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United States President Donald Trump vowed on Sunday to bounce back stronger from a massive midterm elections loss that he called a “giant step back in history” for the US.

Democrats captured both chambers of Congress in last Tuesday’s midterms that dealt historic losses for Trump’s Republican Party in states they had dominated for decades.

“America took a giant step back in History with the results of the last Election,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social, saying that the stock market that had grown during his tenure took a loss after the vote.

“But have no fear, we will be back, BIGGER AND STRONGER THAN EVER BEFORE!”

While Republican lawmakers have been licking their wounds over the setback, Trump has sounded defiant and on Friday appointed hardline advisor Stephen Miller as his new chief of staff, signaling a bare-knuckle fightback.

Democrats have pledged to hold the Trump administration to account and fight “every step of the way” against Miller, architect of Trump’s tough immigration policy.

It will be the first time that Trump, a Republican who also held the White House from 2017 to 2021, has had to contend with a Democratic-controlled Congress in both chambers.

House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries has said the incoming majority will be focused on affordability and accountability.

“We don’t work for Donald Trump,” the New York lawmaker told reporters on Wednesday. “We work for the American people. And the days of the House of Representatives functioning like ​a wholly owned subsidiary of the Trump administration are over.”

The result was a personal humiliation for the 80-year-old Trump, leaving him as a lame duck president for the remaining two years of his term and signaling an end to his stranglehold on the Republican Party.

He had previously attempted to brush off the election results, spending the beginning of his first public appearance on Wednesday talking to reporters about the marble and Corinthian columns of his new $400 million ballroom.

But he conceded that what Vance had said about the Iran war was “largely true because it drove the gasoline up” — a key issue for voters angered by the rising cost of living.

“But at the same time, if I had it to do again, I’d have to do it again.

Because long term, it’s the only answer. You can’t let Iran have a nuclear weapon,” he said.

Vice President JD Vance publicly split with Trump over the Iran war a day after the vote, saying the conflict was the “reason we lost” as he distanced himself from the unpopular war ahead of a possible 2028 White House run.

“The reason we lost is the war,” Vance wrote in a long social media post. “The president himself said so last night. If you’d like to argue it was worth it, that losing the Senate for the next six years was worth it, then do so. Argue it was a ​worthwhile cost to pay.”

Source: dawn

Two trains collided south of the Egyptian capital on Sunday, derailing several carriages, killing four and injuring dozens, according to the authorities.

Egypt’s railway authority said a train travelling from Giza to Fayoum crashed into the rear of another service heading south from Cairo to the city of Aswan.

The health ministry said an initial count put the toll from the crash at four passengers killed, with 88 others currently being treated for injuries in hospitals around the Giza area.

State-owned media had earlier reported 120 people were wounded, without clarifying the degree of injury.

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said he was following the accident “with great concern”, and had directed authorities to conduct an urgent investigation to “hold accountable anyone found to have been negligent”.

Emergency crews used cranes to remove the wreckage, the authority said.

Authorities said they had launched an investigation into the cause of the crash, which occurred in Giza’s Al-Ayyat area, the site of Egypt’s worst-ever rail disaster.

In 2002, more than 370 people were killed when a fire swept through a train carrying holiday travellers south of Cairo.

In 2009, multiple train crashes in the area killed dozens.

Egypt’s 110 million people depend heavily on rail transport, but the network — one of the largest in Africa — has suffered repeated deadly accidents.

Over the past decade, Egypt has poured billions of dollars into updating its transport infrastructure, including new highways and high-speed rail lines, but has yet to overhaul much of its ageing rail network.

Source: dawn

US President Donald Trump’s decision to elevate loyalist Stephen Miller to run his White House indicates that he plans to ramp up confrontation in his final two years in office and block outside political and economic pressures, Trump administration officials and other Republicans say.

