The US Postal Service (USPS) said Wednesday it would continue accepting packages from China and Hong Kong, hours after an order to suspend shipments over President Donald Trump’s new tariffs sparked fears of major trade disruptions.Tensions between the US and China have soared in recent days as the world’s two largest economies slapped a volley …
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Hamas said it would release three Israelis on Saturday in the fifth hostage-prisoner swap between the militants and Israel as part of a Gaza ceasefire deal, in exchange for 183 prisoners to be freed from Israeli jails.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said that after completing the swap, an Israeli delegation will head to Doha for further negotiations on the ceasefire.The latest exchange comes amid backlash over US President Donald Trump’s proposal for a US takeover of Gaza, which has triggered an uproar across the region and beyond.The three men set to be released on Saturday are Eli Sharabi, Or Levy, and Ohad Ben Ami, according to Hamas. Their names were confirmed by Netanyahu’s office.The Palestinian Prisoners’ Club advocacy group said Israel will free 183 prisoners in Saturday’s swap, 111 of whom were Gazans detained after Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack that sparked the war.After sparking widespread condemnation with his comments earlier in the week, Trump told reporters at the White House on Friday that he was in no hurry to advance his controversial plan for Gaza.The plan proposes relocating Gaza’s Palestinian inhabitants out of the territory and placing the war-battered coastal region under US control.”There’s absolutely no rush,” Trump said during his meeting with visiting Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.Since his initial declaration, Israel has ordered its military to prepare for the “voluntary” relocation of Gazans, while Hamas has rejected Trump’s plan as “absolutely unacceptable.”Israel and Hamas have completed four swaps under the first stage of the ceasefire agreement.Palestinian militants have so far freed 18 hostages in exchange for around 600 Palestinian prisoners released from Israeli jails.The ceasefire, mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the United States, aims to secure the release of 33 hostages during the first 42-day phase of the agreement.- Backlash -Freed Israeli hostage, Yarden Bibas, issued a plea to Netanyahu, urging him to bring back his wife and two children still held in Gaza.”Prime Minister Netanyahu, I’m now addressing you with my own words… bring my family back, bring my friends back, bring everyone home,” Bibas said in his first public message following his release.Hamas previously said his wife and two sons — the youngest hostages — were dead, but Israel has not confirmed their deaths.In an interview given to Israeli broadcaster Channel 14, Netanyahu said that it was his “goal to realise” the first stage of the ceasefire.”As for the next phase, it is much more complex but I am hopeful that we’ll be able to achieve it,” he said.His office said later on Friday that an Israeli delegation will depart to Doha after completing Saturday’s swap.Despite an international backlash — and initial backtracking by members of his administration — Trump had doubled down on his statement earlier this week.”The Gaza Strip would be turned over to the United States by Israel at the conclusion of fighting,” he posted on his Truth Social platform on Thursday.”No soldiers by the US would be needed! Stability for the region would reign!!!”After Trump first floated the idea, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said he had ordered the military to prepare a plan to allow the “voluntary departure” of Gazans “to any country willing to accept them”.Israel’s military said Friday the head of the US Central Command, General Michael Kurilla, met Israeli army chief Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi this week for talks on the “regional strategic situation”.- ‘Unacceptable’ -Netanyahu also voiced support for Trump’s plan, announced at a joint press conference, calling it “the first original idea to be raised in years”.However, Hamas condemned the remarks as “absolutely unacceptable”.”Trump’s remarks about Washington taking control of Gaza amount to an open declaration of intent to occupy the territory,” Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said.”Gaza is for its people and they will not leave.”Mediator Egypt has also warned that Israeli support for Trump’s plan “weakens and destroys the negotiations on a ceasefire agreement and incites a return to fighting”.The second stage of the ceasefire aims to secure the release of more hostages and pave the way for a permanent end to the war, which began on October 7, 2023 with Hamas’s unprecedented attack on Israel.During the attack, militants took 251 hostages to Gaza. Seventy-six remain in captivity, including 34 whom the Israeli military says are dead.Israel’s retaliation has killed at least 47,583 people in Gaza, the majority civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry. The United Nations considers the figures reliable.
