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President Volodymyr Zelensky cast doubt Wednesday on NATO’s ability to guarantee Ukraine’s security but praised Donald Trump after the US president unexpectedly flip-flopped to say he thinks Russia can be defeated.Addressing the United Nations, Zelensky suggested that even NATO membership — which Trump has ruled out for Ukraine — might not be enough.”Because international institutions are too weak, this madness continues. Even being part of the long-standing military alliance doesn’t automatically mean you are safe,” he told the UN General Assembly.But Zelensky praised Trump after their meeting Tuesday.”We had a good meeting with President Trump, and I also spoke with many other strong leaders, and together, we can change a lot,” he said. “Of course we are doing everything to make sure Europe truly helps and of course, we count on the United States.”Trump’s suggestion Tuesday that Kyiv could win, with support from the European Union and NATO, marked an extraordinary shift after months of saying Ukraine would not get back swaths of territory taken by Russia.Trump said Ukraine could regain all its land and suggested, without elaborating, that Kyiv could “maybe even go further than that!”The US leader’s comments marked the latest in a series of his policy switches on Ukraine, including a sudden pivot to peace talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin early this year that stunned allies.Washington’s top diplomat Marco Rubio met with his Russian opposite number Sergei Lavrov on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, although no details about their talks were immediately made available.- ‘Big fat missiles’ -Zelensky warned Wednesday that Europe could not afford to lose strategically located Moldova to Russian influence and let it follow Belarus and Georgia into Moscow’s orbit.”Russia’s trying to do to Moldova what Iran once did to Lebanon and the global response again, (is) not enough. We have already lost Georgia in Europe… and for many, many years, Belarus has also been moving toward dependence on Russia. Europe cannot afford to lose Moldova too,” he said at the UN General Assembly.Moldova, a former Soviet republic, goes to the polls on Sunday with pro-EU President Maia Sandu facing a barrage of deepfake videos and other disinformation linked to Russia.Zelensky also sounded the alarm over the development of autonomous drones and unmanned aerial vehicles capable of shooting down other drones and targeting critical infrastructure.”We are now living through the most destructive arms race in human history, because this time it includes artificial intelligence,” he said, adding that the only real security guarantees are “friends and weapons.””If the world can’t respond even to all threats, and if there is no strong platform for international security, will there be any peace left on earth?”The wartime leader, who has a packed itinerary of meetings with world leaders while in New York for the UN’s signature diplomatic week, stressed that Ukraine had been forced to ramp up its military production.”Ukraine doesn’t have the big fat missiles dictators love to show off in parades, but we do have drones that can fly up to 2,000, 3,000 kilometers.”We had no choice but to build them to protect our right to life.”

One person was killed and two were wounded in a shooting at a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in the US city of Dallas on Wednesday, officials said.The gunman, who opened fire on the ICE field office from the roof of an adjacent building, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, they said.FBI special agent Joe Rothrock told a press conference that the shooting was being investigated as an “act of targeted violence.””Early evidence that we’ve seen from rounds that were found near the suspected shooter contain messages that are anti-ICE in nature,” Rothrock said.ICE is the government agency chiefly responsible for carrying out President Donald Trump’s controversial campaign pledge to expel millions of undocumented migrants from the United States.FBI Director Kash Patel published a photo on X of five unspent bullets — one of which was marked with the words “ANTI-ICE” — and denounced what he called “despicable, politically motivated attacks against law enforcement.”Rothrock declined to confirm press reports that the three people who were shot were detainees but said “no members of law enforcement were hurt.”The ICE facility which came under attack processes detainees before they are transferred to a long-term detention center, according to US media reports.Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Vice President JD Vance condemned violence directed at ICE.”ICE law enforcement is facing unprecedented violence against them,” Noem said on X. “It must stop.””The obsessive attack on law enforcement, particularly ICE, must stop,” Vice President JD Vance said on the social media platform.After ICE immigration raids in Los Angeles spurred unrest and protests earlier this year, Trump dispatched the National Guard and US Marines to the California city.Another ICE facility in Texas was the target of an attack in July that left a police officer wounded in the neck.Ten people have been charged for their roles in the attack on the ICE center in the town of Alvarado.According to a criminal complaint, the assailants, dressed in black military-style clothing, shot fireworks at the ICE facility and spray-painted “Traitor” and “ICE Pig” on cars and a guard structure.The Alvarado incident came just days before a man armed with an assault rifle opened fire at a US Border Patrol facility in McAllen, Texas.The 27-year-old man fired dozens of rounds from an assault rifle at the entrance of the Border Patrol annex before being shot dead.Two police officers and a Border Patrol employee were injured.ICE’s role in the Trump crackdown has sparked widespread criticism over the organization’s use of heavily armed, masked agents to conduct raids in public places against suspected illegal migrants.

