Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Western world has reached a decisive “inflection point,” calling on European countries to stand alongside the United States in facing what he described as “the threats of our age” during a major address in Athens on Wednesday.

In a speech rich with references to ancient Greece and American history, Rubio urged Europe to “awaken from its long slumber” and reignite the spirit that took root in the region thousands of years ago. Invoking figures and events ranging from Achilles to the Alamo, he framed the alliance as a defense of national sovereignty and shared Western values.

With the Acropolis illuminated behind him as the sun went down, Rubio warned that the West faces a historic crossroads. “We are at an inflection point — not just in the history of my country, but in the story of our entire civilization,” he said. “The dangers confronting us today are every bit as real as those that appeared on the dramatic stage of antiquity.”

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Rubio also praised the achievements of the civilizations that emerged from the land surrounding Athens. “We should stand in awe of what our forefathers built in this countryside,” he said, describing Western civilization as “the greatest story ever known to man” and tracing its origins to the earliest men and women of the West.

By looking back to those foundations, Rubio argued, modern societies can recover the qualities needed to meet today’s challenges. “From them, we can rediscover the virtues,” he said, including “the courage and the strength” required to confront the dangers of the present day.

President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced a $6.6 billion investment involving defense technology company Anduril Industries, the latest major government funding arrangement involving a company linked financially to the president’s sons.

Under the agreement, the Navy will provide $2.9 billion toward a new facility in Baltimore County, Maryland. The site is expected to produce essential components for Virginia-class nuclear-powered fast-attack submarines.

Trump described the project as a major win for the country and Baltimore, saying Anduril would spend $3.7 billion on a modern shipyard at Sparrows Point that will be known as “Arsenal-2.”

He said the facility would produce the next generation of U.S. submarines, including autonomous vessels, torpedo tubes and other key systems for Virginia-class attack submarines.

1789 Capital, a venture firm that lists Donald Trump Jr. among its six partners alongside the firm’s three founders, took a substantial position in Anduril in June 2025 as part of a $2.5 billion funding round.

Since then, Anduril has secured 135 additional U.S. government contracts worth approximately $1.8 billion, according to active defense agreements listed on SAM.gov, the federal government’s contracting database.

Anduril did not respond to questions about its government contracts or its connection to 1789 Capital. Records on USASpending.gov show that the company has held federal contracts since 2019.

Anduril is among the largest defense manufacturers to receive backing from Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, though it is not the only company in their investment portfolio.

An ABC News review found that defense companies backed by the president’s sons, including Anduril, have obtained more than $6 billion in active or promised government contracts since the investments were made, based on official federal data.

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The findings come as Congressional Oversight Democrats continue to demand that the Pentagon’s inspector general examine the deals.

In a May letter to Pentagon Inspector General Platte B. Moring III, lawmakers Richard Blumenthal, Elizabeth Warren, Robert Garcia and Tammy Duckworth warned that refusing to investigate could raise questions about whether the office was fulfilling its legal role as an independent Defense Department watchdog. They wrote in a letter that the allegations required serious scrutiny.

A Pentagon official told ABC News that no company receives special treatment, saying the department seeks solutions for military personnel rather than any preselected business. The official added that investors, political relationships and outside affiliations have “absolutely no role” in funding decisions.

A spokesperson for the Trump brothers rejected allegations of wrongdoing.

“Don and Eric are experienced business leaders who have built and invested in businesses across a wide range of industries for decades, long before their father first ran for public office,” the spokesperson said. “Their investment decisions are based solely on their independent business judgment and personal convictions, and they do not seek to influence, direct or participate in any government decision, procurement, award, regulatory action or other governmental process. Attempts to portray their ordinary investment activities as improper are a deliberate distortion of the facts.”

The White House declined to comment.

Drone investments

Three friends of Nolan Wells, the college student who vanished during a Fourth of July gathering on a Mississippi island and was later found dead, have filed a defamation lawsuit against former NFL star Terrell Owens.

Warren Hudson, Jax Pitalo and Morgan Seymour allege that the Hall of Fame wide receiver defamed them in a post on X that stated: “ARREST THEM IMMEDIATELY!!”

The young men’s fathers filed the federal lawsuit on their sons’ behalf Monday. All three friends are younger than 21 and are considered minors under Mississippi law.

Hudson, Pitalo and Seymour were part of a large group that traveled by boat with 18-year-old Wells to Horn Island on July 4. The three friends said Wells did not return with the group to the Mississippi mainland because he was speaking with a girl, though Wells’ family has disputed that account. His body was recovered from the waters off the island two days later.

