Ships anchored off the coast of Musandam governorate in Oman near the Strait of Hormuz on Friday (-)Iran’s top diplomat insisted on Sunday that there would be no military solution to the United States’ war against the Islamic republic, with talks on ending the conflict apparently at an impasse.A campaign of heavy bombardment failed to bring a decisive close to the war launched by the US and Israel in late February, and Washington in recent weeks has dialled back military operations in favour of economic pressure.The main point of contention remains Iran’s attempt to blockade the Strait of Hormuz, a vital conduit for Gulf oil and gas where a UK maritime agency reported on Sunday another tanker was struck by an unknown projectile.”If our enemies again choose the path of military confrontation, our response will be stronger than before, and we will defend ourselves with even more force,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said at a gathering of foreign ambassadors. “There is no military solution, nor any solution based on new sanctions,” he continued, adding “only negotiations based on justice and fairness” could end the conflict.The two sides agreed a memorandum of understanding in June that spelled out a framework for a permanent resolution, but Iranian attacks on vessels in the Hormuz prompted a return to US military operations.Iran has sought to impose its control over the vital shipping lane since the start of the war, striking vessels that attempt to transit without its authorisation.The US has imposed its own counterblockade of Iranian ports, and has also struck vessels it accuses of violating it.On Sunday, the British maritime security agency UKMTO said a tanker in the Hormuz “reported being struck by an unknown projectile, causing damage to the engine room”, though the crew were reported safe and no environmental impact was recorded.The agency did not specify the date of the incident, the vessel’s origin or destination, or whether it was an oil tanker or LNG carrier. In Iran, oil minister Mohsen Paknejad has resigned, the president’s office said on Sunday, as the US maintains a blockade on the country’s oil exports.In a news bulletin on the minister’s resignation, state television ran an interview with an official from the Iranian presidential office who said Paknejad initially offered to quit a while ago “due to personal issues” but this was rejected.Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian had asked Paknejad to continue in his post but was now accepting his departure as the minister had insisted on leaving, the official added.Paknejad has been replaced by Hamid Bovard, the chief executive of the National Iranian Oil Company, the presidency said.- Focused on Hormuz -Iranian and US officials last week held indirect talks on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, with Tehran saying it presented seven conditions for reopening the strait.Iran has demanded, among other things, a ceasefire across the Middle East, the unfreezing of its assets abroad, the lifting of sanctions on its oil sector and an end to the US naval blockade.Trump, however, rejected the proposal, while leaving the door open both to further talks or renewed military operations.Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said Sunday that the US had expressed its views on the proposal and said they were being reviewed.”The Americans, through intermediaries, have also conveyed their views on this proposal, and these views are currently being examined inside the country through the relevant channels and procedures,” he told reporters, according to state news agency IRNA.”Whenever the final position of the Islamic Republic of Iran is ready, appropriate steps will be taken accordingly. At the same time, the Islamic Republic of Iran is also preparing itself for any other possible scenario.”Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei on Sunday characterised the latest US counterproposal as being “in line with their previous proposals concerning nuclear issues”.”We have clearly indicated that we are focusing on the issue of the Strait of Hormuz,” he said, adding that reopening the waterway required “an end to the disruptions to Iranian commercial maritime traffic and the lifting of sanctions”.The United States and Israel have said the war is necessary to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons — a goal it has long denied pursuing — though the focus soon shifted to reopening the Hormuz after its closure sent shockwaves through world energy markets.The United States has not struck Iran since September 1, but it has recently pursued a fresh military buildup in the region.ap-sbr/smw/axn/jfx/amjThis article originally appeared on AFP at https://www.yahoo.com/news/world/articles/iran-tells-us-no-military-094635228.html

