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China says it will resume some ties with Taiwan after visit by opposition leader
China said Sunday it would resume some ties it had suspended with Taiwan, such as direct flights and imports of Taiwanese aquaculture products, following a visit by the Beijing-friendly opposition leader of the self-ruled island.
The Taiwan Work Office under China’s Communist Party issued a statement saying it would explore setting up a longstanding communication mechanism between the Communist Party and Taiwan’s Kuomintang Party. It said it will facilitate the import of Taiwan’s aquaculture products that it had previously banned.
Cheng Li-wun, the head of the Kuomintang, and China’s President Xi Jinping held a high-profile meeting Friday during which they called for peace, without offering specifics. China claims the island as part of its territory and hasn’t ruled out the use of force to annex it.
Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council, which oversees the relationship with China, said the measures that were announced, such as promoting a communication mechanism, were “political transactions” between the two parties that circumvented the government of Taiwan.
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“The government’s position is clear: to ensure the interests of the nation and its people, all Cross-Strait affairs involving public power must be negotiated by both governments on an equal and dignified basis to be effective and truly protect the rights and well-being of the people,” the Mainland Affairs Council said in response to the Chinese announcement.
Relations between China and Taiwan, which remain split since 1949, have been tense since the election of pro-independence President Tsai Ing-wen from the Democratic Progressive Party in 2016. Beijing cut off most of its official dialogue with Taiwan’s government, and has started sending warships and fighter jets closer toward the island on a daily basis.
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In the statement, China said it plans to resume direct flights between Taiwan and mainland cities like Xi’an or Urumqi, although it remained unclear how the measures will be implemented without the approval of the Taiwanese government.
China banned its citizens from individual trips to Taiwan in 2019. Taiwan’s rules now require Chinese visitors to hold a valid resident visa from another country, like the U.S. or the European Union, to apply for a visitor visa.
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China also said it would work toward construction of a bridge that would connect the mainland to Matsu and Kinmen, Taiwanese islands that are closer geographically to China. The project is a longstanding proposal that Beijing has previously announced.
China banned the import of Taiwanese pineapples in 2021, and since then has extended it to other fruits and products including the grouper fish, squid and tuna.
After the initial ban on grouper, Taiwan’s Ministry of Agriculture said it approached China about making adjustments to ensure it met import requirements. China replied with a limited list of individual companies that were allowed to sell to China, but without explanation.
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Ex-CENTCOM commander warns against ‘risky’ US ground operation to seize Iran’s enriched uranium
Ret. U.S. Army Gen. David Petraeus said assassinating more of Iran’s leadership will not end ongoing issues while warning against a U.S. ground operation to seize Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium.
“This would be a very, very tall order, it would be exceedingly risky. And the casualties could potentially be quite substantial,” he said Monday on “Jesse Watters Primetime.”
“Assassinating a few more leaders is not going to bring this issue to a close,” he added.
Petraeus’ comments come as the two-week ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran is set to expire Wednesday, with President Donald Trump asserting an extension is “very unlikely.”
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The former CENTCOM commander, who led troops into battle during the American-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, said the deployment of U.S. ground troops to Iran would be very risky.
“We’re not really sure where these canisters are, of this thousand pounds of 60 percent enriched uranium,” he said. “They’re going to have to excavate very, very substantially. And by the way, that’s what makes the idea of a forced ground operation very, very challenging.”
Petraeus noted that while Iran has felt the damage of the United States’ military campaign, the regime is not hopeless.
“They’ve seen lots and lots of damage that we can inflict,” he said.
“They know what we can do… They’re also trying to figure out how much they can give on these other issues that traditionally have been very, very difficult to negotiate.”
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Trump said he will enforce the U.S. naval blockade on Iranian ports until a deal is reached. However, Petraeus said the economic pressure has not made Iran completely hopeless.
“They’re not at the point of desperation,” he argued.
The former CIA director argued that both the U.S. and Iran want the war to end, citing economic challenges that both nations have experienced amid the 52-day conflict.
“I don’t think that either side really wants to return to full-on combat,” Petraeus said. “There has been damage to infrastructure in the Gulf states. And we certainly don’t want to see more of that.”
Vice President JD Vance and senior White House officials are set to depart for Pakistan on Tuesday for a new round of peace talks, though recent reports from Iranian state media cast doubt on such meetings.
“I think both sides, frankly, really do want an agreement,” Petraeus said. “Obviously, there are challenges domestically for us if this continues. Obviously, there are huge challenges for them [Iran] economically and financially if it continues.”
