Donald Trump Jr. and Bettina Trump have acknowledged that Russian oligarch Umar Kremlev contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to the lavish Bahamas celebration held after their wedding.

Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son, married 39-year-old model and socialite Bettina in Palm Beach in late May. The newlyweds later traveled to the Bahamas for an extravagant reception.

President Trump was not present for his son’s wedding ceremony, with national security duties cited as tensions and the war with Iran intensified.

A report published Monday said Kremlev, a wealthy businessman and associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin, helped cover part of the costs connected to the couple’s wedding festivities.

The report alleged that Kremlev financed the rental of a private island, a fireworks display and other expenses that reportedly ran into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

According to ProPublica, Kremlev’s team was also involved in organizing the Bahamas celebration.

Bettina Trump responded to the reports Monday by sharing a collection of previously unseen wedding photos and describing the Russian businessman as “our dear friend Umar.”

She said Kremlev had “very generously hosted two incredible nights of celebrations for us,” while emphasizing that the events he funded took place “after our wedding.”

Bettina and Don Jr. had 18 guests at the ceremony and 50 people at the reception of their Bahamas celebration earlier this year. 

She ended the fiery statement by telling her followers: ‘Friendship doesn’t require a political motive. Generosity doesn’t automatically come with an agenda.’  

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Mrs Trump wrote on Instagram this morning: ‘Don and I got married privately on Friday, surrounded ONLY by our family. It was intimate, deeply personal and one of the most beautiful days of our lives.

‘The weekend that followed had actually been planned well in advance as a fun weekend with friends. It was never intended to be our wedding weekend. When our original wedding plans changed, we simply decided to get married before it and arrived at an already planned weekend as newlyweds.

‘Our dear friend Umar very generously hosted two incredible nights of celebrations for us AFTER our wedding. It was an extraordinarily generous wedding gift from a friend, and something for which we were and remain incredibly grateful.

‘It’s unfortunate that something so personal and happy can be recast as something political or sinister simply because of who someone is or where they come from. Friendship doesn’t require a political motive. Generosity doesn’t automatically come with an agenda. And sometimes a wedding gift is simply a wedding gift.

‘We are fortunate to have wonderful friends from all over the world, and we will never be embarrassed or apologetic about being grateful for them.

‘So, for anyone determined not to let the facts get in the way of a good story: NO CONSPIRACY , NO MYSTERY. Just a private family wedding, a wonderful weekend with friends and one hell of a party.

‘And since fake news travels fast, we figured the truth deserved a few pictures.’

She signed off the post with the caption: ‘With love and gratitude, Don & Bettina.’

The couple celebrated their wedding with Don Jr’s siblings, Eric, 42, and Ivanka, 44, who also came with them to the Bahamas afterwards.

The couple’s marriage certificate, obtained by the Daily Mail, shows that they officially became husband and wife in a secret ceremony held at the West Palm Beach home of Anderson’s sister, Kristina McPherson.

Anderson said she would be taking the Trump surname.

A bride-to-be has ignited a heated online debate after asking her wedding guests to comply with one particularly strict condition.

In a Reddit post that quickly went viral, the woman said perfume is her “biggest migraine trigger” and asked every attendee to avoid wearing fragranced products on her wedding day.

According to the bride, her reactions can become so intense that the symptoms may even “mimic a stroke.”

“For medical reasons, our wedding will be a fragrance free event,” the couple’s invitation stated.

“The bride and members of the bridal party have severe fragrance allergies that will trigger significant health reactions.

“We kindly request that all guests refrain from wearing scented sprays/lotions/perfumes,” it continued.

The bride said she simply hopes guests will respect the request, as she does not want a preventable health episode to derail her wedding celebration.

On the surface, it might sound like a reasonable accommodation.

But online commenters, as often happens, had plenty to say.

The Reddit post spread rapidly, drawing thousands of reactions and sparking a fierce discussion over whether a fragrance-free wedding request is fair to guests.

“This is awesome, me personally I would also add that ‘any guest found in violation of this policy will be denied entry to the event’”, one person wrote.

Another user suggested the ban should extend to washing powders, writing: “I love the idea, but I think you should add laundry detergent to be considered.”

They even continued by suggesting the couple hire a “trusted sniffer” to help “reinforce” the strict rule.

“I’d rather smell body odour than fragrances. At least it’s natural,” another person chimed in.

However, many others slammed these suggestions as downright diabolical.

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Critics argued that at this stage, the couple should just “elope” to save everyone the hassle.

“Not sure how they will enforce this, and laundry detergent smells are taking it several miles too far,” someone said.

Another definitively added that they absolutely draw the line at the idea of a ‘trusted sniffer’.

Expert weights in

Etiquette expert Jo Hayes told news.com.au that she thinks the bride’s request was entirely reasonable.

“The way the bride has phrased this request is also perfectly polite and graceful. It doesn’t sound demanding or dogmatic, and it’s phrased clearly and respectfully,” she shared.

She went on to say that many of the additional comments were, however, “unreasonable,” like the suggestion of a ‘sniff test’.