Multiple law enforcement agencies responded to a mass shooting from early Sunday morning, leading to two deaths and dozens injured.Dooly County Coroner Brett Walls told WALB and WMAZ that two people were dead, a 20-year-old man and a 23-year-old man in Vienna, two hours south of Atlanta.Channel 2 Action News has a reporting team in Vienna to bring you the latest information, LIVE on Channel 2 Action News at 6.The Georgia Bureau of Investigation confirmed to Channel 2 Action News that they were assisting with response to the incident on Pine Street, working with the Dooly County Sheriff’s Office.[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]Walls said the scene was “horrific.”TRENDING STORIES:4 overdoses reported at Paulding County home before 12 arrestsEx-Metro Atlanta banker accused of stealing nearly $1M from customer accounts in crypto schemeCrash kills 4 family members, including child; 3 seriously injuredSheriff Craig Peavy told WALB and WMAZ that the Vienna shooting happened during a homecoming celebration from Saturday night and into early Sunday.Peavy told WMAZ the celebration had about 1,000 people attending and during the festivities, shots were fired at about 50 people.Police there told WALB that the number of injured was high but could not provide a specific count, at the time.The sheriff told WMAZ that as many as 25 people were taken to the hospital for treatment of their injuries.On Sunday morning, the GBI said 35 people were injured.It is still unclear if any suspects are being sought or in custody, nor is a possible motive for the shooting known.The Associated Press contributed to this report.[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]This article originally appeared on WSB Cox at https://www.yahoo.com/news/us/articles/2-dead-multiple-injured-south-143631377.html

A Russian drone struck a major bridge in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv on Sunday as German Chancellor Friedrich Merz arrived in the city to the sound of air raid sirens, explosions and air defense systems being activated. Merz is in Kyiv to display support for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky amid Russia’s escalation of strikes on the city. “Ukraine needs all our support in the coming weeks,” Merz said. Highlighting attacks on Ukraine’s towns, residential buildings and energy, he said: “If Russia is not stopped, sooner or later its war machine will turn ⁠against us.” Video footage from Sunday morning’s strike showed the moment the city’s Northern Bridge was attacked, sparking a huge plume of fire and black smoke while cars were still traveling across. Two people were injured, the city’s mayor, Vitaliy Klitschko said. It is the second time the Northern Bridge has been hit in as many days. On Thursday and Friday, Kyiv’s Southern Bridge, which serves ground transportation and the city’s subway system, was hit five times in less than 24 hours. Ukrainian officials have said that Russian strikes on the capital’s infrastructure are attempting to cut the capital into two, as Kyiv is split along the Dnipro River, with businesses offices and government institutions on the right back, and the left bank mostly residential. Kyiv plans to start building several alternative crossings over the Dnipro in case the attacks on the bridges continue, the minister of infrastructure said Sunday. Russia’s defense ministry said it struck the Northern Bridge on Sunday, saying that it was targeting a route used for transporting troops and military equipment. It added that two cargo vessels carrying military equipment to the port of Odesa were struck. On Saturday the Russian Ministry of Defense said that it also targeted a logistics center in the Kyiv region. ‘Decisive weeks ahead’ Merz visited Kyiv alongside his Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy, Katarina Reiche, despite warnings from Russia on Saturday that foreign visitors and dignitaries to the Ukrainian capital are not safe amid an onslaught of Russian attacks. Zelensky and Merz are tying up a significant defense and industrial partnership, which will see the two countries finalize a deal for the production of drones and missiles. Berlin is also expected to release €1 billion ($1.13 billion) in military aid and €350 million ($390 million) for repairs to Ukraine’s damaged energy infrastructure, German government officials said. Zelensky has warned that Ukraine’s defensive need is expanding amid Russia’s accelerated air campaign, which has seen Moscow fire high-speed, jet-powered Shahed-type drones that can bypass some of Ukraine’s air defense systems and exploit its lack of interceptors. Earlier on Sunday, Merz said that Ukraine “is facing decisive weeks ahead.” Writing on X, he said: “I have traveled to Kyiv today with the message: You can rely on us.” Meanwhile, there appears to be no immediate respite for Kyiv’s three million residents, with Moscow on Sunday saying that it will only intensify its strikes targeting the capital and other cities. “Strikes by the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation against military and military-industrial facilities, as well as associated infrastructure in Kyiv and other regions of Ukraine, will be intensified,” the ministry said. Russia’s renewed threat follows an interview Zelensky gave to Reuters news on Saturday, where he outlined that he plans to double down on attacks on oil refineries. “We have to respond in any way (we can). With their attacks on our energy, we have to respond on their energy. First of all, oil refiners, etc. – what gives money to them for this war,” Zelensky said. His comments come despite the urging of US President Donald Trump, who recently asked Ukraine to stay away from attacks on Russia’s oil infrastructure, claiming it was sending global oil prices surging. CNN’s Kara Fox and Farida Elsebai contributed reporting. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.comThis article originally appeared on CNN at https://www.cnn.com/2026/10/04/europe/russian-drone-kyiv-merz-ukraine

