Southwest
Arizona man, originally from Cuba, becomes emotional at seeing the White House for the first time
“It’s a sign of, above all, freedom.”
Ever since Yoel Diaz moved to America from Cuba in 2021, his wife Marissa Diaz has been documenting his journey here in the United States.
She captured the emotional moment he received his first paycheck — and last month, she also grabbed his first trip to Washington, D.C., where he saw the White House.
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In a video, Yoel Diaz repeatedly says, “Wow,” as he sees the building for the first time.
Marissa Diaz captioned the video: “From dictatorship to democracy. It might house someone you don’t agree with, but the symbol of the White House means so much to many around the world, including my husband. His first time seeing the White House was emotional.”
“For those wondering,” she added, “Cuba has 65 years of dictatorship where Cubans have not been able to pick their president, hold free elections with different parties except the communist one, nor be allowed to peacefully protest their grievances to their government.”
The caption went on, “They have no idea where their president lives. They have no access to the national congress. They are subjected to what one ideology, one party and one person wants for 11 million people.”
After coming to America in 2021, Yoel Diaz, left, and his wife, Marissa Diaz, right, have been documenting his journey in the U.S., including his recent adventure to the White House. (Marissa Diaz)
The Tempe, Arizona, couple’s video has been viewed more than 55,000 times.
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“In Cuba, they teach us the USA is the enemy and the government is imperialist and the reason we are poor,” Yoel Diaz told Fox News Digital via text message.
Yoel Diaz moved to America in 2021 from Cuba. He currently holds a job in maintenance. (@mimaincuba)
“When I went and saw people protesting freely next to police, how beautiful the moments were and how nice the people were, I knew it was all a lie.”
He also said, “I couldn’t believe people could visit their representatives after a quick security pass … That to me was shocking. In Cuba, many times we don’t even know who our delegates are. That was so impressive.”
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While in Washington, D.C., the couple met Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar, R-Fla., and Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla., both Cuban Americans.
Yoel Diaz arrived in the U.S. in 2021 on a K1 visa and then applied for residency, a process that took about a year.
In a recent video, Yoel Diaz’s wife recorded her husband’s reaction to seeing the White House for the very first time. (@mimaincuba)
Once that was approved, he got a work authorization form and a Social Security number.
He and his wife were living with family until recently, when they finally were able to get their own place.
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“That was a really good step,” Marissa Diaz told Fox News Digital, adding that her husband has a job in maintenance at a residential company.
“He’s learning about that and trying to improve,” she said. “He wants to make his own company.”
Yoel Diaz says he has already accomplished many of his dreams since living a new life in America. In an Instagram video viewed more than 55,000 times, his reaction to seeing the White House for the first time is captured. (@mimaincuba)
Yoel Diaz said he’s already accomplished many of his dreams since living in America.
“Where I come from, they don’t let you dream. I didn’t know what it was to buy in a market, what it was to go on vacation in another country and what it was to go out with your friends without fear,” he said.
“Where I come from, they don’t let you dream.”
Little things that might seem insignificant to American-born people, he said, “are my American dream.”
Marissa Diaz wants her followers to know she is proud to be American.
Yoel Diaz said he has found that things that seem insignificant to so many are actually his “American dream.” (@mimaincuba)
“Sometimes it kind of seems in the U.S. being patriotic is a bad thing, it’s a negative thing to wave the flag around,” she said.
“I think that’s so unfortunate. America has so much to offer to everybody from all backgrounds and political thoughts,” she added.
Yoel Diaz first captured viral attention in 2022, after millions of people viewed his wife’s Instagram video showing him celebrating his “first American paycheck” when he was working as a UPS driver.
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Long Beach will hold a pride festival this weekend after the one they originally had scheduled was canceled.
Long Beach city officials said the celebration was nixed after the nonprofit that organizes it, Long Beach Pride, failed to submit the required information for an event permit.
It was supposed to start on Friday and last through Sunday.
“Despite continued collaboration and multiple deadline notices, the City did not receive the required documentation needed to complete safety reviews, inspect critical event infrastructure, such as the stage, electrical systems and tent, and emergency exiting plans to ensure compliance with public safety standards,” the city of Long Beach said in a statement. “With event programming scheduled to begin on May 15 at 5 p.m. with Teen Pride and essential information still outstanding, there is no longer sufficient time to safely permit the festival this year.”
Officials noted that they were working to see if a “shortened event” could be held this weekend, and indeed, an agreement was reached to stage a one-day gathering on Sunday.
Billed as “Canceled? Never Heard of Her!” and emceed by comedian and drag queen Jewels, it will still bring the city’s LGBTQ community together after Sunday morning’s Long Beach Pride Parade, which was not canceled.