Photos of Wells, who was Black, alongside his white friends spread widely across social media after his disappearance. Some users interpreted the case through a racial lens and directed suspicion at the three friends.

Owens added to the criticism in a Sept. 26 post that is still visible online. His message shared an Instagram reel from content creator Trent Out Loud, which accused the young men of deleting Snapchat messages from Wells’ phone after his death and suggested they could have been involved in killing him.

Andrew Garrett, a digital forensics specialist retained by attorney Benjamin Crump, examined Wells’ phone and found no evidence that anyone accessed it between 2:18 p.m. on July 4, when Wells last unlocked the device, and 3:14 a.m. on July 5, when his parents accessed it.

Garrett also explained that Snapchat messages may disappear from a recipient’s phone when the sender deletes them remotely.

The lawsuit claims that Owens, 52, promoted a false account of events and accused the three friends of crimes they did not commit.

“The Defamatory X Post also placed Warren, Jax, and Morgan before Owens’ audience in a false light, as murderers and participants in a murder coverup who had escaped justice,” the lawsuit states. “There was absolutely no evidence to prompt an arrest of the Plaintiffs because they had done nothing wrong, and there was no probable cause to arrest Plaintiffs because they had not committed a crime.”

News Media contacted Owens for comment through his social media accounts and SMAC Entertainment, which identifies him as a client on its website.

On Sept. 22, several days before Owens’ post, a grand jury concluded that Wells’ death was “consistent with drowning” and declined to recommend criminal charges against anyone.

The grand jury noted, however, that both the state autopsy report, which has not been released publicly, and an independent autopsy commissioned by Wells’ family identified bruising on the back of his head.

Roger A. Mitchell Jr., the family’s forensic pathologist, classified Wells’ death as “undetermined.” Mitchell said he could not exclude non-accidental causes, noting that Wells did not appear intoxicated enough to be unable to swim and had “apparent acute blunt force injuries to the head and body prior to his death.”

On Monday, Wells’ family called for a federal investigation into his death after the grand jury declined to recommend charges.

“Our son was found on ​federal ⁠land and we are asking the FBI to step in and do a full investigation,” said Elmore Wonsley, Wells’ father.

The alleged author of the “free p***y” Snapchat message at the heart of the Cornell 7 scandal has been barred from another college campus, the Daily Mail can exclusively reveal.

Jonathan Newell was reportedly one of two fraternity members expelled by Cornell University after administrators imposed sanctions linked to an alleged 2024 incident in which seven male students are accused of drugging and gang-raping a female student at their fraternity house.

The 21-year-old enrolled at Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, earlier this year, apparently seeking to continue his education and leave the controversy behind.

That effort was disrupted last month when a civil lawsuit filed by a Jane Doe brought the explosive sexual-assault allegations into the national spotlight.

Newell is accused of being among the first men to sexually assault Doe at the Chi Phi fraternity house on October 19, 2024. The civil complaint also identifies him as the alleged author of a disturbing message posted in the fraternity’s Snapchat group: “Free p***y in alum pu.”

The Daily Mail understands that Newell, who has never been criminally charged, was ordered to stay off NSU property last week following a flood of complaints from concerned parents.

NSU President Harry Moon confirmed Monday morning that the university had taken steps to “safeguard” students, though he did not identify Newell.

“We are all concerned about reports of serious allegations of sexual abuse that occurred approximately two years ago at another university and may involve a student who later transferred to NSU,” Moon wrote.

“NSU takes these allegations seriously. The safety and well-being of each member of our campus community is a top priority.”

Moon did not name Newell or clarify whether the undisclosed safeguarding measures were temporary or permanent.

He told students, faculty and staff that the private university had not been aware of the allegations involving Doe when Newell enrolled.

The lawsuit alleges that Doe was given ketamine before being subjected to nonconsensual group sex with Newell and six other men at the Chi Phi fraternity house in Ithaca, New York.

“Once we learned of the reported incident, we acted immediately on behalf of the safety and well-being of our students and the NSU community,” Moon’s statement continued.

“Because this matter involves federal law regarding an individual student, the university is legally restricted by federal regulations that limit what the university can share.

“The university continues to monitor the situation and will remain vigilant. As a result of actions we have taken, we are not aware of any current threat to the university community with regard to the matter.”

The statement appeared to reassure parents of female students at NSU.

“It was obviously concerning. It’s a horrific crime that this young man is accused of,” one mother told the Daily Mail, speaking anonymously.

‘You trust that they’re in a safe environment when you send them off to school and that they can navigate the things that you’ve prepared them for. But you can’t prepare your kids for this.’

