Ben Saul, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and counterterrorism, told the UN Human Rights Council that the United States was “raining death,” while describing Somalia as a model “responsible state” committed to strengthening human rights.

He argued that counterterrorism has been used to justify what he called “naked aggression” and “renewed imperialism” against countries such as Iran and Venezuela, actions he said were “raining death” and making the world less safe.

At the same time, he said that some states facing serious terrorist threats continue to prioritize human rights. Referring to his visit to Somalia, he said his report showed that the country is attempting to strengthen, rather than sacrifice, human rights while confronting terrorism.

As of January 1, 2025, Somalia joined the UN Security Council as a non-permanent member for the 2025–2026 term. In January 2026, Somalia assumed the rotating one-month presidency of the Security Council, chairing meetings, setting the agenda, and overseeing discussions on peacekeeping, counterterrorism, regional stability, and humanitarian challenges. That presidency has now concluded, but Somalia remains on the Council through the end of 2026.

U.S. Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz publicly criticized the UN for assigning senior international positions to unstable countries like Somalia.

Despite Saul’s claims that Somalia was improving, Human Rights Watch reported that the country’s human rights situation deteriorated further in 2025. Al-Shabaab not only continued its campaign of bombings, IED attacks, and targeted killings against civilians, but also recaptured territory the government had regained in 2022, advancing to areas south of Mogadishu.

These findings undermine Saul’s assertions that Somalia is performing well in its counterterrorism efforts.

Repeated cycles of clan conflict in the Gedo and Hiraan regions added to civilian casualties and displacement. Over half of the 300,000 people newly displaced between February and September fled conflict. An estimated 4.4 million people faced urgent food needs by late 2025.

Military courts continued to sentence people to death in terrorism-related cases without meeting basic fair-trial standards. The UN’s own Special Rapporteur on counterterrorism raised due-process concerns about the legal framework and the broad powers granted to the National Security Agency. Key legislation on sexual violence, female genital mutilation, and juvenile justice remained stalled in parliament.

Press freedom worsened measurably. In March, the information minister banned reporting on anything deemed a security threat. Following a bombing targeting the presidential convoy, police detained at least 22 journalists and shut down a media outlet. In Somaliland, 16 journalists were unlawfully detained in the first six months of the year alone. The government also arrested individuals over a social media dance video deemed insulting to the president.

Women’s rights remained severely constrained by legal barriers, early marriage, limited education, and pervasive gender-based violence. Somalia has still not ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. Somalia remains one of the highest-ranking countries globally for grave violations against children. Consensual same-sex conduct remains criminalized.

This is the 2025 record of Ben Saul’s model “responsible state.”

Questions have been raised about whether Saul may have been co-opted by China. UN Watch claims that Saul’s office received $150,000 from China in 2025. According to the OHCHR’s official 2025 voluntary contributions table, China donated $200,000 to OHCHR that year. This suggests there is some verifiable basis to the claim, but the connection is not clearly established.

UN Special Rapporteurs serve under the OHCHR, which is partly funded by voluntary contributions from member states, including governments whose counterterrorism practices fall directly within Saul’s oversight mandate. There is no evidence that China paid Saul personally, as he serves without a salary as a Special Procedures expert. However, the institutional funding relationship creates a potential conflict of interest documented in OHCHR’s own records.

So, if he was not paid by China, the question arises: why did he make such claims, particularly when his own report confirms Somalia’s lack of progress in counterterrorism and the extent of its human rights abuses?

UN Special Rapporteurs are appointed through the Human Rights Council, a body whose membership has repeatedly included states with poor human rights records. Among the current and recent members are some of the world’s most systematic human rights abusers. China, which holds over a million Uyghurs in detention camps, was appointed to the body that selects top UN human rights officials. Iran, which executes citizens for social media posts, was appointed to chair the Council’s forum on technology and human rights.

Saudi Arabia, whose government murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi and has imprisoned women’s rights activists, sought a Council seat in 2024. Qatar, which subjected migrant workers to widespread wage theft and unexplained deaths during World Cup construction, secured reelection in 2024.

