputy coroner Laura Allen stand outside the Penrose Building on Oct. 3, 2023, according to the 50-page arrest affidavit.
A sign on the door reads “Back to Nature Funeral Home” and lists a phone number. When Jolliffe called, the phone was hung up. Cracked concrete and yellow straw surround the building. Behind it was a dilapidated hearse with expired registration. The window air conditioner hums.
Jolliffe was told by someone the day before that there was a foul odor in the building, the affidavit said.
One neighbor told reporters they believed it came from a septic tank; another woman said her daughter’s dog would run toward the building whenever it was off its leash.
Reminiscent of rancid feces or rotting fish, it strikes anyone downwind of a building.
Jolliffe and Allen discovered dark stains under doors and on the building’s stucco exterior. They thought it looked like the liquid they saw while investigating decomposing bodies, the affidavit said.
But the building’s windows were covered, making it impossible to see inside.
Allen contacted the Colorado Department of Regulators, which regulates funeral homes, who in turn contacted Jon Holford. Holford agreed to take the inspector in the next afternoon.
Inspector Joseph Berry arrived, but Holford did not appear.
Berry found a small opening in one of the curtains, the affidavit said. He looked inside and saw white plastic bags on the floor that looked like body bags.
A judge issued a search warrant.
Investigators entered the 2,500-square-foot building on Oct. 5, 2023, wearing protective suits, gloves, boots and respirators, the affidavit said.
Inside, they found a large bone crusher with a bag of Quikrete next to it, which investigators suspect was used to imitate the ashes. Bodies were stacked in nearly a dozen rooms, including bathrooms, sometimes so high they blocked doorways, the affidavit said.
There are 189.
Some had been rotting for several years, others for months, according to the affidavit. Many were in body bags, some wrapped in sheets and duct tape. Others were left semi-naked on gurneys or in plastic totes, or without any coverings, reports said.
Investigators believe the Holfords were trying water cremation, a method that dissolves bodies within hours, documents say. There were swarms of bugs and maggots.
The body bag was filled with liquid, the affidavit said. Some were torn. Five-gallon buckets were placed to catch the spill. The report said cleanup teams “struggled through layers of human decomposition on the floor.”
Investigators used fingerprints, hospital bracelets and medical implants to identify the bodies, the affidavit said. A body was allegedly supposed to be buried at Pikes Peak National Cemetery.
Investigators unearthed a wooden coffin at the grave of the U.S. veteran who served in Vietnam and the Persian Gulf. Inside was the decomposed body of a woman, wrapped in duct tape and plastic sheeting.
The veteran’s body was found in Penrose House, covered in maggots.
After receiving a call from the FBI, Johnson promised himself that he would speak at the Holfords’ sentencing. But he struggled to talk about what happened even with close friends, let alone in front of a judge and the Holfords.
Johnson had been obsessed with the case for months, reading dozens of news reports and often staring at his phone until one of his children interrupted him playing.
When he closed his eyes, he said he imagined himself trudging through the building with “maggots, flies, centipedes.” There are also rats, they are feasting. He asked a priest if his mother’s spirit was trapped there. She assured him no. He broke down when an episode of the zombie show The Walking Dead aired.
Johnson began seeing a therapist and was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. He participated in Zoom meetings with relatives of other victims that grew from dozens to hundreds.
After Lopez’s body was identified, Johnson flew to Colorado in March 2024, where his mother’s remains lay in a box at a crematorium.
“I don’t think you blame me, but I still want to tell you I’m sorry,” he recalled, putting his hand on the box.
Lopez’s body was then loaded into the cremator and Johnson pressed the button.
Johnson slowly improved through therapy and more contact with his students and children. He practiced speaking at the Holfords’ sentencing in therapy. Closing his eyes, he imagined himself standing before the judge and the Holfords.
“Justice is the missing piece of the equation,” he said. “Maybe this justice has freed me in some way.”