In America’s largest Arab enclave, where frustration with President Joe Biden’s Gaza policy led many to back Donald Trump, anger is now growing over the president’s explosive proposal to take control of the Palestinian territory.But Dearborn voters say their only viable option in 2024 was to punish Democrats, leveraging their influence as a minority community on their core issue.”I do not regret my vote,” said Samra’a Luqman, a political activist in this Detroit suburb of 110,000, where most residents have Middle Eastern or North African heritage.Previously a Democratic stronghold, Dearborn saw Trump win 42.5 percent of the vote in November, followed by Kamala Harris at 36.3 percent and Green Party candidate Jill Stein at 18.3 percent.Some Democratic critics claim the community helped deliver Michigan to Trump, despite his decisive 80,000-vote margin — a gap too large to be attributed solely to shifts within the relatively small Arab and Muslim electorate. Moreover, Trump carried all seven swing states.”We’ve seen the great march of return, emotions I can’t even describe,” said 42-year-old Luqman, describing the overwhelming joy of displaced Palestinians finally returning home despite the devastation. She credited Trump for making the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas possible.- Trump’s promises -Yet Luqman and other Trump voters insist they strongly oppose the Republican’s idea of displacing the nearly two million Gazans from their homeland and remain committed to holding both US political parties accountable in future elections.”That’s not something we will stand for,” said Faye Nemer, 39, a prominent businesswoman who lost relatives in Israel’s recent attacks on Lebanon. “Palestine is a red line for the community.”Nemer said the community met with high-level Democrats and Republicans before deciding whom to support.Trump visited Dearborn, while Harris did not, touring the state instead with Liz Cheney, who many Americans consider a war hawk.Nemer, who helped organize a lunch for Trump at a local restaurant, said he pledged support for peace and a two-state solution — an assurance that swayed many voters. She remains “very optimistic” he will ultimately deliver.Bishara Bahbah, a prominent Trump supporter celebrating in Dearborn on election night, is also confident in Trump’s broader vision for Middle East diplomacy.”The president wants to see peace in the Middle East that satisfies all parties,” he told AFP, insisting Trump was speaking “hypothetically rather than realistically” about displacing Gazans.Bahbah chairs the group formerly known as “Arab Americans for Trump,” recently renamed “Arab Americans for Peace” — a change he says reflects the post-election shift rather than any reaction to Trump’s policies.- Silence from mayors -Trump also secured endorsements from Arab American mayors Bill Bazzi of Dearborn Heights and Amer Ghalib of Hamtramck, although neither responded to requests for comment. Bazzi did speak to AFP on election night, celebrating Trump’s win.For local news publisher Osama Siblani, 70, their silence may stem from embarrassment.”They have nothing to say, but they have to answer to their constituents,” he said, noting that both mayors face re-election in 2025.”Trump came here and he lied. He said, ‘I’m going to spread peace and love in the region and in the world.’ And as soon as he got in, he wants to take Canada, he wants to take Greenland, he wants to take Panama, he wants to take Gaza.”Still, Siblani believes Democrats are to blame for their losses, pointing out that his newspaper, The Arab American News, endorsed neither candidate.”We are not responsible for this outcome; our price was low,” said comedian and lawyer Amer Zahr, 47, who voted for Stein.Zahr argued that Harris could have secured Arab American support simply by signaling openness to an arms embargo on Israel.Instead, Democrats’ condemnation of Trump’s proposals and newfound willingness to talk about “ethnic cleansing” only “validates” the community’s choices by proving the party can be nudged in the right direction with the right incentives, he said.Luqman, who leans strongly left on issues like the environment and abortion, acknowledged the difficult choice many faced.”A lot of people held their nose and voted who did not want to vote Republican but did it anyway, and are now open to either party,” she said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave US President Donald Trump a golden pager during their meeting at the White House this week, in a symbolic gesture marking Israel’s shocking attack on Hezbollah last year.The gift symbolises “a turning point in the war” against Hezbollah, when Israel carried out a deadly operation against the Lebanese group using exploding pagers in September 2024, Netanyahu’s office said in a statement.”This strategic operation showcases Israel’s strength, technological superiority, and ingenuity against its enemies,” it said on Thursday.Israel shocked Hezbollah with the attacks, in which exploding pagers and walkie-talkies killed dozens of fighters and wounded thousands, according to Lebanese authorities.In late September, Israel launched a ground invasion of southern Lebanon, aiming to push Hezbollah back from the border.In late November, Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire, putting an end to more than a year of hostilities that culminated in a blistering Israeli bombing campaign and invasion of southern Lebanon.However, Israeli troops are still operating in some parts of the neighbouring country.The three-month period to implement the ceasefire expired on January 26, with the Israeli army missing a deadline to complete its troop withdrawal from southern Lebanon.Israel had made it clear that it had no intention of meeting the initial deadline, arguing that the Lebanese army had not fulfilled its end of the agreement.It has also continued to launch occasional air strikes there, and now has until February 18 to withdraw.
