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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy replaced his military’s top official ahead of a call Tuesday between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin about ending the war in Ukraine. 

Andrii Hnatov, whom Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said has "over 27 years of military experience," was appointed the new chief of the general staff of Ukraine’s armed forces. Anatoliy Barhylevych, who has held the position since February 2024, will now serve as the general inspector of Ukraine’s Defense Ministry. 

"We are consistently changing the Armed Forces to make them even more efficient. To do this, we are changing the management system and implementing clear standards," Umerov said in a statement. 

"Grateful to Lieutenant General Anatoliy Barhylevych for his service as Chief of the General Staff. In the most difficult times, his experience and professionalism were important to the organization of defense of Ukraine," Umerov added. "Changes are in process. Strengthening the army for victory." 

TRUMP SAYS HE’LL SPEAK WITH PUTIN IN CALL TO PUSH FOR TRUCE IN UKRAINE 

The personnel change comes as Trump and Putin are set to speak by phone Tuesday about the final points of a deal to end the war in Ukraine. 

In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump said many "elements of a Final Agreement" have been agreed to "but much remains." 

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM THE TRUMP-PUTIN CALL ON UKRAINE WAR 

"Thousands of young soldiers, and others, are being killed. Each week brings 2,500 soldier deaths, from both sides, and it must end NOW," Trump wrote. "I look very much forward to the call with President Putin." 

In preparation for the Trump-Putin call, White House special envoy Steve Witkoff met last week with Putin in Moscow to discuss the proposal. Secretary of State Marco Rubio persuaded senior Ukrainian officials during talks in Saudi Arabia to agree to the ceasefire framework. 

Trump said Washington and Moscow have already begun discussing "dividing up certain assets" between Ukraine and Russia as part of a deal to end the conflict. 

"It’s a bad situation in Russia, and it’s a bad situation in Ukraine," Trump told reporters on Monday. "What’s happening in Ukraine is not good, but we’re going to see if we can work a peace agreement, a ceasefire and peace. And I think we’ll be able to do it." 

Fox News’ Louis Casiano and The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

King Charles III is slated to have an audience with Pope Francis during a visit to the Vatican next month, suggesting there is optimism the pontiff will be back at work by then, as he continues his recovery from double pneumonia.

Francis, 88, was admitted to Rome's Gemelli Hospital on Feb. 14 after a week-long bout of bronchitis worsened. Doctors first diagnosed the complex viral, bacterial and fungal respiratory tract infection and subsequently the onset of pneumonia in both lungs.

The Vatican said Monday it would no longer provide morning updates and is issuing less frequent medical bulletins as the pope shows gradual improvements.

Buckingham Palace said Charles wrote privately to the pope when he became ill.

POPE FRANCIS SEEN FOR FIRST TIME SINCE BEING ADMITTED TO HOSPITAL: PHOTO

Charles' visit to the Vatican is symbolic of efforts to establish closer ties between the Catholic Church and the Church of England, which split from Rome in the 16th century during King Henry VIII's reign.

The head of the Church of England, Charles has made building bridges between people of all faiths a top focus since he ascended the throne in 2022 following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.

Charles’ trip will begin on April 7 and last three days. It will also feature events in Italy including its capital of Rome, which surrounds Vatican City.

During his stop in Rome, Charles will emphasize the close links between Britain and Italy — two NATO allies — as European nations are working to strengthen support for Ukraine’s war against Russia.

POPE REMAINS STABLE AFTER MONTH IN HOSPITAL AS HE CONTINUES TREATMENTS AND WORKS FROM BEDSIDE

There will be a joint flypast over Rome during Charles' visit by the Italian Air Force aerobatic team, Frecce Tricolori, or Tricolor Arrows, and their Royal Air Force counterparts, the Red Arrows.

Charles and Queen Camilla will attend a reception in Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy, to mark the 80th anniversary of the region’s liberation from the Nazis by Allied forces. The pair will also celebrate local cuisine and meet with farmers impacted by recent floods in the area.

"The visit to Italy will underscore the depth and breadth of the bilateral relationship," Buckingham Palace said in a statement.

One central event during Charles’ trip to the Vatican will be a historic first in which the king will visit the Papal Basilica of St. Paul’s Outside the Walls, where reconciliation and ecumenical relations between Christian faiths are celebrated. At this event, choirs from the King’s Chapel Royal, St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle and the Sistine Chapel will perform.

English kings had a particular link to the basilica prior to the split from Rome during the Protestant Reformation. The basilica was built over a white marble sarcophagus that, for some 2,000 years, has been believed to be the tomb of St. Paul.

Charles' visit will happen during the Papal Jubilee, a year of forgiveness and reconciliation that is celebrated by the Catholic Church every 25 years.

"The Visit to the Holy See will be an historic visit in the year of the Papal Jubilee, and will mark a significant step forward in relations between the Catholic Church and Church of England," Buckingham Palace said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Former President Biden’s alleged appeasement of the Houthis, an Iran-backed terrorist organization, is facing renewed criticism for allowing them to disrupt global commerce and destabilize the Middle East, according to Saudi and American experts.

In a speech at the State Department less than a month into his presidency, Biden announced in February 2021 that his administration was ending all U.S. offensive support for the Saudi-led coalition against the Houthis, as he pledged support for the United Nations-led "initiative to impose a ceasefire," and restore peace talks in Yemen.

A week later the Biden administration removed the Houthis from the list of terrorist groups in what then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken described as "a recognition of the dire humanitarian situation in Yemen."

Salman Al-Ansari, a prominent geopolitical analyst from Saudi Arabia, told Fox News Digital that "Biden’s early appeasement of the Houthis, lifting them from the terror list with nothing in return, emboldened their aggression. The Houthis, an Iranian proxy, have dragged Yemen into chaos, destabilized the region, and attacked global shipping. Trump’s response is a necessary correction to Biden’s missteps, sending a clear message that piracy and terror won’t go unchecked."

US MILITARY SHOOTS DOWN HOUTHI DRONES AS TRUMP’S STRIKES AGAINST TERRORIST GROUP CONTINUE 

When asked about Trump’s military strikes on the Yemen-based Houthis, Al-Ansari said, "The strikes are long overdue. The Houthis have disrupted global trade, attacked U.S. forces and fueled instability. That said, it’s unclear how far the U.S. is willing to go in its campaign against them. The Red Sea and the Strait of Mandab are among the most strategic trade routes in the world, carrying over 20% of oil shipments and 13% of global trade." 

He continued, "Any failure to secure them risks severe economic and security consequences. While Saudi Arabia remains committed to a political solution, that can't happen without serious pressure on both the Houthis and their backer, Iran. Strength, not appeasement, is the only language they understand."

The official slogan of the Houthi movement (Ansar Allah) reads, "Allah is Greater. Death to America. Death to Israel. Curse on the Jews. Victory to Islam." One of Biden’s first foreign policy moves was to de-list the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization. The first Trump administration sanctioned the Houthis. 