“And then part of me is afraid that it won’t, because it probably won’t.”
This article was generated from automated news agency feeds without modifications to the text.
NEW DELHI: Over 50 million highway auto users have purchased FASTag annual passes in the last six months since the launch of the scheme and paid tolls of Rs 26.5 crore using the pass at Rs 15 each at plazas. Figures show car users who typically make up to 100 trips a year have taken 50 per cent more trips, showing how annual passes encourage people to travel more on the motorways.NHAI officials said that about 28 per cent of the total car transactions recorded on the NH network are currently conducted through FASTag annual passes. The increased penetration of annual passes among private car users will also help highway authorities better implement the multi-lane free-flow (MLFF) or barrier-free tolling system that is being rolled out, they added.“A district-wise analysis shows that Chandigarh leads in terms of usage, accounting for 14 per cent of the total annual pass transactions in the country, followed by Tamil Nadu at 12.3 per cent and Delhi at 11.5 per cent. These figures indicate widespread adoption of annual passes in different regions, from urban centers in the north to states in the south,” NHAI said.According to Expressway Authority Bijwasan Toll Plaza data, the toll plaza in Delhi-NCR recorded the highest number of passing vehicles using annual cards at about 57%, followed by Mundka in Delhi-NCR and Jhinjholi Square in Sonipat, both of which recorded about 53% of the number of non-commercial vehicles using annual cards.The annual pass is valid at 1,150 toll plazas on national highways and national highways without the need for frequent recharges of FASTag and requires a one-time payment of Rs 3,000 for validity of one year or 200 toll plaza crossings. Annual pass fees will increase in April with toll adjustments.Upon payment of a one-time fee through the Rajmargyatra app or the NHAI website, the annual card will be activated on the existing FASTag associated with the vehicle within two hours.
Floating houses are being built in the Netherlands (Image: Canva)
The Netherlands has been symbiotic with water since ancient times. Much of the country is below sea level. Rivers, canals and coastlines influence people’s daily lives. For hundreds of years, the Dutch have built dikes, dams, and drainage systems to protect their land. But the problem has become more severe in the past few years as sea levels rise, rainfall increases and flooding occurs more frequently. At the same time, the country does not have enough housing.There are millions of people looking for affordable housing, but there is not much land left. Many Dutch communities are learning to live with water rather than fighting against it. Once considered unusual, floating homes are now becoming part of modern city planning. According to the BBC, these water towns communities are growing in number and influence. What started as a small experiment is now shaping international projects in vulnerable coastal areas. From Europe to island nations, the Dutch floating housing model could be a way to combat climate change and housing shortages simultaneously.This is the story of how floating homes transformed from a niche project into a global paradigm for climate adaptation.
Why floating homes in the Netherlands are getting attention
The Netherlands is one of the most flood-prone countries in the world. Storm surges, heavy rainfall and rising sea levels all increase the risk of damage. Climate scientists warn that these threats will intensify in the coming decades.At the same time, the country needs new housing. Officials estimate that about one million new homes will be needed over the next decade. However, suitable land is scarce. Many areas are already heavily built up or protected from agriculture and nature.Floating homes offer a way to utilize water instead of land. Canals, lakes and ports can become housing sites without taking up farmland or green space.For years, water was viewed primarily as a hazard. The goal is to keep it out at all costs. Today, city planners are taking a different approach. They try to work with the water, not against it.This change in mindset is critical to the development of mobile communities. Instead of building taller walls and stronger barriers, some cities are building houses that rise and fall with changing water levels.
How Dutch floating houses are built: Not houseboats, but real houses
Dutch floating homes are not traditional houseboats. They are permanent structures built with modern building materials. Most are built on concrete platforms that act as floating foundations.These platforms are attached to steel poles driven into the water bed. The poles allow the houses to move up and down but keep them in place. This system helps the home remain stable during storms and changes in water levels.The buildings are also connected to electricity, water, sewage and internet networks. From the inside, they look a lot like regular houses on land.A concrete hull beneath each house acts as a counterweight. This keeps the structure balanced. Even in bad weather, activities are often limited.Siti Boelen, a resident of a floating community, told the BBC she felt safer during storms because her home floated rather than resisting water pressure. This sense of security is one reason more people are interested in water-based housing.
