Politics
Texas orders immediate halt to new H-1B petitions at state agencies, public universities
Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Tuesday issued an extraordinary executive directive with far-reaching implications, ordering an immediate halt to the filing of new H-1B visa petitions by all Texas state agencies and public universities.
The order, formally released on the governor’s official website, gov.texas.gov, makes clear that no state agency or public institution of higher education may initiate or submit a new H-1B petition for a foreign worker without prior written authorisation from the Texas Workforce Commission.
The freeze will remain in effect through May 31, 2027, coinciding with the conclusion of the Texas Legislature’s 90th Regular Session.
In his letter to agency heads, Governor Abbott argued that Texas has invested billions of dollars in recent years in education, workforce training, and high-demand skills development to prepare Texans for both local and global job markets.
He said the federal H-1B visa program was originally intended to supplement the US workforce where domestic labor was unavailable, but cited reports and evidence suggesting the program has often been misused.
According to the governor, some employers bypassed qualified American workers in favor of foreign labor at lower wages, and in extreme cases, replaced US employees with H-1B visa holders. Jobs funded by Texas taxpayers, Abbott wrote, should first and foremost go to Texans, and the state government must lead by example.
Under the directive, all affected state agencies and public universities are required to submit a comprehensive report to the Texas Workforce Commission by March 27, 2026.
The report must detail the number of new and renewal H-1B petitions filed in 2025, the total number of H-1B visa holders currently employed by the entity, the countries of origin of those workers, their job classifications and descriptions, the anticipated expiration dates of their visas, and documentation demonstrating that qualified Texas candidates were given a reasonable opportunity to apply for each position before an H-1B petition was submitted.
The Texas Workforce Commission has also been instructed to issue any guidance necessary to implement and enforce the governor’s order.
The move comes amid renewed national debate over the future of the H-1B visa program and growing signals from the Trump administration favoring stricter immigration controls. Political analysts note that while the order is administrative in form, its implications are deeply political and economic, reinforcing a broader state-level narrative centered on protecting local jobs and prioritising domestic labor.
The sectors most immediately affected are expected to be public universities, government-run research institutions, and fields that have traditionally relied on global talent, including science, engineering, medicine, and advanced research.
University administrators and policy experts warn that the freeze could delay new faculty hires, disrupt research projects, and place additional strain on academic programs already facing staffing challenges.
Foreign professionals currently working in or seeking employment with Texas public institutions are also likely to feel the impact, including large numbers of Pakistani, Indian, Chinese, and other Asian specialists who have long been part of the state’s public higher-education and research workforce.
At the same time, the order does not apply to private companies, private universities, startups, conferences, events, or private partnerships, which remain governed by federal H-1B rules. Those sectors will not be directly affected by the governor’s action.
Taken together, Governor Abbott’s directive represents a significant effort to recalibrate immigration and employment practices at the state level. While the freeze is technically temporary, the message it sends is unmistakable: access to state-funded jobs in Texas will now be subject to heightened scrutiny, tighter controls, and a clear preference for local workers, a shift whose consequences are likely to shape the state’s education, research, and employment landscape for years to come.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that if the US attacked Iran, it would become a regional conflict, state media reported on Sunday, amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran.
The US has built up its naval presence in the Middle East after President Donald Trump repeatedly threatened Iran with intervention if it did not agree to a nuclear deal or failed to stop killing protesters.
“[Trump] regularly says that he brought ships […] The Iranian nation shall not be scared by these things, the Iranian people will not be stirred by these threats,” Khamenei said.
“We are not the initiators and do not want to attack any country, but the Iranian nation will strike a strong blow against anyone who attacks and harasses them.”
A diplomatic solution remains on the cards, with Tehran saying it is ready for “fair” negotiations that do not seek to curtail its defensive capabilities.
The US Navy currently has six destroyers, one aircraft carrier, and three littoral combat ships in the region.
The protests, which started in late December over economic hardships but morphed into the most acute political challenge to the Islamic Republic since its establishment in 1979, have now abated after repression.
Official numbers put the unrest-related death toll at 3,117, while the US-based HRANA rights group said on Sunday it had so far verified the death of 6,713 people. Reuters was unable to independently verify the numbers.
Khamenei likened the protests to a “coup”, saying that the goal of the “sedition” was to attack the centres that govern the country, state media reported.
ABU DHABI: The United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque recorded a historic surge in visitors in 2025, welcoming nearly seven million worshippers and tourists, the highest annual figure since the landmark opened.
According to official figures, the total marked a 4% increase compared with 2024, reflecting the mosque’s growing status as one of the Middle East’s leading religious and cultural destinations.
