Photo: Science Photo Library RF
1 Former President Prepares For Arrest In NYC
Trump Tower and the Manhattan Criminal Court are currently surrounded by barricades. This comes with the news that New York City is prepping for former President Trump's potential arrest. He could be indicted by a grand jury investigating the documentation of hush money payments to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. Lawyers for the former President are also attempting to quash the final report of a special grand jury investigating whether Trump interfered in the 2020 election in Georgia. So how might this all go down? Trump may not be handcuffed, but he will be read his Miranda rights and booked before being arraigned. He would most likely be released on his own recognizance since the alleged crimes are non-violent. He has called on his supporters to protest, causing security measures to be heightened for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg who's prosecuting the case. Officials say NYPD officers will be posted in several high-profile areas and all cops are told to be in uniform today and be ready to move when needed, but officials told CNN that there's currently no credible threat.
2 American Aid Worker Kidnapped In Africa Freed After Six Years
An American aid worker is free after more than six years of being held captive in West Africa. Jeff Woodke who was held hostage by militants in Niger, has been released, along with French journalist Olivier Dubois, who was kidnapped in 2021. Niger Interior Minister Hamadou Souley says their release came after "several months of efforts". Speaking in Washington, Secretary of State Antony Blinken thanked the government of Niger, along with members of the State Department, for their "tireless efforts" to free Woodke. How did this happen? Woodke, who’s originally from California, had been in Niger for 30 years as a humanitarian aid worker. But in 2016, his wife says a group of men drove to their home and held Jeff at gunpoint. The men, who have been described as militants jihadists, put Woodke in the trunk and drove toward Mali. Meanwhile, Blinken didn’t provide many details on the circumstances surrounding Woodke’s release. However, he did travel to Niger as part of his Africa tour and announced last Thursday that the U.S. will provide $150 million in humanitarian aid to support vulnerable populations in Niger.
3 California About To Get Slammed With Yet Another Round Of Storms
Another four inches of rain is expected across most of Southern California by tomorrow. This is thanks to the state’s 12th atmospheric river this season, which dumps what seems like endless snow and rain on the region. According to the National Weather Service, these conditions overly saturate the soil with new moisture, thus creating more flooding and rapid runoffs. On Sunday the Tulare County Sheriff's Office ordered two communities to evacuate. This is on top of other evacuation orders for different parts of the county like Cutler, Porterville, and along the Tule River. Officials say that more than 11,000 people live in communities covered by mandatory evacuation orders and there are another 3,700 in areas with evacuation warnings. As for the rest of the state, the latest storm is expected to bring 1 to 3 inches of rain across lower elevations and 2 to 4 inches to higher elevations. Throughout this devastation, there is one silver lining for the state. The vast amounts of rain have caused two-thirds of California to no longer operate under drought conditions. In fact, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reports that the ultra-wet weather has wiped out much of the drought for the first time since 2020.