Salem News Channel

Two Pakistani nationals have been charged in a $3.5 million Medicare fraud scheme. Nouan Mustafa, 36, and Mohsin Khan, 40, are the two men at the center of this latest scheme. Mustafa was at Los Angeles International Airport, where he tried to board a one-way flight to Pakistan in February. Khan was arrested this week in Bakersfield. Both have dual U.S. and Pakistani citizenship. Read more on Townhall: https://townhall.com/news/amy-curtis/2026/10/01/pakistani-nationals-california-medicare-fraud-35m-n2683920

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(Washington, DC) -- The Federal Reserve's independent watchdog says it doesn't believe there was a violation of federal law in the Fed's multi-billion-dollar renovation project. The project drew criticism from President Donald Trump and short-lived scrutiny from federal prosecutors. But a report says the central bank's board "had not effectively executed" a contract and its cost-management provisions. The investigation's end follows a more than yearlong review into the construction site on the central bank's Washington, D.C., campus. It became a fixation of the Trump administration as the president also pressured Jerome Powell, who was the Fed chair until Kevin Warsh took over in May, to cut interest rates.

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MULTIPLE PEOPLE WERE INJURED IN A MASSIVE PILEUP ON INTERSTATE 95 IN SOUTH CAROLINA THURSDAY MORNING. IT HAPPENED ON A BRIDGE OVER LAKE MARION IN CLARENDON COUNTY. ABOUT 50 VEHICLES WERE INVOLVED, WITH AT LEAST ONE CATCHING FIRE. FIRST RESPONDERS HAD TO USE OFF-ROAD VEHICLES TO GET TO AND TRANSPORT THE INJURED. SOME WERE TAKEN TO THE HOSPITAL. OFFICIALS BELIEVE THICK FOG PLAYED A ROLE.

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(Nashville, TN) -- There are a lot of questions after the Tennessee death row inmate who survived an execution by lethal injection attempt is now in critical condition. Christa Pike's attorneys said she is receiving lifesaving medical care after yesterday's failed execution. She reportedly was still breathing and snoring after receiving two doses of pentobarbital. One of her lawyers said he saw at least seven needles go into Pike's arm during the execution attempt. Her attorneys are now calling for Governor Bill Lee to commute her sentence. Lee has issued a stay on all executions in Tennessee for now.

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(Oxford, MS) -- Mississippi police say there is a connection between the deaths of two Ole Miss students that may involve kratom. Authorities announced Wednesday that two men have been arrested for the alleged sale of illegal drugs, with a third man on the run. The arrests are tied to an Oxford smoke shop that was raided last week. Eighteen-year-old Aidan Hamilton and 20-year-old Robert Strang were found dead on campus last month with packages of kratom nearby. Toxicology test results are expected next week.

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(Minneapolis, MN) -- The family of ICE shooting victim Renee Good is seeking justice. A lawsuit filed recently goes after the US government for wrongful death, as well as ICE agent Jonathan Ross, former Homeland Security chief Kristi Noem and others for a conspiracy to interfere with civil rights. Good was shot and killed by Ross in Minneapolis in January while driving away from protests.

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(Washington, DC) -- A Washington, DC judge is dismissing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool vandalism case against former U.S. Olympic canoeist David Hearn. The judge dismissed the case with prejudice today, permanently blocking federal prosecutors from charging Hearn again. The 67-year-old was arrested earlier this year and initially accused of vandalizing the reflecting pool when he removed a piece of peeling paint from the water.

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Iran is being told by President Trump that it's time to make a choice: Accept a fair deal or cease to exist. Today, Trump told reporters more oil is flowing out of the Strait of Hormuz since even before the start of the war with the U.S. Navy in full control of the waterway. Trump added that Iran's economy is a wreck and they have no military.

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(San Antonio, TX) -- Much of the country could face flooding as a weeklong threat develops. Millions will be under the threat from the major Texas metros of Dallas, Austin and San Antonio up to Chicago. This as thunderstorms fueled by Hurricane Rachel and the remnants of Polo unleash torrential rain. Parts of Central Texas, Kansas, Iowa and Nebraska saw heavy rain late Wednesday into this morning. The Lincoln-Lancaster County Emergency Management Agency in Nebraska, said many roads were flooded across the county early today and emergency crews were being spread thin.

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Trump spoke to reporters before leaving DC for Denton, Texas where he'll tour the Peterbilt Motors facility and deliver remarks to workers. Texas is one of three states the President will visit over the next two days as he sells his economic message and pumps up Republican candidates before the midterms, which are just over 30 days away.

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(New Delhi) -- The FlyDubai pilot who safely landed a passenger jet after being stabbed in the cockpit is being called a hero. Israeli officials say captain Smit Machchhar is recovering in a hospital after his co-pilot reportedly stabbed him during a flight to Israel in an apparent attempt to crash the jet carrying 174 people. The injured captain was able to let passengers into the cockpit, who subdued the attacker and helped him land the plane. In his native India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called him a hero, saying he "showed immense courage and an unwavering resolve to protect the lives of others."

