Trump denounces attack in Egypt
By AP staff
AP
1511552707000

President Donald Trump is denouncing what he’s calling the “Horrible and cowardly terrorist attack on innocent and defenseless worshipers (sic) in Egypt.”

Militants attacked a crowded mosque during Friday prayers in the Sinai Peninsula, settling off explosives, spraying worshippers with gunfire and killing at least 200 people in the deadliest ever attack on Egyptian civilians by Islamic extremists.

Trump says on Twitter, “The world cannot tolerate terrorism” and that “we must defeat them militarily and discredit the extremist ideology that forms the basis of their existence!”

Trump’s tweet came as he was playing golf at one of his Florida courses with Tiger Woods and Dustin Johnson.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu says U.S. President Donald Trump has told his Turkish counterpart that the United States will no longer supply arms to Syrian Kurdish fighters.

Cavusoglu said Trump relayed his decision during a telephone conversation between the Turkish and U.S. leaders on Friday. Cavusoglu was present in Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s office during the telephone call.

Turkey considers the Kurdish Syrian fighters, known by the initials YPG, to be terrorists because of their affiliation to outlawed Kurdish rebels in Turkey. A U.S. decision to arm the fighters soured relations between the two NATO allies.

Cavusoglu said: “Mr. Trump clearly stated that he had given clear instructions and that the YPG won’t be given arms and that this nonsense should have ended a long time ago.”

Turkey’s president says he discussed the Syrian crisis and other regional issues with in a phone call Friday with President Donald Trump.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s office said the two leaders also discussed ties between Turkey and the United States during their telephone conversation on Friday.

Their discussion comes days after Erdogan attended a trilateral meeting with the Russian and Iranian leaders in Sochi, Russia, to promote a peaceful settlement in Syria.

Relations between NATO allies Turkey and the United States have soured over a number of issues, including U.S. support to Syrian Kurdish fighters which Ankara considers to be terrorists because of their links to outlawed Kurdish rebels in Turkey.

Earlier, Trump tweeted that he’d be speaking with Erdogan “about bringing peace to the mess that I inherited in the Middle East.”

President Donald Trump says he’ll be speaking with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday “about bringing peace to the mess that I inherited in the Middle East.”

Trump railed during his campaign about the ongoing conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, but has boasted about progress in recent months under his watch.

Trump says in a tweet that he’ll “get it all done, but what a mistake, in lives and dollars to be there in the first place!”

It’s unclear exactly which countries he’s referring to, but Trump has cited $6 trillion in the past to assess U.S. spending on conflicts in the Middle East.

Fact checkers have found that number to be only partially accurate since it falls on the high end of analysts’ estimates and includes future medical care and disability benefits and nation-building costs.

President Donald Trump will be playing golf with Tiger Woods at Trump’s course in Jupiter, Florida, Friday.

Trump says in a tweet that top-rated golfer Dustin Johnson also will take part.

Woods’ 79 PGA Tour victories and 14 major titles both rank No. 2 all-time. He has not competed professionally since February because of a back injury and is not expected to return this year. His last win was in August 2013

Trump says after golf, he’ll return to his private Mar-a-Lago club “for talks on bringing even more jobs and companies back to the USA!”

He’s not letting it go.

President Donald Trump is continuing to rail against football players who kneel during the National Anthem to protest racism and police brutality.

Trump asks his followers in a Black Friday tweet: “Can you believe that the disrespect for our Country, our Flag, our Anthem continues without penalty to the players.”

He’s accusing NFL commissioner Roger Goodell of having “lost control” of what he called a “hemorrhaging league” where “Players are the boss!”

Trump’s tweet was in response to one from his social media chief, Dan Scavino.

Scavino had shared a Breitbart News story about New York Giants player Olivier Vernon taking the knee during the anthem on Thanksgiving ahead of a game against the Redskins.

The website is run by Trump’s former chief strategist.