Politics
Why is Trump demolishing part of the White House?
Demolition crews were tearing down part of the White House’s storied East Wing on Monday to begin building President Donald Trump’s ballroom, a project he had said would not interfere with the existing landmark.
Large construction equipment was seen picking apart the facade of the building, a part of the White House complex that has housed the first lady’s offices, a theater, and a visitor’s entrance that welcomes foreign dignitaries.
The ballroom project is expected to cost upwards of $250 million, which Trump said in July would be paid by himself and donors.
“It will be beautiful,” Trump said at the time. “It won’t interfere with the current building. It won’t be — it will be near it, but not touching it. And pays total respect to the existing building, which I’m the biggest fan of. It’s my favorite.”Wh
The White House did not respond to a request for comment on Monday about the demolition to the current East Wing building.
Trump announced on Monday that ground had been broken on the project after images of the demolition began circulating in news reports.
“Right behind us, we’re building a ballroom,” Trump told visiting college baseball athletes from Louisiana State University in the nearby White House residence’s East Room. “I didn’t know I’d be standing here right now ’cause right on the other side you have a lot of construction going on, which you might hear periodically.”
Future parties are set to start with cocktails in the East Room before guests are beckoned into what Trump has said will be the “finest” ballroom in the country, with views of the Washington Monument and room for 999 people.
“Completely separate from the White House itself, the East Wing is being fully modernized as part of this process, and will be more beautiful than ever when it is complete!” he said later on Truth Social.
Trump, who was a real estate developer before launching his political career, has made extensive cosmetic changes to the White House, hand-picking gold ornamentation for the Oval Office and redoing the Rose Garden in the style of his golf clubs. He has also taken an interest in the capital city of Washington and surrounding area, proposing an Arc de Triomphe-style monument to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the United States in 2026.
The current East Wing was erected in 1942, during Franklin D. Roosevelt’s administration and amid World War Two, over a bunker built for the president’s use in case of emergency.
But the complex sometimes strains to hold the number of employees, visitors and guests of the president who wish to attend its events. Several White House state dinners, for instance, have been hosted in a tent erected on the South Lawn.
DUBAI: Unidentified attackers hijacked an oil tanker on Saturday off the coast of Yemen in the Gulf of Aden and directed it towards Somalia, the Yemeni coast guard said.
According to the agency, the tanker EUREKA was seized off Yemen’s Shabwa province by a group who “boarded, took control of it, then steered it… in the direction of the Somali coast”.
The coast guard, which is affiliated with Yemen’s internationally recognised government, vowed to investigate the attack.
“The location of the tanker has been determined, and work is under way to monitor it and take the necessary measures in an attempt to recover it and ensure the safety of its crew,” it said, without identifying the crew’s numbers or nationality.
According to the website Marine Traffic, the EUREKA is a Togolese-flagged oil products tanker that was reported to have been in the UAE port of Fujairah in late March.
Piracy was rampant off the coast of Somalia in the 2000s, peaking in 2011 with hundreds of attacks, but was significantly reduced by international naval deployments and new tactics by commercial shipping.
But in recent weeks attacks have increased again, according to a report by the European Union naval mission deployed off the shores of the troubled east African country.
Operation Atalanta, the EU’s naval force for Somalia, monitored three attacks in late April, according to its information service, the Maritime Security Centre Indian Ocean (MSCIO).
Since February 28, shipping in the region has also been disrupted by the US-Israeli war against Iran, but there was no immediate indication that Saturday’s hijacking was linked to the conflict.
Last month, a tanker was captured in the Gulf of Aden by a new group of pirates operating from the port town of Garacad in the Puntland state of northeastern Somalia, a local security official told AFP.
- Contract supports APG-66 and APG-68 radar systems.
- Work to be completed by March 2036.
- Includes multiple allies under foreign military sales plan.
The United States Air Force has contracted Northrop Grumman Systems Corp. in a $488 million deal to provide engineering and technical support for F-16 radar systems under its Foreign Military Sales programme, with Pakistan among the beneficiary countries.
According to an official award notice issued by the US Department of War, the firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract covers support for F-16 System Programme Office Foreign Military Sales (FMS) as well as Air Force and Navy requirements.
The contract includes engineering and technical support for APG-66 and APG-68 radar systems. The work will be carried out at Linthicum Heights, Maryland, and is expected to be completed by March 31, 2036.
The contract involves foreign military sales to multiple countries, including Bahrain, Belgium, Chile, Denmark, Egypt, Greece, Indonesia, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Korea, Morocco, the Netherlands, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Thailand and Türkiye.
The US Air Force said the contract was awarded on a sole-source basis. Fiscal 2026 non-appropriated, Air Force and Navy funds amounting to $2,644,922 have been obligated at the time of the award.
The Air Force Lifecycle Management Centre at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, is the contracting authority for the agreement, which was awarded on April 27, 2026.
The development comes months after the United States, in December 2025, approved the sale of advanced technology and support services worth $686 million for Pakistan’s F-16 fighter aircraft fleet.
According to a letter from the US Defence Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) to Congress dated December 8, the package covers Link-16 data link systems, cryptographic gear, avionics upgrades, training, and wide-ranging logistical support.
The DSCA says the decision aligns with Washington’s broader strategic aims, stating the sale “will support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by allowing Pakistan to retain interoperability with US and partner forces in ongoing counterterrorism efforts and in preparation for future contingency operations.”
The letter notes that the upgrades are intended to modernise Pakistan’s Block-52 and Mid-Life Upgrade F-16s and address operational safety requirements. According to the letter, the sale will “maintain Pakistan’s capability to meet current and future threats by updating and refurbishing its Block-52 and Mid Life Upgrade F-16 fleet.”
- US approves of sales to Qatar, UAE, Kuwait and Israel.
- US govt says emergency exists to waive congressional review.
- Washington faces scrutiny for military ties with Kuwait, UAE, Qatar.
US President Donald Trump’s administration has bypassed congressional review to approve military sales totaling over $8.6 billion to Middle Eastern allies Israel, Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.
The State Department announcements on Friday came as the US and Israel’s war against Iran marked nine weeks since its start and more than three weeks since a fragile ceasefire came into effect.
The State Department said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio determined that an emergency existed that required immediate sales to those countries and waived the congressional review requirements for the sales.
The announcements included approving military sales to Qatar of Patriot air and missile defence replenishment services costing $4.01 billion and of Advanced Precision Kill Weapon Systems (APKWS) costing $992.4 million.
The principal contractor in the APKWS sales to Qatar, Israel and the UAE was BAE Systems, the State Department said.
RTX and Lockheed Martin were the principal contractors in the integrated battle command system sale to Kuwait and in the Patriot air and missile defense replenishment sale to Qatar, the State Department added.
Northrop Grumman was also a principal contractor in the Kuwaiti sale.
Over the years, Washington has faced scrutiny for military ties with Kuwait, the UAE and Qatar over those countries’ human rights track records that rights advocates say involve restrictions on and reported abuses of minorities, journalists, voices of dissent, the LGBT community and labourers.
Those nations have denied supporting or engaging in domestic rights abuses.
US support for Israel has also come under scrutiny from rights experts, particularly over Israel’s assault on Gaza that has killed tens of thousands, caused a hunger crisis and led to assessments of genocide from scholars and a UN inquiry.
Israel calls its actions self-defence after Hamas-led fighters killed 1,200 people in an October 2023 attack.
Washington has maintained support for its allies.
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