Voters delivered a historic rebuke to Republicans in Tuesday’s midterm election, but with Miller as White House chief of staff, the Trump administration is expected to continue its aggressive immigration crackdown, amplify cultural conflicts and give no ground to a Democratic-controlled Congress, say officials and experts who spoke to Reuters.

They say wavering Republicans will face increased pressure to stay in line, while businesses may have a harder time making their case to the White House.

“This signals the administration is going to have a fighting-from-a-bunker approach the last two years,” said Dan Eberhart, a Trump donor and energy executive.

Although Trump has said he can work with Democrats, he has shown a feisty approach since the midterm election results became clear.

On Saturday, he ordered the Justice Department to “look into” Democrats whom he accused of sending “threatening letters” to Republican donors and other Trump allies.

The president also offered the job of White House press secretary to combat sports promoter Dana White.

‘This man saved America’

Miller, 41, marks a sharp contrast with outgoing chief of staff Susie Wiles, a former lobbyist who ran Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign.

Wiles lacked significant Washington experience but was seen as a deft manager of competing interests.

Miller, by contrast, is regarded by allies and foes alike as a combative ideologue with a deep knowledge of the levers of power and an unswerving loyalty to Trump.

“If it wasn’t for President Trump, the United States of America would not exist right now. This man saved America,” Miller said at an event at Trump’s Florida estate on Friday.

Miller joined Trump’s first presidential campaign in 2016 and served throughout his two terms in the White House. He is best known for driving Trump’s aggressive immigration crackdown, which has galvanised Trump’s supporters but alienated many voters.

Only 37 per cent approve of Trump’s handling of immigration, according to an October Reuters/Ipsos poll, down from 50pc when he took office.

Still, four US immigration officials told Reuters that there have been no signs that the administration will let up. “Nothing is changing, same quotas,” said one official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Representative Don Bacon of Nebraska, an occasional Trump critic who is retiring, told Reuters that Miller “was in denial” as he and other Republican lawmakers tried to warn him before the election that Trump’s immigration and tariff policies were driving away voters.

“We said, ‘You’re going to give us a bad midterm election,’ and he rejected it,” Bacon said.

‘Doubling down on a failed strategy’

The White House said Miller will continue to deliver “historic successes” in his new role, but Bacon said most of his peers in the House view it as “doubling down on a failed strategy”.

“It’s going over like a lead balloon in most of Congress,” Bacon said of Miller’s appointment.

Miller has also overseen Trump’s executive orders, giving him an expansive understanding of the administrative tools available to the president.

Several people interviewed for this story said they expect the White House to rely on executive orders more extensively rather than working with lawmakers.

Republican legislators will face pressure to stick with Trump through Democratic-led investigations to come, even if they damage the party as a whole.

“Those on Capitol Hill looking to break away from the Trump administration will know that Stephen Miller is not going to sit idly by and watch that happen,“ said Republican strategist Ron Bonjean.

Ending the Mideast war?

As well as the domestic issues he has focused on for most of his career, Miller now will have a greater say in foreign affairs.

Miller opposes prolonging the war with Iran, according to three sources familiar with his thinking who spoke on condition of anonymity, but he strongly supports Israel — potentially putting him at odds with a president who has threatened to resume strikes on Iran and announced he will end aid to Jerusalem.

Miller’s elevation also has unnerved some corporate lobbyists, who worry he will not be as responsive to their issues as Wiles, who cultivated relationships with top executives.

“This will be a big change,” said a senior lobbyist at a Trump-aligned firm who spoke on condition of anonymity.

“Miller is there to focus on political priorities, like immigration and tariffs, stuff Trump cares about, and won’t have the same approach as Susie, who understood policies have unintended consequences.”

Miller’s appointment was met with praise from senior cabinet officials and political supporters, who described him as the fighter they will need in Trump’s final stretch.

“I think Donald Trump has found his wartime consigliere,” Trump ally Roger Stone told Reuters.

Source: dawn

RAWALPINDI: Anchorperson Rabia Ahsan was found shot dead at her home in the Gulshanabad area of Rawalpindi on Sunday, police said.

