Roughly 80 Americans still unaccounted for after Himalayan disaster kills 903, officials say

Roughly 80 Americans remain unaccounted for following the catastrophic Himalayan flood last Wednesday that killed hundreds of people, the State Department said.

The update marks a decrease from a previous estimate of at least 90 Americans who went missing near the Nepal-China border.

"We can confirm that 13 American citizens have made their way to safety in Nepal," a State Department spokesperson told Fox News.

Meanwhile, Nepal’s death toll has risen to 903, while the number of people still unaccounted for has nearly doubled to roughly 4,200, according to an update from local officials Sunday.

TRAPPED NEPALI WORKERS PULLED FROM HYDROPOWER TUNNEL AFTER CATASTROPHIC FLOODING

According to officials, the disaster occurred in north-central Nepal when a distant slope failure involving a glacier triggered a rapidly moving debris flow that traveled roughly 62 miles downstream before striking a populated area. Footage from the disaster showed a massive surge of water and debris suddenly rushing through the valleys, engulfing buildings in its path.

On Sunday, a spokesperson for Nepal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs provided an update on the toll.

"So far, 903 bodies have been recovered from the areas and about 4200 people are still unaccounted for. Over 10,000 people have been rescued from the regions, including over 323 foreign nationals. As per the available data, about 590 foreign nationals are still missing, from 39 countries," the spokesperson said.

Twenty-two of the missing Americans were part of a pilgrimage affiliated with a Tennessee-based nonprofit group, Isha Foundation coordination leader Jyoti Jankowski told Fox News Saturday. They were inside an immigration building when the flooding struck the area, Jankowski said.

MORE THAN 3,000 MISSING AFTER COLOMBIA EARTHQUAKE AS TRUMP ADMINISTRATION PROVIDES $15.5 MILLION IN RELIEF

Authorities said Nepal is coordinating with neighboring countries and the international community to provide relief, with supplies already arriving from countries including India and China.

More supplies are expected to arrive from the U.S., United Arab Emirates, Myanmar, Qatar, the U.K., Australia, the Republic of Korea, Japan, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore, Bangladesh, Pakistan and other international organizations, officials said.

"Relief and humanitarian assistance are being provided in the affected areas. We are deeply grateful to our friends and partners for their solidarity, goodwill and generous offers of support at this difficult time," the spokesperson said.

DEATH TOLL FROM MUDSLIDES, FLOODING AT NEPAL-CHINA BORDER CLIMBS PAST 670; NEARLY 3,000 MISSING

The State Department said last Wednesday that it was "monitoring the situation and is deploying a disaster response advisor to the region to support response efforts."

"The Department will also provide $500,000 in assistance through its global award with Catholic Relief Services, supporting emergency shelter, relief items, and water, sanitation, and hygiene assistance to flood-affected communities," the department said.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) investigators remain uncertain whether the initial failure was a landslide incorporating part of a glacier or a glacial collapse, in which a portion of a glacier breaks off and rapidly moves downslope with surrounding debris.

The glacier-related event resulted in a magnitude 5.2 earthquake, according to the USGS. A second seismic event was recorded approximately three hours later, generating energy equivalent to a magnitude 4.2 earthquake.

"The glacial debris contained water and ice that rapidly melted, picking up more material and water as it flowed downslope in the existing stream and river channels, creating a fast-moving, far-traveled landslide and flood laden with boulders and other rubble," the agency said.

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Parkgoer airlifted after Batman roller coaster incident leaves man with fractures to both legs

Panic and confusion followed at a theme park in Spain Saturday after a ride on a Batman-themed roller coaster left a visitor with fractures to both legs, according to local reports.

The incident occurred on the Batman Gotham City Escape at Parque Warner Madrid, the the park said in a post on X.

The 49-year-old rider reportedly suffered an open fracture in his left leg and a closed fracture in his right leg, Europa Press reported, citing emergency officials.

