Foreign
Photos: Melania Trump shines in elegant outfit as netizens compare looks with Michael Jackson
Where in the world is Melania Trump? Back in Washington in a sharply tailored outfit that exudes international woman of mystery as her husband once again becomes president of the United States.
Wearing a long navy coat and matching wide-brimmed hat — which shielded her eyes in most photos and hindered her commander-in-chief husband’s attempts to give her a peck before his swearing-in — Melania’s fit drew snark on social media and a flurry of comparisons to a 1980s video game character.
“Where in the world is Carmen Sandiego?” quipped the internet, referring to the franchise that spun off into a popular 1990s geography game show for kids, and featured a criminal mastermind dressed in a long, carmine trench coat and eye-obscuring fedora.
Melania Trump’s coat and skirt were silk wool Adam Lippes, an independent American designer based in New York, an ensemble paired with an ivory blouse tightly wrapped at the Slovenian-born former model’s neck.
“The tradition of the presidential inauguration embodies the beauty of American democracy and today we had the honor to dress our first lady, Mrs. Melania Trump,” said Lippes in a statement that emphasized American manufacturing over political ideology.
“Mrs. Trump’s outfit was created by some of America’s finest craftsmen and I take great pride in showing such work to the world.”
The hat was by New York milliner Eric Javits.
“She cut the figure of a mafia widow or high-ranking member of an obscure religious order, and a bit of ‘My Fair Lady,’ wrote Rachel Tashjian, style critic for The Washington Post.
– ‘Armor’ –
American first ladies don’t get much of a voice — but their sartorial choices are broadcast to the world and scrutinized for subtext and statements.
The late Rosalynn Carter, for example, drew strong reactions by wearing a dress she had already worn — gasp! — when her husband Jimmy was inaugurated in 1977.
The point was to show empathy for the economic struggles of Americans — but sometimes what the people really want is aspirational glamour.
In recent years first ladies have routinely turned to independent designers for inaugural events: in 2021, Jill Biden wore a sparkling blue coat-and-dress combo by Markarian, a small brand in New York.
Michelle Obama made waves in 2009 in a lemon-colored outfit by Isabel Toledo, wearing Thom Browne at her husband’s second swearing-in. She wore gowns by Jason Wu to both series of inaugural balls.
Melania Trump, for her part, channeled Jackie Kennedy to kick off her first turn in the White House, wearing Ralph Lauren — a heritage-brand favorite on both sides of the political aisle — to the daytime events in 2017.
She swapped her powder-blue cashmere dress and matching asymmetrical bolero jacket with opera gloves for a silk crepe gown by Herve Pierre that year, both looks that signaled a sense of buoyancy as she began her new role as a political wife.
Her shadowy-chic 2025 look marks a sharp departure as she enters tenure two.
“For her second round as first lady, the fashion game — the tool she brandishes most often and most forcefully, even if the public sometimes struggles to divine her sartorial messages — is likely to be one of steely, precise armor, of clothes with brash and exacting tailoring,” wrote the Post’s Tashjian.
“For the past year, she has worn a wardrobe of mostly black, but this does not seem intended to make her disappear into the background.”
Michael Jackson comparison on social media
Melania’s latest outfit has sparked a flurry of reactions online, quickly going viral across social media platforms.
While some praised her bold fashion choice, others couldn’t resist drawing comparisons to the late Michael Jackson.
One X user humorously remarked, “Is it just me… or is Melania trying to imply that Trump is a ‘smooth criminal’ with this outfit choice?”
Echoing a similar sentiment, another user chimed in: “Melania is dressed like Michael Jackson, and she is killing it! Smooth criminal but more classy lol.”
Air defence systems intercepted rockets fired at the US embassy in Baghdad, security sources told AFP.
It is the first such attack on the embassy in Baghdad since the start of the war in the Middle East, triggered by a joint US-Israeli attack on Iran, into which Iraq has been dragged.
Loud bangs were heard on Saturday night in Baghdad, AFP journalists said, with a witness near the fortified Green Zone, which houses the US embassy, reporting seeing air defences activated over the area.
“Four rockets were launched… toward the embassy,” a security official said, adding that air defences intercepted three, while one fell in an open area in the embassy’s airbase.
Two other security sources confirmed the attack, with one saying that all rockets were downed, including the one that fell in the airbase.
Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, ordered security forces to find the perpetrators of “the terrorist act” against the US embassy.
He said that “targeting diplomatic missions and embassies operating in Iraq is an act that cannot be justified or accepted under any circumstances.”
Iraq, long a proxy battleground between the US and Iran, had said it did not want to be dragged into the conflict engulfing the Middle East, but it has not been spared.
It was drawn into the war from the outset, with strikes blamed on the United States and Israel targeting Iran-backed groups, which have since claimed attacks on US bases in Iraq and the region.
Drone and rocket attacks have targeted Baghdad International Airport, which houses a military base and a US diplomatic facility, as well as oil fields and facilities.
The northern autonomous Kurdistan region, which hosts US troops, has also been a main target of drone attacks that were largely intercepted.
Late on Saturday, an AFP journalist reported hearing the sound of a drone followed by at least three loud bangs in Kurdistan’s capital Erbil, which also houses a major US consulate complex.
Airstrikes
On Saturday, airstrikes hit military bases belonging to the former paramilitary coalition Hashed al-Shaabi in the northern Nineveh province, the government’s security media cell said.
One fighter was killed and three other wounded.
The Hashed al-Shaabi, or the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF), is an alliance of factions now integrated into the regular army, including several Iran-backed groups, which have a reputation for acting on their own.