In a statement, City Police Officer (CPO) Hassan Mushtaq Sukhera said Ahsan’s husband was taken into custody and the suspected weapon was seized.

He added that an investigation has been launched.

CPO Sukhera, along with the senior superintendent of police (SSP) operations and the SSP investigations, arrived at the scene with a team of forensic experts to inspect the crime scene.

As per the statement, a male domestic worker at their house informed the police that the victim’s husband said the gunshot had been fired accidentally.

CPO Sukhera said that Punjab Forensic Science Agency (PFSA) teams were collecting evidence from the scene of the incident, while the body was being taken to the hospital for postmortem examination.

Sukhera said that a case of the incident was being registered, adding that an investigation on merit will be ensured.

While investigation into the motive was under way, First Lady Aseefa Bhutto-Zardari “expressed deep sadness over the killing” and “strongly condemned the violence”.

She called for a thorough, impartial and transparent investigation to establish the facts and ensure that those responsible are held accountable, a statement by the Presidency said.

She also expressed dismay over the “disturbing pattern of killing of another professional woman in the same metropolitan area”.

Aseefa recalled the murder case of Hina Javed, a 45-year-old digital media executive who was found dead at her Rawalpindi residence in August with signs of torture.

“Such incidents demand serious attention and accountability. Women must be able to live and work without fear for their lives,” she stressed.

The First Lady noted that the outcome of the investigation into Hina’s case was still awaited. According to a DNA analysis report, DNA samples of Hina’s domestic servant matched postmortem swabs collected from her body, while her husband’s DNA also matched samples taken from multiple items at the crime scene.

In a subsequent comment, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz had noted that “DNA test results and polygraph test suggest that the murder and rape were committed by the servant; however the investigation is ongoing”.

On Oct 29, Aseefa had met with Hina’s family at the Parliament and called for the family’s demand of a judicial commission to be “given due consideration”.

Source: dawn

Hamza Zahoor produced a match-winning unbeaten century as Pakistan Under-19 defeated arch-rivals India by three wickets in a thrilling Group ‘A’ encounter of the ACC Men’s Under-19 Asia Cup at the Al Amerat Cricket Ground in Muscat on Sunday.

Chasing 209, Pakistan reached the target in 48.1 overs, finishing on 211 for seven, with Hamza holding his nerve under pressure to steer his side home.

The wicket-keeper-batter remained unbeaten on 100 off 108 balls, striking 10 fours and three sixes, and was named Player of the Match.

Pakistan’s chase, however, was far from straightforward as India’s bowlers made early inroads to reduce them to 61 for five. Hamza then joined Hasnain Abbas Dar, who contributed 38, to revive the innings with a crucial partnership.

With wickets falling at the other end, Hamza showed remarkable composure, combining caution with timely aggression to keep Pakistan on course. He eventually guided the lower order across the finish line with 11 balls to spare, completing a memorable century in the process.

Earlier, India, after electing to bat, were bowled out for 208 in 46.3 overs. Their innings got off to a disastrous start when captain and opener Lakshya Rajesh Raichandani was dismissed for a duck off the second ball.

India slipped further to 22 for three, leaving their middle order under considerable pressure.

Arjun Rajput then mounted a spirited recovery with an outstanding 107 off 85 deliveries, hitting 11 fours and five sixes.

However, the right-hander received little support from the other end as Pakistan’s bowlers maintained pressure and regularly picked up wickets to restrict India to a modest total.

Ali Raza, Rizwanullah and Niqab Shafiq shared the spoils with three wickets apiece, while Mohammad Sayyam claimed one.

The victory takes Pakistan to the top of Group ‘A’ with four points from two matches, having registered back-to-back wins.

India, meanwhile, have two points from as many games, with one victory and one defeat.

Both teams have one group fixture remaining, with the top two sides advancing to the semi-finals.

Source: dawn