The Department of Justice has begun investigating nonprofit groups that the Trump administration says are involved in organizing or funding political violence and destructive protests, including those linked to Antifa, sources familiar with the matter told Fox News Digital.

The effort involves the FBI and IRS, the sources said, and stemmed from directives by President Donald Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi to probe political violence. The Trump administration has contended that the violence is often being perpetrated by self-described Antifa adherents and could be a result of organized and well-funded campaigns by nonprofits.

“These movements portray foundational American principles (e.g., support for law enforcement and border control) as ‘fascist’ to justify and encourage acts of violent revolution,” Trump wrote in his memorandum in September, days after conservative activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated by a man who authorities say wrote antifascist phrases on his bullet casings.

OVERSIGHT DEMANDS DOJ ANSWERS ON FOREIGN FUNDING OF AGITATOR GROUPS AS IRAN, ANTI-ICE PROTESTS CONTINUE

Trump’s directive came after a string of harrowing ideologically-inspired shootings that included Kirk’s killing, an attack on a Dallas ICE facility that killed one detainee and the murder of a health insurance CEO. The DOJ also recently secured convictions for nine members of a Texas Antifa cell for their roles in an attack on an ICE facility in Alvarado last year that involved weapons, explosives and a murder attempt.

Bondi, in a memorandum on Dec. 4, directed federal law enforcement to carry out Trump’s memorandum, coined NSPM-7, in part by looking into Antifa’s funding sources and investigating any tax crimes by “extremist groups.”

A spokesperson for the IRS Criminal Investigations unit confirmed to Fox News Digital that the agency was working with the FBI on the matter.

“In accordance with National Security Presidential Memorandum 7 (NSPM-7), IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) is collaborating with federal law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, to investigate individuals and entities that may be funding domestic terrorism or political violence,” the spokesperson said, calling it a “coordinated effort.”

Antifa, short for antifascist, is a broad term, and its members often promote a range of radical views closely aligned with anarchism, communism or socialism, according to the Congressional Research Center. Trump declared Antifa a “major terrorist organization” last year, drawing criticism from civil rights advocates who said the president was targeting people for their political views. Bondi’s memo carefully noted the DOJ would not investigate “solely for the purpose of monitoring activities protected by the First Amendment.”

One of the sources familiar with the NSPM-7 probe told Fox News Digital that every U.S. attorney across the country was directed by the DOJ to designate a federal prosecutor in their office to serve as a “district coordinator” for the cases.

The DOJ has been urging prosecutors to focus on funding because nonprofits could be funding and coordinating instances of domestic terrorism, the person said.

TRUMP CALLS ANTIFA ‘TERRORIST GROUP,’ FUELING FIGHT OVER FREE SPEECH AND LIMITS OF LAW ENFORCEMENT

A DOJ spokesperson said in response to a request for comment on the effort that the department was pursuing a wide range of domestic terrorism crimes.

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“The Department of Justice is fully committed to preserving the rule of law, protecting law enforcement from coordinated attacks, ensuring everyone has the freedom to speak in the public square, participate freely in the electoral process, and practice their faith without fear of violence or harm, and bringing to justice the full range of criminal actors engaged in criminal conduct matching Congress’s definition of domestic terrorism,” the spokesperson said.

The FBI declined to comment.

Ramkripal Singh: Why does the sun always rotate the earth? Why does the Earth never rotate the Sun? This is because the one who is powerful is the one who manipulates others. The same happened in Odisha, the same happened in Bihar during the Rajya Sabha elections. Leaders take decisions according to immediate benefits. Due to this, ideology often gets marginalized.

Ajay Setia: In all the three states, Congress MLAs have either cross-voted or abstained from voting. In all these three states, Muslim MLAs played an important role in favor of BJP. From this it can be estimated in which direction the country is going. The elected MLAs feel that if we have to develop our area then it is beneficial for them to go with the ruling party.

Avadhesh Kumar: Out of what happened in all the three states, what happened in Haryana was important. The elections held in Odisha highlight the pathetic condition of Congress. When the party becomes weak, if you do not field the candidates of your choice then this kind of situation happens. Four MLAs remained absent in Bihar. It is not just that they have been bought. The leader has to do politics in the state. If my party does not see that kind of future in the state, then the leader takes such decisions.

Piyush Pant: It is true that if any party is not strong at the centre, then such situations arise. The central leadership of Congress has become very weak. We are watching in Haryana. We saw in Odisha. Such situations arise because the central leadership of Congress does not take timely action.