TV host Jimmy Kimmel defended free speech when he returned to US screens on Tuesday, calling government pressure on his late-night talk show “anti-American” as critics decried his suspension as an attack on constitutional rights.In his opening monologue, an emotional Kimmel praised the public outrage — which came from both left and right — over his suspension, as President Donald Trump once again threatened to sue ABC, the TV network that carries the show.”A government threat to silence a comedian the president doesn’t like is anti-American,” Kimmel said to wild applause.”Our government cannot be allowed to control what we do and do not say on television.”Kimmel, who frequently skewers Trump and his inner circle, raised the ire of conservatives last week when he said “the MAGA gang” was trying to exploit the college campus murder of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk.On Tuesday he struck a conciliatory note. “It was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man,” he said, his voice cracking.Kimmel’s suspension last week was praised by Trump and the 79-year-old Republican swiftly attacked ABC for allowing the comedian’s return.”I think we’re going to test ABC out on this. Let’s see how we do. Last time I went after them, they gave me $16 Million Dollars. This one sounds even more lucrative,” he wrote on social media shortly before the show aired.It was not immediately clear what legal grounds Trump might think he has.Previous suits against media firms — including the one against ABC — were largely viewed as meritless, but settled seemingly as a way to appease the president.Chuck Schumer, the senior Democratic senator, called the row “a test of democracy” and said Trump “wants to be king.””Trump seems to have this penchant — anyone he doesn’t agree with, he wants to shut up,” he said Wednesday. “That’s a dagger to the heart of America.”Audience members who had watched the Hollywood taping told AFP that Kimmel had struck the right tone.”He spoke really eloquently and he gave like a lot of love to everyone who’s been hurt,” said Katie Persico, 34.”I felt like I was part of history a little bit for free speech.”- Boycott -The latest bust-up between the Trump administration and critics in the media unfolded last week when Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr appeared to threaten the licenses of ABC affiliates broadcasting the show unless they demanded Kimmel’s removal.Two companies that own dozens of those affiliates — Nexstar and Sinclair — then announced they would be removing the show from their schedules, prompting Disney to suspend the show nationwide.Sinclair — which last week demanded Kimmel apologize to Kirk’s family and make a donation to his right-wing activist group Turning Point USA — said Monday that its affiliates would still not be broadcasting the show when it resumed.On Tuesday, Nexstar followed suit.This meant the show remained off the air in several of the largest US television markets, including Washington DC, New Orleans, Nashville and Seattle.Kimmel’s abrupt disappearance from the airwaves sparked fury in liberal circles, with opponents saying he had been targeted because of his criticism of Trump.Opponents saw it as the latest step in creeping government control of free speech, a right enshrined in the country’s constitution.Some on the political right were also uneasy, including Trump allies such as Senator Ted Cruz and firebrand broadcaster Tucker Carlson.Trump often complains about negative coverage of him, going so far last week as to call it “illegal,” and has sued several media organizations.Disney, which owns ABC, faced backlash after suspending Kimmel. A rash of consumer cancellations followed along with a wave of reproach from creators and Hollywood insiders over what many saw as a spineless response to government bullying.By Monday, Disney had backtracked, saying the suspension had been an effort to “avoid further inflaming a tense situation” but adding it would bring back the show after “thoughtful conversations with Jimmy.”