Newell grew up in South Florida and attended NSU University School, a private prep school on the NSU campus where tuition costs around $40,000 a year.

His mom is a respected pediatrics doctor and assistant professor at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

Newell’s father is a chief estimator at a construction firm.

They live in a $2.5 million home in an exclusive gated community in South Florida and drive swish BMW cars.

Newell was bookish and quiet growing up, according to a former classmate. 

He played varsity lacrosse and picked up multiple awards before graduating in 2023 and enrolling at Cornell.

‘Jonathan was good at his studies, I would assume he was on the honor roll,’ the former friend said. ‘He was just this quiet kid. No drugs, no girls, no scandal of any sort.

‘I remember being in shock when I heard he was the social chair of his fraternity at Cornell because he wasn’t outgoing at all.

‘Now I’m like, what did college do to him? What did fraternity life do to him?’

According to the civil complaint, Newell and fellow Chi Phi member Matthew Ingalls pressured Doe to consume ketamine, marijuana and ‘Jamaican liquor’ believed to be high-proof rum before allegedly engaging in sexual acts without her consent.

At one point Newell ordered Doe, who was 20 years old at the time, to snort a line of ketamine off his genitals, according to the suit. 

Newell, who the suit claims is one of two men who forced vaginal sex on Doe, allegedly slapped her repeatedly during intercourse, leaving bruises on her buttocks, and he continued groping her after she pushed his hand away, according to the complaint.

The suit alleges that the Snapchat message sent by Newell was an invitation for other fraternity members to come upstairs where Doe says the sexual assault continued for hours.

Newell has never been criminally charged and has not publicly responded to the allegations.

But Cornell’s formal Title IX investigation, which included more than 50 interviews, resulted in him being expelled from the storied university, according to The New York Times.

Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten’s office declined to bring criminal charges after investigating the case in 2024, however.

The account Doe gave investigators at the time is said to have differed substantially from the allegations in her civil suit filed nearly two years later.

The original statement described her participation in drug use and sexual activity as voluntary and consensual, Van Houten has said.

‘If what was said on social media about this case was true, those fraternity members would be in prison right now,’ he told ABC News.

Doe’s attorney, Thomas P Giuffra, disputed the DA’s account of the investigation, alleging that his client’s claims were not investigated thoroughly enough as she ‘never spoke with anyone other than the officer who took her original complaint.’

‘I believe that opportunities to fully investigate these crimes were lost. We will never fully know what occurred or the identities of everyone who was involved that night,’ Giuffra said. 

Governor Kathy Hochul appointed New York Attorney General Letitia James last Thursday as a special prosecutor to conduct a fresh criminal investigation into the matter.

James faced questions about a September 28 Facebook post in which she appeared to prejudge the allegations, writing: ‘What this young woman has been forced to endure is horrific and unacceptable.’

Asked about the post at a news conference, the longtime Trump nemesis told a reporter: ‘I will not comment on a Facebook post.’

The defendants have consistently denied any wrongdoing. None have faced criminal charges.

It is not clear whether Newell has hired a lawyer. Neither he nor his father responded to calls and messages from the Daily Mail seeking comment.

Cornell said the Chi Phi chapter was closed in 2024 and remains barred from campus.

A 23-year-old Wisconsin woman allegedly posed as a substitute teacher at her former high school before directing profanities and offensive remarks at students, according to authorities.

Amy Jones reportedly entered Rufus King High School in Milwaukee on Sept. 24. Court records obtained by Fox6 say she was able to get inside because substitute teachers were filling in for absent staff members that day.

She allegedly taught three class periods before students reported her behavior and school officials discovered she was not a legitimate substitute. Investigators said Jones later indicated that she had entered the school because she “just wanted to f–k around.”

According to court documents reviewed by WISN, Jones separated students “by race and gender” and used profanity and racial slurs during the classes. Prosecutors said she referred to white students with an obscenity.

The records also allege that she called one student “a fat boy” and asked another whether they wanted to become “a stripper or a hooker.”

Jones allegedly told students she had “felonies” and suggested that going to jail was acceptable, according to Law and Crime.

Students eventually alerted school officials, who escorted Jones from the building.

Police questioned her six days later. In their report, officers said Jones appeared “very excited” as she recounted the incident, snapping her fingers and dancing.

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She reportedly told investigators that she disliked children and had entered the school simply to “f–k around,” according to the court documents.

Jones faces one count of impersonating a public employee and five counts of exposing children to harmful descriptions. If convicted, she could receive a prison sentence of up to 21 years.

