News & Current Events

Houthi forces seized the port city of Mocha on September 10 and Perim Island by September 11, positioning them at the Bab al-Mandeb strait, through which shipping traffic has already fallen roughly 60 percent since late 2023. Claims of complete Red Sea coast control remain unverified, with the clearest evidence limited to Mocha and Perim; Houthi officials have not issued a new general closure of the strait, maintaining only a blockade specific to Saudi vessels. At least 46,000 people have been displaced in Yemen since fighting escalated, according to the International Organization for Migration.

Joe diGenova submitted his resignation as Counselor to the Attorney General on September 10, 2026, five months into overseeing a Florida-based DOJ investigation that has seen recent grand-jury activity but has not produced charges. DiGenova cited evidentiary pacing concerns in public statements, while anonymous sources attributed his exit to lost confidence from DOJ leadership and the White House — a claim the department's on-record statement neither confirmed nor denied. No successor has been publicly named, and attorney Victoria Toensing, who worked alongside diGenova's team, was reported to depart the following day.

The Justice Department removed Afghan lawful permanent resident Nazira Haji Zada to Afghanistan on August 25, 2026, marking the first publicly identified use of the Alien Terrorist Removal Court, a statutory framework enacted in 1996 that had never before been publicly applied. The proceeding was consent-based: Haji Zada waived her rights to notice, a hearing, and appeal, meaning the case establishes an operational precedent for the court's use but does not constitute a contested judicial ruling on the underlying classified evidence. The classified basis for her terrorism designation remains undisclosed, and no additional ATRC cases have been publicly announced.

The U.S. Supreme Court on September 10, 2026, stayed a federal district court order that had required Missouri to use its 2025 congressional map (HB 1) for the November 3 general election, leaving the 2022 map operative instead. The stay is temporary and does not resolve the underlying redistricting dispute, with appeals still pending before the Eighth Circuit and possible further Supreme Court review. Missouri counties that had begun printing ballots under HB 1 following the district court's September 8 order now face the administrative task of reverting to the earlier map ahead of military and overseas ballot deadlines.