US President Donald Trump has refiled a $15 billion defamation lawsuit against The New York Times, court documents show, weeks after it was thrown out by a federal judge.

Trump has intensified his long-established hostility toward the media since his return to the White House, and the suit is one of numerous attacks against news organizations he accuses of bias against him.

The Times’ complaint was thrown out in September because District Judge Steven Merryday took exception to its florid writing, repetitive and laudatory praise of Trump, and its excessive 85-page length.

The suit filed Thursday in Florida and seen by AFP runs to less than half the length, at 40 pages.

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It takes aim at “false, defamatory, and malicious publications”, highlighting a book and two Times articles.

The lawsuit named the newspaper, three Times reporters and the publisher Penguin Random House as defendants.

It accuses them of making defamatory statements against Trump “with actual malice.”

“The statements in question wrongly defame and disparage President Trump’s hard-earned professional reputation, which he painstakingly built for decades” before entering the White House, the lawsuit says.

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The court was asked to grant compensatory damages of not less than $15 billion and additional punitive damages “in an amount to be determined upon trial.”

Trump’s attacks on media outlets have seen him restrict access, badmouth journalists critical of his administration, and bring lawsuits demanding huge amounts of compensation.

In July, Trump sued media magnate Rupert Murdoch and The Wall Street Journal for at least $10 billion after it reported on the existence of a book and a letter he allegedly sent to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Paramount settled Trump’s lawsuit over election coverage on CBS News’ flagship show “60 Minutes” for $16 million the same month. He had alleged that the program deceptively edited an interview with his 2024 election rival, Kamala Harris, in her favor.

AFP

A bomb destroyed the vehicle of a prominent Italian journalist overnight, without causing casualties, his investigative television news show announced Friday.

Sigfrido Ranucci’s car blew up in an explosion in Pomezia, near Rome, that also damaged the family’s other car and the house next door, according to Report, which broadcasts on RAI public television.

“The force of the explosion was so strong that it could have killed anyone passing by at the moment,” it said in a statement on X.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni strongly condemned what she called a “serious act of intimidation”.

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“The freedom and independence of information are non-negotiable values of our democracies, which we will continue to defend,” she wrote on X.

Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said he had ordered an increase in the journalist’s security “to the maximum”.

He called the attack a “cowardly and extremely serious act that represents an attack not only on the person but on the freedom of the press and the fundamental values of our democracy”.

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The Report show is known for its in-depth investigative reports.

According to the campaign group Reporters Without Borders (RSF), Italy ranks 49th in the world in terms of press freedom.

“Journalists who investigate organised crime and corruption are systematically threatened and sometimes subjected to physical violence for their investigative work,” it said in its latest update.

About 20 journalists currently live under permanent police protection after being the targets of intimidation and attacks, it added.

AFP

Britain’s King Charles III, head of the Church of England, and Queen Camilla will make a historic state visit to the Vatican next week to meet Pope Leo XIV for the first time, Buckingham Palace said on Friday.

“The King and Queen will undertake a historic state visit to the Holy See from 22nd-23rd October 2025. The visit will mark Their Majesties’ first meeting with Pope Leo XIV since his election in May 2025,” a palace statement said.

The trip will come around six months after the royal couple met Leo’s predecessor, Pope Francis, in a private visit shortly before his death.

Francis died on April 21 after 12 years as head of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics.

Leo, 70, who has a history of missionary work in Peru and is the first pope from the United States, was elected in a conclave of cardinals on May 8.

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During the visit next Wednesday and Thursday, Charles and Camilla will join Leo in celebrations to mark the current special jubilee year, held every 25 years, the palace statement said.

The programme will include a service in the Sistine Chapel reflecting on Leo and Charles’ shared “commitment to the protection of nature and concern for the environment”, it added.

The king will also visit a seminary that trains priests from across the Commonwealth, while the queen will meet Catholic sisters from a body that works with girls’ education programmes to tackle challenges such as sexual violence, human trafficking, and poor access to healthcare.

The visit would mark “a significant moment” in relations between the Catholic Church and Church of England, recognising the “ecumenical work they have undertaken and reflecting the Jubilee year’s theme of walking together as ‘Pilgrims of Hope’,” the palace said.

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The British monarch is head of the Church of England, the mother church of global Anglicanism.

The Church was established in the 16th century by Henry VIII, the king who broke with the Catholic church over its refusal to annul his marriage to Catherine of Aragon.

The split fuelled centuries of conflict, but in modern times, relations between the Catholic Church and the Church of England, often referred to as the Anglican Church, have been amicable.

Charles, 76, last met Francis, with whom he also shared a passion for protecting the environment, in Rome in April, despite having officially postponed the private audience due to the pontiff’s poor health.

The king, who is still undergoing treatment for an undisclosed cancer, has previously visited the Vatican on five occasions as Prince of Wales, and has met three popes.

AFP