WOMAN ALLEGEDLY EJECTED FROM ROLLER COASTER, SUFFERS SERIOUS INJURIES AFTER DRAGGED ALONG TRACK: REPORTS

According to the park, the ride opened in 2023 and was Spain’s first multi-launch roller coaster. The roller coaster features three launches that propel riders upward at high speeds and four inversions that leave riders briefly hanging upside down.

Park officials said the ride was stopped immediately and emergency procedures were promptly activated.

EIGHT RIDERS LEFT DANGLING ATOP 100-FOOT ROLLER COASTER FOR OVER THREE HOURS AT TEXAS AMUSEMENT PARK

"The affected person was attended to immediately by emergency medical services," Parque Warner said.

First responders then airlifted the visitor to a nearby hospital, Europa Press reported.

Another visitor, Juan José Molina, described panic among some parkgoers.

"There were people crying and having anxiety attacks," he said.

Parque Warner said the roller coaster will remain closed while management reviews the incident in coordination with authorities.

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Billions in US aid to Ukraine under microscope as corruption rocks Zelenskyy’s inner circle

Washington is relying on extensive safeguards and dozens of oversight agencies to scrutinize and protect billions of dollars in U.S. aid to Ukraine amid the country’s continuing struggle with corruption, a regional security expert said Sunday.

The oversight comes as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s inner circle faces renewed political pressure from widening investigations, with several senior officials and aides resigning, being dismissed or facing investigations since 2025.

Zelenskyy dismissed Iryna Mudra, a deputy head of the presidential office, on Aug. 19 as anti-corruption investigators pursued a money-laundering case involving another deputy head of the office.

Investigators have not named Mudra as a suspect, The Associated Press reported.

ZELENSKYY SAYS PUTIN 'LOST THE INITIATIVE' AS UKRAINE'S TECH INDUSTRY RESHAPES THE WAR

"Of course, in all of the former Soviet Union countries, there is significant corruption," former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Carrie Filipetti, now executive director of the Vandenberg Coalition, told Fox News Digital.

"A lot more work needs to be done. But we know, at least on the U.S. side, as we're providing support for their military, we have a lot of mechanisms," she said before explaining how dozens of agencies are working on oversight of U.S. aid to Ukraine.

The U.S. committed $67.8 billion in defense articles and services to Ukraine from February 2022 through March 2026 through the Presidential Drawdown Authority, the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative and Foreign Military Financing, congressional reports show.

That support is part of a broader U.S. response to the war.

About $195 billion has been appropriated for Operation Atlantic Resolve, including funds to replenish U.S. weapons stocks, support U.S. military operations in Europe and provide economic, development and humanitarian assistance, according to the Council on Foreign Relations.

AS TRUMP'S NATO GAMBLE PAYS OFF, ENVOY NAMES ALLIES HE'S STILL WATCHING

"Over 24 federal agencies are involved in oversight," Filipetti said. "To make certain that there are no consequences to the U.S. taxpayer, to our equipment in terms of the corruption issue, U.S. contributions are very much protected."

In recent months, however, senior Ukrainian officials have resigned, been dismissed or faced scrutiny by the country’s independent anti-corruption bodies, including NABU.

Those developments include Andriy Yermak’s Nov. 28, 2025, resignation after investigators searched his premises and Mudra’s Aug. 19 dismissal during a money-laundering probe.

Former Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanishyna was dismissed by Zelenskyy as Ukraine’s ambassador to the U.S. on Aug. 3, two days before a suspicion notice was served against her, according to the Kyiv Post.

He also fired Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov on July 15 in a broader reshuffle over internal wartime disagreements which sparked protests across the nation.

ZELENSKYY PRESSURES US AND EUROPE FOR MORE 'AIR DEFENSE' ASSISTANCE AMID ONGOING WAR WITH RUSSIA

In interviews after he left government, Fedorov also complained about what he described as ingrained corruption and patronage networks, Reuters reported.

"We've seen that Zelenskyy is taking really seriously the criticisms of corruption, and every time there is an allegation, he moves very swiftly to remove those individuals from the government," Filipetti said.

"And the fact that there are these independent bodies is, I think, really important. They're listening to them. They're making sure that they're trying to root it out as much as humanly possible."