Schoonschip: a floating community in Amsterdam
Amsterdam’s Schoonschip is one of the most famous floating districts. The project was launched in 2009 by Dutch television director Marjan de Blok. Her idea was to create a sustainable aquatic community. After years of planning and collaboration with authorities, Schoonschip became a reality. Today it consists of 30 floating houses, including duplexes. They are located in a former industrial canal area.The residents of Schoonschip share many systems. They operate combined heat pumps for heating and cooling. Solar panels cover approximately one-third of each roof. Energy is shared within the community.Rainwater harvesting, waste management and electricity transport are also part of daily life. These features reduce environmental impact and lower costs.According to the BBC, Schoonschip shows how floating housing can combine climate adaptation with sustainable living.
local government support
Amsterdam city officials are currently adjusting planning laws to support more floating projects. Nienke van Renssen, a city councilor from the Green Left party, told the BBC that floating homes would enable a multi-functional use of space and meet long-term sustainability goals.By updating zoning regulations, the city hopes to make it easier for developers and residents to build homes on the water.Rotterdam is another major city in the Netherlands that has been working on climate adaptation for more than a decade. Most of the city lies below sea level.Since 2010, floating buildings have been part of its climate protection and adaptation strategy. Rotterdam is home to Europe’s largest floating office building and a floating dairy farm.Arnoud Molenaar, the city’s chief resilience officer, told the BBC that Rotterdam now sees water as an opportunity, not just a threat.
How a Dutch water house could become a global climate solution
Dutch architects and engineers are now applying their knowledge abroad. Waterstudio, led by Koen Olthuis, has designed around 300 floating structures worldwide.A major project is underway in the Maldives. It aims to create a floating area that can accommodate about 20,000 people. The Maldives faces serious risks from rising sea levels, so floating homes are particularly important.Another company, Blue21, is developing plans for floating islands in the Baltic Sea that could house up to 50,000 residents.Orshuis told the BBC that floating houses are no longer seen as strange experiments. Instead, they are becoming part of what he calls “blue cities” where water is used as a planning tool.This approach is currently influencing coastal development in areas such as French Polynesia and Southeast Asia.
Challenges of living on the water
Floating homes are not without their problems. Severe storms can still cause discomfort. Although the building is stable, movement of the building can still be felt during severe weather. Special infrastructure is also required. Utility connections, waste systems and emergency access require careful design. Maintenance costs may be higher than land-based housing.Building large floating communities requires significant investment. Materials, technology and engineering expertise are expensive.Blue21’s Rutger de Graaf told the BBC that large-scale development is crucial as rising sea levels by the end of the century could displace hundreds of millions of people. Reaching this scale, however, will take time and political support.
Floating homes and the housing crisis
The Netherlands needs 1 million new homes, and floating housing can play a supporting role. It won’t solve the shortage alone, but it can add valuable capabilities. By utilizing water spaces, cities can expand without destroying green spaces.Floating homes are likely to become increasingly important for low-lying countries and island nations. Where land is disappearing, building on water may be one of the few options.BBC reporting shows Dutch-led projects have impacted planning in vulnerable areas.
Adapting lifestyles to climate change
Floating homes in the Netherlands represent more than just a housing trend. They reflect a deeper shift in the way society responds to environmental change.Rather than trying to completely control nature, these communities adapt to it. Houses were raised from the ground due to flooding. The community is designed with flexibility in mind. Energy and water systems are shared.From the canals of Amsterdam to projects in the Maldives, this model is spreading. It combines engineering, environmental awareness and social cooperation.As climate risks increase and land becomes increasingly scarce, living on water may become less of an exception and more of a necessity. The Dutch experience, documented by the BBC, shows how innovation, planning and long-term thinking can transform a natural threat into a livable place.