Bases belonging to Hashed al-Shaabi have been hit several times since the start of the war.
The group’s media cell said Saturday’s strikes were carried out by “unidentified aircraft,” but a PMF official told AFP that “an airstrike, likely American, hit a Hashed base” near the city of Mosul.
Kurdish militants
Iraq’s Kurdistan also hosts camps and rear bases operated by several Iranian Kurdish rebel groups, which Iran has struck repeatedly since the start of the war.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said Saturday they have targeted “separatist groups” in Iraqi Kurdistan, after Tehran threatened to target “all the facilities” of Kurdistan if militants were allowed to enter the Islamic republic.
So far, no forces have entered Iran, Iraq’s border guards said.
The Iraqi government and the autonomous region said Friday that Iraq must not be a launchpad for attacks against neighbouring countries.
AFP
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday that Israel would continue its war with Iran “with all our force,” and alongside the United States had gained near-total control of the skies over Tehran after a week of strikes.
“We have a systematic plan to eradicate the Iranian regime and achieve many other objectives,” Netanyahu said in a televised address.
Israel and the United States launched the war against Iran with strikes on Tehran last Saturday that killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
“Citizens, you are telling me, the government, and our heroic soldiers to continue until victory, and I thank you. I can assure you that we will continue with all our force,” Netanyahu said.
The Israeli leader said that thanks to the bombing campaign by Israeli and American pilots, “we have gained almost complete control of the airspace” over Iran’s capital.
Speaking to the Iranian people, he said the “moment of truth” was coming as Israel was seeking to help liberate them from the “yoke of tyranny”.
He said that Israel had managed to “transform the Middle East” and shift the balance of power in the region.
Israel’s military said earlier that it had carried out around 3,400 strikes on Iran during the first week of the war, dropping roughly 7,500 munitions.
Meanwhile, a member of Iran’s Assembly of Experts said on Saturday that the body would meet within a day to choose the country’s next supreme leader, Iranian media reported.
“With divine assistance, this session will occur within the next twenty-four hours,” said Hossein Mozafari, one of the assembly’s 88 members, cited by the Fars news agency.
The statement came a week after the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a US-Israeli attack.
Mozafari also urged Iranians to “refrain from any speculation and the spreading of rumours regarding this matter” as the assembly has not yet convened for a session.
But the United States on Saturday condemned Iran’s drone strikes earlier this week on an Azerbaijan border region, describing the attack as a “needless escalation” of aggression by Tehran during the Middle East war.
The State Department said Thursday’s “unprovoked drone attack” targeted an airport and school in Azerbaijan’s exclave of Nakhchivan bordering Iran, and that innocent civilians were injured.
“These strikes are a flagrant violation of Azerbaijan’s sovereignty and a needless escalation of Iran’s aggression,” State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said in a statement, adding that attacks on American partners in the region “are unacceptable and will be met with resolute US support for those partners.”
AFP
A member of Iran’s Assembly of Experts said on Saturday that the body would meet within a day to choose the country’s next supreme leader, Iranian media reported.
“With divine assistance, this session will occur within the next twenty-four hours,” said Hossein Mozafari, one of the assembly’s 88 members, cited by the Fars news agency.
The statement came a week after the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a US-Israeli attack.
Mozafari also urged Iranians to “refrain from any speculation and the spreading of rumours regarding this matter” as the assembly hasdnot yet convened for a session.
Meanwhile, the United States on Saturday condemned Iran’s drone strikes earlier this week on an Azerbaijan border region, describing the attack as a “needless escalation” of aggression by Tehran during the Middle East war.
The State Department said Thursday’s “unprovoked drone attack” targeted an airport and school in Azerbaijan’s exclave of Nakhchivan bordering Iran, and that innocent civilians were injured.
“These strikes are a flagrant violation of Azerbaijan’s sovereignty and a needless escalation of Iran’s aggression,” State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said in a statement, adding that attacks on American partners in the region “are unacceptable and will be met with resolute US support for those partners.”
Similarly, explosions were heard on Saturday night in Iraq’s capital, Baghdad, and in the city of Erbil in the autonomous Kurdistan region, AFP journalists reported.
The cause of the loud bangs in Baghdad was still unknown, but a witness near the fortified Green Zone, which houses the US embassy, reported seeing air defences activated over the area.
Several drones have been intercepted near Baghdad airport since the start of the war in the Middle East.
In Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan region, an AFP journalist reported hearing the sound of a drone followed by at least three loud bangs.
Since the start of the war, drones have repeatedly been intercepted over the city of Erbil, which is also home to a major US consulate complex.
AFP
Bandits kill one, abduct five in night raid on Sokoto community
Woman killed, six injured as bus crashes in Lagos
Release El-Rufai or file charges — Datti-Ahmed warns FG
-
News18 hours agoFormer Lagos council chief arrested as NDLEA recovers illicit drugs in baby diapers+Photos
-
News18 hours agoPeter Obi moves to challenge Electoral Act, insisting there’s a grand plot to rig 2027 polls
-
News18 hours agoDespite apology, Iran’s missiles still hit Gulf cities
-
News18 hours ago*Hansatu Zannah Adds Voice To Gender Parity & Empowerment As Women Globally Commemorate 2026 Edition Of IWD*
-
News16 hours agoArmed men wearing hijabs invade Sokoto community
-
News58 minutes agoIran Names Khamenei’s Son As New Supreme Leader
-
News13 hours agoWife Drags Husband To Court For Not Sleeping With Her
-
Politics47 minutes agoIbadan convention: Appeal Court decides PDP’s fate today
You must be logged in to post a comment Login