Israel‘s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said he was cutting his visit to Europe short on Wednesday so that he could take part in security cabinet and government votes on a Gaza hostage release and ceasefire deal.
Archiv: United States of America (USA)
Officials tout a Gaza ceasefire deal and plan to free hostages. Israel says details still in flux
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said final details were being ironed out, saying in a statement that it hoped “details will be finalized tonight.”
Gaza death toll tops 46,700 as Israeli attacks continue unabated
(7 hours ago)
At least 62 more Palestinians were killed in Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip in the last 24 hours, bringing the overall death toll since October 2023 to 46,707, the Health Ministry in the enclave said on Wednesday.
A ministry statement added that some 110,265 others were injured in the ongoing assault.
Protests Erupt in Washington: Blinken Dubbed ‚Secretary of Genocide‘ by Activists!
On January 14, 2025, during a speech at the Atlantic Council in Washington, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was interrupted by activists:
„you will forever be known as bloody blinken, secretary of genocide.“
Ask a Therapist: Radical acceptance can help build emotional resiliency
(January 1, 2025)
Pain is unavoidable. It’s what we do with the pain that matters. As Devine writes, “When you are broken, the correct response is to be broken.” Accepting that reality doesn’t make life more painful — it makes it more bearable — especially when it feels impossible to bear.
Gaza death toll reaches 46,645
Since the Israeli onslaught began on 7 October 2023, the death toll has risen to 46,645, with 110,012 people wounded, according to the ministry‘s latest figures.
32 Palestinians killed in Israeli air strikes on Gaza since dawn
(14 January 2025 12:25 GMT)
Medical sources reported to Al Jazeera Arabic that Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip have killed 32 Palestinians since dawn today, with 24 of the victims located in the central and southern regions of Gaza.
Kamal Adwan’s Hussam Abu Safia held in Ofer Prison, rights group says
An Israeli rights group says Hussam Abu Safia, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital who was detained by Israeli forces during their raid on the facility in Beit Lahiya last month, is being held in a notorious Israeli military prison in the occupied West Bank.
Physicians for Human Rights-Israel (PHRI), said the Israeli military confirmed in an email that Abu Safia was at Ofer Prison. A lawyer for Abu Safia’s family was told that he would not be allowed to see him until January 29, said a spokesman for PHRI, Ran Yaron, according to The Associated Press.
Es ist an der Zeit: Ami go home!
Deshalb wollen wir einen Schlussstrich ziehen – gegen die Stationierung von US-Angriffswaffen auf deutschem Boden.
Wir wollen keinen Krieg gegen Russland vom deutschen Boden aus. Wir wollen Frieden mit Russland!
Und wir wollen auch nicht an der Seite der USA Waffen in alle Kriegsgebiete dieser Welt liefern. Deshalb sagen wir: Keinen Cent, keine Waffen und erst recht keine Soldaten für die Ukraine.
Und wir sagen auch: Keine deutschen Waffen für den Tod von Palästinensern und die Zerstörung im Gazastreifen. Stoppt die Waffenlieferungen an Israel.
Und lasst mich eines noch sagen – gerade jetzt, wo der designierte US-Präsident Donald Trump droht, wenn nötig auch mit Waffengewalt Grönland und den Panama-Kanal zu übernehmen: Wir können uns die 37.000 US-Soldaten in Deutschland schlicht nicht mehr leisten.
Wir sagen: „Ami go home.“ Es ist Zeit.
Und wenn wir sagen „Ami go home“, dann meinen wir natürlich auch, dass der US-Präsident natürlich nicht nur seine Soldaten, sondern auch die US-Atomwaffen endlich aus Deutschland mitnehmen kann, so wie der Bundestag schon 2010 mehrheitlich den Abzug der Waffen beschlossen hat.
Die Vasallentreue deutscher Regierungen gegenüber den USA muss endlich ein Ende finden in der deutschen Politik.
Deshalb sagen wir auch: Es ist an der Zeit, Deutschland, unser Land, verdient Souveränität.
In diesem Sinne, für ein soziales, ein demokratisches und ein souveränes Deutschland.
Glück auf.
Gaza death toll reaches 46,584
The Ministry of Health in Gaza reported that the death toll from Israel’s ongoing military onslaught has climbed to 46,584, with 109,731 people wounded since Israel‘s war on Gaza began on 7 October 2023.
