🇺🇸 U.S. Sanctions hit ICC Chief Prosecutor: Email Blocked, Bank Accounts Frozen, 900 Staff Banned from U.S. Entry

International Criminal Court (ICC) Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan was placed under U.S. sanctions by the Trump administration in February 2025, as part of an effort to coerce the court into halting investigations of Israeli abuses in Gaza.

His official Microsoft email account has been disabled, and his UK bank accounts frozen. Additionally, all 900 ICC staff members have been banned from entering the United States, accused of pursuing “illegitimate” investigations into alleged war crimes committed by Israel.

The U.S. government has threatened that any individual or organisation providing Khan with financial, material, or technological assistance could face fines or imprisonment.

Two U.S. based human rights organisations have confirmed they’ve ended cooperation with the ICC. One senior official noted that staff are now actively avoiding communication with court officials, citing fear of government retaliation.

🔗 WikiLeaks

🇺🇸🦠❗️ — New York Times reports that Former US President Joe Biden has been diagnosed with aggressive form of prostate cancer!

🇮🇱🤝🇺🇸🇵🇸 — Axios reports Israel’s Security Cabinet has decided to immediately resume humanitarian aid transfers to Gaza via several international organizations, until the new aid mechanism involving American PMCs begins on May 24, say two senior Israeli officials.

🇸🇻⛓ — The president of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, approved a reform that allows minors involved with gangs to serve their sentences in adult prisons.

🇵🇹🗳❗️ — 99.13% of Legislative Elections' ballots counted in Portugal shows a clear victory for the Conservative Democratic Alliance (AD) bloc with 32.15%

🌹 The Socialist Party came in second, with 23.37%

🇵🇹 The Portuguese Nationalist Chega Party came in third place, with 22.57% of the votes

🐍 The Market Liberal/Libertarian "Liberal Initiative" came in 4th with 5.51% of votes

🚩 Below them, the Free Party (Greens) 4.17%; Communist Party of Portugal (Marxist-Leninist / Anti-Revisionist) with 3% of vote; and the Left Bloc with 1.99%

🇵🇹 Ironically some members of the Monarchist PPM, which left the Democratic Alliance earlier this year, managed to get elected with support of the AD in some areas with 3 members

🇵🇹 The Madeira Island regionalist also entered the parliament

🇵🇹🇦🇴🗳✏️ — Almost 9,000 voters voted for the Right-Wing, Anti-migration & Salazarist "New Right" (ND) party

The New Right Party is led by Ossanda Líber, an Angolan-Portuguese businesswoman

She is known for taking pride on Portuguese Colonial Empire and supporting Salazar cultural's legacy in Portugal

🇺🇸📞🇷🇺❗️ — US President Donald Trump and Russia's Putin on the phone.

🇺🇦❗️Mandatory evacuation of the population is being carried out in more than 200 settlements in the Sumy region, said the head of the military administration Oleg Grigorov.

🇺🇸❌🇨🇳💱📍🌍 — 📰 ZeroHedge | US vs China: Mapping Trade Dominance In Africa | May 19, 2025:

"China has steadily expanded its global trade footprint and now surpasses the U.S. as the leading trading partner in many regions around the world.

In Africa, for instance, China overtook the U.S. as the continent’s top trading partner back in 2009—a position it continues to hold today.

This graphic, via Visual Capitalist's Kayla Zhu, visualizes whether each African country trades with the U.S. or China more in 2003 versus 2023."

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🇯🇵‼️What is happening in Japan?

Japan's 40-year bond yield just hit its highest level in over 20 years.

Japan’s Prime Minister Ishiba has called the situation “worse than Greece.”

All as Japan’s GDP is contracting again.

Meanwhile, rates in the U.S. continue to move in a straight line higher.

The bond market continues to tell us everything that we need to know.

Keep watching the bond market.

https://x.com/KobeissiLetter/status/1924298584091930901

@FelipeChannel

🇨🇳📈☢️— 🇯🇵 Nikkei Asia | China on track to become top nuclear power generator by 2030 | Beijing approves 10 new reactors as construction stalls in US | May 16, 2025:

"BEIJING -- China has approved plans for building 10 nuclear reactors for 200 billion yuan ($27.7 billion), putting the country on track to push its nuclear power generation capacity past the U.S. to become the world's largest by 2030.

The plan to build the reactors was approved at a State Council executive meeting last month. Eight will be third-generation Hualong One reactors, which China's state-owned China National Nuclear Corp. and China General Nuclear Power Group claim to have independently developed based on U.S. and French pressurized water reactors (PWR).

The remaining two reactors will be CAP1000 units based on the AP1000 PWR developed by U.S.-based Westinghouse. The total power generation capacity of the 10 reactors is expected to reach around 12,000 megawatts.

The reactors will be built in the provinces of Shandong, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, with all planned locations along the coast.

The power plants will be operated by the two nuclear energy companies, as well as such state-owned power companies as State Power Investment Corp. and China Huaneng Group."

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🇵🇦🤝💰 #BREAKING

PANAMA INTRODUCES BILL TO ALLOW CITIZENS TO BUY, SELL, AND ACCEPT #BITCOIN FREELY ANYWHERE IN THE COUNTRY

https://x.com/pete_rizzo_/status/1924484730562474242

@FelipeChannel

🇮🇱❌🇵🇸 — Israel has allowed only 5 aid trucks into Gaza after almost a month of 0 trucks entering.

➡️For contrast, in normal days prior to war, 500 trucks were entering Gaza daily.