Egypt and Vietnam, both rated as serial rights violators by Human Rights Watch, won seats in 2025. Eritrea, Burundi, and Sudan, states associated with mass atrocities, indefinite detention without trial, and government-sponsored torture, have all held Council seats, secured through a regional bloc system that eliminates competitive elections and guarantees membership regardless of record.

The HRC has a documented pattern of applying scrutiny selectively, targeting Western democracies and Israel while shielding authoritarian blocs. Rapporteurs operate within that political environment and are not accountable to any independent standard.

Saul’s March 2026 HRC statement was not an anomaly. He has consistently framed U.S. and Israeli counterterrorism operations as the primary global human rights threat while treating adversarial or failed states more charitably. His statements across multiple U.S. extraterritorial operations follow a similar pattern: Western action is described as “naked aggression,” while states aligned against the West are presented as examples of restraint or good practice.

The post U.N. Rapporteur Condemns Trump, Says Somalia Leads on Human Rights appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

A newly-elected mayor in Idaho died while giving a town hall speech on Wednesday.

Idaho News reported that Nampa Mayor Rick Hogaboam, 47, experienced a medical emergency on Wednesday evening while giving a speech during a regional town hall event.

The Treasure Valley Partnership reported that Hogaboam received CPR from Eagle Mayor Brad Pike, who is a former firefighter, but despite the rescue efforts, Hogaboam was later pronounced dead.

Details on what led to Hogaboam’s sudden medical emergency are currently under investigation.

Vicki and I are deeply saddened to learn of the loss of Mayor Rick Hogaboam, a dedicated public servant who truly cared for the Nampa community. Our prayers are with his family, loved ones, and the many Idahoans whose lives he touched. pic.twitter.com/K5B9Ijy0S5

— Jim Risch (@SenatorRisch) March 19, 2026

Per The New York Post:

A newly elected Idaho mayor died after he collapsed mid-speech during a town hall meeting — as another elected leader tried to save his life.

Nampa Mayor Rick Hogaboam suffered a “medical emergency” while speaking around 6:45 p.m. Wednesday in Eagle, Idaho, according to Idaho News.

Eagle Mayor Brad Pike, who was sitting next to the 47-year-old politician, was the first to administer CPR.

The Treasure Valley Partnership town hall meeting was adjourned as the politician was being treated by cops, fire crews and medics who rushed to the scene.

In his last Facebook post, Hogaboam posted a picture of himself attending a fire training event at a Nampa firefighter training facility.

In a statement on X, a spokesperson for the Idaho GOP wrote, “Rick Hogaboam was everything we want our political leaders to be. He was a husband, a father, a dedicated public servant, and a good man.”

Rick Hogaboam was everything we want our political leaders to be. He was a husband, a father, a dedicated public servant, and a good man. All Idaho joins the people of Nampa in mourning his loss and praying for his family. pic.twitter.com/YBLwNvQKrK

— Idaho GOP (@IdahoGOP) March 19, 2026

In November, Hogaboam won his election with nearly 63% of the vote, becoming Nampa’s 31st mayor.

The Idaho State Journal reported Hogaboam leaves behind a wife and five children.

The post Newly-Elected Idaho Mayor Dies While Giving Town Hall Speech appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

During New York State Attorney General Letitia James’ 2023 civil fraud/political persecution of President Trump, one of her most ridiculous assertions was that the president had ‘overvalued’ his Mar-a-Lago property.

According to Tish and affirmed by crackpot Manhattan Judge Arthur, the massive oceanfront estate was only worth $18 million.

President Trump said during the trial, “But this is the Attorney General of New York State, Leticia James, and she shouldn’t be allowed to be Attorney General. She’s defrauded the public with this trial.”

“She said that Mar-a-Lago, she convinced the judge that Mar-a-Lago was worth in Palm Beach, Florida, the most expensive land in the world, I guess, and the most expensive houses definitely, in the world. At Mar a Lago, the biggest house, the most spectacular place in all of Florida, was worth $18 million, when it’s worth approximately could be close to 100 times that amount.”

