Residents of Manhattan’s Chinatown have filed a lawsuit seeking to halt construction of a new “megajail” in their neighborhood, arguing that the project’s nearly nonstop noise over the next six years amounts to “inhumane and cruel” treatment.

The lawsuit, filed Wednesday, says construction on the 16-story “jailscraper” beside Manhattan Criminal Court on Centre Street has been running 18 hours a day on weekdays and eight hours a day on weekends since Oct. 12 under a newly expanded work schedule.

“Our culture believes in honoring our elders. Subjecting them to around-the-clock drilling and construction through their final years is inhumane and cruel,” said Vic Lee, founder and CEO of Welcome to Chinatown, the community organization supporting the case.

Lee said residents support closing Rikers Island, but warned that the transition should not force another marginalized community to endure serious harm.

The longer workweek is part of the city’s $16 billion effort to shut down Rikers and replace the island complex with five borough-based jails.

According to the Manhattan Supreme Court lawsuit, city officials say the extended construction hours could cut two years from the project’s timeline, allowing the Chinatown jail to be completed by 2032.

Residents counter that the impact on the surrounding community — including a nearby senior center — is too severe to ignore and should require the city to conduct a new environmental review.

“This new schedule represents more than a doubling of construction intensity as opposed to what was studied — and over twice as long a construction period,” the lawsuit alleges.

Many plaintiffs are older adults who say the construction has brought bright overnight lighting, relentless excavation noise, idling engines and clouds of dust into their daily lives.

The lawsuit says several residents have found the noise unbearable since the around-the-clock plan began 10 days ago, with weekday work scheduled from 6 a.m. until midnight.

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Filmmaker Jon Alpert, one of the plaintiffs, said the schedule has severely affected his health as he recovers from treatment for prostate cancer connected to his exposure during the Sept. 11 attacks.

The suit claims Alpert can no longer get a normal night’s sleep because “pounding” begins before sunrise, while several inches of construction dust have accumulated inside his Lafayette Street home.

Alpert, 77, said he has repeatedly raised his concerns with city officials and elected representatives, but “to no avail.”

Local City Councilmember Chris Marte accused City Hall of abandoning Chinatown.

“This unilateral move to work overnight and on weekends serves as the latest example of the City’s prioritization of a megajail over the health and safety of New Yorkers,” Marte said.

City officials said the noisiest tasks, including excavation, drilling and concrete placement, are scheduled between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m. on weekdays. The remaining hours, they said, are reserved for preparation work.

City Hall also pointed to independent environmental safeguards already operating at the site, including monitors tracking vibration, dust and noise, along with mufflers and sound blankets intended to reduce construction impacts.

“We will respond to these claims in court,” said mayoral spokesperson Sam Raskin. “The Mamdani administration is committed to meeting our moral and legal obligations to closing the jails on Rikers Island and transitioning to a safer, more humane borough-based correctional system.”

The City Council set a 2027 deadline for closing Rikers in 2019, but Mayor Zohran Mamdani acknowledged this summer that the target could not be met. The Post has also reported that the borough jail plan is already $8 billion over budget.

“We know that Mayor Mandani didn’t come up with this plan, but we hope he’ll fix it,” Lee said. “The City can close Rikers the right way.”

A Virginia man was arrested after police said he used a sledgehammer to remove the head of a Marine depicted in an Iwo Jima statue near Marine Corps Base Quantico. The alleged attack caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage to the historic military monument.

Prince William County police officers responded at approximately 10:13 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 21, after receiving a report of vandalism at the statue near Richmond Highway and Fuller Road in Quantico, Virginia.

Police identified the suspect as Miguel Alonso Maldonado Soriano, 27, of Stafford, Virginia. Officers allegedly found him striking the monument with a sledgehammer when they arrived.

Authorities said Maldonado Soriano was taken into custody after officers found extensive damage to the limestone sculpture, which honors one of the most enduring images in American military history.

The statue suffered the complete removal of one Marine’s head, as well as damage to other figures shown raising the American flag during the World War II Battle of Iwo Jima, police said.

Photos of the damaged monument show that the figure on the far right is missing its head. Another Marine has deep gouges across his helmet and face, police told News Media.

A third figure’s bayonet, attached to a firearm slung across his back, was also damaged. Police estimated repairs could cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Maldonado Soriano faces three charges: felony destruction of property, trespassing with intent to damage property and felony injury to a monument.

He remains held without bond. A court date has not been announced.