Two of the seven men accused of sexually assaulting a Cornell University student at a fraternity house in 2024 were expelled, while others were ordered to take sexual harassment training and write “reflection papers,” according to university disciplinary records obtained by the New York Times.The records offer the most detailed look yet at how Cornell handled the case, which has drawn national outrage and is now under criminal investigation by New York Attorney General Letitia James.On Friday, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said that a woman who alleges she was drugged and raped by multiple members of a Cornell University fraternity in 2024 was “failed” by those obligated to protect her.Hochul’s comments came a day after announcing she had lost faith in the district attorney overseeing the Cornell University rape case and signed an executive order appointing James as a special prosecutor to lead the investigation.”In what world would the police learn from a victim that she’d been literally gang raped while intoxicated by five men in a fraternity house and not elevate those allegations to the district attorney?” Hochul said at a press conference with James in New York. “In what world does the district attorney not even interview her or anyone else involved or even request the full transcript?”At every turn, she was failed by people and institutions with an obligation to protect her,” Hochul said.James said that the case is “now an active criminal investigation.””We will review the facts, gather evidence, interview witnesses and, if warranted, pursue prosecutions,” James said, adding: “I know that you want answers. I do too.”The local district attorney and Cornell both said they support James taking over the case.Read more from Yahoo: A timeline of the Cornell rape case, from the alleged 2024 incident to the appointment of a special prosecutor to oversee the criminal investigationNew York Governor Kathy Hochul speaks during a news conference with New York Attorney General Letitia James in New York on Friday.AP Photo/Yuki IwamuraTompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten has come under intense scrutiny in recent days over his decision not to prosecute anyone when the initial allegations were made in 2024.In a civil lawsuit filed last month against the school and seven current and former fraternity members, a former student identified as “Jane Doe” alleged that she was the victim of a “gang rape” at the Chi Phi fraternity on Cornell’s Ithaca, N.Y., campus on Oct. 19, 2024. She said she was already intoxicated when she arrived and was given ketamine before and during the alleged assault. She reported the incident to campus police three weeks later.Van Houten said last week that Jane Doe’s sworn statement to police didn’t include allegations that she was “drugged against her will or gang raped.””On the contrary, Jane Doe’s statement described her participation in drug use and sexual conduct as voluntary, conscious, and consensual,” Van Houten said. “My office obviously did not and could not have based our November 2024 decision on the allegations in a civil lawsuit that would not be filed until nearly two years later.”On Tuesday, CBS New York published excerpts from Jane Doe’s Nov. 14, 2024, interview with Cornell police, in which she asserted, “I can say with 100% confidence I was raped.” “Shockingly, those words never made it into the account that the Cornell police sent to prosecutors,” Hochul said Friday.Van Houten said he was not provided with a transcript of her interview before his office decided not to pursue charges.”I’m going to follow up on this because this is news to me,” Van Houten told CBS. “If she had said those words, we certainly would want to have explored that more. Like I said, that wasn’t provided to me.”Records obtained by the New York Times show the district attorney’s office declined to look at additional evidence gathered by Cornell police beyond Jane Doe’s six-page statement. A Cornell police investigator wrote in a note that prosecutors had already decided, based on that statement, that “criminal charges would not be pursued in this case.”Van Houten told the Times in an email that the other records were “not pertinent to our analysis because we had Jane Doe’s comprehensive account of the events.”Cornell initially said its police “shared all investigatory information” with the district attorney’s office. The university later revised its statement to say police shared “the victim’s sworn statement and the Snapchat screenshot,” CNN reported.Cornell University Police vehicles are seen on campus on Sept. 29.Reuters / REUTERSAccording to ABC News, Jane Doe told the school’s investigators that she “felt like bait” on the night of the alleged assault. “I felt like lions around me,” she said during a 2025 hearing. “It just was a totally debilitating place to