US and European shares fell Friday, with a cooler US jobs report and higher inflation expectations capping the end of a volatile week marked by concerns over a trade war.Official data showed the United States added fewer jobs than expected in January while unemployment ticked down.The jobs data missed expectations, but Wall Street’s three main …
The International Criminal Court on Friday condemned US sanctions over probes targeting America and Israel and pledged to press on with its aim to fight for “justice and hope” around the world.The United Nations and the European Union urged US President Donald Trump to reverse the asset freezes and travel bans against ICC officials, employees and their families and anyone deemed to have helped ICC investigations.US allies, including Britain, France and Canada, were among 79 ICC member states who said the US action “could jeopardize” the safety of victims, witnesses and court officials. The sanctions could also hit the court’s technical and IT operations, including evidence gathering. There were also fears that victims might now hesitate to come forward.Trump signed an executive order Thursday saying the court based in The Hague had “abused its power” by issuing an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who held talks with the US president on Tuesday.The ICC said the sanctions sought to “harm its independent and impartial judicial work”.”The court stands firmly by its personnel and pledges to continue providing justice and hope to millions of innocent victims of atrocities across the world,” it added. – ‘Undermines’ justice system -The United Nations urged Trump to reverse the move.”The court should be fully able to undertake its independent work — where a state is unwilling or unable genuinely to carry out the investigation or prosecution,” UN human rights office OHCHR spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani told AFP in an email.”The rule of law remains essential to our collective peace and security. Seeking accountability globally makes the world a safer place for everyone.”Antonio Costa, who heads the European Council representing the EU’s 27 member states, wrote on X that the move “undermines the international criminal justice system”.The European Commission separately expressed “regret” and stressed the ICC’s “key importance in upholding international criminal justice and the fight against impunity”.Ukraine’s foreign ministry spokesman Georgiy Tykhy also expressed concern.”We hope that they will not affect the court’s ability to achieve justice for the victims of Russian aggression,” he said.Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof called the US action a “disturbing signal”. As court’s host, the Netherlands would seek to maintain the “unhindered functioning” of the ICC, he added.The 79 ICC member countries said Trump’s sanctions increased the “risk of impunity” for serious crimes and “threaten to erode the international rule of law”.That statement was led by Slovenia, Luxembourg, Mexico, Sierra Leone and Vanuatu but Brazil, Britain, Canada, France and Germany were among the signatories.- ICC ‘illegitimate’: Trump -The names of individuals affected by sanctions were not immediately released, but previous US sanctions under Trump targeted the court’s prosecutor.Trump’s order said the tribunal had engaged in “illegitimate and baseless actions targeting America and our close ally Israel,” referring to ICC probes into alleged war crimes by US service members in Afghanistan and Israeli troops in Gaza.Israel’s foreign minister Gideon Saar strongly applauded Trump and called the court’s actions against Israel “immoral” and without “legal basis”.Neither the United States nor Israel are members of the court.Following a request by ICC prosecutor Karim Khan, judges issued arrest warrants on November 21 for Netanyahu, his former defence minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas’s military chief Mohammed Deif who was killed last year.The court said it had found “reasonable grounds” to believe Netanyahu and Gallant bore “criminal responsibility” for the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare in Gaza, as well as crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts.Netanyahu accused the court of anti-Semitism.During his first term, Trump imposed financial sanctions and a visa ban on the ICC’s then prosecutor Fatou Bensouda, and other senior officials in 2020. His administration acted after Gambian-born Bensouda launched an investigation into allegations of war crimes against US soldiers in Afghanistan. Bensouda also opened a probe into events in the Palestinian territories in 2019.Current prosecutor Khan later effectively dropped the US from the Afghan investigation and focused on the Taliban instead.  President Joe Biden lifted the sanctions after taking office in 2021.burs-tw/jj