THE TWO MOST IMPORTANT AMERICAN WEAPONS SYSTEMS NATO IS EAGER TO HAVE

Zelenskyy has pushed back on suggestions that the investigations implicate him personally.

"The heads of anti-corruption agencies have zero questions for me," Zelenskyy said in remarks published Aug. 23 regarding the investigations. "They understand perfectly well that I am not involved in anything like that."

A February 2024 USAID inspector general review also found that the agency did not independently verify some Ukrainian health workers’ salary claims before reimbursement, though Filipetti said U.S. economic aid is now reimbursed only after verification.

"A lot of what the United States has been providing, we're making sure that everything is through a reimbursement mechanism," Filipetti said.

TOP UKRAINIAN OFFICIALS IN ZELENSKYY GOVERNMENT SUBMIT RESIGNATIONS AMID $100 MILLION CORRUPTION SCANDAL

She said U.S. aid has not been tied to the money-laundering allegations and remains protected as Ukraine works to combat corruption.

The scrutiny also comes as Kyiv faces shortages of Patriot interceptors amid intensified Russian strikes and a need for air defense interceptors.

Zelenskyy said he wants to secure 300 additional interceptors for the coming winter, while Ukraine’s air force has requested 360.

"One of the most urgent needs that the Ukrainians have right now is interceptor missiles," Filipetti said. "This is why this idea of sending Patriot capabilities and allowing them to produce them on the ground in Ukraine has become so important to Zelenskyy."

RUSSIA’S GAS GAMBLE BACKFIRES AS TRUMP’S ENERGY VISION RESHAPES EUROPE

President Donald Trump has expressed reluctance to further deplete U.S. missile inventories, saying the United States also needs the weapons, while pressing European allies to shoulder more of Ukraine’s defense burden.

"We want missiles too," Trump said Aug. 6 when asked about Zelenskyy’s requests for long-range missiles and Patriot systems. "Biden gave him so much, Biden gave $300 billion worth of ammunition."

Filipetti also said Ukraine’s anti-corruption efforts remain an important consideration for its NATO aspirations.

"I think every country has been really adamant that the Ukrainians move forward in their anti-corruption mechanisms," Filipetti said.

"Obviously, if Ukraine ever wants to be a formal member of NATO, that's something that they will need to prove and demonstrate."

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Ex-Pentagon official urges US to ‘squeeze’ UK on defense amid Falklands furor

A report that Washington could use the Falkland Islands to pressure Britain into meeting its NATO defense commitments drew a swift rebuttal Sunday from a former Pentagon official, who insisted the long-standing U.S. neutrality on the islands remains unchanged.

Morgan Murphy, a former press secretary in the War Department, told Fox News Digital that while Washington has not altered its position on Falklands sovereignty, he believes the Trump administration may apply heavy diplomatic leverage over London's military budget.

"You don’t take the security and skip the bill. That is free-riding," Murphy said, before adding: "Friends tell friends the check is due. Squeeze is accountability."

The Falklands' dispute escalated after reports emerged that U.K. Chancellor John Healey is expected to announce that the government will drop its target of spending 3% of gross domestic product on defense by 2030 when he delivers his first budget in October, according to The Financial Times.

TOP US ALLY'S DEFENSE CHIEF QUITS, WARNS MILITARY LACKS RESOURCES FOR RISING THREATS

The tension comes amid a six-month Pentagon review of U.S. troop deployments in Europe led by Under Secretary of War for Policy Elbridge Colby, according to Reuters.

As Washington pushes European allies and Canada to take greater responsibility for NATO’s conventional defense, the U.S. is expected to retain a supporting role, including its nuclear deterrent, according to The Associated Press.

"We can’t ‘withdraw support’ for sovereignty of the Falklands that was never there," Murphy said. "Policy experts know the difference between an unsourced whisper to a British paper that ‘nothing is being ruled out’ and an official word from the White House."

Murphy said the U.S. remains neutral on Falkland sovereignty and continues to recognize British administration of the islands.