What a second Trump administration may mean for the Saudi nuclear program
(January 6, 2ß25)
Riyadh has been very clear on the kind of nuclear partnership it expects, and it is no secret that its favored option is cooperation with South Korea, similar under a 123 agreement (a nuclear cooperation document that establishes the legal basis and prerequisites for nuclear deals with the United States) allowing it to enrich uranium domestically. The problem, however, lies in the last bit of the sentence. The United States currently insists on an agreement that requires the Saudis forgo enrichment and reprocessing capabilities—two pathways to building a bomb. The reelection of Trump might be the Saudis’ chance to tip the balance in their favor.
CIA Director Reiterates There’s No Evidence Iran Has Decided To Build a Nuclear Bomb
(January 12, 2025)
The hype about Iran’s nuclear program is focused on the enrichment of some uranium at 60% purity, which is still below the 90% needed for weapons-grade. Iran took the step to enrich at 60% in response to an Israeli covert attack on its Natanz nuclear facility in 2021.
Iran is also a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty, unlike Israel, which never signed the NPT and has a covert nuclear stockpile that’s not officially acknowledged by the US.
Transcript: NPR‘s full conversation with CIA Director William Burns
(January 10, 2025)
Kelly: Iran, which had a pretty lousy 2024, weakened internally, mounting pressures externally. We interviewed Jake Sullivan, the national security, the national security adviser at the White House the other day. He told me the big question on his mind is, given the losses Iran has sustained, will it make it more likely, more likely that Iran tries to go for a nuclear weapon? Director Burns, will it?
Burns: It‘s something we watch very intently, because you‘re right, Iran has it‘s strategic position has suffered considerably over the course of the last six or seven months. You know, two failed efforts to launch significant ballistic missile strikes against Israel, the collapse of its leading proxy, Hezbollah in Lebanon, the severe degradation of Hamas in Gaza, and then the fall of the Assad regime in Syria. All of that, I think, strategically puts the Iranian regime in a much weaker position. And so Jake Sullivan was right to express the concern that, you know, the Iranian regime could decide in the face of that weakness that it needs to restore its deterrence as it sees it and, you know, reverse the decision made at the end of 2003 to suspend their weaponization program. We do not see any sign today that any such decision has been made, but we obviously watch it intently.
Is Iran Next?
(January 10, 2025)
Israeli military sources claim that its strikes inside Iran (precipitated by an Iranian missile assault on Israel) dismantled much of its air defense systems. These security officials note that this was a key mission: to eliminate Iran’s air defenses in preparation for a future all-out assault on its nuclear program. The sources estimate it will take a year or more for Iran to repair the current damage and restore its capabilities.
Is Biden Teeing Up an Iran War for Trump?
(January 3, 2025)
President Joe Biden has less than a month in office, but that might be enough time to leave a very big mess on President-elect Donald Trump‘s desk. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan presented Biden with plans to bomb Iranian nuclear sites before the end of his term „in a meeting several weeks ago,“ Axios reported on Thursday. A source told Axios that Biden‘s inner circle believes that he has both „an imperative and an opportunity to strike“ now.
Israel kills 13 Palestinians in northern Gaza Strip since dawn
(13 January 2025 07:49 GMT)
At least 13 Palestinians were killed in a series of Israeli air strikes on the northern Gaza Strip since the early hours of today, Al Jazeera Arabic reported.
Biden and Netanyahu discusses ceasefire deal
(12 January 2025 17:39 GMT)
US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke over the phone on Sunday, according to several reports.
Trump‘s incoming national security advisor urges ceasefire before 20 January
(12 January 2025 16:15 GMT)
Donald Trump‘s incoming national security adviser, Mike Waltz, spoke with ABC News on Sunday, where he called for a ceasefire deal in Gaza to happen before Trump‘s inauguration on 20 January.
„Hamas has nowhere else to go but enter some type of agreement. Let‘s have a ceasefire, let‘s allow our hostages to be set free. I want to see them walking across a tarmac. At a minimum, some type of agreement before inauguration,“ he said.
Gaza Death Toll Reaches 46,565, 70 Children Killed in the Last 5 Days Alone
The Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip reported on Sunday that two separate massacres committed by Israeli forces over the past 24 hours resulted in the deaths of 28 Palestinians, with 89 others injured.