A senior US official visiting Beirut warned on Friday against any Hezbollah presence in Lebanon’s new government, saying the Iran-backed group was “defeated” in its war with Israel.Hezbollah slammed the remarks by US Deputy Special Envoy for the Middle East Morgan Ortagus as “blatant interference”, as Lebanon’s prime minister-designate struggles to form a government amid political pressure from the Iran-backed group.”We have set clear red lines in the United States that they (Hezbollah) won’t be able to terrorise the Lebanese people, and that includes by being a part of the government,” Ortagus said after meeting President Joseph Aoun.More than a year of hostilities severely weakened Hezbollah, allowing Lebanon’s divided parliament to elect Aoun — seen as Washington’s preferred candidate — as president and approve Nawaf Salam as premier after more than two years of political deadlock.Ortagus declared “the end of Hezbollah’s reign of terror in Lebanon and around the world”, saying “Hezbollah was defeated by Israel and we are grateful to our ally Israel for defeating Hezbollah”.Aoun later distanced himself from her comments, with his office saying some of what she said “represents her own point of view and is not the concern of the presidency”.The head of Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc, Mohammed Raad, said Ortagus’s remarks were “full of malice and irresponsibility” and attacked a component of “Lebanese political life”, branding them “blatant interference in Lebanon’s sovereignty”.Israel decimated much of Hezbollah’s leadership and capabilities and killed its chief of more than three decades, Hassan Nasrallah, during two months of all-out war last year.The fall of the group’s Syrian ally Bashar al-Assad in December moreover disrupted the group’s arms supply lines.- ‘End corruption’ -Ortagus was in Lebanon for her first official visit abroad after being appointed by US President Donald Trump.Hezbollah has played a major role in the country’s politics for decades, flexing its power in government institutions while its fighters battled Israel.A handful of angry supporters gathered near Beirut airport on Friday, waving the Iran-backed group’s yellow flag and burning tyres, an AFP photographer said.Some spray-painted the Star of David and the words “USA” and “Trump” on the road for people to trample and cars to drive over.The Lebanese presidency had published a photo showing Ortagus shaking hands with Aoun while wearing a Star of David ring, with the image circulating widely on social media.Ortagus voiced hope that Lebanon’s incoming government “will ensure that we start to end corruption, that we end influence from Hezbollah, and that we embark on the reforms for a greater country”.The international community has long demanded reforms to unlock financial aid after Lebanon’s economic meltdown began in 2019.Salam said Wednesday his government would exclude political party members and anyone planning to run in parliamentary elections, in a country where long-standing political groups are widely accused of corruption.The prime minister-designate said he did not want to allow “anyone inside (the government) to obstruct its work in any way”.Political power has long been shared according to sectarian quotas in Lebanon.Hezbollah and its ally Amal, whose leader Nabih Berri is parliament speaker, have insisted they approve any Shiite ministers Salam wants to name, a demand he has refused.Political deadlock left Lebanon without a president for more than two years until Aoun’s election.- Ceasefire deadline -Salam has vowed to enact reforms and “rebuild a state”, as well as implement a UN resolution that calls for Israel to withdraw from Lebanon and for Lebanon’s army and UN peacekeepers to be the only forces deployed in the south.After meeting Ortagus, Aoun said that “consultations to form a new government are nearly completed”, while also calling on Israel to withdraw from Lebanon’s south.”The Lebanese army is ready to deploy in villages and towns from which Israeli forces withdraw,” he said, insisting they pull out within the agreed timeline.Washington played a key role in brokering the November 27 ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon.Under the deal, Lebanon’s military was to deploy in the south alongside UN peacekeepers as Israel withdrew over 60 days.Hezbollah was also to pull back north of the Litani River — about 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the border — and dismantle any remaining military infrastructure in the south.The withdrawal period was extended to February 18, after Israel missed the initial deadline. Both sides have accused each other of violations.Ortagus said Washington was “very committed” to the new withdrawal date.