Iran’s president repeated Wednesday that his country is not seeking nuclear weapons, after military strikes by Israel and the United States earlier this year, and impending sanctions triggered by European powers.”I hereby declare once more before this assembly that Iran has never sought and will never seek to build a nuclear bomb,” President Masoud Pezeshkian told the United Nations General Assembly.”The one disturbing peace and stability in the region is Israel, but Iran is the one that gets punished,” he said.Iran has long contended that it is not seeking nuclear weapons, pointing to an edict by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and US intelligence has not concluded that the country has decided to build a nuclear weapon.But Israel, the United States and European countries have long been skeptical due to the country’s advanced nuclear work, believing it could quickly pursue a bomb if it so decided.Britain, France and Germany have moved to reimpose UN sanctions that had been suspended under a 2015 nuclear deal that was negotiated by the United States and then torn up by US President Donald Trump.The sanctions are set to go into effect on Saturday. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met Tuesday with his European counterparts, leading to no clear headway other than an agreement to keep talking.Pezeshkian accused the Europeans of bad faith, saying that Iran’s lack of cooperation was in response to Trump’s withdrawal from the nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).”They falsely presented themselves as parties of good standing to the agreement, and they disparaged Iran’s sincere efforts as insufficient,” Pezeshkian said.”All of this was in pursuit of nothing less than the destruction of the very JCPOA which they themselves had once held as a foremost achievement.”Standing at the General Assembly rostrum, Pezeshkian showed pictures of people killed in the Israeli military campaign against Iran, which Tehran says killed more than 1,000 people.”Aerial assaults of the Zionist regime and the United States of America against Iran’s cities, homes and infrastructure at the very time we were treading the path of diplomatic negotiations constituted a grave betrayal of diplomacy,” he said.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Wednesday that Washington is in talks with Argentina for a swap line allowing the country access to billions of dollars, as its right-wing leader Javier Milei seeks to calm markets ahead of midterm elections.After Bessent’s remarks, Argentina’s currency rose 2.4 percent to 1,333.90 pesos to the US dollar.”The Treasury is currently in negotiations with Argentine officials for a $20 billion swap line with the Central Bank,” Bessent said in a social media post, a day after he and President Donald Trump spoke with Milei.The United States is also ready to buy the country’s dollar bonds, Bessent added on X.Milei, a key Latin American ally of Trump, thanked the US president and Bessent for their “support and confidence.”Swap lines are transactions in which two central banks agree to swap their currencies at a set exchange rate for a specified period.Trump said Tuesday on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York that although the United States would help Argentina, “I don’t think they need a bailout.”The Argentine peso had fallen sharply after Milei’s party was beaten by the center-left Peronist movement in a Buenos Aires provincial election on September 7.The vote was seen as a litmus test for national legislative elections scheduled for October 26.Bessent added Wednesday that the US Treasury “stands ready to purchase Argentina’s USD bonds and will do so as conditions warrant,” among other measures.”As President Trump has stated, we stand ready to do what is needed to support Argentina,” he wrote.He said that the South American country “has the tools to defeat speculators, including those who seek to destabilize Argentina’s markets for political objectives.”Trump earlier said he was giving Milei his “full endorsement,” while Bessent said at the start of the week that “all options for stabilization are on the table.”But the Trump administration’s plans have also raised questions domestically. Senator Elizabeth Warren, the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, wrote a letter dated Monday to Bessent seeking further information about a potential “bailout” of Argentina.”It is deeply troubling that the president intends to use significant emergency funds to inflate the value of a foreign government’s currency and bolster its financial markets,” she said.Bessent shot back at Warren’s criticism, saying she and others “failed to act when presented with a historic opportunity to stabilize Latin America economically and geopolitically during the Obama years.”Free-marketeer Milei’s election was cheered by investors in 2023 but he has begun to hemorrhage support after two years of biting austerity and a corruption scandal involving his sister.

Iranian officials at the UN summit this week won’t be able to shop in New York after the US government barred them from purchasing everything from bulk household goods to expensive watches.The restrictions on the visiting Iranians were described by a State Department spokesman as “maximum pressure.””We will not allow the Iranian regime to allow its clerical elites to have a shopping spree in New York while the Iranian people endure poverty, crumbling infrastructure, and dire shortages of water and electricity,” Thomas Pigott said.The move restricts Iranian diplomats and other officials from visiting popular stores such as Costco, Sam’s Club and BJ’s Wholesale Club, according to a notice published in the Federal Register on Tuesday.The notice in the Federal Register also said Iranian officials would need to seek permission from the State Department to buy “luxury goods.”A range of items, including watches, electronics and fountain pens, were listed, with restrictions kicking in if they were valued at more than $1,000.Vehicles worth more than $60,000 were also listed as luxury goods.Iran’s economy has been hard hit by US sanctions, impacting imports of a range of goods and also Tehran’s ability to sell its oil and other exports abroad.US President Donald Trump has sought to cripple Iran’s nuclear program since taking office this year, ordering bomb and missile attacks on three nuclear sites in June.

