Antifa, Saudi Arabia–Pakistan pact, and Japanese gardening

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By Sarah Naffa

September 18, 2025

By Sarah Naffa

September 18, 2025

 
 

In the news today: ABC suspended Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show indefinitely after comments  he made about Charlie Kirk’s killing; US President Donald Trump says he’ll designate antifa as a terrorist group; and Saudi Arabia signs a mutual defense pact with nuclear-armed Pakistan. Also, another beachfront stilt house collapses into the surf on the Outer Banks of North Carolina.

 
Jimmy Kimmel during the Television Academy's 2025 Creative Arts Emmy Awards, Sept. 7, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision for the Television Academy/AP Content Services)

Jimmy Kimmel during the Television Academy's 2025 Creative Arts Emmy Awards, Sept. 7, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision for the Television Academy/AP Content Services)

U.S. NEWS

ABC suspends Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show indefinitely after his remarks about Charlie Kirk’s death

ABC suspended Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show indefinitely, beginning Wednesday, after comments that he made about Charlie Kirk’s killing led a group of ABC-affiliated stations to say they would not air the show and provoked some ominous comments from a top federal regulator. Read more.

What to know:

  • The veteran late-night comic made several remarks about the reaction to the conservative activist’s assassination last week on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” on Monday and Tuesday nights, including that “many in MAGA land are working very hard to capitalize on the murder of Charlie Kirk.”  

  • ABC, which has aired Kimmel’s late-night show since 2003, moved swiftly after Nexstar Communications Group said it would pull the show, starting Wednesday. Nexstar operates 23 ABC affiliates. There was no immediate comment from Kimmel, whose contract is up in May 2026. ABC’s statement did not cite a reason for why his show was preempted.

  • FCC Chairman Brendan Carr called Kimmel’s comments “truly sick” and said his agency has a strong case for holding Kimmel, ABC and network parent Walt Disney Co. accountable for spreading misinformation. Both Disney and Nexstar have FCC business ahead of them. Disney is seeking regulatory approval for ESPN’s acquisition of the NFL Network and Nexstar needs the Trump administration go-ahead to complete its $6.2 billion purchase of broadcast rival Tegna. For both companies, reinstating Kimmel after a suspension would risk the ire of Trump.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

  • House turns back effort to censure Rep. Ilhan Omar over remarks about Charlie Kirk

  • Kirk killing suspect feared being shot by police and agreed to surrender if peaceful, sheriff says

  • WATCH: Jimmy Kimmel departs his studio after suspension of late-night show
 

POLITICS

Trump says he’ll designate antifa as a terrorist group but offers few details

President Donald Trump said early Thursday that he plans to designate antifa as a “major terrorist organization.” It’s unclear how the administration would label what is effectively a decentralized movement as a terrorist organization, and the White House on Wednesday did not immediately offer more details. Read more.

Why this matters:

  • Antifa, short for “anti-fascists,” is an umbrella term for far-left-leaning militant groups and is not a singular entity. They consist of groups that resist fascists and neo-Nazis, especially at demonstrations.

  • Trump, who is on a state visit to the United Kingdom, made the announcement in a social media post shortly before 1:30 a.m. Thursday local time. He called antifa a “SICK, DANGEROUS, RADICAL LEFT DISASTER.” He also said he will be “strongly recommending” that funders of antifa be investigated.

  • Antifa is also a domestic entity and, as such, is not a candidate for inclusion on the State Department’s list of foreign terror organizations. There is no domestic equivalent to that list in part because of broad First Amendment protections enjoyed by organizations operating within the United States. And despite periodic calls, particularly after mass shootings by white supremacists, to establish a domestic terrorism law, no singular statute now exists.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

  • Democrats press FBI director on Epstein files and other takeaways from his testimony to Congress

     

  • State Department pulls down its remaining efforts to counter foreign mis- and disinformation

     

  • Sen. Bernie Sanders describes war in Gaza as ‘genocide’ for the first time

     

  • After the royal pomp, Trump’s state visit turns to politics and a meeting with Starmer

     

  • WATCH: Trump celebrates 'priceless and eternal' US-UK bond during state banquet speech

     

  • Republican leaders reject Democratic health care demands for bill to avoid shutdown

     

  • West Coast states issue joint vaccine recommendations ahead of CDC advisers meeting

     

  • What the Fed rate cut will mean for your finances

     

  • Experts independently resurrect Census Bureau advisory committee axed by Trump administration

     

  • National Academy of Sciences rebuffs Trump EPA’s effort to undo regulations fighting climate change

     

  • Federal judge orders Alabama’s largest county to redraw racially gerrymandered districts

  • Trump redistricting push threatens minority representation. Black voters worry about its impact

  • Conservative coalition teaming with Trump administration to push patriotism in education

     

  • Harris says Buttigieg was her ‘first choice’ for 2024 running mate but the pairing was too risky

     

  • WATCH: VP Vance urges Michigan governor to allow National Guard into Detroit

     

  • Voters oust San Francisco supervisor who turned a coastal highway into a car-free park

     

  • Republican Brad Raffensperger to run for Georgia governor after defying Trump over 2020 election

  • Army veteran who burned American flag near White House pleads not guilty to federal charges

  • Grand jury indicts man accused of threatening to kill federal judges in New York

  • Rudy Giuliani is ordered to pay $1.36 million in legal bills

 

WORLD NEWS

Saudi Arabia signs mutual defense pact with nuclear-armed Pakistan after Israeli attack on Qatar

Saudi Arabia and nuclear-armed Pakistan have signed a mutual defense pact that defines any attack on either nation as an attack on both in the wake of Israel’s strike on Qatar earlier this month. Read more. 

What to know:

  • The kingdom has long had close economic, religious and security ties to Pakistan, including reportedly providing funding for Islamabad’s nuclear weapons program as it developed. Analysts have suggested that Saudi Arabia could be included under Islamabad’s nuclear umbrella, particularly as tensions have risen over Iran’s atomic program.

  • The timing of the pact appeared to be a signal to Israel, long suspected to be the Middle East’s only nuclear-armed state. Israel did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The pact marks the first major defense decision by a Gulf Arab country since the Qatar attack.The United States, long the security guarantor for the Gulf Arab states, also did not immediately acknowledge the agreement.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

  • Israeli fighter jets launched ballistic missiles from the Red Sea in Qatar strike, official says

  • Europeans say Iran has yet to take necessary actions to stop the ‘snapback’ of UN sanctions

  • Iran executes man for alleged spying for Israel; activists say he was tortured into false confession
 

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