Author: AFP
Senate Democrats accused US President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance of siding with Russian President Vladimir Putin after they berated Ukraine’s leader Volodymyr Zelensky in an extraordinarily tense White House meeting on Friday. “Trump and Vance are doing Putin’s dirty work. Senate Democrats will never stop fighting for freedom and democracy,” Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer posted on social media.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Friday that the Israel-Hamas ceasefire and hostage deal “must hold”, with just hours to go before an initial phase expires. His comments came after Palestinian resistance group Hamas called for international pressure on Israel to enter the next phase of the ceasefire, as negotiations were resuming in Cairo. The truce’s first phase is due to expire Saturday morning, after largely halting more than 15 months of bombardment and fighting in the Gaza Strip between Israel and Hamas. “The ceasefire and hostage release deal must hold. The coming days are critical. The parties must spare…
Saudi Arabia on Friday opposed the formation of entities and parallel governments in Sudan, calling any such move “unlawful.” On Feb. 22, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and allied armed groups signed “a political charter” in Kenya to form a parallel government. The Sudanese government protested Kenya’s hosting of what it called a “conspiracy to establish a government” for the RSF. In a statement, the Saudi Foreign Ministry affirmed the kingdom’s “rejection of any unlawful measures taken outside the framework of Sudan’s official institutions, including the formation of a parallel government.” It stressed that such actions “undermine Sudan’s unity…
Volodymyr Zelensky and Donald Trump openly clashed in the White House on Friday at a meeting where they were due to sign a deal on sharing Ukraine’s mineral riches and discuss a peace deal with Russia. “You’re not acting at all thankful. It’s not a nice thing,” the US president said. “It’s going to be very hard to do business like this,” he added.
At least 70 people have died from cholera and more than 2,200 have been infected in southern Sudan over the past week, Save the Children said Thursday, citing health ministry data. The outbreak White Nile state capital Kosti, followed a reported drone strike on the Um Dabakar power station, 275 kilometres (170 miles) south of Khartoum, which disrupted access to clean water. It comes as Sudan’s healthcare system, crippled by a brutal civil war nearing its second year, struggles amid tens of thousands killed and over 12 million displaced. “More than 2,200 people, including children, are now battling the deadly…
Israel is to impose restrictions on movement during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, when hundreds of thousands normally visit Jerusalem to pray, government spokesman David Mencer said on Thursday. “The usual restrictions for public safety will be in place as they have been every year,” Mencer told a press briefing. The restrictions will target “people seeking to foment violence and attacks” but “all peaceful visitors” will be allowed access to religious sites, he said. Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem is home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, Islam’s third-holiest site and a symbol of Palestinian national identity, where clashes often erupt between…
French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou said Thursday he wants defence spending excluded from EU spending rules, in an interview with the daily Figaro. European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said earlier this month that the EU would suspend public spending rules to ramp up defence investments as the US commitment to European security has come under question. EU members are bound by spending rules obliging them to keep the public deficit below three percent of economic output and debt at 60 percent of GDP. But the EU can suspend the rules in exceptional circumstances and crises, as it did…
An internal probe into Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack released on Thursday acknowledged the Israeli military’s “complete failure” to prevent the assault, which killed hundreds of Israelis, a military official said. “October 7 was a complete failure, the IDF (military) failed in fulfilling its mission to protect Israeli civilians,” the official said on condition of anonymity, adding: “Too many died that day asking themselves in their hearts or out loud, where was the IDF.”
The Kremlin on Thursday ruled out giving back Ukrainian regions it claims to have annexed as part of a future peace deal, setting out a major red line as Russian and US officials met in Istanbul for a new round of talks to normalise relations. US President Donald Trump has pushed for a quick end to the three-year conflict since taking office last month, reaching out to Russian President Vladimir Putin in a stunning shift in US foreign policy. The Istanbul talks come after a high-level meeting in Saudi Arabia earlier this month, and aim at restoring diplomatic ties after…
More than 200 Italian Jews have signed an appeal against “ethnic cleansing” in the Palestinian territories, provoking strong media reaction. Writers, academics, philosophers and journalists were among the 220 signatories of the text, which was published in daily newspapers La Repubblica and Il Manifesto. It claimed that US President Donald Trump “wants to expel Palestinians from Gaza. Meanwhile in the West Bank the violence of the Israeli government and settlers continues”. “Italian Jews say no to ethnic cleansing. Italy must not be an accomplice,” they added. The call aims to “bring out a clear and strong Jewish voice of disapproval”,…