be in.”The comments were included in a 99-page report prepared by the university as part of its Title IX investigation, per ABC.The report also included comments from a fraternity member who Cornell’s investigation concluded did not engage in the assault but was found responsible for “attempted sexual exploitation.” “I was sorry that maybe if it wasn’t consensual and she was victimized, I was sorry for not stopping it,” the fraternity member said, according to ABC.That student, who was allowed to stay at Cornell, has asked a New York court to throw out the disciplinary finding against him, the Associated Press reported. His punishment included a no-contact order, a class on sexual harassment and bystander intervention, and a reflection paper.Two of the men have released statements through their lawyers denying they participated in a sexual assault, according to the Associated Press.Cornell University issued a statement pushing back against claims that the school did not thoroughly punish those involved in the alleged assault.”Any suggestion that the university did not impose consequential punishments for those involved is false,” the university said. “A continuation of the false narrative that there were minimal consequences in this case is irresponsible, will make survivors feel less safe and supported, and will perpetuate the underreporting of sexual assault.”Hochul announced on Wednesday that Cornell had agreed to initiate an independent review of its initial response to the allegations.The governor also said she would work to close a loophole in New York law, which states that someone who was voluntarily intoxicated cannot claim they were mentally incapacitated during an assault, unless they can show they were “physically helpless” and unable to communicate consent.”If someone is too intoxicated to consent, it should not matter whether they chose to use drugs or alcohol,” Hochul said. “Voluntary intoxication is not a license for sexual assault or gang rape. Period.”What does the lawsuit allege?The Chi Phi fraternity house at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., is seen on Sept. 28.AP Photo/Heather AinsworthOn Sept. 14, Jane Doe filed a civil lawsuit against Cornell University and seven members of the Chi Phi fraternity, alleging that she was the victim of a “gang rape” at the fraternity house when she was incapable of consent — and that the school failed to protect her from “sexual predators” on its campus.The defendants named in the lawsuit include Cornell, the seven fraternity members, the Chi Phi fraternity, the woman’s own sorority, Delta Delta Delta, and an off-campus bar that allegedly served her alcohol.She is seeking unspecified compensatory and punitive damages resulting from “sustained psychological injuries, severe emotional distress, along with pain and suffering and loss of enjoyment of life.”According to her lawsuit, Jane Doe was a 20-year-old student at the school in October 2024 when she went to visit a friend at the fraternity house on Cornell’s Ithaca, N.Y., campus while intoxicated. Shortly after arriving, Jane Doe alleged that she was pressured by two fraternity brothers into snorting what they said was ketamine before sexually assaulting her. One of the men then allegedly sent a message to the fraternity’s Snapchat group suggesting that she was available for sex. A screengrab of part of the chat was included in the lawsuit.According to the complaint, multiple other members of the fraternity showed up, and she was raped for hours.”The Snapchat was disgusting and vulgar and immoral,” Van Houten told ABC News. “But the question that we analyzed was, did Jane Doe consent to what happened? And the law in New York state is clear: That if you are voluntarily intoxicated, or under the influence of drugs such that your judgment is impaired, that does not legally under the penal law constitute your inability to consent.”During the alleged assault, the fraternity members “began pouring lines of Ketamine all over her body and snorting them,” according to the complaint.”At around 5:45 AM, this assault concluded and Plaintiff lost consciousness,” the lawsuit stated.About three weeks later, on Nov. 8, 2024, Jane Doe reported the incident to the university’s police department.According to ABC News, Jane Doe told police in a sworn statement on Nov. 15, 2024, that the incident “felt like coercion,” and that at one point she said “no to the foursome” one of the fraternity brothers had proposed. She also stated: “I felt like I was unable to make any decision because of how intoxicated I was.”According to the New York Times, she told Cornell’s Title IX investigators that she did not consider herself a victim until she saw the incident being discussed in an online forum.”Are Chi Phi brothers Crips or Bloods because I hear they have been doing hell Gang Banging?” one user wrote.”They do drugs and gang r*ped a sophomore,” wrote another.”That’s the first time I had ever heard the narrative change that I wasn’t a whore and that I was assaulted,” Jane Doe told investigators, per the Times.What was Cornell’s response?A student walks past a Cornell University sign in Ithaca, N.Y., on Sept. 28.AP Photo/Heather AinsworthCornell’s months-long Title IX investigation