“If someone does forget, having a member of the bridal party, or another designated person, discretely pulling them aside and asking them to wash it off is probably more appropriate,” Ms Hayes shared.

“Honestly, I think that most bride’s don’t want to be a bridezilla – they simply want to enjoy their wedding day to the full, and want their guests to have a wonderful time as well.”

‘Very weird’ wedding demands

This isn’t the first time an intense wedding request has ruffled feathers.

In another recent Reddit thread, a bridesmaid shared an exhaustive list of rules a bride imposed ahead of the big day.

The outrageous demands dictated that bridesmaids couldn’t “gain weight” and must “be at her disposal and do anything she wants.”

The catering was equally restrictive, with the wedding menu completely ignoring vegetarians and vegans.

“Very weird considering the whole friend group is some kind of variation of that,” the bridesmaid said.

“I don’t know if I should laugh or cry.”

So, where do you draw the line with bridezilla requests? Let us know in the comments.

A juror who supported finding Massachusetts mother Lindsay Clancy not criminally responsible for the deaths of her three children said the panel saw the emotionally charged case as a possible catalyst for helping other women and families. A legal analyst, however, says that rationale raises serious concerns about how jurors should reach a verdict.

Paula Devlin, 65, one of 11 jurors who backed a finding that Clancy was not criminally responsible, told “CBS Saturday Morning” that the jurors believed their deliberations could have significance beyond the courtroom. “Even though we didn’t know what was going on outside of our little bubble that we were in, we knew that this was a turning point, and this would be something that could change something to make it better for other women in the future, for other families,” Devlin said. “You know, justice for those children is this never happening again.”

Devlin said the Lindsay Clancy murder trial jury was initially divided: eight jurors favored a finding of not criminally responsible, two had not yet made up their minds, and two — including the eventual holdout — were leaning toward guilt. The panel ultimately deadlocked 11-1, resulting in a mistrial.

Neama Rahmani, a Los Angeles trial attorney and legal analyst following the case, said Devlin’s comments point to a troubling approach to jury deliberations. “Devlin’s statement is problematic,” he told News Media. “Jurors are supposed to decide cases solely based on the facts of that case. In the Clancy case, they were to decide whether she was criminally responsible.”

Rahmani said jurors are tasked with applying the law to the evidence presented, rather than attempting to shape the law or influence broader social outcomes.

“It is not appropriate for the jurors to consider the impact of their decision on other women, children or cases,” Rahmani said.

Still, he added, there is little practical recourse after jurors have disclosed the thinking that guided their deliberations.

“Judge Sullivan already declared a mistrial and the law generally prohibits inquiry into juror deliberations,” he said. “There is an exception for outside influences that may prejudice the jury, but that would need an additional inquiry into whether the jurors considered information on traditional or social media or whether this was just Devlin’s interpretation of the importance of the case.”

Several jurors and Clancy’s defense attorney Kevin Reddington have claimed that the holdout at the end didn’t show his fellow jurors the evidence that he believed pointed toward guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

“If he had shown us some evidence, then we all would have been OK with that,” Devlin told CBS.

The holdout juror has not responded to News Media’s attempts to reach him and has not spoken publicly about the case as of Monday.

A GiveSendGo fundraiser to benefit him has raised over $115,000 in the past few days. According to the organizer, it is meant to cover “security, lawyers [and] lost work.”

Separately, Clancy’s husband Patrick Clancy vacationed in the Hamptons over the weekend, pictured with his new wife Rachel Danis at the Milk Pail farm stand on Montauk Highway in Water Mill, according to a photograph obtained by TMZ.

Lindsay Clancy has been accused of three counts of first-degree murder after the strangling deaths of her children, Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months. Her defense did not dispute that she killed them with exercise bands but instead argued that she was not criminally responsible due to postpartum psychosis.

Deshaun Watson returned to the starting lineup Sunday for his first football game in nearly two years, and the Cleveland Browns quarterback endured the kind of outing many had feared.

Watson, 31, had not played since Oct. 20, 2024, after tearing and then re-tearing his Achilles. On Cleveland’s opening possession, he threw a costly interception from the Jaguars’ 28-yard line, an early mistake that helped set up Jacksonville’s 34-10 win.

The Browns quarterback appeared not to notice Jaguars linebacker Foyesade Oluokun positioned in the middle of the field. Afterward, Watson offered an explanation for the turnover that is unlikely to calm concerns among Cleveland fans.

“Bad plays are going to happen all the time,” Watson told reporters after the game. “You look all around the league, everyone throws interceptions, everyone makes bad plays. And you’ve got to give the defense credit. [Oluokun] made a good play on that. Even though I got knocked off my platform a little bit, I thought I got it over him and he reached up and grabbed it.

“You’ve got to move on to the next play and try to move forward and try to put something positive on the next drive, and we weren’t able to do that. It didn’t really bother up my confidence.”

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Jacksonville turned the interception into a touchdown and quickly seized control, building a commanding 24-0 advantage by halftime.