Anurag Verma: In Odisha, Sophia Firodas also rejected the leadership of Congress. This has once again shown that the leadership of Congress is not capable of running the party. Congress leaders are looking for their future. People have started deciding their political future in this election as per their own.

Vinod Agnihotri:This is the age of market, not of ideas. Now everyone looks at themselves and their political interests first. Where Congress’s votes were more than BJP’s, then BJP’s government is formed and Congress goes to the third position. In such a situation, the winners win by their strength. In such a situation, the MLAs who won in Odisha looked after their own interests. He saw the benefit in going with power.

Cleveland Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz will be moving to unpaid leave as they await trial for allegedly rigging pitches, Major League Baseball announced Friday.

The relievers were originally placed on paid non-disciplinary leave when they were first investigated over the summer.

“This agreement is not an admission of any wrongdoing by Clase or Ortiz. MLB has been closely monitoring the matter since alerting federal law enforcement at the outset of its investigation and will have no further comment until its investigation has been completed,” MLB said, adding the shift came through an agreement between the league and the players’ association.

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Clase is accused of throwing suspicious pitches to benefit those who placed wagers on him in at least 48 games, according to ESPN. The initial indictment filed in November accused Clase of rigging pitches in specific games between May 2023 and June 2025.

In one instance, the indictment alleges, Clase used his phone in the middle of a game to coordinate with a bettor on a pitch he would throw.

Clase pleaded not guilty to charges he took bribes to help gamblers win bets on his pitches. He was released on $600,000 bond, surrendered his passport and was ordered to limit his travel to New York and Ohio, refrain from gambling and submit to GPS monitoring.

Bettors allegedly won $400,000 from betting platforms on pitches thrown by Clase between 2023 and 2025. Ortiz allegedly joined the scheme in June 2025.

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The indictment announcement came weeks after three NBA figures were swept up in an FBI operation involving alleged illegal gambling. Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier and Damon Jones were among more than two dozen arrested in the scheme.

Clase turned himself into arguably the game’s best closer, pitching to a 1.21 ERA in his last full season in 2024, which was good for a third-place finish in the American League Cy Young Award vote. His 2025 ERA was 3.80 by the time he was investigated. Ortiz boasts a lifetime 4.36 ERA, with his best season also coming in 2024 with a 3.32 ERA.

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Clase inked a five-year, $20 million deal just before opening day in 2022, a few months after finishing fifth in the AL Rookie of the Year voting. Ortiz was making the veteran minimum of $782,600 last season because he was not yet arbitration eligible.

Fox News’ Ryan Gaydos and Jackson Thompson contributed to this report.

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A Texas girl has died after accidentally strangling herself while taking part in the viral “blackout challenge,” as her family is speaking out to warn other families of the dangerous trend sweeping social media. 

JackLynn Blackwell, 9, was killed after she choked herself in the backyard of her family’s Stephenville home on Feb. 3, according to CBS News. 

“She goes out to play like she always does, out in the yard. I noticed it’s kind of quiet — quieter than it should’ve been,” her father, Curtis Blackwell, told the outlet as he described the moment he found his daughter.  

HOMEOWNERS TERRORIZED IN DEADLY VIRAL CHALLENGE AS POLICE WARN ‘SOMEBODY IS GOING TO GET KILLED’

“Then I saw her kind of around the corner that goes to the carport, saw her hair. I said, ‘JackLynn!’ I thought she was bending over playing ’cause she was always in that area playing, but she wasn’t playing.”

The father quickly went to check on his daughter, who was found motionless with a cord wrapped around her neck.

FLORIDA TEENS’ DANGEROUS SOCIAL MEDIA CHALLENGE HAS POLICE WARNING PARENTS, HOMEOWNERS

“I tried to do everything I could to save her,” Curtis Blackwell told the outlet. “I got her off the cord. I tried to give her CPR until the first responders got there. It was the most terrifying, shocking thing I’ve ever seen.”

The incident unfolded after JackLynn showed her grandmother a video of the online challenge in which children and teens film themselves intentionally being choked to the point of blacking out or experiencing a euphoric “high,” according to CBS.

‘AI HOMELESS MAN’ TIKTOK PRANK SPARKS PARENTAL PANIC, JUVENILE ARRESTS 

“It was horrible to see my daughter in such a vulnerable state because of something so senseless.”

In light of their daughter’s tragic death, JackLynn’s parents are slamming social media companies for allowing such dangerous videos to circulate on their platforms, CBS reported.

“It’s not a joke, it’s not a game, it’s life and death,” Curtis Blackwell said, according to the outlet.

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“Most of the kids are like 9 years old to 14 years old. A lot of kids her age, their brains aren’t fully developed, and they are very easily influenced.”