HEGSETH ANNOUNCES 6-MONTH REVIEW OF AMERICAN FORCES IN EUROPE, BLASTS NATO ALLIES FOR PUTTING TROOPS 'AT RISK'

Addressing reports from April of an internal Pentagon email suggesting the U.S. could review its position on the islands, Murphy noted the lack of confirmation.

"I have not seen that email. The Pentagon did not confirm it. The official word that followed was the same U.S. position we have now: neutral on sovereignty, recognize British administration," Murphy said.

"I no longer work at the White House and can’t speak in any way for the administration, but I can say that the islanders voted 99.8% to stay British in 2013," he said of Falkland Islanders, who voted in a referendum that year to remain a British overseas territory.

Murphy emphasized that Washington, however, would maintain other diplomatic options without altering the status quo in the Falklands and said the U.S. is actively pressuring Britain on defense obligations.

Under current projections, U.K. defense spending would reach 2.7% of GDP by 2030, with the government expected to set a new timeline for reaching 3% on its path toward NATO’s core defense-spending target by 2035.

According to the 2025 Hague Summit Declaration, NATO allies agreed to spend 5% of GDP annually on defense and security-related expenditures by 2035, including at least 3.5% on core defense requirements, and to submit annual plans charting a credible path to meet NATO capability targets.

AS TRUMP'S NATO GAMBLE PAYS OFF, ENVOY NAMES ALLIES HE'S STILL WATCHING

"Last year in The Hague they signed up for 5% by 2035, which won headlines, but Britain still will not lock 3% by 2030," Murphy said. "I’ve watched this town treat a treaty like a suggestion. Friends don’t let allies cheat. So yes, squeeze London on the number."

He added: "This is the habit: put a number in a communiqué, then treat it as optional. They signed the pledge. They still slide."

Describing potential U.S. pressure on London as "leverage, not abandonment," Murphy said pushing Britain to increase defense spending would be "in the best national security interest of the U.S. and the U.K."

"After Wales in 2014, most of Europe missed the 2% guideline while the U.S. shouldered the load as usual," Murphy added. 

"The United States extends the nuclear umbrella, the intel, the industrial base, the special relationship … You squeeze a budget with tools that move a budget," he said of Washington’s process.

STARMER IN 'SEISMIC' CRISIS, UK DEFENSE CHIEF QUITS BEFORE HIGH-STAKES TRUMP NATO SUMMIT

"Public pressure from the president. Annual Hague reviews. A dated 3% by 2030, or a funded path to 3.5% core by 2035, before the next UK defense budget. The special relationship is a privilege, not a welfare program.

"Tariffs if the White House wants them," Murphy warned.

"The UK is playing a central role in NATO and strengthening collective defence across Europe," a U.K. government spokesperson said, according to Sky News. "We are NATO's third-largest cash spender on defence and the only European NATO member to commit our nuclear deterrent to the alliance."

Fox News Digital has reached out to the Pentagon and 10 Downing Street for comment.

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USS George Washington captain says morale is high for new Mideast mission

FIRST ON FOX: Morale is said to be high as the aircraft carrier the USS George Washington has arrived in the Arabian Sea near the vital Strait of Hormuz and close to Iran. 

The carrier, CVN 73, has replaced the USS Abraham Lincoln. Fresh from a visit to Vietnam three weeks ago, the 5,000 sailors aboard this mobile airfield, base to approximately nine operational squadrons of advanced strike fighters, electronic attack planes and helicopter assets are, according to senior officers, ready and willing to carry out their new mission.

"Morale aboard USS George Washington remains high among our sailors," Capt. Nicholas DeLeo, the ship’s Commanding Officer, told Fox News Digital. He added "I see this as I walk the deck plates, seeing them take pride in their work — whether conducting flight operations, maintaining our systems or supporting one another on the ship. The dedication and teamwork I see across the ship is outstanding, and that spirit keeps us ready and resilient."

CENTCOM COMMANDER TOUTS USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN MENTAL HEALTH RECORD AFTER MORE THAN 260 DAYS WITHOUT PORT CALL

The George Washington, a Nimitz-class carrier, is the flagship of Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 5, and is reported to be accompanied by several warships, including the guided missile cruiser USS Robert Smalls (CG 62) and the guided missile destroyer USS Shoup (DDG 86).