Cleveland’s struggles continued after Watson’s interception, with the Browns going three-and-out on each of their next two drives. First-round rookie receiver KC Concepcion then fumbled on the second play of the team’s fourth possession.

Watson connected with second-round rookie Denzel Boston for a 46-yard touchdown in garbage time. He finished 16-of-22 for 205 yards, absorbed five sacks and added 38 rushing yards on six carries.

First-year Browns coach Todd Monken chose Watson over Shedeur Sanders before the season, saying at the time that the quarterback decision was “not a week-to-week decision.”

Following the lopsided loss to the Jaguars, however, Monken declined to commit to Watson starting next Sunday on the road against the Buccaneers.

The prospect of life on the moon has captivated people for generations. From scientific studies to science-fiction epics, visions of sprawling lunar cities and permanent settlements have long fueled hopes that Earth’s nearest neighbor could one day become a new frontier for humanity.

That dream has recently gained fresh momentum. In February, SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk wrote on X that the company had redirected its attention toward creating a self-expanding city on the moon, suggesting it could be possible within a decade, compared with more than 20 years for Mars. The following month, NASA detailed its own vision for a $20 billion lunar base, a project expected to rely substantially on SpaceX technology.

However, a newly released study suggests that the biggest plans for a moon city could face hard limits. Researchers say restricted water supplies and the immense energy needed to keep a large population alive may make a vast lunar settlement far more difficult than supporters envision.

The report, published Monday in the journal Frontiers in Space Technologies, was led by Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory astronomer Martin Elvis and astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell, a space sustainability specialist. Using estimates of the moon’s available water, the pair examined how large a lunar city might realistically become, how long it could remain operational and what it would take to provide enough power for its residents.

“There’s been so much talk and enthusiasm about a future in which the moon is a part of our civilization and abundantly populated, and science fiction shows with extensive cities on the moon and space traffic around it, and so we just wanted to, I guess, throw some cold water, literally, on some of that overoptimism,” McDowell told ABC News.

McDowell said he expects humans will ultimately establish outposts on the moon. Still, he cautioned that the physical realities of the lunar environment will place a ceiling on the scale of any future moon society.

Much of the moon’s known water ice is thought to be locked inside permanently shadowed regions near its poles. These craters receive no sunlight and can remain colder than minus 250 degrees Fahrenheit, according to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. NASA’s Artemis IV mission is targeting a crewed landing near the lunar South Pole as soon as 2028, while the U.S. and China are planning robotic missions that could begin searching the area for ice as early as next year.

“I’ve been looking at places to put astronomical telescopes on the moon, and one of the favorite places are these permanently shadowed regions,” Elvis told ABC News. “So, I got to look at the amount of water that was there, and at first I was very impressed, because the first estimates were going on towards a billion tons, and that sounded like a lot. But then I got to thinking about how there’s no such thing as perfect recycling. So, how much would you lose? How long will that last?”

Drawing on water-ice estimates from earlier research, Elvis and McDowell noted that the widely cited figure of 1 billion tons represents an optimistic upper-end scenario; the true supply could be considerably lower. Even at that level—an amount they say could cover Manhattan’s Central Park to a depth of almost 400 feet—the researchers concluded it would not support a major long-term lunar settlement.

“I was very surprised that if you don’t do any recycling, then it’s about two years for a city of a million people, which is ludicrously short. You couldn’t even build the city in that time,” Elvis said.

Elvis says that if a lunar city of a million people could recycle water with the same efficiency as the International Space Station, with its 98% recovery rate, that would give the city at least 100 years of water.

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“That’s still not very much, given the investment in building it,” said Elvis.

While a large city may not be realistic, Elvis and McDowell say that doesn’t mean humans can’t live and work on the moon for a long time and achieve important scientific discoveries.

“If the settlement remains a ‘Moon Village’ at a population of about 1,000, comparable to the winter-over population of Antarctica, then we can be relatively carefree in our use of lunar water,” they wrote in their report. “If the population reaches 100,000, then we need to start being careful.”

The scientists say there are potential ways to overcome the limited water supply and build larger cities on the moon.

More efficient recycling could extend the lifespan of a million-person city, although they say “that goal will be hard to reach and to maintain.” The duo says techniques like vertical farming and switching to a low- or no-meat diet could reduce water use. They say water could also be imported from other places, such as an asteroid. And while their estimate of a billion tons of water is much higher than what’s believed to exist, Elvis and McDowell say finding additional water could extend a large city’s lifespan.

“The limits to lunar society are power is really challenging and water is absolutely, limiting,” said McDowell.

Elvis says the goal of the research is not “to put a damper on anyone’s dreams” but to provide a reality check about the challenges of building large lunar settlements. He says he hopes that their analysis will encourage people to ask questions about what’s possible and come up with solutions.

Elvis and McDowell are also encouraging countries to cooperate in managing the moon’s limited water resources, rather than trying to secure what water exists for themselves.

“Without cooperation between China and the U.S. or between the Artemis partners and the lunar research station partners, then the only thing that we have is a free-for-all, and I don’t think that’s a good solution,” said Elvis.