Trump’s Name Appears on U.S. Institute of Peace Ahead of Rwanda–Congo Deal Signing 
Hong Kong Faces Low Turnout in “Patriots-Only” Election Amid Public Grief After Deadly Fire 
Cuba Reaffirms Anti-Drug Cooperation as Tensions Rise in the Caribbean 
U.S.-Russia Talks Leave Ukraine Peace Efforts Uncertain 
China’s Expanding Maritime Military Presence Alarms Taiwan and Japan 
Trump Administration Halts Immigration, Green Card, and Citizenship Processing for 19 Countries 
U.S. Justice Department Orders Intensified Probe Into Antifa and Domestic Extremist Groups 
Israel Receives Body of Deceased Hostage as Rafah Crossing Reopening Hinges on Final Returns 
Australia Progresses AUKUS Review as U.S. Affirms Strong Support 
Trump Administration Tightens H-1B Visa Vetting With New Focus on Free Speech and Censorship 
China Urged to Prioritize Economy Over Territorial Ambitions, Says Taiwan’s President Lai 
Honduras Election Turmoil Intensifies as Nasralla Blames Trump for Shift in Results 
California Launches Portal for Reporting Alleged Misconduct by Federal Immigration Agents 
Trump and Lula Discuss Trade, Sanctions, and Security in “Productive” Phone Call 
Honduras Election Turmoil Deepens as Nasralla Alleges Fraud in Tight Presidential Race 
UN Chief Says Gaza Operation “Fundamentally Wrong” as Concerns Over War Crimes Grow 
U.S. Expected to Expand Travel Ban to More Than 30 Countries 
Aside from ongoing criminal investigations, former President Donald Trump also faces several ongoing lawsuits. This week, a New York judge has ultimately dismissed Trump’s libel lawsuit against news outlet New York Times.
New York Supreme Court Justice James d’Auguste ultimately dismissed Trump’s lawsuit against the news outlet Tuesday for libel. Trump and his campaign filed a libel lawsuit against the New York Times over its op-ed piece titled “The Real Trump-Russia Quid Pro Quo,” written by Max Frankel. In the piece, Frankel said that there was an “overarching deal” of Russia helping Trump and his campaign smear then-candidate Hillary Clinton back in 2016 in exchange for a pro-Russia foreign policy under the Trump administration. The piece was also published at the time when special counsel Robert Mueller was conducting an investigation towards possible Russian interference during the elections.
d’Auguste dismissed the case citing that the op-ed piece was a “nonactionable opinion” and that even if it was not the case, Trump has failed to provide proof of malice in what he claimed was a defamatory piece.
Trump filed the lawsuit back in February of 2020. The date of filing may be seen as unusual given that presidents do not usually take up legal battles during a reelection campaign. Because the dismissal was with prejudice, the Trump campaign can no longer re-file the lawsuit over the opinion piece. Despite the dismissal of Trump’s lawsuit against the outlet, the judge also declined a request by the New York Times to seek monetary sanctions on the campaign over the lawsuit.
In other related news, Trump’s former fixer, Michael Cohen, revealed that he met with the Manhattan District Attorney’s prosecutors for the seventh time. The meeting, held virtually over Zoom, lasted for two hours, according to Cohen, also comes in the wake of district attorney Cyrus Vance’s investigation into Trump’s taxes, having obtained his financial records a few weeks prior.
Cohen said that he spoke with lead investigator Mike Pomerantz, general counsel Carey Dunne, assistant district attorney Solomon Shinerock, and Vance during the meeting. Trump recently visited New York for the first time since leaving the White House. The former president was seen visiting Trump Tower and left with boxes of files before returning to Mar-a-Lago in Florida, where he resides full time.