New Delhi: Police reached the residence of Patna Purnia MP Pappu Yadav late on Friday night in connection with an old case.Meanwhile, Pappu Yadav resisted arrest and accused the Bihar police of hatching a plot to kill him, saying policemen in civilian uniforms came to his residence like criminals.“I suspect these people may have killed me. I will go directly to the court. I will not go to the police station. If they want, they can put me under house arrest. The court will call me tomorrow,” Pappu Yadav said.“The police came here in civilian clothes like criminals. I thought they were here to kill me. Is this a criminal’s house?…A case was registered about 35 years ago and the police came to arrest me in connection with the case,” he added.In X’s social media post, Pappu Yadav claimed that police were present at his residence as he was protesting against the student’s death.“Fantastic Bihar Police. We fought for justice for the NEET girl students and the Bihar Police feel the pain deep inside,” he said.“They showed up at Patna residence to arrest us. But that will not make Pappu Yadav surrender or shut up. We will continue to expose the wrongdoings of dishonest people! Send us to jail, or give us a noose – Pappu will not stop,” he added.(This is a developing story)
New Delhi: Chairman, AIMIM Asaduddin Owaisi Sharp attack on Assam chief minister on Tuesday Naimanta Biswa Sarma for his controversial remarks about the “disturbing Muslims of Mia”, calling them unconstitutional and divisive.Owaisi mocked the chief minister and said: “I want to give you Rs 2 as a charity” and accused him of reducing constitutional governance to bias and intimidation. In a lengthy response, Owaisi said the Indian constitution guarantees equality and non-discrimination irrespective of religion or community. “The Constitution says that everyone is equal. There should be no discrimination, whether it is the chief minister or anyone else,” he said.Owaisi alleged that Bengali-speaking Muslims in Assam were being scapegoated for issues such as immigration and rising prices. “If vegetable prices go up in Assam, Miya Muslims are blamed. If anyone wants to vote, they are told to go to Bangladesh,” he said, adding that such rhetoric amounted to targeting a community for political gain.The AIMIM leader’s remarks came after Sarma issued a statement encouraging action against the “Miya Muslims” in Assam. “Create trouble for Miya Muslims in any way. If they get into trouble, they will leave Assam… We are directly against Miya Muslims. We will not hide anything,” Sarma said.The comments sparked a political storm in the election-bound northeastern state, with opposition parties accusing the BJP of exploiting communal polarization to consolidate votes. However, the BJP has long maintained that its focus in Assam is on tackling illegal immigration and protecting indigenous rights. Bengali-speaking Muslims are often labeled as “illegal infiltrators” in political discourse, an issue that remains at the heart of Assam’s electoral politics.
The White House has issued a clarification as President Donald Trump faces harsh criticism for releasing an artificial intelligence-generated video depicting the Obamas as monkeys/apes, including from his ally Tim Scott. The government says a racist video of Barack and Michelle Obama was posted by a staffer and has since been deleted.
Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) arrives for a closed-door meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, December 16, 2025 (AFP Getty Images)
A White House official told AFP: “A White House staff member made the post in error. The post has been removed.” Trump’s spokesman dismissed “fake outrage” over the post.
What has Trump posted about the Obamas?
Trump shared a video about election conspiracy theories that included a racist description of the Obama family, depicting them as primates in a jungle. We currently cannot see the post on his Truth Social profile.
The 62-second clip comes from a video alleging intentional tampering with voting machines in 2020 swing states.
Tim Scott slams video
Sen. Tim Scott, the Senate’s only black Republican, reacted to the video. “Pray it’s fake because it’s the most racist thing I’ve ever seen in the White House. The president should delete it,” he wrote on the X (formerly Twitter) platform.
Scott has been a key ally of Trump and supported the president in 2024.