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CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida, Oct 1 (Reuters) - A SpaceX rocket lifted off from Florida on Thursday with a crew of two US astronauts, a Canadian astronaut and a Russian cosmonaut headed to the International Space Station for a science mission devoted to human health and performance in orbit. The two-stage Falcon 9 rocket, topped with an autonomously operated Crew Dragon capsule carrying the four-member crew, was launched from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, along Florida's Atlantic Coast. A live webcast showed the 25-story-tall rocket thundering off the launch pad as its nine Merlin engines roared to life in billowing, incandescent plumes of vapor. Falcon 9's reusable lower-stage booster separated from the rest of the vehicle within three minutes of launch and flew itself back to Earth for a return landing. The rocket's upper stage climbed higher and released into orbit the Crew Dragon carrying NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk and Russian cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov. "Dragon separation confirmed. Jessica, Luke, Josh, Sergey, welcome to orbit," SpaceX mission control in Hawthorne, California, told the crew. The capsule is thrusting itself along an eight-hour orbital voyage to the space station and is set to dock with the orbiting laboratory platform some 250 miles (400 km) above Earth around 7 p.m. EDT (2300 GMT). The mission marks the 13th long-duration space station team that NASA has flown aboard a SpaceX launch vehicle since the rocket venture founded in 2002 by Elon Musk began sending US astronauts to orbit in May 2020. The company went public in a record-breaking IPO in July. The launch also comes days after SpaceX launched its next-generation Starship spacecraft on its first trip to orbit and first commercial satellite deployment, marking the vehicle's 14th uncrewed test flight since 2023. Crew 13 is led by geologist-turned-astronaut Watkins, 38, making her second voyage to space and becoming the first NASA astronaut to fly twice aboard a Crew Dragon. Seated beside her in the pilot's chair is Delaney, 47, a former test pilot and fighter pilot making his debut in space. Rounding out Crew 13 are two other spaceflight rookies ranked as mission specialists — Kutryk, 44, a former test and fighter pilot, and Teteryatnikov, 37, an engineer who specialized in the operation of submarines. The four crewmates are to be welcomed aboard the space station by seven current occupants of the orbital outpost, including the four members of Crew 12 who are due to fly back to Earth soon as their seven-month-plus mission comes to an end. The latest arrivals are expected to focus their attention on a series of biomedical and human performance studies, including research on how microgravity affects blood circulation and clotting, and gathering health data to inform future space missions. The ISS, which spans the length of a football field and ranks as the largest human-made object in space, has been continuously operated by a US-Russian-led consortium that includes Canada, Japan and 11 European countries. The first hardware for the outpost was launched more than a quarter-century ago. NASA has said it is committed to keeping the space station operating through 2030.

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A 27-year-old dual British-Iranian national was arrested in London on suspicion of planning a terrorist attack at RAF Fairford. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that Israel had warned the U.K. about the potential Iranian-sponsored attack. This incident occurred just before the British government imposed sanctions on Israel, which Netanyahu criticized as evidence of collapsing Western civilization. The arrest and the subsequent sanctions highlight the escalating tensions and security concerns in Europe, particularly regarding radical Islamic influences.

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Oct 01 (Field Level Media) - An outbreak of mumps within San Diego State's football team reportedly has increased to 14 confirmed cases and one probable case. County health officials released a statement on Wednesday announcing those updated numbers. While the school has confirmed the cases are tied to one single athletic team, it was the San Diego Union-Tribune that previously identified the football team as being the one impacted by the mumps. San Diego State issued a statement confirming three cases and two probable cases among an undisclosed athletic team on Sept. 18. It is unknown how many players will be sidelined when San Diego State (1-3) makes its Pac-12 debut on Saturday against Texas State (2-2). The Aztecs' initial availability report Wednesday included 32 players, however San Diego State coach Sean Lewis declined to identify the players who reportedly are part of the outbreak, citing federal privacy laws. Among the players, 17 were listed as either out or doubtful. "There's a lot of different things going on that are football-related and non- football-related," Lewis said. "Due to FERPA and HIPAA, I'm not gonna comment any further on that."