The Biden administration also pressed the Kingdom of Saudia Arabia to pull the plug on its aerial military campaign to stop Houthi terrorism targeting the oil-rich nation and Houthi piracy on the high seas.

Al-Ansari noted that "Saudi Arabia did its best to convince the U.S. of the Houthis' threat, but the Biden administration failed Riyadh completely. The good news is that Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s legitimate government have already done the heavy lifting, liberating around 80% of Yemeni territory. If the U.S. wants to take on the remaining 20%, they’ll have to do it on their own. Riyadh has different regional calculations now, prioritizing diplomacy over military escalation."

Jonathan Schanzer, executive director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital that "Biden made the Houthis a partisan issue when he de-listed the Houthis. This has prompted Trump to target the Houthis more aggressively. And it doesn’t hurt that weakening the Houthis will signal to the Saudis that America is back as an ally of Saudi Arabia after four years of ambivalence by the Biden White House."

HEGSETH DECLARES ‘PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH IS BACK’ WHILE VOWING ‘UNRELENTING’ CAMPAIGN AGAINST HOUTHI TARGETS 

"These U.S. strikes have multiple benefits for the U.S.," Schanzer added. "It’s a sign to the Saudis that we are committed to their regional security. It’s a sign to Europe that we are committed to freedom of navigation in the Red Sea, which will reduce shipping costs for their companies. And perhaps most importantly, we are watching the dismantling of Iran’s ‘ring of fire’ strategy in real time. The regime is growing weaker by the day, raising questions about a possible endgame to finally take out the Iranian nuclear program or even bring down the regime."

The Iranian regime-backed Houthis have also launched military strikes at U.S. ally Israel in response to the Jewish state’s war against the Hamas terrorist movement in Gaza.

President Biden first authorized strikes against the Houthis in January 2024 in response to the group's ongoing attacks on vessels traveling through the Red Sea. Biden said he authorized the strikes "in direct response to unprecedented Houthi attacks against international maritime vessels in the Red Sea—including the use of anti-ship ballistic missiles for the first time in history." 

A week after the first strikes, the Biden administration changed policy again and put the Houthis on its list of specially designated global terrorists as it looked for a way to halt the terror group's attacks on U.S. and world shipping. 

Fox News Digital reached out to President Biden’s spokesperson for comment on criticism over his administration's policies towards the Houthis.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas is over as Israeli fighter jets began striking the Gaza Strip after Hamas refused repeated hostage deal offers, officials said. 

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) began striking Hamas terrorist targets across Gaza "in order to achieve the war objectives set by the political leadership, including the release of all our hostages—both the living and the fallen," the office of Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a letter. 

"This decision comes after Hamas repeatedly refused to release our hostages and rejected all proposals presented by U.S. President’s envoy, Steve Witkoff, as well as the mediators," the letter states. 

Israel will intensify its military actions against Hamas moving forward, authorities said.

"Under the direction of the political echelon, the IDF and Shin Bet are widely attacking terrorist targets of the Hamas terrorist organization throughout the Gaza Strip, more details below," the IDF and Shin Bet, Israel's internal security service, said in a joint statement. 

This story is breaking. Please check back for updates. 

The U.S. military recently launched fighter jets with the intent of targeting Houthi forces in Yemen, new video shows.

Fox News obtained the dramatic video that shows the jets taking off towards the terrorist targets. It comes soon after President Donald Trump launched "decisive and powerful" airstrikes against the Iran-backed organization, which has targeted commercial merchant vessels and U.S. military ships for several months.

"It has been over a year since a U.S.-flagged commercial ship safely sailed through the Suez Canal, the Red Sea, or the Gulf of Aden," Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on Saturday. "The last American Warship to go through the Red Sea, four months ago, was attacked by the Houthis over a dozen times."

"Funded by Iran, the Houthi thugs have fired missiles at U.S. aircraft, and targeted our Troops and Allies," the president continued. "These relentless assaults have cost the U.S. and World Economy many BILLIONS of Dollars while, at the same time, putting innocent lives at risk."

US NAVY SHIPS REPEL ATTACK FROM HOUTHIS IN GULF OF ADEN

Trump promised that the U.S. military would "use overwhelming lethal force until we have achieved our objective."

"To all Houthi terrorists, YOUR TIME IS UP, AND YOUR ATTACKS MUST STOP, STARTING TODAY. IF THEY DON’T, HELL WILL RAIN DOWN UPON YOU LIKE NOTHING YOU HAVE EVER SEEN BEFORE!" his post concluded.

TRUMP RE-DESIGNATES IRANIAN-BACKED HOUTHIS AS TERRORISTS: 'THREATEN[S] SECURITY OF AMERICAN CIVILIANS'

Since the strikes began on Saturday, Houthi drone, missile and air defense systems have been targeted by American forces. A senior defense official told Fox News on Sunday that at least a dozen Houthi drones have been shot down by U.S. forces so far.

On Monday, Joint Staff Director for Operations Lt. Gen. Alexus Grynkewich told reporters that "dozens of military casualties" had so far been counted.

The Houthis claimed 53 people had been killed as of Monday, including five children, but that has not been confirmed by the U.S. military.

"This is also not an endless offensive," Pentagon chief spokesperson Sean Parnell said on Monday. "This is not about regime change in the Middle East, this is about putting American interests first."

Fox News Digital's Morgan Phillips contributed to this report.

Student-led protests pose the gravest threat to Serbian strongman Aleksandar Vucic’s 14 years in power, with over 100,000 taking to the streets of Belgrade and cities across Serbia, calling out systemic corruption throughout the government.

March 15 saw what many believe to be the largest crowds in Serbia’s recent history, with an estimated 300,000 people marching in the center of Belgrade.  

Serbian President Vucic, who remains close to Russia, has remained defiant, ignoring calls to step down and accusing the protest movement of planning violent attacks and stoking a civil war.

HISTORIC RUSSIAN ALLY SNUBS PUTIN IN GROWING SHIFT TO EUROPEAN UNION

"Moscow and Belgrade pledged to combat color revolutions together in 2021. This is dangerous as Russia can provide Serbia with intelligence support," Ivana Stradner, research fellow at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital.

"Vucic is hoping that protests in Serbia will stop, but they are growing increasingly," Stradner added.

Vucic accused the students of orchestrating a Western-backed "colored revolution" and compared the movement to the 2014 Euromaidan Revolution in Ukraine, when the pro-Russian president of Ukraine was ousted from power for seeking closer ties with Vladimir Putin over Europe.

Nongovernmental and civil society organizations accuse the government of using illegal weapons, including long-range acoustic devices (LRAD), a common crowd control device that can cause severe hearing damage, during a commemorative silence for the victims of the Novi Sad railway collapse in November. 