The Civil Defense in Gaza further revealed that in the past five days, nearly 70 children have been killed due to relentless Israeli bombing across the strip.
Wahlprogramm des BSW zur Bundestagswahl 2025
Die Stationierung von US-Mittelstreckenraketen auf deutschem Boden, die Bundeskanzler Scholz ohne irgendeine Debatte am Rande eines NATO-Gipfels abgesegnet hat und die das nukleare Risiko für uns enorm erhöhen, lehnen wir entschieden ab.
Die aktuellen Probleme der Bundeswehr rühren nicht zuletzt daher, dass sie von einer Verteidigungsarmee immer mehr zur Interventionsarmee umgestaltet wurde. Die Ergebnisse waren desaströs, etwa in Afghanistan und Mali. Wir wollen die Bundeswehr wieder und ausschließlich zu einer Verteidigungsarmee machen.
Die Bundeswehr hat nach dem Grundgesetz den Auftrag, unser Land zu verteidigen. Für diese Aufgabe muss sie angemessen ausgerüstet sein. Den Einsatz deutscher Soldaten in internationalen Kriegen lehnen wir ebenso ab wie ihre Stationierung an der russischen Grenze oder im Südchinesischen Meer.
(…)
Wir lehnen die Wiedereinführung einer Wehrpflicht ab.
Verteidigungsminister Pistorius will Deutschland „kriegstüchtig“ machen. Wir wollen unser Land friedenstüchtig machen.
(…)
In der Ukraine tobt ein Stellvertreterkrieg zwischen Russland und den Vereinigten Staaten, der sich jederzeit zu einem Weltkrieg ausweiten kann. Wir verurteilen den russischen Angriff auf die Ukraine aufs Schärfste. Zugleich sind wir überzeugt, dass dieser schreckliche Krieg vermeidbar war und längst auf dem Verhandlungsweg hätte beendet werden können.
(…)
Wie die Mehrheit der Bundesbürger lehnen wir die Lieferung von Taurus-Marschflugkörpern ab. Nur ein starkes BSW im nächsten Bundestag kann und wird verhindern, dass die Kriegsfalken und Taurus-Befürworter in der SPD nach der Wahl die Oberhand gewinnen. Wir müssen verhindern, dass deutsche Soldaten wieder Raketen auf den Weg bringen, die nach Russland zielen.
BSW-Politikerin Dağdelen fordert Abzug aller US-Truppen
Sevim Dağdelen (BSW) hat den Abzug aller US-amerikanischen Truppen aus Deutschland gefordert. „Wir können uns die 37.000 US-Soldaten in Deutschland schlicht nicht mehr leisten“, sagte Dağdelen beim Bundesparteitag des Bündnisses Sahra Wagenknecht in Bonn. „Deshalb sagen wir auch: Ami go home.“
Auch die amerikanischen Atomwaffen sollten weg aus Deutschland, sagte Dağdelen, die sich erneut gegen die Stationierung von US-Mittelstreckenraketen aussprach. „Wir wollen keinen Krieg gegen Russland von deutschem Boden, wir wollen Frieden mit Russland“, sagte sie vor rund 600 anwesenden Mitgliedern. „Die Vasallentreue deutscher Regierungen gegenüber den USA, diese Vasallentreue gegenüber den USA, die muss endlich ein Ende finden.“
Sullivan calls Yoon‘s martial law bid ‚shocking,‘ ‚wrong,‘ says alliance still set for success despite turmoil
(January 10,2025)
North Korea has so far been largely silent on the domestic turmoil that took hold of South Korea after President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law last year. However, the US is of the view that Pyongyang could exploit this internal chaos
South Korea’s political crisis and Uncle Sam’s silence
(January 7, 2025)
Secretary of State Antony Blinken — who was in Seoul this week for meetings as though nothing unusual had happened — released a readout that made no mention of South Korea’s political situation. His response to a direct question about the U.S. position on Yoon’s actions vaguely referenced private intergovernmental discussions before pivoting to boilerplate about democratic resilience. Despite a shocking breach of liberal democracy, Seoul has faced the bare minimum of consequences from its supposed “democratic values-based partner.” Why?