included at least 12 hearings, according to the lawsuit, which said that the accused fraternity members were “afforded the opportunity to mitigate their conduct by submitting essays to Cornell.”The panel’s sanctions varied widely, according to the records obtained by the Times:Two men were expelled. The panel found one responsible for sexual assault, concluding he had manipulated and endangered Jane Doe. The other had been accused of assault and of sending the Snapchat message that drew other fraternity members to the room.Two were suspended, one for two years and one for three semesters, followed by probation. Both were barred from contacting Jane Doe and ordered to complete sexual harassment training and write reflection papers.One, who had already graduated, was barred from campus for three years. Jane Doe had accused him of forcibly kissing her.Two received lighter sanctions: no-contact orders, training on sexual harassment, social media use and bystander intervention, and reflection papers.Cornell has denied that essays were the only punishment for any of the men. All seven deny wrongdoing, and none has been criminally charged. Jane Doe dropped out of school.In a video message Saturday, Cornell President Michael Kotlikoff said the university’s board would name an outside law firm this week to review how the school handled the case. He also promised “a serious look” at fraternities and sororities, the Cornell Daily Sun reported.On Sept. 21, Cornell issued a statement saying that it had concluded its Title IX investigation but would not disclose individual sanctions, citing federal privacy laws.”The Cornell Office of Civil Rights and the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards investigated and adjudicated the allegations consistent with university policies. The Xi chapter of Chi Phi fraternity remains barred from our campus,” the statement said: “Federal privacy law prohibits Cornell from disclosing specific information regarding individual students and we therefore are unable to make a public statement on any other disciplinary response. Violations of university policies could lead to sanctions up to and including suspension or expulsion. We will respond in detail through the legal process.”The university also pointed out that it launched a task force on campus sexual assault in the wake of the incident and issued a report in March with recommendations for “an environment that fosters sexual health and safety.””Several of the recommendations have already been implemented, while others are in development with oversight by a university implementation committee,” Cornell said.According to USA Today, more than 1,200 incidents of sexual assault, domestic and dating violence and stalking were reported to Cornell University’s Title IX from 2018 through 2024. Of those, 14 cases resulted in suspensions, while seven ended in expulsion or dismissal, per the paper.”Cornell takes each report seriously and, to the greatest extent possible, honors a complainant’s decision not to pursue resolution,” Rebecca Valli, a Cornell spokesperson, said in a statement to USA Today. “The university provides support and resources regardless of whether the respondent is subject to our conduct processes, and regardless of whether a complainant consents to an investigation.”Reactions to the allegationsFlorence Pugh attends an event for Netflix’s “East of Eden” in New York City on Sept. 27.Jason Mendez via Getty ImagesThe harrowing allegations revealed in Jane Doe’s lawsuit prompted reactions from several celebrities, including Florence Pugh, who posted a lengthy response on Instagram calling for men to speak out against sexual violence.”This is really the moment where we need our men to be as horrified and as sickened as us,” Pugh wrote. “You need to be leading conversations about how we change the allowance and complicity of this behaviour as much as we are. How can you expect us to trust that it’s ‘not all men’ when in moments like this, many of you stay quiet?”In an expletive-laden Instagram post, actor Josh Gad tore into Cornell, seizing on allegations in the civil lawsuit that the fraternity members were required to write essays as part of the adjudication process.”When we start setting a precedent that our girls and women can be brutally raped, and the resulting disciplinary action is to hand out (checks notes) ESSAYS (like it’s Bart Simpson being a lil’ rascal), about why it was wrong to brutally violate an innocent girl, we have lost our f***ing minds,” Gad wrote.Toby Morton, a former South Park writer, launched a website, TheCornell7.org, dedicated to holding the school and the accused fraternity members accountable.”Accountability is coming,” Morton wrote on Instagram.Mariska Hargitay posted a joint statement on Instagram with the Joyful Heart Foundation, which supports survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence, and child abuse, with a quote from a scathing editorial by the Cornell Daily Sun. View this post on Instagram “Arrest them,” Heated Rivalry star Hudson Williams wrote in an Instagram story while sharing a photo of the seven accused men, according to Variety.”F*** them and f*** Cornell, too!” he added.At a town hall in Ithaca, N.Y., last week, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democrat, said that “the culture of rape, sexual assault and pedophilia is protected in elite institutions across the United States, including Cornell.”Ocasio-Cortez recalled her own experience as a freshman at Boston University.”Within maybe 10 seconds of me walking into a party — at a gym, at a school facility — someone had touched me inappropriately,” Ocasio-Cortez said.”Jane Doe, that survivor, lost her education because you can’t stay in school when something like that happens to you,” Ocasio-Cortez told the crowd. “She had to lose her education, and those men were protected by an institution and granted an Ivy League degree as a reward. Never again.”The congresswoman said she had a message to Jane Doe and other survivors of sexual assault.”I want you to know that you are not defined by the things that have happened to you,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “You are bigger than that. You are stronger than them. And they will never define you for your entire life. And that you can achieve anything that you want to achieve, from one survivor to another.”This article originally appeared on Yahoo News at https://www.yahoo.com/news/us/article/cornell-rape-case-how-the-university-reportedly-punished-each-of-the-7-men-accused-from-expulsion-to-reflection-papers-183826467.html

President Trump on Sunday named Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton as his new “AI czar,” adding a different category of intelligence, the “artificial” kind, to the U.S. spy chief’s portfolio.In a post on Truth Social, Trump said Clayton will lead a newly formed “Super Intelligence Force” alongside Federal Trade Commission Chair Andrew Ferguson, Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Emil Michael and Office of Personnel Management Director Scott Kupor. The group will report directly to Trump and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles.Its goal, Trump wrote, is “to ensure that America continues to lead the World in Super Intelligence, which many say is bigger than the Industrial Revolution, and the Internet, and will protect the interests, and improve the lives, of all Americans.”Clayton will keep his job as DNI, which oversees the nation’s 18 intelligence agencies.Trump’s announcement follows meeting last Tuesday at the White House where top AI executives signed what he called a “morally binding” agreement to police themselves in order to prevent their increasingly powerful models from going rogue and harming humanity.”There’s a belief that there should be tremendous self-regulation,” the president said at the meeting. “This is going to be all for the good, and we’re going to have it be nice and safe.”Despite new polls showing that 86% of Americans want AI companies to meet independent safety standards even if doing so slows development — with 74% largely mistrusting the leaders of those companies — Trump insisted in recent days that federal regulations are unnecessary and that those who say otherwise are “Conspiracy Theorists, Treasonists, Traitors, and Leakers.” “The only control or ‘guardrails’ that AI needs is a STRONG AND SMART (High IQ!) PRESIDENT, and the U.S.A. has that, in spades!” he wrote on social media. Elsewhere, Trump has said that regulation would handicap the U.S. in its race to “win” AI.”Whoever wins AI … that’s the group that wins,” Trump told the United Nations General Assembly last month. “We’re leading now over China by a lot and everyone else, and we’re going to keep it that way.” According to the Guardian, Trump’s previous AI and crypto czar, billionaire tech investor David Sacks, consistently “counseled the president to give a soft touch to AI regulation, helping push executive orders and other measures aimed at loosening restrictions on the technology.” Sacks also “maintains direct financial stakes in multiple AI companies,” the paper reported, though he took steps to divest some of his holdings last year while serving in the administration. He stepped down in March. Will Clayton follow Sacks’s lead? Or will he chart a new course? Here’s what we know so far.Who is Jay Clayton? Clayton, 60, is a registered independent with degrees from the University of Pennsylvania (engineering, law) and the University of Cambridge (economics). As a lawyer in private practice, he focused mostly on Wall Street: mergers and acquisitions, market offerings and regulatory proceedings. During Trump’s first term, from 2017 to 2020, Clayton chaired the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. From March 2021 to April 2025, Clayton served as chair and “lead independent director” of the board of Apollo Global Management. (Apollo has owned a 90% majority stake in Yahoo since September 2021.)In late 2024, Trump nominated Clayton to serve as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, his first prosecutorial job; Trump later appointed Clayton to serve in an acting capacity after New York Sen. Chuck Schumer blocked his appointment. Reports suggest Clayton was also considered for roles as secretary of the treasury, attorney general and director of the Central Intelligence Agency. In November 2025, Trump ordered the Department of Justice to investigate Democrats associated