TV host Jimmy Kimmel defended free speech when he returned to US screens on Tuesday, calling government pressure on his late-night talk show “anti-American” as critics decried his suspension as an attack on constitutional rights.In a lengthy opening monologue, an emotional Kimmel praised the public outrage — which came from both left and right — over his suspension, as President Donald Trump threatened to sue ABC, the TV network that carries the show.”A government threat to silence a comedian the president doesn’t like is anti-American,” Kimmel said to wild applause.”Our government cannot be allowed to control what we do and do not say on television.”Kimmel, who frequently skewers Trump and his inner circle, raised the ire of conservatives last week when he said “the MAGA gang” was trying to exploit the college campus murder of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk.On Tuesday he struck a conciliatory note. “It was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man,” he said, his voice cracking.”Nor was it my intention to blame any specific group for the actions of what it was obviously a deeply disturbed individual.”Kimmel’s suspension last week had sparked glee for Trump, who has long hated the mockery he suffers at the hands of late night comedians.Hours before the show’s reappearance, the 79-year-old took to social media to complain — and threaten ABC.”Why would they want someone back who does so poorly, who’s not funny, and who puts the Network in jeopardy by playing 99% positive Democrat GARBAGE?” he wrote.”I think we’re going to test ABC out on this. Let’s see how we do. Last time I went after them, they gave me $16 Million Dollars. This one sounds even more lucrative.”It was not immediately clear what legal grounds Trump might think he has.Previous suits against media firms — including the one against ABC — were largely viewed as meritless, but settled seemingly as a way to appease the often-vengeful president.Audience members who had watched the Hollywood taping told AFP Kimmel had struck the right tone.”It was great. It really was. He was humble, funny, and just very genuine. His delivery was on point, heartfelt… And it was very genuine,” said Dana Lotkowski, 62, who flew in from Philadelphia for the show.”He spoke really eloquently and he gave like a lot of love to everyone who’s been hurt,” said Katie Persico, 34.”I felt like I was part of history a little bit for free speech.”- Boycott -The latest bust-up between the Trump administration and critics in the media unfolded last week when Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr appeared to threaten the licenses of ABC affiliates broadcasting the show unless they demanded Kimmel’s removal.Two companies that own dozens of those affiliates — Nexstar and Sinclair — then announced they would be removing the show from their schedules, prompting Disney to suspend the show nationwide.Sinclair — which last week demanded Kimmel apologize to Kirk’s family and make a donation to his right-wing activist group Turning Point USA — said Monday its affiliates would not be broadcasting the show when it resumed.On Tuesday, Nexstar followed suit.The show remained off the air in several of the largest US TV markets because of the boycott.Affected cities included Washington DC, New Orleans, Nashville and Seattle.Kimmel’s abrupt disappearance from the airwaves sparked fury in liberal circles, with opponents saying he had been targeted because he is critical of Trump.Opponents saw it as the latest step in creeping government control of free speech, which is a right enshrined in the country’s constitution.Some on the political right were also uneasy, including Trump allies such as conservative senator Ted Cruz and firebrand broadcaster Tucker Carlson.Trump often complains about negative coverage of him, going so far last week as to call it “illegal,” and has sued several media organizations.Disney, which owns ABC faced backlash after suspending Kimmel, with a rash of consumer cancellations and a wave of reproach from creators and Hollywood insiders over what many saw as a spineless response to government bullying.By Monday, Disney had backtracked, saying the suspension had been an effort to “avoid further inflaming a tense situation at an emotional moment for our country” and calling Kimmel’s comments “ill-timed and thus insensitive.”But it said it was bringing the show back after days of “thoughtful conversations with Jimmy.”