Impeachment in South Korea Has Cost Washington a Staunch Ally
(December 16, 2024)
President Yoon Suk Yeol has changed the course of South Korea’s diplomacy like no leader before him. He put his country in lock step with the United States by countering North Korea with sanctions and joint military drills. He won Washington’s plaudits when he overcame a century of historical grievances Koreans held against Japan and helped lay the ground for trilateral cooperation to deter China.
He sang the praises of Western values such as freedom.
United States support for Saudi Arabian–led operations in Yemen
During the presidency of Barack Obama, the United States began providing Saudi Arabia with critical support to „sustain“ the Saudi Arabian–led intervention in the Yemeni Civil War,[1] later expanded during the presidency of Donald Trump.[2] This support included logistical and intelligence aid. Trump vetoed a bipartisan bill in 2019 aimed at stopping U.S. support for the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen. In 2021, Joe Biden vowed to halt U.S. support for the war, though U.S. arms sales to the coalition have continued.[3][4]
From 2015 to 2019, Saudi Arabia was reportedly the largest importer of U.S. arms.[2]
Over 20 warplanes bomb Yemen in three-way attack by Israel, US, UK
Eleven air raids hit the Yemeni capital Sanaa, including the vicinity of Al-Sabeen Square, where around one million people were taking part in a weekly pro-Palestine march.
The Harf Sufyan District was hit by 12 airstrikes in the Amran Governorate of northern Yemen, while six hit the Hodeidah port west of the country. One strike also targeted the Ras Issa port north of Hodeidah.
The main power station in Haziz, south of Sanaa, was struck as well.
Humanitarian Situation Update #253 | Gaza Strip
Key Highlights
– Child Protection partners are facing severe challenges in bringing needed winter clothing kits into Gaza; only 19,000 kits have been distributed out of 220,000 procured.
– At least 369 aid workers, including 263 UNRWA staff, have been killed since October 2023, according to data received by the UN and its partners.
– Zero fuel reserves to operate electricity generators at hospitals across Gaza are placing the lives of patients and newborns at grave risk.
– The UN attempted to reach the besieged area in North Gaza 165 times between 6 October and 31 December 2024, of which 149 attempts were denied by the Israeli authorities and 16 faced impediments.
(…)
– Access to North Gaza governorate, which has been under intensified siege since 6 October 2024, continues to be largely denied by the Israeli authorities. From 6 October to 31 December 2024, the UN attempted to reach the area 165 times, of which 149 attempts were denied and 16 were allowed to proceed but faced impediments. Coordinated aid missions to areas in the Rafah governorate, where there has been an ongoing Israeli military operation since early May, have faced similar challenges. Overall, in 2024, the UN and its partners carried out 5,321 coordinated humanitarian movements across the Gaza Strip, including 3,707 in the south and 1,614 in the north. Of these, 48 per cent (North: 621, South: 1,936) were facilitated, 24 per cent (North: 398, South: 864) were denied, 19 per cent (North: 434, South: 567) were interfered with or initially agreed to but then faced impediments, and nine per cent (North: 161, South: 340) were cancelled by the organizers due to logistical and security challenges. Movements facing impediments were accomplished either partially or not at all.
Traumatic injury mortality in the Gaza Strip from Oct 7, 2023, to June 30, 2024: a capture–recapture analysis
Findings We estimated 64 260 deaths (95% CI 55 298–78 525) due to traumatic injury during the study period, suggesting the Palestinian MoH under-reported mortality by 41%. The annualised crude death rate was 39·3 per 1000 people (95% CI 35·7–49·4), representing a rate ratio of 14·0 (95% CI 12·8–17·6) compared with all-cause mortality in 2022, even when ignoring non-injury excess mortality. Women, children (aged <18 years), and older people (aged ≥65 years) accounted for 16 699 (59·1%) of the 28 257 deaths for which age and sex data were available. Interpretation Our findings show an exceptionally high mortality rate in the Gaza Strip during the period studied. These results underscore the urgent need for interventions to prevent further loss of life and illuminate important patterns in the conduct of the war.
Lancet Study: Gaza Health Ministry Undercounted Death Toll By 41%
Explaining the methodology, the study said it used “capture-recapture methods to estimate total deaths from traumatic injury in the Gaza Strip from Oct 7, 2023, to June 30, 2024. By combining three data lists—official hospital lists, an MoH survey, and social media obituaries—we provide an estimate of mortality that accounts for under-reporting.”