"The Belgrade Center for Security Policy strongly condemns the unlawful and inhumane deployment of prohibited weapons, such as acoustic devices, against peaceful protesters during a public gathering of hundreds of thousands of citizens paying tribute to victims of the collapsed roof in Novi Sad," the group said in a statement.

Serbia’s foreign minister, Marko Djuric, denied the allegations in a post on X.

"Serbia categorically denies the baseless accusations that any illegal weapons, including so-called ‘sound cannons,’ were used against demonstrators in Belgrade," Djuric said.

President Vucic also denied the claims, calling it "a vile lie" in an address to the nation and promised to investigate the matter.

The protests consuming Serbia didn’t just happen overnight and have been sustained for months.

ZELENSKYY WARNS RUSSIA WANTS TO CAUSE 'EXPLOSION' IN THE BALKANS

Tens of thousands of college students have been marching since December, demanding justice and accountability after the deaths of 15 people in the collapse of a railway station in the Serbian town of Novi Sad. The canopy at the railway station collapsed Nov. 1 after renovations led by two Chinese companies.

What originally started as spontaneous protests voicing dissatisfaction with the government’s failed response to the railway catastrophe transformed into a movement opposing widespread corruption and the erosion of the rule of law under Vucic.

"It's also important to recognize that the cause of the protests runs deeper — many people perceive the state as corrupt and are broadly dissatisfied with Vučić’s government. They are calling for greater press freedom and accountability," Helena Ivanov, senior fellow at the Henry Jackson Institute, told Fox News Digital.

Ivanov said that the government’s attempts to mitigate the situation, such as arresting individuals involved in corrupt deals from years ago or the resignation of the prime minister in January, have been seen as too little, too late by the protesters and opposition politicians.

SERBIA, CAUGHT BETWEEN EUROPE AND RUSSIA, COULD MOVE ONE STEP CLOSER TO NORMALIZING RELATIONS WITH KOSOVO

Many experts and observers of the Balkans were disappointed in the Biden administration’s regional policy, claiming that the administration appeased the Vucic regime and refused to call out his antidemocratic practices. The efforts to sway Vucic and maintain close ties to Belgrade were seen as integral to the Serbia-Kosovo normalization process and their path toward European Union ascension. 

A former high-ranking diplomat with expert knowledge of the Balkans told Fox News Digital that Vucic wrongly portrays the protesters as inspired and led by the "globalist elite," hoping to gain the attention and support of President Trump. 

If President Trump wants a quick, cheap win for him and the U.S. in the Balkans, the diplomat said Trump should shift the U.S. regional posture from appeasing Vucic to containing him. Such a posture in Serbia will show that the U.S. is not kidding in the Balkans and wants a peaceful solution to simmering conflicts while utilizing the "peace through strength" doctrine.

Fighting along the Syrian-Lebanese border intensified on Monday as deadly clashes erupted between the Syrian military and Hezbollah-aligned forces. 

The escalation follows accusations from Syria’s interim government that Hezbollah terrorists crossed into Syrian territory, kidnapped three soldiers and executed them on Lebanese soil. In response, the Syrian army launched artillery strikes on Hezbollah positions, targeting what it called "gatherings" of fighters responsible for the killings. Hezbollah has denied involvement.

The Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar, which is affiliated with Hezbollah, reported that the Syrian army successfully captured the village of Hawsh al-Sayyid Ali on the Syria-Lebanon border during the confrontations. Currently, most of the fighting is near the village of Al-Qasr.

Earlier this morning, the Saudi-owned Al Arabiya reported intermittent clashes between the Syrian army and Hezbollah forces along the border. The report also claimed that a Hezbollah ammunition depot in Lebanon was destroyed by Syrian artillery fire.

ISRAEL FACES NEW SYRIA CHALLENGE AS IT ADJUSTS TO NEW STRATEGY AMID REGIONAL POWER STRUGGLE FOR INFLUENCE 

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun addressed the escalating violence, saying, "What is happening on the eastern and northeastern border cannot continue, and we will not accept its continuation. I have instructed the Lebanese army to respond to the sources of fire."

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, at least five additional Syrian soldiers were killed during the clashes. Civilians, including families with young children, were seen fleeing toward the Syrian village of Hermel as violence spread across the border region.

The newly established Syrian government, led by Ahmad al-Sharaa of the U.S.-sanctioned terrorist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, issued a rare statement vowing retaliation against Hezbollah.

"They took them to Lebanese territory and killed them. The Ministry of Defense will take all necessary measures in response to this escalation by Hezbollah," the statement reads.

The conflict reflects deeper sectarian and ideological divisions. HTS, a Sunni terrorist group with roots in Syria’s jihadist insurgency and former ties to al Qaeda, and Hezbollah, a Shiite terrorist force backed by Iran, represent opposing factions in the ongoing struggle for regional dominance.

"Hezbollah is trying to take advantage of the new government’s weakness in Syria, but the group itself is in a precarious position. It has suffered major setbacks from Israeli strikes, the fall of Assad, and now new adversaries in Syria," Javed Ali, a professor at the University of Michigan’s Ford School of Public Policy and former senior director at the National Security Council, told Fox News Digital.

The collapse of President Bashar Assad’s government in December marked a major turning point, as Hezbollah had spent 14 years backing him alongside Russia and Iran’s pro-Shiite militias. However, in late November, Syrian rebels launched a surprise offensive against Assad’s forces, just as a ceasefire was announced in northern Gaza, leading to the final collapse of his rule.

EVANGELICAL LEADER SAYS US MUST PROTECT SYRIAN CHRISTIANS FROM ATTACKS BY JIHADI TERRORISTS

Now in power, HTS has pledged to crack down on weapons and drug smuggling along the border, a move that directly threatens Hezbollah’s operations. The new Syrian government has already begun military deployments to secure its borders, further restricting Hezbollah’s ability to maneuver.

"Hezbollah is facing a confluence of threats unlike any time in its history," said Ali. "With HTS consolidating control in Syria, Hezbollah’s overland weapons supply route from Iran has been severely compromised. This disruption could significantly degrade its operational capabilities."

The rise of HTS as a governing force in Syria has also drawn U.S. attention. While Washington has designated HTS as a terrorist organization, analysts suggest that al-Sharaa's pragmatic approach should be assessed cautiously.

"The U.S. is navigating a complex landscape in Syria, and while it does not officially recognize HTS, there are strategic interests in seeing Hezbollah and Iranian influence further weakened," Ali noted.

HTS has attempted to rebrand itself from its extremist origins, portraying itself as a nationalist Islamist movement opposed to Iranian influence and Hezbollah’s expansion in Syria. While skepticism remains, the group’s control over key Syrian territory disrupts Iran’s ability to maintain a direct supply corridor to Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Beyond Syria, Hezbollah is also facing growing challenges in Lebanon. The group’s losses in recent confrontations with Israel have emboldened its domestic opponents, who now see an opportunity to weaken its grip on Lebanese politics.