“And based on that testimony, and based on her convincing the judge of Mar-a-Lago was worth $18 million instead of a billion to a billion five, which would sell very easily, which we’ve already proven. But we’ll have people come up and say that and prove it. The most important people, the brokers that make the sales. But based on that, he ruled against me. He ruled fraud.”

“So they chose to do this. So I just want to say, the head of Deutsche Bank came in. He said we were great, the loan was great, everything was fine, and it was perfect. And this was their witness, wasn’t even my witness. And we have other bankers coming in.”

A recent Forbes article on billionaires vindicates President Trump again, valuing the property at more than half a billion.

In Forbes’ 2026 Billionaires list coverage, the outlet updated its valuation of Mar-a-Lago to $560 million, up from $370 million the previous year and a far cry from James’ politically motivated assessment.

Per Forbes:

Other personal assets belonging to Trump have flourished as people aim to curry favor with him or at least show their support. That includes Mar-a-Lago, his private club in Palm Beach, which has benefited from politics more than any other property. Referred to as his winter White House, it’s where he meets world leaders (Zelenskyy and Netanyahu, among others), hosts allies (Musk, Changpeng Zhao) and launches missiles (Syria, Iran).

Bought by Trump in 1985 for an estimated $10 million, Forbes now pegs its value at about $560 million, up nearly $370 million a year ago and more than triple its 2018 value. Meanwhile, Trump’s 10 golf courses in six states have appreciated substantially too, as supporters keep visiting and profits soar. Those properties are now worth about $550 million, up from $340 million last year.

The estate covers approximately 20 acres of manicured lawns, vibrant gardens, and sweeping sea-to-lake vistas with its own 2-acre private Beach Club.

It includes the original historic mansion (built 1924–1927) of roughly 37,000–37,400 square feet, with a 20,000-square-foot ballroom added in 2005.

The complex includes 126 rooms total, including 58 bedrooms.

Amenities at the estate include 6 championship clay tennis courts, a full-size croquet lawn, an oceanfront swimming pool,
spa, salon, and state-of-the-art fitness center.

There are two grand ballrooms, a chip-and-putt golf course, and multiple fine-dining restaurants.

The post Trump Vindicated Again: Forbes Values Mar-a-Lago at Massive $560 Million, Exposing Letitia James’ Fake Numbers appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

This time, Spacey decided to pay to avoid yet another trial.

Once upon a time, Academy Award-winning actor Kevin Spacey was at the top of the game, starring in the critically acclaimed series ‘House of Cards’, where he portrayed a US president who is a murderer and corrupt to the core, but always manages to get away with his multiple crimes.

Then, of course, came the #MeToo movement, and an avalanche of accusations of sexual harassment and sexual assault against him, leading him to be utterly canceled by Tinseltown.

Since then, his life has become a permanent defense of his professed integrity, and while Spacey has won court cases, other allegations against him keep emerging.

The Hollywood actor Kevin Spacey has settled out of court with three men who had accused him of sexual assault between 2010 and 2013. pic.twitter.com/tTaVX4WTkt

— Channel 4 News (@Channel4News) March 19, 2026

Reuters reported:

“Oscar-winning U.S. actor Kevin Spacey has reached a confidential settlement with three British men who had filed civil lawsuits at London’s High Court accusing him of sexual assault between 2000 and 2013, according to a court order made public this week.

Two of the claimants were complainants who gave evidence during Spacey’s 2023 criminal trial in London, where the now 66-year-old actor was acquitted of all charges.”

A court order stated that the lawsuits have been ‘stayed’ because of the settlement, and the trial scheduled for October will not take place.

Variety reported:

“The men alleged that Spacey had assaulted them between 2000 and 2013, and in November it was determined that the actor would face a new trial. Details of the settlement were not given.

Spacey, who has denied all allegations against him, was previously acquitted of sexual assault charges brought by four men in a U.K. criminal trial in 2023. Two of those men then filed civil cases at London’s High Court.”

Read more:

Academy Award Nominee Guy Pierce Says Embattled Star Kevin Spacey ‘Targeted’ Him in the Set of 1997 ‘L.A. Confidential’ – Spacey Responds

The post Kevin Spacey Settles With Three UK Men Suing in London’s High Court, Accusing Him of Sexual Assault appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.