{"id":605588,"date":"2026-09-04T11:36:12","date_gmt":"2026-09-04T11:36:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/605588\/"},"modified":"2026-09-04T11:36:12","modified_gmt":"2026-09-04T11:36:12","slug":"first-thing-jd-vance-accused-of-gaslighting-after-saying-he-is-skeptical-us-struck-iranian-wedding-us-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/605588\/","title":{"rendered":"First Thing: JD Vance accused of \u2018gaslighting\u2019 after saying he is skeptical US struck Iranian wedding | US news"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good morning. The US vice-president, JD Vance, has responded to claims<\/a> that an American strike was responsible for killing four people, including a child, at a wedding celebration in southern Iran by saying that \u201csometimes things happen\u201d. The deaths were reported by the Iranian Red Crescent, which operates independently of Tehran and is treated by most international monitors as a credible source on casualty figures.<\/p>\n

In a further comment, described by the congressman Ro Khanna, a Democrat from California, as \u201cgaslighting\u201d, the vice-president said the conflict between the US and Iran, which has stretched into a seventh month and caused the deaths of 18 US service members, was not presently \u201ca war\u201d. Iranian authorities have put the overall death toll from US and Israeli strikes in the thousands, figures outside observers, including US-based monitoring groups, have broadly corroborated.<\/p>\n

What did Vance say? At a White House press briefing he said: \u201cI will say that the Iranian state media has not been a very good scribe about what\u2019s happened in the conflict thus far, so I\u2019m extremely skeptical of this. What I can say with 100% confidence is that, unlike the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the US never targets civilians in combat. We never will do that. We never have done that, and unfortunately, obviously, sometimes things happen\u201d. Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to blow up Iran\u2019s civilian infrastructure.<\/p>\n

What is happening with US military leadership? Trump on Thursday named Adam Telle as the acting army secretary<\/a> after the departure of Daniel Driscoll amid widespread reports of tensions with the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth. Telle is currently the assistant secretary of the army for civil works.<\/p>\n

Far-right Israeli minister outlines plan to remove all Palestinians from GazaItamar Ben-Gvir. Photograph: Amir Levy\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Israel\u2019s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, has outlined a plan for the illegal forced expulsion of all Palestinians from Gaza<\/a>, with the intention of sending them abroad. The forced displacement of civilians in occupied territory is considered a war crime under the Geneva conventions, but as a tightly fought election approaches in Israel, political figures have competed over the harshness of their visions for the strip.<\/p>\n

Ben-Gvir\u2019s comments follow those of the defence minister, Israel Katz, who said Israel was seeking the Trump administration\u2019s approval to displace Palestinians from Gaza, which he said was still under discussion after being \u201cfrozen\u201d by the US president. Katz said Israel would facilitate the emigration \u201cby any means\u201d, implying a policy of coercion.<\/p>\n

What has the House decided about university boycotts of Israel? The House has passed a Republican-backed bill<\/a> that would penalize universities that participate in boycotts of Israel. \u201cThis legislation is about a simple principle: our colleges and universities should not discriminate against Israel,\u201d said Tim Walberg, the Republican chair of the House education committee. Thirty three Democrats broke with the rest of their party to vote in favor. It now goes to the Senate for consideration.<\/p>\n

Two workers pulled alive from tunnel nine days after Nepal-Tibet flood A survivor is carried out after being rescued from inside a tunnel at the Trishuli-3A hydropower project. Photograph: Nepal Army\/Reuters<\/p>\n

Two people have been pulled out alive<\/a> from a hydropower tunnel in Nepal nine days after being trapped by deadly flash floods that buried the project in deep mud. The workers were rescued during a continuing operation at the Trishuli 3A tunnel in one of the areas worst affected by last week\u2019s deadly Nepal floods.<\/p>\n

Officials said the men had been flown to a hospital in Kathmandu. Nepal\u2019s communication minister, Bikram Timilsina, said officials still hoped more workers would be rescued. At least 1,287 people were killed in the floods and more than 5,000 are missing, Nepal\u2019s disaster management agency said.<\/p>\n