Authorities have not released a possible motive for the alleged vandalism and have not said whether the monument can be restored.

The damaged statue is a 9-foot limestone representation of the iconic flag-raising on Mount Suribachi during the 1945 Battle of Iwo Jima.

Felix de Weldon sculpted the monument. He later created the much larger bronze Marine Corps War Memorial in Arlington, Virginia.

The smaller Iwo Jima monument is located near the entrance to Marine Corps Base Quantico, close to the National Museum of the Marine Corps.

Quantico is a major Marine Corps installation in northern Virginia and has served for generations as a hub for military training and education.

In 2001, parts of the installation were added to the National Register of Historic Places as the Quantico Marine Corps Base Historic District. The district includes 122 buildings, two landscapes, a sculpture and a water tower.

The Prince of Wales made a surprise television appearance on a special Earthshot Prize edition of The Graham Norton Show.

Graham Norton was chatting with celebrity guests Cate Blanchett, Robert Irwin and Hannah Waddingham during the pre-recorded episode when William suddenly appeared as an unexpected guest.

The audience responded with cheers and gasps as William, who founded The Earthshot Prize in 2020, became the first royal to take a seat on Norton’s famous sofa.

The conversation centred largely on the work of The Earthshot Prize, but William also discussed his family’s enthusiasm for Celebrity Traitors, revealing that Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis are particularly keen viewers. He also spoke about his support for Aston Villa and his appreciation of Christopher Nolan’s films.

The episode, which includes a performance by singer Jorja Smith, will be broadcast on BBC One tomorrow at 10.40pm.

Before William’s arrival, Norton spoke with Blanchett, a member of the Earthshot Prize Council; Irwin, the organisation’s global ambassador; and Waddingham, who hosted the 2023 Earthshot Prize Awards in Singapore, about their involvement with the initiative.

Norton then pointed out that The Earthshot Prize was the link between all three guests, before using the moment to introduce William.

William is not the first royal to appear on a chat show. Princess Anne was a guest on The Wogan Show in 1985, while the late Prince Philip appeared on the programme the following year.

The Prince and Princess of Wales’s official Instagram account had hinted at the appearance by sharing a photograph of William sitting on the well-known sofa in a blue suit.

The post tagged both The Graham Norton Show and The Earthshot Prize, accompanied by two eye emojis.

William’s appearance came just days after his estranged brother, Harry, gave an interview to GQ.

During the 42-minute conversation, Harry said that repairing relations with his family was “the most important thing” to him. He also appeared to take a swipe at his brother, saying that “some people don’t want it to work out.”

The release of the interview prompted accusations that it had overshadowed an important occasion for the royal family, as they welcomed the Sultan of Oman to Windsor.

Early press materials offer no indication that William addressed those comments during the episode.

Instead, William was confirmed to have joined Norton to discuss how The Earthshot Prize began, as well as the need for urgency and optimism in the fight against climate change.

Asked how The Earthshot Prize came about, he explained: “For many years I was hearing stories about environment issues and one thing that struck me was the negativity and doom which got me down.”

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‘I thought we could do something more powerful and more optimistic and the idea of an awards’ ceremony came about and we could talk about urgency and optimism together. It’s all about getting excited.

‘There are some amazing people out there doing things to protect the world. We could really highlight what is being done and scale them to the next level to have more impact around the world.’

He also highlighted the Prize’s role in identifying and supporting innovators around the world and helping them scale solutions for greater impact. 

The Prince emphasised that climate change can not be tackled by a single person or initiative and explained why Earthshot can bring together a global coalition of innovators, investors and advocates. 

Blanchett called The Earthshot Prize a ‘tapestry of solutions’, while Waddingham highlighted the support offered to all Finalists and Earthshot’s ability to connect innovators with the expertise, networks and investment needed to grow their impact. 

Irwin spoke about Earthshot’s role in inspiring young people and building a new generation of environmental advocates.

Last week, William kicked off the countdown to the Prize in Mumbai on November 17 by playing cricket in The Mall with some of Britain’s and India’s cricketing legends.

William was joined by homegrown test captain Joe Root, India’s former national team captains Ajinkya Rahane and Sourav Ganguly, and West Indies hero Brian Lara.

Their verdict? William was a ‘pretty good batter’ whose ‘bowling needs a bit of work’.

And the scenery? ‘There are some wonderful backdrops in cricket, but none quite like Buckingham Palace,’ said Root.

