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PULSE POINTS:
❓What Happened: President Donald J. Trump announced the cessation of sanctions against Syria at the Saudi-U.S. Investment Forum, aiming to normalize relations with the regime led by former al-Qaeda operative Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa and stabilize the war-torn nation.
👥 Who’s Involved: President Trump, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and Syria’s leader Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa, a.k.a. Abu Mohammad al-Julani.
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📍 Where & When: Saudi-U.S. Investment Forum, Saudi Arabia, May 13, 2025.
💬 Key Quote: “I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness,” Trump declared.
⚠️ Impact: Trump’s move could help stabilize Syria and pave the way for migrant returns. Engaging with al-Sharaa’s controversial regime risks backlash over minority persecutions, but could create diplomatic leverage that the administration can leverage to protect minorities.
IN FULL:
President Donald J. Trump has announced he “will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness” at the Saudi-U.S. Investment Forum. The America First leader said Syria had “seen so much misery and death” over its years of civil war, and that he hoped the new regime would “hopefully succeed in stabilizing the country and keeping peace.”
“[T]hey’ve had their share of travesty, war, killing [for] many years,” Trump remarked on Tuesday, saying his administration had already taken steps towards normalizing relations with the country. He revealed that the Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister, Mohammed Bin Salman, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had played a significant role in persuading him to make these moves.
“Oh, the things I do for the Crown Prince,” Trump joked after the sanctions announcement was met with sustained cheers.
The decision to normalize relations with Syria, now led by former al-Qaeda operative and wanted terrorist Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa, a.k.a. Abu Mohammad al-Julani, will prove controversial, given his track record and reports of atrocities against Syria’s Alawite and Christian minorities under his leadership.
However, the reality on the ground is that al-Sharaa is in complete control of the country’s capital and heartlands, and he is already being welcomed on official visits by other countries, such as France. Officially recognizing al-Sharaa’s government may give the Trump administration more leverage to persuade al-Sharaa’s regime not to persecute minorities, and make it possible to return tens of thousands of Syrian migrants to their homeland.
Earlier in his visit, President Trump announced he had secured $600 billion in Saudi investments.
WATCH:
🚨 @POTUS: “After discussing the situation in Syria with the Crown Prince and also with President Erdogan of Turkey… among others in the Middle East, I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria, in order to give them a chance at greatness.” pic.twitter.com/JG3gx3Nn6D
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 13, 2025
PULSE POINTS:
❓What Happened: Hasan Piker, a far-left streamer on Amazon’s Twitch with over six million followers across social media, was detained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport. Piker, who openly backs Houthi attacks on civilian shipping in the Red Sea, claims he was targeted for his views on foreign policy and stance against President Donald J. Trump.
👥 Who’s Involved: Hasan Piker, CBP officials, U.S. government spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin, and the Trump administration.
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📍 Where & When: Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, on Sunday, May 11, 2025.
💬 Key Quote: “Claims that his political beliefs triggered the inspection are baseless,” U.S. government official Tricia McLaughlin posted on X (formerly Twitter).
⚠️ Impact: Piker’s detention underscores the Trump administration’s firm stance on national security, prioritizing scrutiny of individuals with terrorist sympathies.
IN FULL:
Hasan “HasanAbi” Piker, a top streamer on Amazon’s Twitch platform, was detained by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport on Sunday. Piker, boasting over six million followers across social media, openly supports the Houthis—a designated terrorist organization operating out of Yemen—and their attacks on civilian shipping and sailors. Piker, who was raised in Turkey, previously said that “America deserved 9/11” and stated Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX), who lost an eye during a deployment in Iraq, “literally los[t] his eye because some mujahideen—a brave f***ing soldier—f***ed his eye hole with their d**k.”
Piker, returning from France, complained on X (formerly Twitter) that CBP officials quizzed him about his views on Trump, Israel, the Houthis, and Hamas, claiming the “insane situation” was an attempt to “silence” him. “It’s very obvious that they knew exactly who I was,” he told followers, framing the inspection as a political witch hunt.
U.S. officials denied Piker’s claims, with spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin saying he was “lying for likes,” and adding: “Claims that his political beliefs triggered the inspection are baseless.” The CBP added, “Our officers are following the law, not agendas,” and that Piker was released promptly after a lawful check.
Notably, Piker is not merely pro-Palestinian or anti-Trump. In a recent debate with Ethan Klein, a liberal YouTuber, Piker stated, “I believe what the Houthis are doing… to implement a blockade on the Red Sea, is a good thing, ten toes f***ing down. They are on the morally right side.”
Of an incident in which Houthi terrorists hijacked a civilian vessel and held a number of Filipino sailors hostage for around a year, Piker said, “It is a show of force to stop other… commercial shipping from going through. They literally bankrupted an entire Israeli port, I’d say that’s numbers on the f***ing board, baby.”
As recently as March, Piker told his followers, “If you cared about Medicare fraud or Medicaid fraud, you would kill Rick Scott, OK?” Last April, responding to comments by Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) on anti-Israel protestors, Piker shared an image of an improvised firearm design, in what was widely interpreted as a call to assassinate the GOP lawmaker.
Hasan Piker, one of the very top streamers on Amazon’s Twitch platform, openly endorses the Houthis—a designated terrorist organization—attacking civilian ships and kidnapping random Filipino sailors. (Note that Twitch banned Trump for well over three years for his “rhetoric.”) pic.twitter.com/emVBy4XR95
— Jack Montgomery (@JackBMontgomery) May 5, 2025
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