More than 1.53 million people performed prayers at the mosque during the year, while over 2.4 million visitors attended for iftar and religious activities.
Foreign visitors accounted for 82% of the total, while UAE residents made up 18%. By region, Asia ranked first with 49% of visitors, followed by Europe at 33% and North America at 11%.
During Ramadan and Eid ul Fitr, more than 1.89 million worshippers and guests visited the mosque, where over 2.6 million iftar and suhoor meals were distributed as part of humanitarian initiatives.
The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Centre also organised more than 4,000 cultural tours and programmes and hosted 335 high-level delegations throughout the year, reinforcing its role as a global hub for faith, tourism and intercultural dialogue.
WASHINGTON: Travel misery was set to continue Sunday as a powerful snowstorm blasted southern US states, bringing subzero temperatures to regions not accustomed to the deadly winter conditions.
The latest bout of extreme weather came about a week after a monster storm pummeled a wide swath of the United States, killing more than 100 people and leaving many communities struggling to dig out from snow and ice.
Heavy snow fell in North Carolina and neighbouring states Saturday, as authorities urged residents to stay off the roads and warned oceanfront structures were threatened by the storm.
All of North and South Carolina, and portions of Georgia, eastern Tennessee and Kentucky, as well as southern Virginia were under a winter storm warning.
North Carolina saw 750 car crashes on Saturday, the highway patrol said.
Faust, North Carolina recorded 14.5 inches (37 cm) of snow, while West Critz, Virginia got 12.5 inches. Harrisburg, Tennessee received more than nine inches of accumulation.
In the North Carolina town of Cape Carteret, high winds sent thick snow blowing sideways, prompting the National Weather Service to warn that travel was “Treacherous and Potentially Life-Threatening especially if you become stranded.”
In dramatic footage released by police in Gastonia, North Carolina, a train ploughed at high speed into a semi-truck that had gotten stuck on the tracks, crushing the vehicle. No one was hurt.
The weekend storm forced more than 1,800 flight cancellations Saturday and Sunday at Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina, a major hub for American Airlines, data from the tracker FlightAware showed.
A 300-strong “snow team” was working to clear runways, taxiways, roads and sidewalks, the airport said Saturday.
More than 600 flights were cancelled Saturday at Atlanta’s international airport, the world’s busiest. About 50 flights in and out of Atlanta were cancelled in the early hours of Sunday.
“An explosively deepening coastal cyclone will continue to bring moderate to heavy snow, high winds, and possibly blizzard conditions for the Carolinas,” the National Weather Service said Saturday.
“An intense surge of arctic air behind the coastal storm will send below freezing temperatures down toward South Florida by Sunday morning.”
Davis, West Virginia recorded the lowest temperature in the lower 48 states on Saturday — a frigid minus 28°F (minus 33°C).
About 156,000 customers remained without power early Sunday, mostly in the south, according to poweroutage.us, with Mississippi, Tennessee and Louisiana hardest hit.
In North Carolina, the National Park Service announced the closure of campgrounds and some beaches at the Outer Banks, a series of barrier islands off the coast of the southern state that are vulnerable to storms.
It said oceanfront structures were threatened, and a section of highway that threads through its dunes was closed.
In Mississippi, Governor Tate Reeves said the US Army Corps of Engineers helped to install generators at critical sites, and authorities were opening 79 shelters and warming centres across the state.
The freezing weather forced Nasa to postpone a key fueling test over the weekend of the 322-foot (98-metre) rocket that is on the Cape Canaveral launch pad in Florida.
That in turn is likely to push back by at least a couple of days a planned manned Moon flyby slated for this month.
The best- and worst-case trade scenarios for Giannis Antetokounmpo’s fantasy value
‘Holistic And Forward-Looking’: Piyush Goyal Says Budget 2026 Reflects Future-Ready India
Netflix’s exciting February line up revealed
-
Sports5 days agoPSL 11: Local players’ category renewals unveiled ahead of auction
-
Tech1 week agoStrap One of Our Favorite Action Cameras to Your Helmet or a Floaty
-
Sports1 week agoWanted Olympian-turned-fugitive Ryan Wedding in custody, sources say
-
Entertainment1 week agoThree dead after suicide blast targets peace committee leader’s home in DI Khan
-
Tech1 week agoThis Mega Snowstorm Will Be a Test for the US Supply Chain
-
Sports1 week agoStorylines shaping the 2025-26 men’s college basketball season
-
Fashion1 week agoSpain’s apparel imports up 7.10% in Jan-Oct as sourcing realigns
-
Entertainment1 week agoUFC Head Dana White credits Trump for putting UFC ‘on the map’