Former Lebanese President Michel Aoun echoed these concerns, highlighting three major threats to Lebanon’s stability: ongoing Israeli attacks, Hezbollah’s involvement in cross-border violence, and the unresolved Syrian refugee crisis.

"Officials must take immediate action to protect the safety of the nation and its citizens," he said.

Further complicating the situation, Mounir Shehadeh, a former Lebanese government coordinator with the United Nations Interim Force peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, said "there is no presence of Hezbollah in the northeastern Bekaa Valley, and this is known by the people and tribes in the region." His statement contradicts reports of Hezbollah’s activity along the Lebanese-Syrian border, raising questions about the true extent of its control.

Analysts say the long-term implications of these developments remain uncertain, but Hezbollah’s regional position is rapidly deteriorating. While Lebanese and Syrian officials are working to contain the crisis, the risk of further escalation remains high.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu noted Sunday that he will aim to oust Ronen Bar, director of the country's internal security service, the Shin Bet, this week, The Associated Press reported.

The foreign leader indicated that he has "ongoing distrust" in Bar, which "has grown over time."

Netanyahu's office noted that he had notified Bar that a draft resolution for his removal would be presented to the cabinet this week, the New York Times reported.

FREED ISRAELI HOSTAGE SPEAKS FOR THE FIRST TIME ABOUT HIS 505 DAYS OF SURVIVING HAMAS HELL

"The prime minister’s expectation of a duty of personal loyalty, the purpose of which contradicts the public interest, is a fundamentally illegitimate expectation," Bar said in part of a lengthy statement, according to the Times of Israel.

The outlet noted that he asserted that the Shin Bet's review of the failures that led to the Oct. 7, 2023 massacre against Israel "pointed to a policy led by the government, and the person who has headed it, for years, with emphasis on the year preceding the massacre. The investigation showed a longstanding and deliberate disregard by the political echelon for the agency’s warnings."

"As someone who headed the Shin Bet on October 7, I took responsibility for the agency’s part and clearly stated that I intend to act on it before the end of my tenure. That is what is expected of everyone," Bar noted in his statement, according to the report.

Bar was appointed to the post in 2021 by then-Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, the Times of Israel noted, adding that an Israeli Shin Bet director has never been fired, though two have resigned before finishing their terms.

HAMAS SAYS AMERICAN-ISRAELI HOSTAGE WILL ONLY BE FREED IF CEASEFIRE IS IMPLEMENTED

Israel's attorney general, Gali Baharav-Miara, told Netanyahu in a letter that "it is not possible to initiate a dismissal process" of Bar "until the factual and legal basis underlying your decision is fully examined, as well as your authority to address the matter at this time," the outlet reported.

"This is due to the extraordinary sensitivity of the issue, its unprecedented nature, the concern that the process may be tainted by illegality and conflict of interest, and considering that the role of the head of the Shin Bet is not a personal trust position serving the prime minister," she noted.

However, Justice Minister Yariv Levin has pushed back.

NEW YORK HOSPITAL PARTNERS WITH ISRAELI HOSPITAL TO DELIVER ‘CUTTING EDGE’ CARE TO IDF SOLDIERS

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"The Shin Bet Law explicitly states that the government has the authority to terminate the service of the head of the agency before the end of their term. This law should be known to the attorney general as well. In case anyone is confused, Israel is a democracy, and everyone in it, including the attorney general, is subject to the law," he noted, according to the Times of Israel.

The attorney general ordered a probe last month into "the connection between officials working in the Prime Minister’s Office and officials connected to the state of Qatar," the outlet previously reported, noting that the Shin Bet is involved in conducting the investigation.

"For a year and a half, he saw no reason to fire him, but only when the investigation into Qatar's infiltration of Netanyahu's office and the funds transferred to his closest aides began, did he suddenly feel an urgent need to fire him immediately," Opposition Leader Yair Lapid said of Ronen Bar in a post on X, according to the Google translation into English from Hebrew.

The Manhattan-based federal trial of two alleged contract killers hired by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to murder the Iranian-American journalist Masih Alinejad coincided with shocking revelations that Tehran ordered the assassinations of dissidents in Europe, news that could have profound implications for President Trump’s Iran policy.

The trial of the two suspects and the disclosures of a former founder of the U.S.-sanctioned terrorist organization IRGC that the ayatollahs ordered the murders of Iranians in exile add greater urgency to the need to address Iran’s threats to murder President Donald Trump, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Iranian-American critics of the regime, according to experts.

Mohsen Rafiqdoost, a former high-level IRGC official who also served as a bodyguard for the Islamic republic's founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, declared in a video interview that he oversaw operations to eliminate exiled Iranian dissidents.  

In an interview on the Iranian regime-controlled outlet Didehban-e Iran, he said the dissidents included former Iranian Prime Minister Shapour Bakhtiar, the popular artist Fereydoun Farrokhzad, who was murdered in Bonn, Germany, and military officials Gholam-Ali Oveissi and Shahriar Shafiq.

Rafiqdoost said, "The Basque separatist group in Spain carried out these assassinations for us. We paid them, and they conducted the killings on our behalf."

IRAN'S SUPREME LEADER REJECTS NUCLEAR TALKS WITH US AFTER TRUMP'S OVERTURES

Jason Brodsky, the policy director of United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), said, "Mohsen Rafiqdoost’s comments are an admission of guilt. They should be replayed whenever an Iranian official is interviewed by a Western journalist denying complicity in assassination plots. The trial beginning on Monday is a reminder that the regime’s terror threat is real, potentially lethal, and will not go away by just burying our heads in the sand."

Last week, foreign ministers from the G-7 democracies announced in a joint statement, "That Iran is the principal source of regional instability and must never be allowed to develop and acquire a nuclear weapon. They emphasized that Iran must now change course, de-escalate and choose diplomacy. They underscored the threat of Iran’s growing use of arbitrary detention and foreign assassination attempts as a tool of coercion."

The reference to "foreign assassination attempts" is an unusually tough collective rhetorical rebuke for Iran because of its efforts to assassinate Trump, Alinejad and Iranian dissidents across the globe.

In November, Fox News Digital reported that the Justice Department announced it thwarted an Iranian plot to kill Trump in the weeks leading up to the election. 

Iran expert Lisa Daftari told Fox News Digital, "This revelation about Iran’s global assassination campaign is a stark reminder of the lengths to which authoritarian regimes will go to silence dissent and exert control beyond their borders. It’s a blatant attack on international norms and a direct threat to global security. The United States must respond decisively – not just with words but with action. President Trump’s policy to deport those who espouse terrorism is a step in the right direction, but it’s not enough to deter the mullahs."