with Jeffrey Epstein, and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi assigned Clayton to lead the probe. After former Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard resigned in May 2026, Trump tapped Clayton to replace her. “He’s very qualified,” Democratic Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia said at the time. But Clayton sidestepped questions over who won the 2020 election during his July confirmation hearings, and he was confirmed without Democratic support.”I’m not an election denier,” Clayton told the Senate. “He went through our processes, and Joe Biden became the president of the United States.” What has Clayton said about AI?During his DNI confirmation hearings, Clayton described AI as “a game changer,” warning that it represents “not only an opportunity but a threat.””We should just all recognize that,” he continued. “When something is both an opportunity and a threat, you better get your arms around it.” On Tuesday, Clayton attended Trump’s White House meeting with top AI executives. Speaking afterward to CNBC, he used the president’s new preferred term for AI — i.e., “superintelligence” — while pushing back against lawmakers who have called for regulating or pausing U.S. AI development. “Super intelligence is a national security issue, and that was something that was recognized yesterday by not just the industry leaders but everybody in the room,” Clayton said. “But to, in some way, not try to drive forward inside the United States, with companies that are regulated in the United States … to somehow say we should back away from this and let the rest of the world develop these models and implement these models? I don’t think anybody in that room, and I don’t think any American, should think that that’s a good strategy.”Asked to respond to criticism from Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts that Trump’s current policy of letting AI companies police themselves will prove to be “a recipe for disaster,” Clayton suggested that the U.S. government’s existing regulatory framework could also help keep AI in check. “My response to the American people on that front is we have a Federal Trade Commission, we have a Department of Justice,” Clayton said. “I know the leaders of both those organizations, and they’re committed to protecting the American people in this regard.”What will Clayton do as AI czar? According to Trump’s post, the Super Intelligence Force will coordinate the federal government’s dealings with AI companies, infrastructure providers, consumers, public interest groups and religious organizations, CNN reported.Last month, Trump wrote on social media that he would “be announcing, in the near future, the AI ‘Czar.'”Only High I.Q. individuals need apply!” he added. In the same post, the president again dismissed concerns about AI safety as a “hoax” perpetrated by “Radical Left Democrats.” He also wrote that going forward, his administration would not “in any way hinder or stifle the Growth of this incredible Industry,” which he described as “the next Industrial Revolution, or Internet” — only “even larger and more impactful.” “Rather, we will cherish it, help it, and watch over it, as it grows!” Trump explained. As for reining in “bad” actors, he wrote, “we can do that, very easily, with our already existing Criminal and Civil Justice System.”Clayton, it seems, will now be in charge of cherishing, helping and watching over the AI industry as it grows. He’s “a good man,” Trump told Axios when the outlet asked last week if Clayton was being considered for the job. “He’s right here. That’s a good idea.”It’s unclear what happened to a separate idea Trump floated last month, which he called “the AI Force.””I am forming the AI Force, much like I did Space Force, which has been a tremendous SUCCESS, in my First Term,” Trump wrote in his September social media post about naming an AI czar. According to Axios, Trump’s AI Force idea “caught advisers by surprise,” setting off “a mad dash” within the administration “to imagine what AI Force would look like.” What did Trump’s previous AI czar do? When Sacks served as AI czar, he repeatedly persuaded the president and his administration to resist new AI restrictions, including state laws to limit AI. Since leaving the White House, Sacks has “maintained close ties with the president,” according to the Guardian, and “in May, he successfully urged Trump to scrap an executive order that would’ve subjected AI models to government review.”The Wall Street Journal recently reported the Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles were “caught off guard and unhappy” with Trump’s decision after they “spent months negotiating to increase oversight of AI and had consulted a range of industry executives on the order.” According to the Journal’s sources, Wiles “told others that Sacks had persuaded Trump” to back down “in a last-minute call,” leaving Bessent “worried that AI-led cyberattacks could wreak havoc on the nation’s banking system.”This article originally appeared on Yahoo News at https://www.yahoo.com/news/us/article/trump-names-jay-clayton-as-ai-czar-who-is-americas-new-artificial-intelligence-chief–and-how-will-he-address-growing-safety-concerns-152448937.html