England women’s captain Nat Sciver-Brunt, England white-ball captain Harry Brook and radio host Greg James also joined in the fun at the ‘Cricket on The Mall’. 

The Earthshot event in November will bring together more than 5,000 participants and will be streamed on Prime Video.

It is expected to reach the largest global audience in Earthshot’s history, with the event being streamed in more than 40 languages across 240 countries.

WASHINGTON — Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the Queens and Bronx Democrat, criticized members of her party for backing away from transgender issues while campaigning for Maine Senate candidate Troy Jackson. She also described herself as a “girls’ girl” during the event.

At a town hall in Portland, Maine, a student who identified as transgender accused Democrats of abandoning the transgender community. In response, Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., sharply rebuked fellow Democrats who have softened their positions.

“First and foremost, I want to just let you know how shameful and sorry I am that there are people out there that scare so easily after an election,” Ocasio-Cortez told the student.

“I think it’s what people hate most about politics, which is politicians who will jump on this side or that side of the line at a moment’s notice,” she said. “The moment you compromise the rights of a trans person in America, you compromise the rights of every citizen in America.”

Democrats have revisited their approach to transgender policy after Republicans attacked the party over transgender athletes competing in women’s sports and gender-transition procedures involving minors.

Ocasio-Cortez, who is viewed as a potential 2028 presidential candidate, removed she/her pronouns from her biography on X shortly after President Trump won the 2024 election.

“There’s plenty of people who may not understand or the conversation about gender may be very new to them, depending on who they are or where they live,” she said. “However, our basic rights shouldn’t have to matter.”

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“I don’t support the rights of trans people just to protect my own rights, but I support the rights of trans women because I’m a girl’s girl,” she added with a laugh.

The wide-ranging question-and-answer session was held with Jackson, but most audience members directed their questions to the “Squad” lawmaker rather than the Maine Senate hopeful.

At another point, Ocasio-Cortez condemned the Trump administration over the raid on the Washington, D.C., home of fellow “Squad” member Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., as part of an investigation into Omar’s citizenship status.

She urged Democrats to use congressional committees to intensify investigations into the Trump administration.

“We’ve known the Department of Justice has also been weaponized in its absolutely groundless indictments of everyone from Tish James to Jerome Powell and so on and so forth,” she said.

“Day one, we need to be opening investigations into the head of every single one of these agencies, and we need to hold them accountable. I’m talking subpoenas, I’m talking investigations,” she added. “Everyone must be held to the same standard and rule of law, and we will never get our country back.”

“If we allow criminals to have cabinet seats in the United States of America.”

French President Emmanuel Macron said Thursday that France would ban demonstrations organized by “individuals or groups with no legitimate authority,” blaming “ultra-left groups” for riots and looting that have swept parts of the country.

Macron spoke as thousands of people marched through Paris on Thursday, according to The Associated Press, ahead of larger protests planned across France this weekend.

“Last Saturday we had political and seditious acts by ultra-left groups whose aim is to bring down the Republic,” Macron said, according to Reuters, after meeting with intelligence officials.

Businesses in central Paris have begun boarding up windows amid fears of violence during Saturday’s demonstrations, Reuters reported. Authorities also told the news agency that planned protests in Lyon on Saturday had been prohibited.

Macron said authorities would prohibit protests organized by “individuals or groups with no legitimate authority” as part of the government’s approach in the days ahead.

“Where trade unions submit requests to hold demonstrations, prefects will examine them in accordance with the law, but alternative routes will be proposed” to safeguard city centers, businesses and public buildings, Macron said.

“The rules are simple, and I think they’re just common sense. The general recommendation is that there should be no demonstrations in the coming days,” he said. “For those who still want to protest, if they are trade unions, prefects will propose alternative routes.”

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Organizers of Thursday’s Paris protest said an administrative court overturned a police ban after they challenged it. The Paris police prefecture had argued that the restriction was necessary because of the threat of street violence, following clashes over the weekend between masked youths and police, along with reports of looted stores and burned vehicles.

The unrest began in September with protests calling for education reform before growing into broader anti-government demonstrations. French officials say far-left groups are driving the escalation.

Protesters gathered peacefully and chanted in southeastern Paris on Thursday as a large police presence monitored the demonstration, the AP reported.

Thursday’s rallies were viewed as a prelude to a larger demonstration Saturday. Activists from the “yellow vest” movement, whose protests over fuel prices shook France in 2018 and 2019, are expected to join members of the CGT labor union.