ACTIVIST SPEAKS OUT AFTER IRAN TRIES TO KILL HER  

Daftari, who is the editor-in-chief of The Foreign Desk, added, "We need stronger intelligence collaboration with our allies and increased pressure on the IRGC through sanctions and any other necessary punitive measures. The message must be clear – there is no place for state-sponsored terrorism on our soil."

The U.S. and Canada have classified the IRGC as a foreign terrorist entity. Despite numerous IRGC terrorism plots and assassinations in Europe, the United Kingdom and the European Union have opposed a designation of the IRGC as a terrorist organization.

Wahied Wahdat-Hagh, a German-Iranian expert on Tehran’s assassination campaigns, told Fox News Digital about the former leader of the IRGC: "He belongs to the group of conservative Islamists who have never hidden the crimes they committed. He takes pride in the fact that opponents of the regime were executed in exile."

TRUMP ANNOUNCES 'DECISIVE AND POWERFUL' AIRSTRIKES AGAINST HOUTHI TERRORISTS IN YEMEN

Fox News Digital sent a press query to the German federal prosecutor’s office and the prosecutor’s office in Bonn, where Farrokhzad was murdered, asking if they plan to reopen the case of Farrokhzad. 

Mina Ahadi, a prominent German-Iranian dissident, brought up the case of Iran’s former ambassador to Germany, Seyed Hossein Mousavian, who is currently a researcher at Princeton University, and called for his arrest by authorities.

Fox News Digital reported in April 2024 that Mousavian allegedly oversaw the assassinations of Iranian dissidents in Europe in the 1990s, including Farrokhzad. Mousavian, who was Iran’s ambassador to Germany from 1990 to 1997, has vehemently denied the allegations that he was involved in the Iranian regime-ordered massacre of Kurdish dissidents at a Berlin restaurant in 1992.

INCOMING TRUMP ADMINISTRATION GIVEN NEW BLUEPRINT ON WAYS TO WEAKEN IRAN: 'UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY'

After Trump ordered a drone strike to kill the U.S. and EU-designated Iranian regime terrorist Qassem Soleimani in Iraq in 2020, Mousavian paid tribute to Soleimani in a 2022 Iran TV program. Mousavian also went to Iran to attend the funeral of Soleimani, who was responsible for the murders of over 600 American military personnel in the Middle East, according to the U.S. government. 

Mousavian took to X on the so-called Chain Murders in Iran – an extensive Iranian regime state-sponsored campaign that eradicated important Iranian dissidents between 1986 and 1998. Mousavian said, "Fereydoun Farrokhzad was murdered in mid-August 1992 at his home in Bonn, Germany. At that time, I was the Iranian Ambassador to Germany, and along with my colleagues at the embassy, I made extensive efforts for the return of Iranians residing in Germany who wanted to return to Iran."

Mousavian's tweet noted, "We pursued the matter, and the relevant authorities in Tehran assured us that Farrokhzad had been assassinated by the Iranian opposition abroad. We then relayed Tehran’s position to the German authorities and in interviews."

His statement concluded, "I wish that figures like Farrokhzad, who were willing to return to their homeland, could have returned safely to their motherland. It is in Iran’s national interest to use the potential of Iranians living abroad and ensure their full security for their return to their homeland."

Mousavian did not respond to numerous Fox News Digital email press queries, including a WhatsApp message and telephone call.

Lawdan Bazargan, the Iranian-American human rights activist, said Iran’s regime had lured Iranian dissidents back to the country to later execute them. She cast doubt on Mousavian’s explanation that he sought to repatriate Farrokhzad. Bazargan cited the case of Javad Safar as a dissident who returned to Iran and was killed by the regime. Iran’s regime has employed sophisticated surveillance operations to lure prominent Iranian dissidents to countries with lax security to kidnap them and transport the dissidents to Iran. 

A telling example involved the journalist Ruhollah Zam, who was tricked by the regime and executed in 2020. Zam’s website and social media expertise helped spread information about protests against the clerical regime and exposed widespread regime corruption.

Numerous Fox News Digital press queries sent to Iran’s foreign ministry and U.N. mission were not answered.

Fox News' Greg Norman contributed to this report.

A Peruvian fisherman who was found alive after spending 95 days adrift in the Pacific Ocean said he ate roaches, birds and sea turtles to survive. 

Maximo Napa was heavily dehydrated and in critical condition when he was discovered by an Ecuadorian fishing patrol about 680 miles off the coast of Peru last Wednesday, according to Reuters. He originally departed Marcona, a town on Peru’s southern coast, for a fishing trip on Dec. 7. 

"I did not want to die," Napa told Reuters. "I ate roaches, birds, the last thing I ate was turtles." 

"I thought about my mother every day," he added. "I'm thankful to God for giving me a second chance." 

FISHERMAN SURVIVES EIGHT DAYS AT SEA ‘BY EATING RAW FISH AND DRINKING RAINWATER’ 

Napa initially packed enough food to spend two weeks at sea, but 10 days in, he was thrown off course by stormy weather and ended up adrift in the Pacific, Reuters reported. 

The news agency added that Napa drank rainwater he collected on his boat, but he eventually ran out of food sources and spent the last 15 days without eating anything. 

RUSSIAN MAN RESCUED AFTER 67 DAYS AT SEA 

Napa reportedly kept his hopes up by thinking about his family and infant granddaughter. 

"I told the Lord, whether he's alive or dead, just bring him back to me, even if it's just to see him," his mother Elena Castro told TV Peru, according to Reuters.  

"But my daughters never lost faith. They kept telling me: Mom, he'll come back, he'll come back," she added. 

Napa reunited with his brother in Paita, a city in northern Peru, and is expected to undergo medical checks. 

An Iranian general vowed to respond "decisively and destructively" to any threats after President Donald Trump said he ordered American forces to launch military action against Houthis in Yemen.

"We warn our enemies that Iran will respond decisively and destructively if they carry out their threats," Gen. Hossein Salami, the leader of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, told state media following U.S. strikes over the weekend against the Tehran-backed terrorist group, according to Reuters. 

"We are not a nation to live in hiding. We are a valid and legitimate system in the world. We announce it if we attack anywhere," Salami was quoted as saying by ABC News. 

U.S. Central Command said Saturday it had "initiated a series of operations consisting of precision strikes against Iran-backed Houthi targets across Yemen to defend American interests, deter enemies, and restore freedom of navigation."  

US MILITARY SHOOTS DOWN HOUTHI DRONES AS TRUMP’S STRIKES AGAINST TERRORIST GROUP CONTINUE 

Trump wrote on Truth Social Saturday that he "ordered the United States Military to launch decisive and powerful Military action against the Houthi terrorists in Yemen." 

"It has been over a year since a U.S.-flagged commercial ship safely sailed through the Suez Canal, the Red Sea, or the Gulf of Aden," Trump continued. "The last American Warship to go through the Red Sea, four months ago, was attacked by the Houthis over a dozen times." 

