Trump says Israel will have to decide on next steps in Gaza
TURNBERRY : US President Donald Trump said on Sunday Israel would have to make a decision on next steps in Gaza, adding he did not know what would happen after the collapse of ceasefire and hostage-release negotiations with Hamas.
Trump underscored the importance of securing the release of hostages held by Palestinian Hamas militants in Gaza, saying they had suddenly 'hardened' up on the issue. He added Washington would provide more aid to the Palestinian enclave devastated by US ally Israel's military assault.
'They don't want to give them back, and so Israel is going to have to make a decision,' Trump told reporters at the start of a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Scotland.
'I know what I'd do, but I don't think it's appropriate that I say it. But Israel is going to have to make a decision,' he said, while also claiming, without evidence, that Hamas was stealing food coming into Gaza and selling it.
Reuters reported on Friday an internal US government analysis found no evidence of systematic theft by Hamas of US-funded humanitarian supplies, challenging the rationale that Israel and the US gave for backing an armed private aid operation.
Over 20 Democratic US senators wrote a letter to the Trump administration on Sunday, urging it to cease funding for the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) and restore support for existing United Nations aid distribution mechanisms.
The UN estimates Israeli forces have killed over 1,000 people seeking food supplies, the majority near the militarised distribution sites of the GHF, the new private aid group that uses a for-profit US logistics firm run by a former CIA officer and armed US military veterans.
Dozens of Gazans have died of malnutrition in recent weeks, according to Gaza's health ministry. It reported six new deaths over the past 24 hours due to malnutrition, bringing the total deaths from malnutrition and hunger since the start of Israel's war in Gaza to 133 including 87 children.
Democratic former president Barack Obama said on Sunday aid must be permitted to reach people in Gaza. 'There is no justification for keeping food and water away from civilian families,' Obama wrote on X, adding action should be taken 'to prevent the travesty of innocent people dying of preventable starvation.'
Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu both appeared on Friday to abandon Gaza ceasefire negotiations with Hamas, alleging Hamas did not want a deal.
Netanyahu said Israel was now mulling 'alternative' options to achieve its goals of bringing its hostages home and ending Hamas rule in Gaza, where starvation is spreading and most of the population is homeless amid widespread ruin from Israel's assault.
Trump said he believed Hamas leaders would now be 'hunted down', telling reporters: 'Hamas really didn't want to make a deal. I think they want to die… And it got to be to a point where you're going to have to finish the job.'
US to provide more aid, Trumps says
Trump on Sunday said Washington would provide more humanitarian aid to Gaza, but wanted other countries to participate as well. He said he would discuss the issue with von der Leyen.
'We're giving a lot of money, a lot of food, a lot of everything,' he said. 'If we weren't there, I think people would have starved, frankly. They would have starved, and it's not like they're eating well.'
He said he spoke with Netanyahu, adding they also discussed Iran. He said he and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer would discuss Israel on Monday.
Trump said Washington was not acknowledged for earlier food aid for Gaza.
'No other country gave anything,' he said, calling out Europe in particular. 'It makes you feel a little bad when you do that and, you know, you have other countries not giving anything… Nobody gave but us. And nobody said, Gee, thank you very much. And it would be nice to have at least a thank you.'
The latest bloodshed in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict was triggered in October 2023 when Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1,200 and taking about 250 hostages, Israeli tallies show.