Commander of Carrier Strike Group Five, Rear Adm. Jeff Heames, told Fox News Digital "The teams aboard USS George Washington and Carrier Strike Group Five are ready, determined, and resourced for sustained operations. Our Sailors understand the importance of the mission and continue to execute with precision and professionalism every day."

With the carrier group now operating in the Middle East, it falls under US Central Command (CENTCOM). The command’s former Commander, Gen. Joseph Votel, (Ret.), recently told Fox News’ America Reports about the George Washington’s expected mission, saying "Being able to continue to have credible military capability in the Middle East is really important, so the arrival of the George Washington is I think a good example of that."

Votel continued, "We’re going to have to be prepared, because this is probably going to take some time, to continue to bring forces into the region, we want them to be at a high level of readiness."

IRAN WAR THRUSTS DIEGO GARCIA INTO SPOTLIGHT AS OFFICIAL CALLS US MILITARY BASE ‘INTEGRAL’

Flight operations continue, both day and night. Launching into the skies off Iran from the George Washington, aircraft based on board are reported to be F/A-18E/F Super Hornet multirole strike fighters, F-35C Lightning II fifth-generation stealth multirole fighters, EA-18G Growler electronic warfare aircraft and E-2D Advanced Hawkeye airborne early warning and control.

Also onboard are said to be MH-60S Seahawk & MH-60R Seahawk multi-mission helicopters for anti-submarine warfare and search-and-rescue.

This past week, a historic landing on the George Washington. Navy Lt. Steven Frazier, a pilot from Strike Fighter Squadron 147, the Argonauts, made the 200,000th trap - landing on the ship in an F-35C Lightning II fighter jet, with his stealth fighter caught by a thick, steel arresting gear cable with the jet’s tail hook.

In a laid-back understatement that could have come straight out of the movie ‘Top Gun’, Lt. Frazier said, "It's a good feeling for me to know that once I leave, I can come back to the aircraft carrier and trap". The carrier can land one aircraft on deck per minute, and typically lands 70 aircraft a day.

IRAN WAR FORCES AMERICA TO CONFRONT THE STRATEGIC COST OF DETERRING CHINA

Attention to mission is evident throughout the ship. On the bridge, Assistant Navigator Elizabeth Wayne told the ship’s communication team, "all of the time when we are navigating, we are focused outside of the ship on anything that could pose a hazard or a threat to the ship."

Wayne continued, "When we are in special evolution, when we are conducting flight operations, the most important thing is to ensure we are lock step with (the) airboss, the captain, the command duty officer underway, everybody needs to be on the same page to execute that safely."

As it arrived in the Middle East, Russia tried to suggest the food on the carrier was not good. Russia Today (RT) posted what are believed to be AI-generated photos of poor rations on board. However, from the videos seen by Fox News Digital of great food and even a café below decks, the truth appears to be very different. Victoria Marc, Culinary Specialist 2nd Class, talked to the communications team on the carrier, noting that "throughout the day and into the night, our sailors have all sorts of food and drink options available to them."

Marc added, "Sailors have the opportunity to eat three meals a day, plus the night rations. Our 150 cooks work 24 hours to prepare and serve 15,000 meals a day to ensure our sailors are well-fed. From the mess deck throughout the day, there’s always something there where people feel fueled and ready for the fight."

And the Navy intends keeping it this way. Earlier this week, CENTCOM published images of the George Washington being replenished at sea. Navy images show the ship being resupplied twice in four days this past week, an average of 2,000 pallets of supplies including fresh food and ammunition winched by helicopter from a nearby supply ship.

Fuel for the carrier’s aircraft is also transferred ship-to-ship. The carrier is nuclear-powered, so the ship itself will not need refueling at sea.

WHO CONTROLS THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ RIGHT NOW? HERE'S WHAT THE SHIP TRAFFIC ACTUALLY SHOWS

More history this week – under the headline "Shoutout to our Shipbuilders!!", the ship’s communications team posted "40 years ago on August 25, 1986, the keel for USS George Washington was laid."