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Approximately 80 children have died from the online trend, according to the CDC, CBS reported.

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Several social media companies are reportedly blocking videos related to the deadly challenge or issuing warnings to viewers who search for related keywords.

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However, the warnings are too late for JackLynn’s grieving parents, who are looking to hold social media companies accountable for the videos posted to their platforms. 

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“You could check on your kid, it could be kid-friendly videos, and then three minutes later it could be totally something dark because of the algorithms they start creating,” Curtis Blackwell told CBS. “There’s too many of these kids lost for these companies not to be held accountable in my eyes.”

Tributes have been paid to journalist and broadcaster Dame Jenni Murray, who has died at the age of 75.

Dame Jenni hosted the BBC’s Woman’s Hour for more than 30 years, stepping down in 2020.

She received her damehood in recognition of her contribution to broadcasting in 2011, having been awarded an OBE in 1999.

Dame Jenni announced that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer in 2006.

A statement from the family to the Daily Mail said Dame Jenni died on March 12.

‘We all owe her’

Former Labour Party deputy leader Baroness Harriet Harman hailed Dame Jenni’s importance “to the movement of women that changed our politics, economy and our society; that changed our lives”.

In a post on X, the peer wrote: “She was the broadcasting wing of the women’s movement. We all owe her. RIP.”

She was a “true professional and a pioneer”, talent management firm Knight Ayton said.

In a statement, a spokeswoman for the firm said: “We are very sad to learn of the death of Dame Jenni Murray.

“We started representing Jenni in 2020 as she was leaving Woman’s Hour after a long career at Radio 4.

“True to her spirit of fun, she surprised many by taking part in ITV’s The Real Full Monty to great acclaim the same year. The announcement of her participation made front page news. Her reason for taking part was simple. To encourage more women to check for breast cancer.

“Last year she returned to the BBC to present a series for Radio 3, Jenni Murray’s Women Composers. We loved working with Jenni, a true professional and pioneer.

“She interviewed every prime minister of the last 30 years, she was as comfortable with high-powered politicians as with the grieving parents of Madeleine McCann, and the first Hollywood star she encountered was Bette Davis.

“The late foreign correspondent Charles Wheeler described Jenni as having ‘the most beautiful voice on the radio – ever’.”

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Some of her interviewees on Woman’s Hour included Margaret Thatcher, author Margaret Atwood and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, as well as Barbara Castle,‎ Shirley Williams, Gloria Steinem, Bette Davis and Monica Lewinsky.

She also interviewed Anna Politkovskaya, Kate McCann, Toni Morrison, Wangari Maathai, Benazir Bhutto, Dame Judi Dench, Saoirse Ronan and Joan Baez, who sang Diamonds And Rust in the studio especially for the host.

Tributes poured in for Dame Jenni, with outgoing BBC director-general Tim Davie saying: “This is incredibly sad news and our thoughts are with all of Dame Jenni’s family and friends.

“Dame Jenni was, simply put, a broadcasting icon. Throughout her three groundbreaking decades on Woman’s Hour, Jenni created a safe space for her audience thanks to her warmth, intelligence and courage.

“We shall all miss her terribly. Her legacy endures in the countless conversations she started, the many issues she championed and the lives she touched.”

Mohit Bakaya, controller at BBC Radio 4 and director of BBC Speech Audio, said: “Jenni Murray was a formidable voice in British broadcasting who was warm, fearless and beloved by listeners.

“During her decades at Woman’s Hour, she helped shape the national conversation with intelligence, rigour and a remarkable ability to connect with audiences.

“Jenni leaves an indelible legacy on generations of listeners. We are profoundly grateful for her outstanding contribution to Radio 4, and she will be deeply missed.”

Dame Jenni, who was originally from Barnsley, South Yorkshire, leaves behind her husband, David Forgham, and two sons.

Author Liz Fraser also paid tribute on social media, recalling the broadcaster’s “deep, no bullshit, authoritative but somehow equally soothing, reassuring and often slightly cheeky voice” during her tenure on Woman’s Hour.

Fraser wrote about her time appearing on Woman’s Hour: “Jenni was absolutely lovely to (my daughter), and to me, and we juggled motherhood and work as women do… and can do thanks to the work of many of the guests she championed and supported over her career.

“Thank you for the countless hours of education and entertainment about the lives of women that influenced so many of us.”

Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., told CNN on Thursday that she is completely against sending another $200 billion to fund the Iran war, warning that such efforts are endangering Republican chances in the midterms.

