The Times of Israel is liveblogging Wednesday’s events as they happen.
Federal judge in Florida indefinitely delays Trump’s classified documents trial
WASHINGTON — The federal judge in Florida presiding over the classified documents prosecution of former US president Donald Trump has canceled the May 20 trial date, postponing it indefinitely.
The order from US District Judge Aileen Cannon had been expected in light of still-unresolved issues in the case and because Trump is currently on trial in a separate case in Manhattan charging him in connection with hush money payments during the 2016 presidential election. The New York case involves several of the same lawyers representing him in the federal case in Florida.
Cannon says in a five-page order that it would be “imprudent” to finalize a new trial date now, casting further doubt on federal prosecutors’ ability to bring Trump to trial before the November presidential election.
Trump faces dozens of felony counts accusing him of illegally hoarding at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida classified documents that he took with him after he left the White House in 2021, and then obstructing the FBI’s efforts to get them back. He has pleaded not guilty and denied wrongdoing.
Trump faces four criminal cases as he seeks to reclaim the White House, but outside of the New York prosecution, it’s not clear that any of the other three will reach trial before the election.
The Supreme Court is weighing Trump’s arguments that he is immune from federal prosecution in a separate case from special counsel Jack Smith charging him with plotting to overturn the 2020 presidential election. Prosecutors in Fulton County, Georgia have also brought a separate case related to election subversion, though it’s not clear when that might reach trial.
Israeli-born Eurovision singer for Luxembourg qualifies for grand final
Israeli-born Luxembourg Eurovision singer Tali Golergant, who goes by the mononym Tali, qualifies for the grand final after her performance at the first semifinal tonight.
Luxembourg returned to the competition this year after a 31-year absence. Tali, who was born in Israel and raised in Chile, Argentina and Luxembourg, won the right to represent the tiny European nation during a TV contest earlier this year.
Israel’s Eden Golan will be performing on Thursday in the second semifinal, hoping to also make it to the grand final on Saturday evening, where 26 countries will compete for the top spot.
The song contest has been heavily overshadowed by politics, with large protests expected Thursday against Israel’s participation in the competition. In an interview with The Times of Israel last month, Tali said she has also faced online hate over her background, but doesn’t let it affect her.
Also qualifying tonight are Ireland, Croatia, Cyprus, Ukraine, Lithuania, Finland, Serbia, Portugal and Slovenia.
US, Saudi Arabia condemn attack by Israelis on Jordanian aid convoy bound for Gaza
The US and Saudi Arabia have issued statements condemning the latest attack by Israeli extremists on a Jordanian aid convoy en route to Gaza.
In a call with Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken “strongly condemned” the attacks and “reiterated that the United States expects the government of Israel to take full and appropriate measures to prevent those attacks and hold those responsible accountable,” the State Department says in a readout from their call earlier today.
Israeli police have arrested several suspects but the government has yet to speak out publicly against the phenomenon led largely by right-wing, Orthodox extremists.
Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry issued its own condemnation, saying “that the repetition of these attacks is the result of the Israeli occupation forces’ failure to carry out their responsibilities under international humanitarian law.”
“This is considered a systematic collusion to prevent the arrival of necessary humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip,” the Saudi statement says.
Israel is obligated under international law to ensure that is is not blocking humanitarian aid from reaching those in need.
Riyadh “stresses the kingdom’s call for the international community to take all necessary measures towards holding the Israeli occupation accountable for its violations of international law and international humanitarian law.”