Today in the Arabian Sea, that keel supports the 5,000 men and women and their array of air firepower, as they stand at the coalface of the Middle East conflict, ready – and willing – to carry out their mission.

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Switzerland rave shooting kills 1, injures 5 as police hunt those responsible

A 22-year-old woman was killed and five other people were wounded in a shooting early Sunday at a rave in northern Switzerland, authorities said, as police launched a large-scale search for those responsible.

The shooting happened in the Schachen area of Aarau, the capital of Switzerland’s Aargau canton, where the "Aarau Rave VOL. 7" was being held at a horse-racing track, according to Swiss broadcaster SRF.

Aargau cantonal police said the woman died from her injuries at the scene. Four men and another woman, all between the ages of 24 and 27, were taken to hospitals with injuries ranging from minor to serious.

All six victims are residents of Switzerland, police said.

ONE DEAD, 6 INJURED AFTER GUNFIRE ERUPTS AT UNSANCTIONED CALIFORNIA PARTY THAT DREW HUNDREDS: SHERIFF

Police spokesman Pascal Wenzel told SRF that authorities were alerted to the shooting shortly after 2:30 a.m. The event had been scheduled to end at 2 a.m., according to SRF, which cited information from the organizers’ website.

Authorities said the perpetrator or perpetrators remained unidentified and that possible motives and the circumstances surrounding the shooting were still unclear.

A large area surrounding the horse-racing track, swimming pool and nearby sports field was cordoned off as police searched the area. Authorities also increased their presence elsewhere in Aarau as a precaution and urged members of the public to stay away.

ALL 12 VICTIMS STABLE AFTER SHOOTING NEAR FESTIVAL AS TOLEDO POLICE PURSUE MULTIPLE LEADS

The response included police officers, firefighters and several emergency medical services, according to SRF. The broadcaster reported that a cantonal disaster-response unit, the Argus police special unit and a Swiss military Super Puma helicopter were also involved.

Police in neighboring Germany were also assisting with the search as part of routine cross-border cooperation, a spokesman in Freiburg told the German news agency dpa, according to SRF.

Police appealed to witnesses to provide investigators with videos or photographs from the event and established an information line for relatives and eyewitnesses.

Swiss DJ Tekibo, who performed at the rave, later wrote on Instagram that what happened was "absolutely heartbreaking" and said raves should be places of freedom and safety. He also said he had lost an "important friend," though SRF reported that it was not clear whom he was referring to.

Police said their investigation and search operation remained ongoing.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Muslim jail gangs said to force conversions on prisoners in UK: 'Jihadist training camps’

Radical Muslim inmates are said to be forcing other prisoners — mostly white British men — to convert to Islam in some of the U.K.'s prisons, according to British media reports this week.

The problem of Muslim gangs in the nation's prisons has become progressively worse since Britain's Sky News first reported, in 2013, that "British inmates are being bullied into converting to Islam while in jail" while noting that "The Prison Officers Association says it is symptomatic of the growing power and influence of Muslim gangs in prison."

This week Nick Timothy, the shadow justice secretary of the opposition Conservative party, has urged the left-of-center Labour Government to root out forced conversions. Timothy posted on X on Tuesday that," Islamist gangs control many of our prisons. Conversion to Islam is the only way to stay safe from them. I obtained data showing 1 in 5 Muslim prisoners are white. That’s four times higher than in the general population. This cannot continue."

UK HOME OFFICE GUIDE TELLS ASYLUM SEEKERS NOT TO RAPE, HARASS WOMEN OR MAKE KISSING NOISES

He told the U.K.'s Daily Telegraph that "We know that experts have warned repeatedly about forced conversions taking place behind bars, driven by Islamic gangs," Timothy said, adding "We need to be honest that something is not right here – Labour must urgently investigate and stamp out forced conversions in prison."