“I will not vote for a war supplemental. No. I am a ‘No.’ I’ve already told leadership, ‘I am a no on any war supplementals,'” Boebert told CNN’s Manu Raju. “I am so tired of spending money elsewhere. I am tired of the industrial war complex getting all of our hard-earned tax dollars. I have folks in Colorado who can’t afford to live.”

She added, “We need America first policies right now, and that –– I’m not doing that.”

ROGAN SAYS VOTERS FEEL ‘BETRAYED’ BY TRUMP’S IRAN CAMPAIGN AFTER HE PLEDGED ‘NO MORE WARS’ FOR YEARS

In the past few months, there has been a growing internal battle among President Donald Trump’s MAGA coalition over whether he has fulfilled the campaign promises he ran on for years. 

Some podcasters who have praised or been friendly with Trump in the past, ranging from comedian Andrew Schulz to Joe Rogan, have blasted the Iran war as a huge departure from Trump’s rhetoric on ending such foreign conflicts. 

Now the GOP is struggling to wrangle enough support to keep funding the military operation in Iran. 

SEN RAND PAUL: AMERICA IS AT WAR—BUT AMERICANS DIDN’T VOTE FOR IT

In her declaration to CNN that she will not back the Pentagon’s bid for $200 billion in supplemental funding, Boebert went on to echo a common sentiment — that the military operation is putting Republican chances in the midterms at risk and other initiatives are far more pressing.

“We need the SAVE America act, FISA with warrants. There’s a lot of hard lines that I have right now, and we’ve got to get our act together if we want to keep this majority, and the path that we’re going doesn’t look very promising,” she said.

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When another reporter asked whether she thinks the Trump administration should get out of Iran, she replied, while walking away, “That’s up to the president.”

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Tributes have been paid to martial arts icon and action movie star Chuck Norris, who has died aged 86.

The Hollywood actor was remembered by US President Donald Trump, as well as a host of celebrities and his own family, who called him a “warrior” with a heart “full of love”.

Norris saw a resurgence in popularity after an early internet meme – consisting of jokes presented as “facts” exaggerating his strength and abilities – propelled him to online fame in the mid-2000s.

Born in Oklahoma in 1940, Norris joined the US Air Force in his late teens and began training in martial arts while stationed in South Korea, eventually earning a black belt and becoming a six-time undefeated World Professional Middleweight Karate champion.

After transitioning into acting, Norris landed his breakthrough role in The Way of the Dragon in 1972 opposite Bruce Lee, before going on to star in more than 20 movies, including Missing in Action and The Delta Force.

His role in long-running TV series Walker, Texas Ranger cemented his fame.

Norris’s family shared the news of the actor’s “sudden passing” just days after his 86th birthday on Friday, describing him as “the heart of our family” who lived with “faith, purpose and an unwavering commitment to the people he loved”.

“While we would like to keep the circumstances private, please know that he was surrounded by his family and was at peace,” his family said.

The US president joined in the tributes to the movie star, telling reporters outside the White House that Norris was a “great guy” and “tough cookie”.

“You didn’t want to fight him, I’ll tell you,” Trump said.

Norris’s daughter, Danielle, said: “He may have a warrior exterior, but his heart was so full of love and I’m so grateful that is something he and my mom passed down to me.”

One of his grandchildren, Greta, paid a tribute to the actor in a post on Instagram that referenced the “Chuck Norris facts” genre of internet joke that played on Norris’s persona as a tough guy and invincible fighter.

“You all knew Chuck Norris as the man that counted to infinity twice, the man who got bit by a cobra and the cobra died,” she said.

“He was the man that would not do a push-up but would push the earth down.

“Chuck Norris was known for many amazing things, but what I am most proud of is I got to know him as my Papa.”

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Action stars Sylvester Stallone, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren paid tribute to Norris, who they all starred alongside in The Expendables 2 in 2012.

In his final Facebook post shared on 10 March to mark his birthday, Norris said: “I don’t age. I level up.”

“I’m grateful for another year, good health and the chance to keep doing what I love,” he added.

Political conservative and meme legend

Shortly after an appearance in the 2004 film Dodgeball, Norris became the focus of an early viral internet meme that would propel him to a new level of fame.

The format of the joke presented wildly hyperbolic statements about his strength and prowess as facts, such as “Chuck Norris had a staring contest with the sun – and won”.

Another one reads: “The flu gets a Chuck Norris shot every year”.

Norris has also been outspoken about his conservative views, including support for gun rights.

He endorsed Donald Trump for his first presidential run in 2016.

Norris is survived by his wife Gena O’Kelley, five children and 13 grandchildren.