“Long Beach Pride weekend is a culmination of celebrations put on by our community, including our many vibrant restaurants, bars and businesses, and that will never change,” Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson said in a press release issued late Saturday night. “Along with the Pride Parade, we are proud to join the party with this new event that reaffirms what this City has always stood for: that every person belongs here.”
“The festival may have been canceled, but Long Beach drag artists don’t cancel joy,” added Jewels Long Beach.
The one-day “Canceled? Never Heard of Her!” festival will take place at Bixby Park from noon to 7 p.m. Sunday. A free event, it will include music by several performers and a drag show.
More information can be found here.
Los Angeles, Ca
L.A. Jewish institution among targets of foiled terrorist attack, U.S. officials say
A Jewish institution in Los Angeles was among the locations targeted in a recently foiled terrorism plot, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Jay Clayton announced this week.
The thwarted terrorist attacks were the result of the recent arrest of Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, an Iraqi national and senior member of Kata’ib Hizballah, U.S. officials said.
“Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, a commander for the terrorist organization, Kata’ib Hizballah, faces serious charges for his role in numerous attacks against U.S. interests across the globe, including his efforts to kill on U.S. soil,” Clayton said. “As alleged, for years, Al-Saadi committed himself to furthering the terrorist goals of Kata’ib Hizballah and the IRGC, two terrorist organizations dedicated to harming the United States and its allies.”
Al-Saadi recently attempted to carry out attacks in the U.S., officials said, including attacks at Jewish cultural places of interest in New York, Los Angeles and Scottsdale, Ariz.
“Al-Saadi attempted to disrupt American society through intimidation and violence,” a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office reads. “… Those who engage in or support terrorism against Americans and on U.S. soil should take note: the whole of the federal government is committed to dismantling terrorist organizations and bringing their members to justice.”
In a three-month period, Al-Saadi allegedly directed 18 terrorist attacks throughout Europe, including bombings, arson, and assaults targeting American citizens and points of interest. Prior to his arrest, national security officials say he was planning similar attacks on U.S. soil. Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg said that Al-Saadi “presented a serious threat to our national security.”
The European attacks included the bombing of the Bank of New York Mellon, an American bank, in Amsterdam on March 15. On April 29, two Jewish men, one of whom was a dual U.S.-British citizen, were stabbed and seriously injured in London.
In 2020, Al-Saadi took to social media, calling for others to attack and kill Americans in retribution for the deaths of Iranian military officer Qasem Soleimani and Iraqi military commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, U.S. officials said. In more recent months, Al-Saadi allegedly used social media to encourage the killing of Americans and Jews to further the terrorist goals of Kata’ib Hizballah and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
“In or about February 2026, for example, AL-SAADI posted on one of his social media accounts a message in Arabic, which read in part, ‘Do not abandon the blood of your Imam of the time, oh Shiites of Iraq. Kill everyone who supports America and Israel. Do not leave any of them remaining. Civil and military targets, as well as voices of discord, kill them everywhere.’” U.S. officials said.
NYPD Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch confirmed that one of the U.S. targets was a Manhattan synagogue. On April 3, Al-Saadi allegedly spoke to an undercover law enforcement officer whom Al-Saadi believed could carry out attacks in the U.S. That same day, Al-Saadi allegedly texted the undercover officers photographs and maps showing the exact location of a prominent Jewish synagogue in New York City.
Officials have not said what specific locations in L.A. and Arizona were targeted by the terrorist group.
Al-Saadi now faces numerous charges for these crimes in U.S. court. If convicted, he could be sentenced to life in prison.
The case is under investigation by the FBI’s New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, which is comprised of investigators and analysts from the FBI, the NYPD, the FBI Washington Field Office, Counterterrorism Division, and more than 50 other federal, state, and local agencies. Investigators also received help from the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, Counterterrorism Section, the Office of International Affairs of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
A man armed with a knife was shot by L.A. police officers responding to an assault with a deadly weapon call overnight, authorities said.
According to the Los Angeles Police Department, officers with the Hollenbeck Division responded to an apartment complex in the 3000 block of Glenn Avenue in Boyle Heights at 1:45 a.m. Saturday after callers reported a male suspect was armed with a knife and had just assaulted someone in the complex.
Arriving officers found the suspect in front of the residence, but he did not comply with officers’ commands to drop the weapon. He then advanced toward the officers and an officer-involved shooting occurred, LAPD confirmed.
“The suspect was struck by gunfire and remained non-compliant,” the LAPD Public Information Officer said on X early Saturday morning. “Officers deployed a 40mm foam round and ultimately took the suspect into custody.”
Video obtained by KTLA shows the man being loaded into an ambulance and taken to a hospital; officials said he was transported in stable condition, adding that his knife was recovered at the scene and booked as evidence.
No officers or community members were injured during the incident. The man’s name was not released.
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