World

CARACAS, Venezuela — Like many other Venezuelans, Ramón Arape said the image of ex-President Nicolás Maduro in U.S. custody was a stunning — and welcome — sight. “I confess that I felt a sense of relief when I saw the photo of Maduro in the hands of los gringos,” said Arape, 59, a welder and father of…

CARACAS, Venezuela — It was about 2 a.m. Saturday Caracas time when the detonations began, lighting up the sullen sky like a post-New Year’s fireworks display. “¡Ya comenzó!” was the recurrent phrase in homes, telephone conversations and social media chats as the latest iteration of U.S. “shock and awe” rocked the Venezuelan capital. “It has begun!” Then…

MEXICO CITY — Argentina’s president called it “excellent news for the free world.” Iran condemned it as a “blatant violation of national sovereignty.” Canada said little, except that it was “monitoring developments closely.” The dramatic U.S. capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro was cheered by world leaders allied with President Trump, and condemned by those who oppose…

WASHINGTON — An audacious overnight raid by elite U.S. forces that seized Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro from his bedroom in Caracas plunged the country into turmoil Saturday, prompting international concern about Venezuela’s future and President Trump’s attempt to take control of the sovereign nation. Trump justified the stunning attack by accusing Maduro of sending “monsters” into the…

Eric Neff’s tenure at the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office ended after he was placed on administrative leave in 2022 over accusations of misconduct in the prosecution of the CEO of Konnech, a software company that election conspiracy theorists said was in the thrall of the Chinese government. Now, three years later, Neff is…

Grok, the chatbot of Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company xAI, published sexualized images of children as its guardrails seem to have failed when it was prompted with vile user requests. Users used prompts such as “put her in a bikini” under pictures of real people on X to get Grok to generate nonconsensual images of…

The fiery debate about a proposed ballot measure to tax California’s billionaires has sparked some soul-searching across the state. While the idea of a one-time tax on more than 200 people has a long way to go before getting onto the ballot and would need to be passed by voters in November, the tempest around…

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., ended the first year of President Trump’s second term with a record of rulings that gave him much broader power to control the federal government. In a series of fast-track decisions, the justices granted emergency appeals and set aside rulings from district judges who…

California has delayed its cancellation of thousands of commercial driver’s licenses held by migrants, setting it up for another showdown with Washington. The Department of Motor Vehicles announced on Tuesday that the 17,000 migrant truck drivers whose licenses had been revoked can now keep them for 60 more days, which could enable the drivers to…

WASHINGTON — The day after Christmas is typically quiet in the nation’s capital. But President Trump’s decision to acknowledge a covert U.S. strike on Venezuelan territory, in an interview with an obscure local news outlet on Friday, set off a scramble in a drowsy Washington that has become a hallmark of the president. Officials working on Latin…