Trump wrote that the "relentless assaults have cost the U.S. and World Economy many BILLIONS of Dollars while, at the same time, putting innocent lives at risk." 

"To all Houthi terrorists, YOUR TIME IS UP, AND YOUR ATTACKS MUST STOP, STARTING TODAY. IF THEY DON’T, HELL WILL RAIN DOWN UPON YOU LIKE NOTHING YOU HAVE EVER SEEN BEFORE!" his post concluded. 

The large-scale campaign against Houthi targets in Yemen will be "unrelenting" until the Iran-backed proxies pledge to back off U.S. assets, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Fox News on Sunday. 

HEGSETH DECLARES ‘PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH IS BACK’ WHILE VOWING ‘UNRELENTING’ CAMPAIGN AGAINST HOUTHI TARGETS 

"The minute the Houthis say 'we'll stop shooting at your ships, we'll stop shooting at your drones,' this campaign will end, but until then, it will be unrelenting," he told "Sunday Morning Futures" host Maria Bartiromo. 

The Houthis are claiming the recent U.S. strikes have killed at least 53 people and injured around 100, according to the Associated Press. 

"We will confront escalation with escalation," the leader of the Houthis, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, reportedly said Sunday. 

"We will respond to the American enemy in its raids, in its attacks, with missile strikes, by targeting its aircraft carrier, its warships, its ships," al-Houthi added. "However, we also still have escalation options. If it continues its aggression, we will move to additional escalation options." 

U.S. warships have shot down roughly a dozen Houthi drones since Saturday, Fox News has learned. 

A senior defense official told Fox News of the developments on Sunday. The drones were aimed at the U.S. Navy's Truman Carrier Strike Group and were shot down "well before" they posed a serious threat, the official said. 

Fox News’ Taylor Penley, Andrea Margolis and Lucas Y. Tomlinson contributed to this report. 

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko reportedly said that the Kremlin wants an "ironclad" guarantee that Ukraine will be prohibited from joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), as the Trump administration works to broker a deal to end the fighting. 

"We will demand that ironclad security guarantees become part of this agreement," Grushko was quoted by the Russian newspaper Izvestia as saying, according to Reuters. "Part of these guarantees should be the neutral status of Ukraine, the refusal of NATO countries to accept it into the alliance."

Grushko reportedly made no mention of the 30-day cease-fire proposal, which was accepted by Ukraine with U.S. negotiators in Saudi Arabia last week. Russian President Vladimir Putin has stated that any agreement must first meet crucial conditions. 

TRUMP, PUTIN CALL EXPECTED THIS WEEK, AS ADMIN EDGES CLOSER TO RUSSIA-UKRAINE CEASEFIRE DEAL: WITKOFF
 

U.S. special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff told CNN on Sunday that Trump and Putin are expected to speak on the phone this week. Witkoff himself described having a "positive" and "solution-based" meeting with Putin in Moscow last week. 

Grushko reportedly reiterated in the interview with Izvestia that Russia remains strictly opposed to the deployment of European troops to Ukraine, as Britain, France and Australia have signaled being open to sending a NATO "peacekeeping" force to the country.

"It does not matter under what label NATO contingents were to be deployed on Ukrainian territory: be it the European Union, NATO, or in a national capacity," Grushko said, according to Reuters. "If they appear there, it means that they are deployed in the conflict zone with all the consequences for these contingents as parties to the conflict."

'WE HAVE NEVER BEEN THIS CLOSE TO PEACE' SINCE RUSSIA INVADED UKRAINE, LEAVITT TELLS REPORTERS

"We can talk about unarmed observers, a civilian mission that would monitor the implementation of individual aspects of this agreement, or guarantee mechanisms," Grushko added, saying a deal ought to be reached first. "In the meantime, it's just hot air."

United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer held a virtual meeting on Saturday with 26 nations potentially willing to be involved in a "peacekeeping force" in Ukraine, The Telegraph reported. 

French President Emmanuel Macron, meanwhile, was quoted as telling several French media outlets on Saturday that the intention is to "deploy a few thousand men per nation, at key points, to carry out training programs" and "show our support over the long term." 

"If Ukraine asks allied forces to be on its territory, it is not up to Russia to accept or not," Macron reportedly said. 

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese also said he would be willing to send troops. 

Grushko further argued that a solution to the three-year conflict could only be sustained if European allies to Kyiv understand that Ukraine must be barred from NATO membership and foreign military contingents are kept out. 

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"Then the security of Ukraine and the entire region in a broader sense will be ensured, since one of the root causes of the conflict will be eliminated," Grushko said.

A French Parliament member is demanding that the U.S. return the Statue of Liberty to France, who gifted it to the Americans in the 1880s.

Center-left politician Raphaël Glucksmann made the comments at a recent convention of his political party, Place Publique.

"We're going to say to the Americans who have chosen to side with the tyrants, to the Americans who fired researchers for demanding scientific freedom: 'Give us back the Statue of Liberty,'" he told supporters, according to Le Monde, a French newspaper.

"We gave it to you as a gift, but apparently you despise it. So, it will be just fine here at home," he added.

HUGE UNEXPLODED WORLD WAR II-ERA BOMB FOUND IN CROWDED PARIS RESIDENTIAL AREA

France presented the Statue of Liberty to America on July 4, 1884, before it was later unveiled in New York City on Oct. 28, 1886, by then-President Grover Cleveland for the centennial of the U.S. Declaration of Independence.

The statue was designed by French sculptor Auguste Bartholdi and weighs about 450,000 pounds and stands at 305 feet tall.

A much smaller copy of the statue is displayed on Allée des Cygnes, a small island on the Seine River in Paris. The Lady Liberty replica was gifted to France by the U.S. in 1889 to mark 100 years since the French Revolution.

Glucksmann, a staunch supporter of Ukraine in its war against Russia, has panned President Donald Trump for pulling back support for the country in its fight against Moscow's invasion since February 2022.

He also criticized Trump for cutting federal funding to U.S. colleges and research institutions, a move that led to a French government initiative aiming to bring some of them to France.

TRUMP SAYS HE WILL BE SPEAKING WITH RUSSIAN PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN ON TUESDAY

"The second thing we're going to say to the Americans is: if you want to fire your best researchers, if you want to fire all the people who, through their freedom and their sense of innovation, their taste for doubt and research, have made your country the world's leading power, then we're going to welcome them," Glucksmann said.

Glucksmann also criticized right-wing members of the French Parliament for being a "fan club" for Trump and billionaire Elon Musk, a senior advisor to Trump who also leads the Department of Government Efficiency.

U.S. warships have shot down roughly a dozen Houthi drones since President Donald Trump launched airstrikes against the terrorist organization on Saturday, Fox News has learned.

