❗️German ambassador says US sanctions against Nord Stream 2 contradict international law

German Ambassador to Russia Geza Andreas von Geyr on Saturday stated that Berlin won't change its stance on Nord Stream 2. He also stressed that sanctions against the pipeline, introduced by Washington, contradict international law.

The first leg of the pipeline was completed on Friday, Russian President Putin said, as the project was able to overcome pressure from Washington.

Catch up on our latest updates:

▪️At least two American TV news stations were targeted Thursday in what appeared to be a ransomware attack.

▪️A group of US lawmakers has urged Biden to evacuate thousands of Washington's "Afghan allies" amid US troop pullout.

▪️A second woman has claimed she was sexually assaulted by New York City Comptroller and mayoral hopeful Scott Stringer.

▪️A Pride flag won't be flown at US military bases despite the declaration of "Pride Month" celebrating the LGBTQ+ community across the country.

▪️A 15-year old girl convicted of killing an Uber Eats driver in a carjacking in Washington, DC, has received a maximum sentence and will be released when she turns 21.

Special treatment? 🤔

Former WH spokeswoman Kayleigh McEnany has ripped the media for bias after reports emerged that her successor, Jen Psaki, was having her picture taken by celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz for a magazine profile.

McEnany pointed out that neither she nor other women in the Trump administration received such offers.

📸 ❌Microsoft has blocked the famous photo of the “tank man” in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square from its search engine.

When asked for an explanation, the company said it was due to “an accidental human error”.

🙄 OK, so now we have more reason to suspect that the US Army’s Instagram page is actually run by a teenager.

The US Army has baffled netizens again, hot on the heels of an infamous "woke" recruitment video. This time, an Instagram story suggests different specialities for various zodiac signs.

"Wondering what your zodiac sign says about the kind of soldier you could be in the army? You'll just have to click through our Instagram story to find the answer because our lips are sealed over here", the post says.

Unfortunately, many of the comments on the post show little amusement, as people apparently think astrology is not the best way for soldiers to choose their career path.

😡 Shouts of “F**k Elon” could be heard at the Bitcoin 2021 conference in Miami this weekend.

Elon Musk tweeted a meme about Bitcoin ahead of the event – and it dropped nearly 7% afterwards.

👀 Karma, is that you?

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has criticised company employees who expose the compay’s "alleged" censorship programme.

Ironically, he made the remarks during a video chat, later leaked by a Facebook insider. The video was subsequently posted online by a non-profit investigative media outlet, Project Veritas.

https://twitter.com/EricSpracklen/status/1400989053143683073

🔍🧾 The US Department of Justice will no longer subpoena the records of reporters while investigating leaks of classified information to the media, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said on Saturday.

The statement comes amid Friday reports about the justice department under the administrations of both Donald Trump and Joe Biden, trying to obtain logs of reporters as part of whistleblower probes to learn their sources, while also imposing a gag order on the media outlet to prevent it from reporting on the investigation.

The spokeswoman also claimed that the White House was unaware of the gag order until Friday night.

🤔 Isn't the White House supposed to know what its administration is doing?

'Expect Us': 'Anonymous' hacker group targets Elon Musk in a video message.

🗣 "You may think you are the smartest person in the room, but now you have met your match. We are Anonymous! We are Legion! Expect us."

🇦🇫 US Special Representative for Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad has departed for Qatar and Afghanistan to discuss the ongoing Afghan peace process, the US Department of State announced on Saturday.

⌛️ It's less than an hour till Donald Trump speaks at the North Carolina Republican state convention in Greenville.

According to the published advance excerpts of the former president's scheduled speech, he will tell Republicans that the "survival" of the US depends on the GOP winning control of the government "at every level", starting with the US Congress in the 2022 mid-term elections.

#URGENT | Ahead of 16 June meeting with Putin, Biden says US 'must lead the world from position of strength'

🗣 "Whether it is ending the covid-19 pandemic everywhere, meeting the demands of an accelerating climate crisis, or confronting the harmful activities of the governments of China and Russia, the United States must lead the world from a position of strength."

Trump starts his speech at the Republican Party convention in Greenville, North Carolina, says the Republicans will have a “tremendous” 2022. Trump blames current administration for the immigration and law enforcement crisis and says the US is being “demeaned and humiliated.”

"Survival depends on Republicans being elected at every level," Tump emphasized.

🔸 Trump insists that his administration did a "remarkable job" in the fight against COVID-19, and while speaking in front of a hall of Republicans, none of whom were wearing masks, Trump said that if it were not for him, the hall would be empty.

🔸 Trump critiques the Biden administration: "Drugs are pouring in, gas prices are soaring, our industries are being pillaged by foreign cyber attacks, that’s a lack of respect for our country and for our leaders, and speaking of our leaders, they are bowing down to China.”

“It is no for now, not no forever”

Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, said that she does not exclude running for the North Carolina Senate at some point.

🔸 Donald Trump endorses US Representative Ted Budd in the North Carolina US senate race.

🔸 Trump claimed that the Biden administration is spreading the wrong kind of ideology in the US that will lead to more division, not unity.

He also warned that without strong borders and election integrity "our country could be run as a dictatorship."

"I am not the one who is trying to undermine American democracy, I am the one who is trying to save it," Trump said.