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BAGHDAD/DUBAI, Sept 30 (Reuters) - Iran said on Wednesday it had received a US response to its latest proposal to resurrect the collapsed ceasefire in the Gulf, days after President Donald Trump said he had rejected it. Iran's allies were celebrating on Wednesday after Washington withdrew the last of its forces from neighbouring Iraq, where 4,500 US troops died in the biggest US war of the century. More than 200,000 Iraqi civilians were killed in chaos unleashed after US forces toppled dictator Saddam Hussein in 2003. Tehran views the pullout as a victory for its "axis of resistance" of allied armed groups, and a step towards its aim of driving US forces out of the region. With the US-Israeli war against Iran now entering its eighth month, Iran put forward a proposal last week under which the United States would lift its blockade of Iranian ports and Iran would reopen the disrupted Strait of Hormuz within seven days. Trump said on Sunday he had rejected the proposal, although Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said Tehran had not received a formal rejection. In a post on X on Wednesday, an Iranian government spokesperson said Araqchi had conveyed a US response to the Iranian government. Iran says its plan aims to restore an interim agreement which collapsed weeks after it was signed by Trump and Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian in June. Last week, Qatari mediators shuttled between US and Iranian envoys in New York on the sidelines of a meeting of the United Nations, the first proximity talks between the warring sides since the ceasefire unravelled. An official briefed on the talks, who is not Iranian and spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said the Qataris had briefed Araqchi on the US response on Tuesday when Araqchi stopped off in Doha on his way home from New York. According to the official, the sides largely agree about the steps that are needed but still disagree about the order in which to take them. Iran wants an eventual deal to grant it control over the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important oil shipping route, which runs past its coast. Shipping through the strait has increased in recent weeks, with shippers charging high fees to brave the risk of attacks. But flows of crude oil, refined products and natural gas remain substantially disrupted. In the latest incidents, Britain's UKMTO maritime security body reported on Wednesday that two ships had been hit by projectiles the previous day. US WITHDRAWAL SEEN IN IRAQ AS DEFEAT FOR WASHINGTON US and Iraqi officials announced the withdrawal of the last American troops from bases in Iraq on Wednesday, fulfilling a plan agreed in 2024 under President Joe Biden and carried out by the Trump administration while it wages war with Iran next door. The withdrawal was celebrated by Iran and its allies. It marked an "?historic victory for the Iraqi Islamic resistance groups and honorable Iraqis, and a crushing defeat for the American project," said Abu Mojtaba al-Yasiri, a commander in the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of Iran-backed armed factions. Iraq, which the United States invaded in 2003, has a Shi'ite majority like Iran, and Tehran has established broad political and military influence there. The country has frequently become a proxy battlefield between the United States and Iran. Of the 18 US service members listed as killed since Trump launched "Operation Epic Fury" in February, seven died in Iraq. Washington blames Iran-backed groups in Iraq for striking neighbouring countries, most recently knocking out a big Saudi oil pipeline three weeks ago. The US withdrawal raises "the possibility that Iran's proxies will feel increasingly empowered in the absence of a Western military presence," said Baghdad-based political analyst Ahmed Younis. "These groups may attempt to expand their role in shaping state policies and consolidating their presence within ?key institutions." At home in the United States, polls show the Iran war was unpopular from the outset. The disruption to global energy supplies and resulting surge in fuel prices have hurt Trump's Republicans, trying to hang on to both houses of Congress in legislative elections five weeks away. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps urged Americans on Tuesday to vote out Trump's allies. "Remove from power the evil, deceitful, and violent politicians who are responsible for America’s current state," they wrote in a 26-page letter to US voters. "Make sure your politicians understand that the world has changed." The war has intensified an economic crisis inside Iran, but Tehran has retained the ability to strike its neighbours and menace ships in the strait, where a fifth of global oil transited before the war. Trump says the war will be over soon and Iran will ultimately surrender. "I don't know if they are going to give up yet but they'll give up," he told reporters on Tuesday. "They are doing very poorly."

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Oct 1 (Reuters) - Tennessee Governor Bill Lee called the failed execution of Christa Pike a tragedy on Thursday, hours after she survived two lethal injection attempts at a Nashville prison and was taken to a hospital. "There is no one that wanted what happened last night to happen," Lee, a Republican, told reporters. "It's a tragedy, and it's deeply disturbing to me that that has happened in this state. The people deserve better and we're going to make sure that happens." Pike, 50, was sentenced to death in the 1990s after a jury convicted her of a murder she carried out as a teenager. Her botched execution on Wednesday at the Riverbend Maximum Security Institution, the second this year in Tennessee, highlights the difficulties US states face in carrying out lethal injections. Tennessee switched to a one-drug lethal injection protocol using pentobarbital, a powerful barbiturate, in 2024. Prison officials injected two syringes into Pike, her lawyers said in a late-night court filing, causing her "unnecessary agony" but not killing her. The Tennessee Department of Corrections said the execution was halted, and she was taken away in an ambulance, but her condition was unclear on Thursday. She would have been the first woman executed by Tennessee in more than two centuries. Lee told reporters that it was unclear what went wrong. He said he had no update on Pike's condition and had not spoken with her family. After the botched execution, he ordered a suspension of scheduled executions in Tennessee for the rest of the year and a third-party review of Wednesday's failed attempt. Most countries in the world have abolished the death penalty, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said Pike's case showed that the US should follow suit. "The prolonged suffering – physical and mental – arising from multiple failed execution attempts is abhorrent, and cruel," Turk said in a statement on X. Pike was 18 in January 1995 when she, her 17-year-old boyfriend Tadaryl Shipp and a third companion lured Colleen Slemmer, a 19-year-old classmate at their Knoxville Job Corps vocational center, into a wooded area where they tortured and killed her. Pike and Shipp confessed to the killing, and both were convicted of first-degree murder. Pike's lawyers and supporters tried unsuccessfully to halt Pike's execution by pointing to her young age at the time of the crime, her history of childhood sexual abuse and untreated mental illness. The US Supreme Court threw out an 11th-hour stay on Wednesday issued by a lower court. Tennessee halted the execution of convicted murderer Tony Carruthers in May after prison officials were unable to set up intravenous lines to administer the lethal drugs.

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Iran Does Not Have A Leg To Stand On

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