A senior defense official told Fox News of the developments on Sunday. The drones were aimed at the U.S. Navy's Truman Carrier Strike Group, and were shot down "well before" they posed a serious threat, the official added.

The latest military action came after nearly a year and a half of attacks from Houthis, both on commercial merchant vessels and U.S. military ships. In a Truth Social post on Saturday, Trump wrote that he had "ordered the United States Military to launch decisive and powerful Military action against the Houthi terrorists in Yemen."

"It has been over a year since a U.S.-flagged commercial ship safely sailed through the Suez Canal, the Red Sea, or the Gulf of Aden," Trump continued. "The last American Warship to go through the Red Sea, four months ago, was attacked by the Houthis over a dozen times."

US NAVY SHIPS REPEL ATTACK FROM HOUTHIS IN GULF OF ADEN

Trump wrote that the "relentless assaults have cost the U.S. and World Economy many BILLIONS of Dollars while, at the same time, putting innocent lives at risk."

"To all Houthi terrorists, YOUR TIME IS UP, AND YOUR ATTACKS MUST STOP, STARTING TODAY. IF THEY DON’T, HELL WILL RAIN DOWN UPON YOU LIKE NOTHING YOU HAVE EVER SEEN BEFORE!" his post concluded.

TRUMP RE-DESIGNATES IRANIAN-BACKED HOUTHIS AS TERRORISTS: 'THREATEN[S] SECURITY OF AMERICAN CIVILIANS'

Trump re-designated the Houthis as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) in January. His first administration had named the Houthis as an FTO, but the Biden administration later reversed the move.

On Sunday, the White House released photos of Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Adviser Mike Waltz monitoring the strikes.

"President Trump is taking action against the Houthis to defend US shipping assets and deter terrorist threats," the White House wrote on X. "For too long American economic & national threats have been under assault by the Houthis. Not under this presidency." 

Fox News Digital's Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.

The Vatican released a photo of Pope Francis observing Mass on Sunday, highlighting how his health has gradually improved over recent days.

The photograph is the first picture of Pope Francis that has been released since he was admitted to Gemelli Hospital on Feb. 14. He was diagnosed with a complex viral, bacterial and fungal respiratory tract infection that worsened before improving earlier last week.

On Monday, the Vatican said that he was "out of danger from death" and that the "clinical conditions of the Holy Father continue to be stable."

POPE FRANCIS' MEDICAL CONDITION: WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT BILATERAL PNEUMONIA

This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.

A fire broke out in a nightclub in North Macedonia early Sunday, killing 51 people and injuring more than 100 others, authorities said.

Pyrotechnic devices sparked the fire at around 2:35 a.m. during a concert by a local pop group at the Pulse nightclub in the town of Kocani, Interior Minister Panche Toshkovski told reporters.

"Sparks caused fire … and fire spread through the discotheque," he said, according to Reuters.

The injured were rushed to hospitals across the country. Many of the injured suffered severe burns, officials said.

MYRTLE BEACH WOMAN IGNITED SOUTH CAROLINA WILDFIRE THAT SCORCHED 2K ACRES, AUTHORITIES SAY

Health Minister Arben Taravari said 118 people were hospitalized.

"All our capabilities have been put to use, in a maximum effort to save as many lives as possible of the young people involved in this tragedy," Taravari told reporters, adding that neighboring countries Albania, Bulgaria and Greece have offered help.

The club was in an old building that was previously a carpet warehouse and has been running for several years, according to local media MKD.

'EXTERMINATION' SITE DISCOVERED IN MEXICO WITH CREMATION OVENS, HUMAN REMAINS

The blaze gutted the single-story building and caused the roof to partially collapse. Police cordoned off the area as teams gathered evidence from inside the building.

"This is a difficult and very sad day for Macedonia. The loss of so many young lives is irreparable, and the pain of the families, loved ones and friends is immeasurable," Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski wrote on X.

"The people and the government will do everything in their power to at least slightly alleviate their pain and help them in these most difficult moments," he continued.

Toshkovski said authorities would investigate the venue’s licensing and safety provisions, adding that the government had a "moral responsibility" to help prosecute anyone responsible. Police have arrested one man already, but he didn’t provide details on the person’s involvement.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

For families in Mexico searching for missing loved ones, the grim discovery of what is being called an "extermination" site with human remains and ovens, could be their worst fears some true. 

Mexican authorities are now investigating the site in the western state of Jalisco, first found last week by a group of volunteers that was believed, by the volunteers, to have been used by one of the area's cartels known as the New Generation Jalisco Cartel. 

Inside its iron gates were an increasing number of horrors, including cremation ovens, bone fragments, hundreds of pairs of shoes, clothing and even children’s toys. 

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION PROMISES TO BE ‘RUTHLESSLY AGGRESSIVE’ IN RESPONSE TO SUSPECTED CARTEL KILLING OF US CITIZEN

"They'd see the shoes and say: 'those look like the ones my missing relative was wearing when they disappeared,’" Luz Toscano, one of the volunteers, told BBC News. 

The ranch, near the village of Teuchitlán, was raided last September by Mexican authorities who failed to find or reveal the discovery of human remains. 

At the time of the raid, 10 arrests were made, two hostages were released, and a body was found wrapped in plastic. 

After authorities began searching this week, they said they also found almost 100 shell casings. 

MEXICO EXTRADITES DOZENS OF CARTEL LEADERS AND MEMBERS TO US, INCLUDING DRUG LORD RAFAEL CARO QUINTERO 

None of the remains have been identified, and the number is not yet known, but the number of personal items left behind is around 700. 

"The number of the victims that presumably could have been buried there is enormous," Eduardo Guerrero, a security analyst in Mexico City, told The New York Times. "And it resurfaced the nightmarish reminder that Mexico is plagued with mass graves."

The discovery, based on an anonymous tip, has dominated the headlines, shocking a country that has become inured by mass graves and promoted citizens to call on authorities to crack down on cartel violence. 

There are 120,000 "forcibly disappeared" people in Mexico. 

Jalisco state Gov. Pablo Lemus told critics in a video message this week that his office is fully cooperating with federal investigators and no one is "washing their hands" of the case, according to BBC News. 

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The ranch in Teuchitlan, about 37 miles (60 kilometers) west of Guadalajara was allegedly being used as a training base for cartel recruits when National Guard troops found it last September.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

The government of Greenland called President Donald Trump's comments about taking control of the country "unacceptable" in a statement Friday.

Officials noted the statement was prompted by Trump's meeting with the NATO secretary general Thursday, when he reportedly "reiterated his desire for annexation and control of Greenland."

In response, the leaders of all political parties elected to Inatsisartut, the Parliament of Greenland that includes the Demokraatit, Naleraq, Inuit Ataqatigiit, Siumut and Atassut parties, issued the statement on X.