The study only accounts for deaths caused by violence and not indirect deaths caused by the Israeli siege and the destruction of medical and other civilian infrastructure.
NYU Imposes One-Year Suspensions on 11 Students for Protesting Gaza Genocide
On Dec. 11, over a dozen NYU students and faculty dropped flyers and hung banners throughout the Bobst Library while 13 people sat in on the administrative floor of thelibrary. The actionists were demanding a meeting with administrators, who had, in the spring during the Gaza solidarity encampment movement at NYU, promised students to disclose the university’s endowment, including all its investments in weapons manufacturers and ties to Israel and companies that profit off its occupation of Palestine.
The direct action was organized by student group Shut It Down NYU, which challenges what it sees as NYU’s ties to imperialism. Not only were the students’ demands ignored, but yesterday, 11 of them were suspended for a year on the pretext of participating “in coordinated and collective disruptive action” — the non-violent action at the library. Several more NYU students are currently going through disciplinary proceedings that could result in similar punishments.
Here is the press release we received from Faculty and Staff for Justice in Palestine:
46,006 and counting: Israel kills father, 3 sons in latest atrocities
The death toll in Israel‘s genocidal Gaza war crossed 46,006 on Thursday after at least 70 more Palestinians were killed in relentless Israeli attacks, the enclave‘s Health Ministry said.
A ministry statement added that some 109,378 others were injured in the ongoing assault.
Supreme Court refuses to delay Trump’s hush money sentencing
Trump turned to the high court in a last-ditch effort to stop the hearing, citing the conservative majority’s explosive opinion in July that granted him and other former presidents immunity from criminal prosecution for their official acts.
But five of the nine justices said Trump’s immunity concerns about evidence presented at his trial can be addressed “in the ordinary course on appeal.”
US House votes to sanction International Criminal Court over Israel
Forty-five Democrats joined 198 Republicans in backing the bill. No Republican voted against it.
“America is passing this law because a kangaroo court is seeking to arrest the prime minister of our great ally, Israel,” Representative Brian Mast, Republican chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in a House speech before the vote.
US, Israel Cheer as Lebanon Elects Joseph Aoun as President
Aoun’s election happened only after former Interior Minister Suleiman Frangieh, the main alternative candidate, withdrew and endorsed Aoun.
Electing a president requires a two-thirds majority of parliament, which was met after Frangieh’s endorsement gave Aoun the support of Hezbollah and Amal Movements. Many media reports see Aoun’s election as a sign of Hezbollah’s weakness, despite most Hezbollah MPs supporting him.
Who is Joseph Aoun, Lebanon‘s army chief turned president?
Securing 99 of the Lebanese parliament’s 128 votes, Aoun garnered widespread support across Lebanon’s political spectrum, despite initial reservations from Hezbollah and its allies.
While political statements from Aoun are rare, he recently emerged as the US and Saudi Arabia’s favoured candidate for the Lebanese presidency.
The local and international push gathered momentum following Israel’s two-month offensive in Lebanon last year, which killed over 4,000 people and displaced over a million.
Gaza death toll surpasses 45,936 as Israeli attacks intensify
The death toll from Israel‘s ongoing military aggression against the Gaza Strip has exceeded 45,936, with a significant number of casualties reported in the last 24 hours.
According to medical sources, the Israeli army has carried out six massacres targeting families, killing 51 civilians and injuring 78 others.
France warns Trump against threatening EU ‘sovereign borders’ after Greenland comments
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said he did not believe the U.S. would invade the vast Arctic island that has been part of Denmark for over 600 years.
„There is obviously no question that the European Union would let other nations of the world attack its sovereign borders, whoever they are,“ he told France Inter radio. „We are a strong continent.“
Joseph Aoun – Will He be The Next President of Lebanon?
After the explosion at the port of Beirut in 2020, countries friendly to Lebanon diverted their aid to the military, claiming that they only rely on the army to distribute it. Therefore, all the aid, estimated at tens of millions of dollars, was directed directly to the army and was at Aoun’s disposal and under his direct management. It appears that the military establishment has effectively managed the funds and has never experienced a shortage due to corruption.