Missouri supreme court throws out new congressional maps backed by TrumpPeople gathered at the Missouri statehouse in protest last year. Photograph: Tammy Ljungblad\/Kansas City Star via Getty Images<\/p>\n

The Missouri supreme court has unanimously blocked new congressional districts<\/a> backed by Trump from being used in the November election, and ordered a statewide vote on whether to uphold or reject the new map. The decision on Thursday marks a rare setback for Republicans in a national redistricting battle.<\/p>\n

Missouri\u2019s new districts were used in the August primaries. The state supreme court said they cannot be used in the November general election \u2013 or ever again \u2013 unless voters first uphold the new districts, after citizens submitted petition signatures seeking a referendum.<\/p>\n

In other news \u2026A map, left, shows Africa using the Mercator projection, and, right, Africa from the Equal Earth campaign. Composite: equal-earth.com, Getty Images<\/p>\n

The UN general assembly will vote today on a resolution for the world to formally phase out the traditional Mercator map<\/a> of the globe in favor of one that more accurately displays Africa\u2019s size.<\/p>\n

The deadlocked jury in the Lindsay Clancy trial went home without a verdict<\/a> Thursday after a dramatic sixth day of deliberations.<\/p>\n

The billionaire financier Leon Black failed to appear<\/a> for a US House deposition about his Epstein ties, instead launching a lawsuit against the committee.<\/p>\n

Excavation work on Trump\u2019s towering, gilded Washington arch is to begin <\/a>in the next two weeks<\/a>, despite the plan facing a lawsuit.<\/p>\n

Fox News Media has abruptly ousted<\/a> Maria Bartiromo, one of its most well-known hosts and anchors, without explanation.<\/p>\n

Stat of the day: Thieves steal more than 70,000 pints\u2019 worth of Guinness from depot in EnglandA pint of Guinness. Photograph: John Keeble\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Two trucks were driven into an industrial estate in Runcorn, north-west England, on Monday. They were attached to trailers that were already holding about 800 barrels \u2013 or $155,000 worth \u2013 of the famous Irish drink, and made off with them<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Culture Pick: Turning Point \u2013 Generation 9\/11A man stands in the rubble on 9\/11. Photograph: Doug Kanter\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

The US will soon cross the point at which half its population were born after 11 September 2001 or were too young to remember the attack. David Smith looks at<\/a> a new Netflix documentary about those events and their global impact, as memory begins to give way to history.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t miss this: Gloria Steinem, groundbreaking feminist, dies aged 92Gloria Steinem in 1977. Photograph: Janet Fries\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Hillary Clinton was among those remembering Gloria Steinem<\/a> yesterday, hailing the American feminist icon who died at 92 at home<\/a> in New York City as \u201cone of the architects of the entire structure of women\u2019s equality\u201d. We have a gallery of Steinem\u2019s life in pictures<\/a>, a review of the activist\u2019s forthcoming memoir<\/a>, which now stands as a posthumous testament to her remarkable life, and a selection of her wit and wisdom in her greatest quotes<\/a>. In a column, Moira Donegan says Steinem personified America\u2019s feminist movement<\/a>, and we would also like to hear your tributes and memories<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u2026 or this: Art Garfunkel on a rich, restless lifeArt Garfunkel onstage in 2026. Photograph: Kevin Mazur\/Getty Images for The Recording Academy<\/p>\n

A beautiful interview with Art Garfunkel<\/a>, one of the purest voices in the rock\/pop canon. And yes, his relationship with Paul Simon does get a mention or two.<\/p>\n

Climate check: Strongest El Ni\u00f1o on record forecastThe afternoon sky glows orange from bushfires in Australia. Photograph: Saeed Khan\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Australia\u2019s Bureau of Meteorology is the latest body to issue a warning over El Ni\u00f1o<\/a>, saying it has already broken records, with Pacific Ocean temperature change exceeding 3.6F in six months.<\/p>\n

Last Thing: I didn\u2019t know I was pregnant until I gave birthAubrie Morris with her daughter, Navie. Photograph: Danielle Villasana\/The Guardian<\/p>\n

Aubrie Morris recounts what must one of the strangest surprises anyone can have \u2013 unexpectedly delivering a baby<\/a> you did not know you were carrying.<\/p>\n

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