The former CENTCOM commander said the two main points of discussion in the talks will be Iran’s uranium enrichment and the restoration of freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
“We’ll see if there is trade space,” he said.
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Nancy Sinatra slams Trump’s use of father’s song ‘My Way’ as ‘sacrilege’
Singer Nancy Sinatra called President Donald Trump’s reference to her father Frank Sinatra’s song “My Way” a “sacrilege.”
On Saturday, Trump posted a video to Truth Social of Frank Sinatra singing his classic song in light of his renewed threats to destroy Iranian infrastructure for the country allegedly violating a ceasefire agreement.
The song begins with the opening lines, “And now/the end is near/And so I face/the final curtain” which resemble Trump’s past threats to destroy the nation.
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“Omg, @NancySinatra will not be happy about this. Trump goes against everything that Frank stood for. He was a big champion for equality and supported the Civil Rights movement,” one person commented on X.
The 85-year-old “These Boots Are Made for Walkin'” singer later responded to this comment, adding, “This is a sacrilege.”
She reposted users’ comments criticizing Trump’s post and use of the song, insisting Frank Sinatra would not agree with Trump’s politics.
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“Trump may love Sinatra, but Sinatra did not love Trump,” one person wrote.
“This is just sickening. Frank Sinatra would never have allowed that monster in the White House to use his music or put his lyrics in his mouth. Sinatra was a man of honor, a man who never had to lie about who he truly was because he WAS the greatest. trump is a loser,” another wrote.
Sinatra also responded to a fan asking if she could do anything to stop Trump from using the song.
“Unfortunately no. The only people who can do something are the publishers,” she responded.
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Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment.
Trump previously danced with first lady Melania Trump to the song “My Way” at the Liberty Ball after his first inauguration in 2017. At the time, Sinatra joked about the news writing, “Just remember the first line of the song.”
She later deleted the post and denied that she was “angry” that Trump used the song.
“What a rotten spin to put on a harmless joke,” Sinatra tweeted.
She also wrote, “I’m not sure why this became such a big deal. It was really just a joke.”
When asked whether she was upset over her father’s song being used by Trump, Sinatra wrote at the time, “Actually I’m wishing him the best. A good president helps the entire world. I don’t believe anyone tries to be a bad president.”
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Mom, pregnant teen and 12-year-old found bound and murdered as police hunt multiple suspects
An Alabama woman, her pregnant teenage daughter and her 12-year-old son were found brutally murdered in their home, authorities said.
Mobile County Sheriff Paul Burch said deputies responded to a home in Wilmer just after 2:30 a.m., where they discovered the three bodies in separate rooms with their hands tied behind their backs.
The victims were identified as 46-year-old Lisa Gail Fields, who was stabbed; 17-year-old Keziah Arionna Luker, who was shot; and 12-year-old Thomas Cordelle Jr., who had his throat cut and was nearly decapitated.
“It was a brutal scene,” Burch said. “If you’ve got a beef with an adult… there’s nothing worth killing over, but to murder two children brutally… I hope and feel comfortable we’ll have this animal or animals off the streets soon.”
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An 18-month-old child was found unharmed in the home.
“At this point, we don’t suspect any kind of domestic or family-type situation,” Burch told reporters.
Burch noted that the home was “left in disarray,” suggesting the perpetrators may have been searching for something. Investigators believe more than one person was involved in the killings because the victims had been subdued.
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Luker was seven or eight months pregnant, the sheriff added.
“The mother was stabbed, the 17-year-old was shot, and the 12-year-old’s throat was cut as was the mom,” Burch said. “It tells me that they had a plan coming in to bring zip ties or flex cuffs with them so they had a plan.”
The father-to-be, who works offshore, triggered the discovery after he grew concerned when he could not reach Luker after he saw her cell phone activated on Life 360, the sheriff said. Another family member went to check on her and found all three victims in separate rooms with their hands bound behind them.
The Mobile County District Attorney’s Office will determine whether the death of Luker’s unborn child warrants an additional murder charge once a suspect is arrested.
Burch said investigators currently have “positive leads” in the case.
Luker’s father told WALA-TV that his daughter had just received her GED.
“It’s a senseless murder,” he said. “She was a bubble of sunshine. A person that makes you smile; a person that’ll make you laugh whenever you’re down. She had empathy for everybody. She loved her brothers; she loved her mom; she loved all of us.”
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