Her attorney, Michael Cerniglia, attributed the alleged conduct to his client’s mental-health condition.

At Jones’ first court appearance Tuesday, Cerniglia said she lives with bipolar disorder and had experienced an acute manic episode after a delay in receiving her prescription medication. He said she was not taking the medication at the time of the incident.

Doreen Badillo, principal of Rufus King High School, acknowledged that staff members failed to follow the district’s required process for verifying Jones as a substitute teacher.

“This should happen every time a substitute visits a school. There is no excuse for it not occurring, and we take this matter seriously,” Badillo said, calling the incident “disturbing.”

School officials said they have begun reviewing security and verification procedures to prevent a similar incident from happening again.

The U.S. military in Okinawa, Japan, is imposing a 48-hour operational pause that bans off-base liberty and requires additional training after a Marine was arrested on suspicion of killing and robbing a woman.

Lt. Gen. Benjamin Watson, the Okinawa area coordinator and commander of III Marine Expeditionary Force, said in a letter Tuesday that the incident “demand[s] we pause for reflection.” He added that serving on the island “comes with responsibility.”

“We speak often about standards and discipline. Standards are what we expect, and my standards are clear: be accountable for your actions; do the right thing, especially when no one is looking; and always be guided by our core values that govern our conduct at every rank,” Watson wrote.

“We live, work, and socialize alongside the people of Okinawa; their home is our home. Every interaction with our neighbors either builds or undermines the trust that is essential to our team. When that trust is damaged, it affects the strength of our alliance and the security of this region. Accordingly, we will take time to think hard about discipline, standards and our alliance responsibilities,” Watson added.

The Marine’s arrest has fueled protests over the extensive U.S. military presence on the southern Japanese island and renewed concerns about crimes involving military personnel.

Japanese officials have formally protested to the U.S. government. Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi summoned U.S. Ambassador George Glass, seeking cooperation with the investigation, tougher discipline for U.S. personnel and steps to prevent similar incidents.

The killing could complicate Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s efforts to strengthen Japan’s military presence in Okinawa while deepening cooperation with the U.S. military to deter China.

The operational pause will run from Wednesday through Friday. During that time, service members will be barred from off-base liberty and alcohol use. Military leaders commonly impose such restrictions after serious crimes, limiting troops’ movement away from bases and contact with the surrounding community.

Watson said service members will undergo instruction on standards, discipline and “our responsibilities as members of the Okinawan community.”

“This Period of Training will include discussions on liberty policy, enforcement mechanisms, alcohol awareness, Okinawan culture, and alliance responsibilities. Every member of this force must understand that individual conduct has consequences,” he said.

The training will begin Friday, followed by a 30-day “Period of Reflection,” Watson said.

During the reflection period, military personnel will face “restrictions on liberty” intended to reinforce that “liberty is a privilege and a collective responsibility.” The measures will include a curfew and closer supervision, Watson said.

“Liberty is a mission, and like any other mission it requires discipline, trust and teamwork to complete it successfully,” he said. “Take care of your teammates. Hold one another accountable. Live up to the high standards that come with the uniform you wear.”

Okinawa prefectural police said they arrested Lance Cpl. Devin Jacob Ballard, 20, who is stationed at Futenma Air Station. He is suspected of strangling Anna Yagi, 39, at a hotel in Naha, the island’s capital, early Saturday and taking her wallet and backpack.

Ballard has denied the allegations.

Security camera footage showed a man entering the hotel with Yagi and later leaving by himself.

Ballard was arrested later Saturday after a patrolling officer saw him walking through an entertainment district in Okinawa City, about 15 miles northeast of Naha. Kyodo News reported that his shaved head and arm tattoos matched those of the man captured in the security footage.

People in Okinawa have long opposed the heavy U.S. military presence on the island, although some have acknowledged its strategic benefit due to what is seen as a growing threat from China.

Okinawa was under U.S. occupation from World War II until 1972. Now, the U.S. population on the island is nearly 80,000, with nearly 30,000 being active duty troops from all four branches of the armed forces. The Marines make up most of the service members on the island.

A rise in crime linked to U.S. military-related personnel has led to renewed protests on the island. The number of criminal cases involving U.S. military-related personnel rose from about 40 in 2020 to 101 in 2025, according to Okinawa prefectural police.

After three U.S. service members raped a 12-year-old girl in 1995, huge crowds protested the U.S. military presence on Okinawa. There was also frustration over a U.S. service member’s rape of a teenage girl in 2024 and the delayed disclosure of the case.