Gaza's health ministry says Israel's subsequent military assault has killed nearly 60,000 Palestinians. It has also caused a hunger crisis, internally displaced Gaza's entire population and prompted accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice and of war crimes at the International Criminal Court. Israel denies the accusations.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Straits Times
13 minutes ago
- New Straits Times
Trump orders US colleges to reveal race data to prove fairness
NEW YORK: President Donald Trump issued an order Thursday demanding that US universities supply enrollment data as evidence they are not considering an applicant's race when awarding admission. The Supreme Court ruled in 2023 that affirmative action by universities on the basis of race was unlawful, but said that they could use statements about the racial experiences of candidates when deciding on places. "The persistent lack of available data -- paired with the rampant use of 'diversity statements' and other overt and hidden racial proxies -- continues to raise concerns about whether race is actually used in practice," Trump wrote in a memorandum. Since returning to the presidency, Trump has waged a campaign against US universities, accusing them of being hotbeds of anti-conservative ideology, anti-Semitism and "wokery." He has also issued executive actions curtailing diversity, equity and inclusion programmes in government, which had been intended to redress historic injustices. He accused the so-called "DEI" policies of discriminating against white people. "Greater transparency is essential to exposing unlawful practices and ultimately ridding society of shameful, dangerous racial hierarchies," Trump wrote. The order requires that universities expand their reporting into the National Centre for Education Statistics to "provide adequate transparency into admissions." The details of the enhanced requirements would follow at a later date, the memorandum said. As part of his wider push to bring higher education to heel, Trump has wielded federal funds as a negotiating tool for universities that he says are too liberal, insisting that they submit to curriculum, enrollment and other changes. The Republican's administration has also decreased or placed holds on spending for university research as part of wider budget cuts since taking office in January. Columbia University was the first to be targeted in Trump's war against elite universities, for what the US president claimed was its failure to tackle anti-Semitism on campus in the wake of pro-Palestinian protests. It was stripped of hundreds of millions of dollars of federal funding and lost its ability to apply for new research grants. Labs saw vital funding frozen, and dozens of researchers were laid off. But Columbia last month agreed to pay the government US$200 million, and an additional US$21 million to settle an investigation into anti-Semitism. Columbia, along with Brown, reportedly already agreed to disclose admissions data including race and test scores to the government as part of their settlements with the administration over alleged breaches of anti-discrimination laws. - AFP
The Sun
13 minutes ago
- The Sun
Trump-owned courses to host PGA Tour, LIV events in 2026
COURSES owned by President Donald Trump will be hosting events on both the PGA Tour and LIV Golf for the first time in the same year in 2026. LIV Golf has announced it will return to Trump National Golf Club Washington D.C. in Sterling, Va., next year. The Saudi Arabia-backed tour has had an event on a Trump-owned course every year since its inception in 2022. It last held an event at the Trump National Golf Club in 2023. The 2026 event, scheduled for May 8-10, will be one of 14 events on the tour. The PGA Tour, meanwhile, has scheduled an event at Trump National Doral, just outside Miami, according to Sports Business Journal. The tournament is expected to be played April 30-May 3, which slots in three weeks following the Masters and two weeks ahead of the PGA Championship. Per SBJ, the tournament could be a signature event that includes a $20 million purse. Both LIV Golf and the PGA Tour have a history of hosting events at Doral. LIV tournaments were played there for the first four years of its existence, 2022 to 2025, before the circuit didn't return to the Blue Monster this year. That opened the door for the PGA Tour to return to Doral and add to its 54-year history of events there. The last one was the 2016 World Golf Championships-Cadillac Championship. - Reuters
The Sun
13 minutes ago
- The Sun
Trump's higher tariffs spark defiance from US trading partners
U.S. President Donald Trump's higher tariffs on imports from dozens of countries kicked in on Thursday, raising the average U.S. import duty to its highest in a century and leaving major trade partners such as Switzerland, Brazil and India hurriedly searching for a better deal. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency began collecting the higher tariffs of 10% to 50% at 12:01 a.m. EDT (0401 GMT) after weeks of suspense over Trump's final tariff rates and frantic negotiations with countries seeking to lower them. The leaders of Brazil and India vowed not to be cowed by Trump's hardline bargaining position, even while their negotiators sought a reprieve from the highest tariff levels. The new rates will test Trump's strategy for shrinking U.S. trade deficits without causing massive disruptions to global supply chains or provoking higher inflation and stiff retaliation from trading partners. 