US President Donald Trump lashed out Tuesday hours before Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night talk show was due to be back on the air in the United States, insulting the host, and threatening to “test ABC” over the move.Kimmel’s show returns Tuesday night after a week-long hiatus following government pressure on broadcasters that critics said amounted to a chill on free speech.However, two powerful companies that own dozens of ABC affiliates have said they will continue their boycott, giving viewers “other programming relevant to their respective markets.”Trump took to his Truth Social platform to insult Kimmel and accuse broadcaster ABC of “playing 99% positive Democrat GARBAGE.” The 79-year-old Republican added: “I think we’re going to test ABC out on this. Let’s see how we do. Last time I went after them, they gave me $16 million dollars.”ABC agreed in December to donate $15 million to Trump’s eventual presidential library to settle a defamation suit instead of fighting it out in court.A separate $16 million settlement was paid by CBS’s parent company, Paramount Global, to settle a different lawsuit over an interview with former vice president Kamala Harris.All eyes will be on Kimmel’s popular opening monologue Tuesday night, in which the comedian is expected to address his suspension, which came after comments he made in the wake of the killing of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk.”I don’t want him to apologize as soon as he comes in,” 18-year-old Paul Dorner told AFP as he waited for a seat in the show’s audience.”I would love for him to just put up a fight and stand up for what he thinks.”Rogelio Nunez, 38, said he had traveled from San Diego for the taping in the heart of Hollywood.”We need to make sure that we’re not being censored,” he said.”So besides just coming for entertainment, I think it’s important to protect our rights.”- ‘The MAGA gang’ -Kimmel, who frequently skewers Trump and his inner circle, raised the ire of conservatives last week when he said “the MAGA gang” was trying to exploit Kirk’s college campus murder for their own political gain.Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr appeared to threaten the licenses of ABC affiliates broadcasting the show unless they demanded Kimmel’s removal — something Trump himself has frequently called for.Two companies that own dozens of those affiliates — Nexstar and Sinclair — then announced they would be removing the show from their schedules, prompting Disney to suspend the show nationwide.Sinclair — which last week demanded Kimmel apologize to Kirk’s family and make a donation to his right-wing activist group Turning Point USA — said Monday its affiliates would not be broadcasting the show when it resumed.On Tuesday, Nexstar followed suit.”We made a decision last week to preempt ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’… We stand by that decision pending assurance that all parties are committed to fostering an environment of respectful, constructive dialogue in the markets we serve,” the company said.Kimmel’s abrupt disappearance from the airwaves sparked fury in liberal circles, with opponents saying he had been targeted because he is critical of Trump.Opponents saw it as the latest step in creeping government control of free speech, which is an article of faith for many Americans, as well as a right enshrined in the country’s constitution.Some on the political right were also uneasy, including those who regularly count themselves as Trump allies, like conservative senator Ted Cruz, and firebrand broadcaster Tucker Carlson.Trump often complains about negative coverage of him, going so far last week as to call it “illegal,” and has sued several media organizations.Disney’s ABC has already settled a lawsuit filed by the president, pledging a multi-million dollar sum in a move that observers said appeared to be an attempt to get the often-vengeful 79-year-old off its back.The company faced backlash after suspending Kimmel, with a rash of consumer cancellations and a wave of reproach from creators and Hollywood insiders over what many saw as a spineless response to government bullying.By Monday Disney had backtracked, saying the suspension had been an effort to “avoid further inflaming a tense situation at an emotional moment for our country” and calling Kimmel’s comments “ill-timed and thus insensitive.”But it said it was bringing the show back after days of “thoughtful conversations with Jimmy.”Actor Glen Powell and singer Sarah McLachlan were expected to appear on Tuesday night’s show.Kimmel has made no public comment about the episode, but on Tuesday posted a photo on Instagram of himself with late producer Norman Lear — who was known for his advocacy of free speech — with the caption: “Missing this guy today.”

On a bright September morning, employees stream through the turnstiles and vast lobby of Goldman Sachs’ headquarters in the sunlit Battery Park City neighborhood of Manhattan.More than 9,000 people work at the investment bank’s New York head office.And hundreds of them depend on the H-1B skilled worker visa, recently targeted by the Trump administration for a dramatic overhaul.A September 19 order by President Donald Trump mandates $100,000 payments from companies for every new hire through the program.Though the major impact will be on the tech sector — the largest source of H-1B hiring — financial companies like Goldman Sachs will also be forced to re-evaluate their practice of hiring from abroad.- Concentration in New YorkIn the first two quarters of 2025, Goldman Sachs was the biggest recipient of H-1B visas in New York City. The Big Apple was, in turn, the single location with the most H-1B recipients in all of the United States.Aggregated at the state level, California and Texas both attract more H-1B visa holders than the state of New York; but there is no one city or town in either of these states that boasts a higher number of H-1B holders than the east coast metropolis.This concentration of H-1B visas in New York is driven by hiring at Wall Street’s financial giants.Data from US Citizenship and Immigration Services analyzed by AFP shows that four of the top five H-1B visa recipients in New York City are financial services companies: the investment banks Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and Citigroup, and financial data company Bloomberg. The other company in the top five is the consulting and professional services firm McKinsey.Further down the list, and outside of the finance sector, universities such as Columbia and NYU and medical institutions like the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Weil Cornell Medical College also brought a number of H-1B hires to the city.- Negative impactsAccording to 2025 data, H-1B positions filled by the banks skewed towards the more technical side of the finance industry, with many visa holders working in software engineering, quantitative analytics, and data science.Goldman Sachs did not respond to emailed questions asking how a $100,000 price tag would impact their ability to hire for such roles in the future. Contacted by AFP with similar questions, Bloomberg and Citigroup declined to comment.In general, experts believe the fee will lead to a large reduction in applications for the visa scheme, which could have further negative impacts on the economy.”A visa fee of this scale is likely to drastically curtail the use of H-1B visas,” Ethan G. Lewis, Professor of Economics at Dartmouth College, told AFP.”It will lead to reduced hires of US workers and slower productivity growth, and, longer term, discourage people [from other countries] from going to college and beyond in the US, because many tend to rely on H-1B visas for their first job out of studies.”In the tech industry the announcement of the visa fee has caused consternation, with many entrepreneurs — among them Trump’s ally Elon Musk — warning that the US will not be able to fill highly skilled roles with only homegrown talent.Others have speculated that, rather than being offered to American workers, some jobs will simply be outsourced overseas.