A press release from the U.K. Ministry of Justice stated that, "Most prisons show no evidence of gang-based extremism," while noting "We have also banned terrorist prisoners from holding positions of authority in corporate worship, e.g. leading the call to prayer, and clamped down on material found in prisons that could be used to spread harmful ideologies of justice."

According to Nile Gardiner, Director of the Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom at the Heritage Foundation, this growing trend is having a detrimental effect on the country's prison system. "It is an absolutely outrageous state of affairs in the British prison system. This also poses a very significant national security risk for the United Kingdom. The British government appears to have lost control over its prisons, which have become jihadist training camps," Gardiner, who advised Lady Thatcher, told Fox News Digital.

He added that "urgent actions needs to be taken" in response to "the level of forced Islamization in British jails."

UK ASYLUM SEEKERS COULD HAVE TO PAY GOVERNMENT $13K BEFORE APPLYING FOR SETTLEMENT

The number of incarcerated Muslims has its origins in a defective British immigration policy, said Gardiner. According to The Telegraph, "the number of Muslim prisoners in jails in England and Wales has also increased and accounts for nearly one in five (18%) of the prison population, despite making up 6.5% of the general population."

Gardiner told Fox News Digital that "It is very clear that large-scale Islamic migration into the United Kingdom is having a direct impact on crime and public safety in the United Kingdom. And the growing Islamization of Britain carries with it immense risks for British national security and crime. The inflow of Islamic migrants is a real threat to Britain’s future."

Jonathan Hall, the British government’s independent reviewer of terrorism legislation, wrote in his 2022 report titled "Terrorism in Prisons" that he secured evidence that Islamist terrorists are behaving and acting as "self-styled emirs."

He added that the terrorists are "exerting a controlling and radicalising influence on the wider Muslim prison population (including through enforcers, whilst keeping their hands clean); recruitment (in particular of vulnerable or lonely prisoners, using guidance, sharing of food or material gifts), and conversion backed by implicit or actual violence; soliciting or accepting menial tasks (such as cell-cleaning) from lower status prisoners." 

A spokesperson from the ministry told Fox News Digital that, "We do not tolerate intimidation, gang activity or faith-based coercion of any kind in our prisons." The spokesperson added, "Prisons and staff act swiftly to clamp down on all threatening behavior from any groups or individuals."

According to the Justice spokesperson, "Forced religious conversions are not tolerated across the prison estate. In response to the report from the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation, Jonathan Hall, HMPPS [His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service] carried out a review into the influence of faith-based gangs. Following the review, HMPPS has improved the ability to identify nascent extremist gang activity and disrupt it before it takes hold via advanced training and data collection."

FARAGE PUTS SEAT ON THE LINE OVER ‘ESTABLISHMENT HIT JOB’ — VOTERS SEND HIM RIGHT BACK

An independent review by Colin Bloom, a British government advisor, looking at how the government engages with faith, in part stated, that "Failure to identify as a Muslim meant that at best the new prisoner would be denied ‘protection’ from the dominant Muslim gang on that wing, or at worst the new prisoner would be subjected to violence and intimidation from that same gang. "

According to a Fox News Digital review of the 2023 Bloom report, the 159-page study noted that "The 2019 Ministry of Justice report on separating extremist prisoners noted the growing problem of religious extremism across the prison estate, including the "aggressive encouragement of conversions to Islam."

Bloom had previously told GB News that there are some very good (Muslim) chaplains and excellent practices in prison, but "there is also, I think fair to say, that a number of prisons there are very large and aggressive Islamist gangs… where evidence was given to me and my review where Koran's were put on the bed of incoming inmates with the very clear indication convert or get hurt, and it was a way of coercing people to say, you know if you want to be protected in prison then you have to convert and become part of our gang."

Bloom noted that "prisons are actually a much more religious place than the rest of society. More people have a faith if they're in prison than not. But even by the standards of the most amazing, you know revivals religious conversions, there is something going on in prisons because we are seeing the most incredible number of people converting, particularly to Islam, in a way that is defies logic. And I think one of the things that we need to ensure that prison chaplains and prison management have is that inquiring mind to say just what the heck is going on here. This doesn't seem right."

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