'BILLIONS' IN TARIFF REVENUE After unveiling his 'Liberation Day' tariffs in April, Trump has frequently modified his plans, slapping much higher rates on imports from some countries, including 50% for goods from Brazil, 39% from Switzerland, 35% from Canada and 25% from India. He announced on Wednesday a further 25% tariff on Indian goods, to be implemented in 21 days over India's purchases of Russian oil, on top of the 25% already imposed. 'BILLIONS OF DOLLARS, LARGELY FROM COUNTRIES THAT HAVE TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF THE UNITED STATES FOR MANY YEARS, LAUGHING ALL THE WAY, WILL START FLOWING INTO THE USA,' Trump said on Truth Social just ahead of the tariff deadline. Tariffs are ultimately paid by companies importing the goods, and passed on in full or in part to consumers of end products. Trump's top trade negotiator, Jamieson Greer, said the U.S. was working to reverse decades of policies that had weakened U.S. manufacturing capacity and workforce, and that many other countries shared concerns about macroeconomic imbalances. 'The rules of international trade cannot be a suicide pact,' he wrote in a column published by the New York Times. 'By imposing tariffs to rebalance the trade deficit and negotiating significant reforms that form the basis of a new international system, the United States has shown bold leadership,' Greer said. Eight major trading partners accounting for about 40% of U.S. trade flows have reached framework deals for trade and investment concessions to Trump, including the European Union, Japan and South Korea, reducing their base tariff rates to 15%. Britain won a 10% rate, while Vietnam, Indonesia, Pakistan and the Philippines secured rate reductions to 19% or 20%. 'There'll be some supply chain rearrangement. There'll be a new equilibrium. Prices here will go up, but it'll take a while for that to show up in a major way,' said William Reinsch, a senior fellow and trade expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. Countries with punishingly high duties, such as India and Canada, 'will continue to scramble around trying to fix this,' he added. Switzerland's President Karin Keller-Sutter said on Thursday that talks with the U.S. would continue after she returned home empty-handed from an 11th-hour trip to Washington aimed at averting the crippling U.S. import tariff on Swiss goods. A last-minute attempt by South Africa to improve its offer in exchange for a lower tariff rate also failed. The two countries' trade negotiating teams would have more talks, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa's office said. Vietnam said on Thursday it would continue talks with the U.S. as it seeks to lower tariffs further still, after negotiating a reduction to 20% from the 46% duty Trump slapped on imports from the Southeast Asian country in April. Meanwhile, Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva told Reuters on Wednesday he would not humiliate himself by seeking a phone call with Trump even as he said his government would continue cabinet-level talks to lower a 50% tariff rate. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was similarly defiant, saying he would not compromise the interests of the country's farmers. The pressure has also strengthened India's commitment to a 'strategic partnership' with Russia, with Russian President Vladimir Putin set to visit by the end of the year. Some countries were also rallying together to confront Trump, with Brazil's Lula saying he would call the leaders of India and China to discuss a joint BRICS response to tariffs. Trump has repeatedly railed against BRICS members and recently threatened to subject their imports to an additional 10% tariff. India said on Wednesday that Modi would visit China for the first time in seven years. REVENUES, PRICE HIKES U.S. import taxes are one part of a multilayered tariff strategy that includes national security-based sectoral tariffs on semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, autos, steel, aluminum, copper, lumber and other goods. Trump said on Wednesday the microchip duties could reach 100%. China is on a separate tariff track and will face a potential tariff increase on August 12 unless Trump approves an extension of a prior truce. He has said he may impose additional tariffs over China's purchases of Russian oil as he seeks to pressure Moscow into ending its war in Ukraine. Trump has touted a vast increase in federal revenues from his import tax collections, with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick saying on Fox Business Network on Thursday that he expected revenue from tariffs to reach $50 billion a month, with more increases expected from separate duties on semiconductors and pharmaceuticals that should be announced soon. The increase in duties will drive average U.S. tariff rates to around 20%, the highest in a century and up from 2.5% when Trump took office in January, the Atlantic Council estimates. Commerce Department data released last week included more evidence that tariffs were driving up U.S. prices, including for recreational goods and motor vehicles, while costs are mounting for companies, including bellwethers Caterpillar, Marriott, Molson Coors and Yum Brands. Toyota on Thursday said it expected a hit of nearly $10 billion from tariffs on cars imported into the U.S. as it cut its full-year profit forecast by 16%. But other Japanese companies such as Sony and Honda said they now expected a smaller impact on profits after Japan agreed a bilateral deal with Washington to lower tariffs. - Reuters