The fires that tore through Los Angeles nine months ago didn’t destroy Karen Girard’s home. But the smokeleft her walls, floors and furniture infused with a toxic cocktail.Tests have found heavy metals like lead, arsenic, and zinc, as well as volatile organic compounds like cyanide and furfural that have left her home uninhabitable.When the flames razed neighboring houses in January during a terrifying firestorm in Altadena, Girard was astonished to learn her property was spared.”I thought I should go out and buy lottery tickets, because I never thought I would be this lucky again,” she told AFP.But even after only short visits Girard finds herself suffering from increasing asthma attacks.Tests revealed problems she couldn’t see — things she says mean the house is no longer safe.”I realized that even though the home was still standing, it might be lost to me,” the 58-year-old designer said.- Unseen disaster – The wildfires that ravaged the Los Angeles area in January killed 31 people directly, and razed more than 16,000 buildings, tearing a swathe through the working- and middle-class neighborhood of Altadena and the upmarket enclave of Pacific Palisades.Horrifying pictures of a burned out landscape were broadcast around the world, showing acres (hectares) of almost unimaginable devastation, in one of the most expensive natural disasters the world has ever seen.But among the embers smoldered another, less-visible disaster: the pollution released when homes, cars, televisions, household goods and batteries burned.Driven by gusts reaching 100 miles (160 kilometers) and hour, this poisonous soup seeped under neighbors’ doors and through vents. “The potential toxicity of the mixture that came off these fires is probably much greater than what we saw in other major fires we’ve experienced in the US, because those fires did not affect as many urban structures,” explained Michael Jerrett, a professor of environmental science at the University of California Los Angeles. His team tested the atmosphere in affected communities this spring and found abnormal levels of hexavalent chromium, a carcinogen.Nanoparticles could have been transported up to six miles, potentially affecting tens of thousands of people, he says.”They are so small that they’re capable of penetrating the indoor environment with high efficiency.””It’s really important that people trying to move back into their homes have them properly remediated.”But getting insurance companies to pay up has proven complicated.Girard says she is stuck in a battle between experts, with the damage restoration company she hired recommending replacing all her furniture, and even treating the frame of her house.The firm hired by her insurance company, however, insists that a vacuum cleaner equipped with a filter to capture fine particles will be enough to make the place habitable. – Insurers – To Girard it seems like the company is prioritizing profit over her wellbeing.”While it feels like business to them, it doesn’t feel like business to me,” she said.”This is my home. This is a place that I’ve lived for a couple of decades, and it is a place I desperately want to come home to.”Girard’s insurer, Farmers, told AFP: “We continue to work with our customer to resolve this claim and remain willing to review any additional information they may wish to provide.”The problem when dealing with insurance companies — a frequent topic of complaint in high-cost California, even without a major disaster — is that they appear to be a law unto themselves, says Jane Lawton, founder of the Eaton Fire Residents United association.”There are no clear standards on (smoke claims), so insurance companies can deny what they want,” she said.Her organization has mapped more than 200 tests conducted on homes in Altadena. All show varying degrees of contamination. “This is going to be like 9/11,” said Lawton, referencing the 2001 attack in New York where people in a wide area around the World Trade Center suffered from chronic respiratory illnesses and elevated rates of some cancers after the twin towers collapsed, releasing clouds of dust and debris. California’s largest insurer, State Farm, which has so far paid out $4.5 billion in relation to the fires, said it “evaluates each claim, including smoke claims, on a case-by-case basis.”But for Priscilla Munoz, they are dragging their feet.Munoz, who lives a mile from the disaster area, spent $10,000 on a study that found lead in her home and still doesn’t know if the insurer will pay to clean it up.”Lead… goes into things,” she says, worrying about her two young children and their plush toys. “I don’t want them snuggling up to a toxic stuffy.”