GREENLAND PM SEEKS INDEPENDENCE FOLLOWING TRUMP ACQUISITION COMMENTS

"We — all the party leaders — cannot accept the repeated statements regarding annexation and control of Greenland," leaders wrote. "We find this behavior toward friends and allies in a defense alliance unacceptable."

They added they "must underscore that Greenland will continue serving ITS people through diplomatic relations, in accordance with international law."

AMB. CARLA SANDS: TRUMP ADMINISTRATION'S FOCUS ON GREENLAND — WHY WE HOPE TO STRENGTHEN OUR RELATIONSHIP

The document was signed by Greenlandic politicians Jens Frederik Nielsen of the Demokraatit party, Pele Broberg of the Naleraq, Múte B. Egede of the Inuit Ataqatigiit, Vivian Motzfeldt of the Siumut and Aqqalu C. Jerimiassen of the Atassut.

"We all support this wholeheartedly and strongly distance ourselves from attempts to create discord. Greenland belongs to the Greenlandic people, and we (as leaders) stand in unison," they wrote.

In the country's recent parliamentary elections, the Demokraatit party defeated Greenlandic Prime Minister Múte Egede’s party, Inuit Ataqatigiit.

Independence from Denmark became a core election issue in Trump’s continued comments about U.S. acquisition of Greenland.

Trump tried in his first term to buy the mineral-rich, key geographical territory in what he called a "large real estate deal."

TRUMP: US CONSIDERING POSSIBLY BUYING GREENLAND 

Greenland Prime Minister Múte Egede said in January the country was "not for sale and will never be for sale."

American interest in Greenland dates back to the 1800s. 

In 1867, the State Department looked into purchasing Greenland and Iceland, but after World War II, Denmark rejected a proposed $100 million deal from President Harry Truman.

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Acquiring the land would mark the largest expansion of American territory in history, topping the Louisiana Purchase.

The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.

Fox News Digital's Rachel Wolf contributed to this story.

Pope Francis remains stable as he continues his recovery one month after he was hospitalized for a bout of bronchitis that turned into pneumonia. 

"The clinical conditions of the Holy Father have remained stable, confirming the progress highlighted in the last week," a medical bulletin from the Vatican’s Holy See Press Office said in an update on Saturday. 

It was the first medical update in three days. 

While working from the Gemelli hospital, the pope was able to sign off on a three-year reform project that aims to make the Church a more welcoming place. 

POPE FRANCIS NOW 'OUT OF DANGER FROM DEATH' AS HEALTH CONDITION CONTINUES TO IMPROVE

He also spent the day praying and resting. 

The Vatican added that the pope’s high-flow oxygen therapy continues, which is progressively reducing his need for non-invasive mechanical ventilation at night and will help his lungs work more. 

"The Holy Father still needs hospital medical therapy, motor and respiratory physiotherapy," the bulletin added, noting that these therapies show "gradual improvements."

Francis was first admitted to the hospital on Feb. 14, after a week-long fight against bronchitis gradually worsened, ultimately turning into double pneumonia. 

This week, his health improved significantly, with the Vatican saying he was now "out of danger of death."

The 88-year-old spent time on Wednesday following spiritual exercises in the Vatican, receiving the Eucharist, praying and completing physical therapy. 

POPE FRANCIS NOW EATING SOLID FOODS, ‘SHOWING SLIGHT GRADUAL IMPROVEMENTS,’ VATICAN SAYS

This week marked the 12-year anniversary of the pope’s election to lead the Roman Catholic Church.

The pope’s condition has been complicated, because he had part of his lung removed as a child after a pulmonary infection.  

A chest X-ray on Tuesday confirmed improvements observed by medical staff in previous days, but his situation remains "complex," meaning he will have to spend more time in the hospital. 

An X-ray this week confirmed that his infection was clearing. 

The Vatican said that the pope’s condition has improved to the point where updates will only be given when there is new information. 

The next update will be in the middle of next week, the Vatican said. 

The pope released an audio message earlier this month, thanking people for their well-wishes, which was played in St. Peter’s Square. 

But for the last four Sundays, the blessing the pope gives from a window overlooking St. Peter’s Square has been delivered in text form only. 

The pontiff participated in Lenten spiritual exercises from the hospital this week and received get-well cards and a cake to celebrate his 12th anniversary as pope. 

Meanwhile, as the pope continues his treatments, the nuns who work the Vatican's switchboard are fielding calls from those concerned about his health. 

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"They feel like children waiting to know about their father," Sister Anthony, who runs the operation in an office near St. Peter’s Basilica, told the Associated Press. "We tell them to pray for him."

Fox News' Elizabeth Pritchett and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

Cuba remained largely without power on Saturday morning, after the island nation's grid collapsed the night before, knocking out electricity for 10 million people and raising fresh questions about the viability of its antiquated generating system.

At sunrise, the island's grid operator UNE said it was generating only a trickle of electricity - around 225 MW, or less than 10% of total demand, enough to cover some vital services like hospitals, water supply and food production centers.

CUBA WORKING TO REESTABLISH ELECTRICAL SERVICE AFTER SECOND GRID COLLAPSE

Officials said they had begun the process of firing up the country's decades-old generation plants, but gave no timeline for restoring service.

Cuba´s grid failed Friday evening around 8:15 p.m. (0015 GMT) after an aging component of a transmission line at a substation in Havana shorted, beginning a chain reaction that completely shut down power generation across the island, UNE officials said.

The grid collapse follows a string of nationwide blackouts late last year that plunged Cuba's frail power generating system into near-total disarray, stressed by fuel shortages, natural disaster and economic crisis.

Most Cubans outside the country's capital of Havana have already been living for months with rolling blackouts that peaked at 20 hours a day in recent weeks.

Havana was still largely without electricity on Saturday morning. Light traffic navigated intersections with no functioning stoplights and cellular internet was weak or non-existent in some areas.

Abel Bonne chatted with friends on Havana's Malecon waterfront boulevard early Saturday, taking in the fresh sea breeze after a stuffy night without power.

"Right now, no one knows when the power will come back on," he said. "This is the first time this had happened this year, but last year it happened three times."

Severe shortages of food, medicine and water have made life increasingly unbearable for many Cubans, and people have been fleeing the island in recent years in record-breaking numbers.

Cuba blames its economic woes on a Cold War-era U.S. trade embargo, a web of laws and regulations that complicate financial transactions and the acquisition of essentials like fuel and spare parts.

A grid official on Saturday morning said Cuba had been unable to update antiquated transmission and generation components because of the restrictions.

U.S. President Donald Trump recently tightened sanctions on the island's communist-run government, vowing to restore a "tough" policy toward the long-time U.S. foe.

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Havana resident Yunior Reyes, a bike taxi driver, was back on the job Saturday morning despite the blackout, fretting that his food reserves might spoil in the day's heat.

"We're all in the same situation," he said. "It's a lot of work."