Donald Trump has labelled Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps a terrorist organisation in an unprecedented move that could have lasting consequences for the United States. The president declared for the first time in history that another government entity was a terror group, potentially making it more difficult for American diplomats and other officials working in the region. The move arrives a day after the president accepted of Homeland Security secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, with whom he has repeatedly clashed over his administration’s more hardline immigration policies, as he seeks more drastic action to address the “crisis” at the US southern border.Ms Nielsen’s departure on Sunday was followed by the resignation of Randolph Alles, who was in charge of the Secret Service but had apparently fallen out of Mr Trump’s good graces weeks ago.Those two resignations were expected to be followed by more departures in the Department of Homeland Security in the days or weeks to come as a part of a phase that some in the media have begun to call a purge.Also in the news was Devin Nunes, the ranking Republican on the House Intelligence Committee, who made eight criminal referrals to the attorney-general, William Barr, over the leaking of Mr Trump’s phone calls with ex-Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull and former Mexican president Enrique Pena Nieto and national security adviser Michael Flynn’s calls to a Russian ambassador.Coming up this week, attorney general William Barr is slated to testify before both the House and the Senate on his department’s budget for the coming year.But, that testimony is likely to veer of track a bit as democrats grill him about the contents of the Mueller report, which he received last month.Mr Barr as pledged to send the report to Congress in the coming weeks, but it remains to be seen just how much of the report might be redacted.Please allow a moment for our liveblog to load
