Tariffs: why has Donald Trump threatened the EU again?
To discuss, political correspondent Jack Horgan-Jones and Europe correspondent Jack Power join Pat Leahy on today's episode of The Irish Times Inside Politics podcast.
In part two: Independent TD Catherine Connolly is seeking a nomination to run for president. Will Labour, her erstwhile party, support her bid?
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Irish Examiner
24 minutes ago
- Irish Examiner
UN agency says staff fainting from hunger as starvation spreads in Gaza
The head of the UN agency for Palestinians has said its staff are fainting from hunger as the starvation crisis in Gaza resulting from an Israeli blockade on most aid into the territory worsens. 'People in Gaza are neither dead nor alive, they are walking corpses,' Philippe Lazzarini, the head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (Unrwa) said in a post on X. At least 113 people have died of hunger in Gaza, 45 of them in the last four days. This deepening crisis is affecting everyone, including those trying to save lives in the war-torn enclave … When caretakers cannot find enough to eat, the entire humanitarian system is collapsing. He added that Unrwa had the equivalent of 6,000 loaded trucks of food and medical supplies waiting in Jordan and Egypt and urged Israel to allow 'humanitarian partners to bring unrestricted and uninterrupted humanitarian assistance to Gaza'. Reports of people fainting and dropping dead of hunger have emerged in recent days. Civil defence workers have released pictures of gaunt bodies with little more than skin covering their bones. Palestinians carrying pans gather to receive hot meals distributed by a charity organization in Gaza City, where residents are struggling to access food due to the ongoing Israeli blockade and attacks. Picture: Khames Alrefi/Anadolu via Getty Images As international pressure mounted for a breakthrough to end nearly two years of devastating war, Hamas said it had sent its response on the latest ceasefire proposal to mediators. An Israeli official told the Associated Press that the latest Hamas proposal was 'workable'. The US envoy, Steve Witkoff, was scheduled to meet the top Israeli adviser, Ron Dermer, and the Qatari prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani in Sardinia, an Italian government source confirmed. Mediators rejected a previous version of the deal, telling Hamas to come back with a more realistic proposal or risk jeopardising the negotiations. A Palestinian official close to the talks told Reuters the Hamas response was 'flexible, positive and took into consideration the growing suffering in Gaza and the need to stop the starvation'. Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, recalled the Israeli negotiators from Doha on Thursday for consultations. Israeli media reported that significant gaps remained between the two sides, including over to what point Israeli troops should withdraw during the ceasefire. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. File Picture: AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin International pressure for a deal is growing, as images of starving Palestinians provoke global condemnation of the Israeli blockade of the strip. An EU commission spokesperson said all options remained on the table if Israel did not improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza. Israel had agreed to expand aid access with the EU earlier this month. The deal under consideration is expected to involve a 60-day ceasefire during which Hamas would release 10 living hostages and the bodies of 18 others in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. Talks would be held during the ceasefire period to reach a lasting truce and aid supplies to the besieged strip would be increased. It has only been since the end of the war between Iran and Israel war last month that the serious prospect of a ceasefire in Gaza has emerged. The outcome of the 12-day conflict has given Netanyahu domestic breathing space to push for a deal. As negotiations continue, Israeli attacks have increased. At least 89 people were killed in the last 24 hours as Israeli airstrikes pounded central Gaza, health authorities said. Israel says the global media is exaggerating the scale of the hunger crisis, even though aid groups and pictures coming from Gaza show clear evidence of starvation and doctors who treat malnourished children say they are unable to get enough to eat themselves. Israel only lets a trickle of aid into Gaza, the vast majority of which is distributed by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a private US firm. GHF operates four food distribution points staffed by US mercenaries, a system which has been described as a death trap. More than 1,000 people seeking aid have been killed trying to access supplies in the nearly two months since GHF began operating in Gaza. Aid used to be distributed through more than 400 distribution points under a UN-led system, but Israel has all but stopped UN aid into the territory since March. Israel accuses Hamas of stealing UN aid, a claim for which humanitarians say there is little evidence. People wait to receive food from a charity kitchen in Gaza. Palestinians hold onto an aid truck returning to Gaza City from the northern Gaza Strip. Picture: AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi Aid groups say GHF, which was meant to replace the UN, lacks the capacity to do so and that its militarised model violates key humanitarian principles. Restoring the UN aid system as a part of a ceasefire deal is a key Hamas demand. Israeli negotiators have softened their stance on the issue as pressure grows even within Israel to stop the starvation crisis, which the World Health Organization director general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, described on Wednesday as man-made. Thousands of Israeli demonstrators carrying bags of flour and pictures of Palestinian children who died of starvation protested in Tel Aviv on Wednesday, calling for an end to the Gaza blockade. Hamas is also calling for a ceasefire deal to include a permanent end to the Gaza war, something that Israel has refused. A ceasefire deal is unpopular among the more extreme members of Netanyahu's cabinet and Israel has sought to keep open the possibility of restarting the war after the ceasefire period. - The Guardian Read More Israeli official says Gaza ceasefire proposal from Hamas is 'workable'
Irish Times
24 minutes ago
- Irish Times
Global markets soar amid signs of progress on US trade deals
Global markets soared on Thursday as investors digested US corporate earnings along with signs of progress in tariff negotiations between the US and its trading partners. Dublin Euronext Dublin was up 1.3 per cent, largely boosted by strong performances from the Irish banks. Bank of Ireland and AIB were up 4 per cent and 3 per cent respectively, with the banking sector generally up across Europe. Ryanair continued its recent rise, climbing 0.7 per cent. Its peer airline Wizz Air finished down 0.5 per cent after it missed first-quarter profit estimates. 'There was a bit activity around the airlines due to that news flow, and Ryanair benefited from that,' said a trader. READ MORE Elsewhere, two heavyweights on the index, food giant Kerry Group and Cavan-based insulation specialist Kingspan, both finished up 0.5 per cent. London Britain's FTSE 100 rose to a record close, boosted by upbeat corporate results and optimism over a potential EU-US trade agreement. The benchmark FTSE 100 closed up 0.9 per cent, while the domestically-oriented midcap FTSE 250 gained 0.6 per cent. The personal care and grocery stores index led sectoral gains, up 2.6 per cent, boosted by Reckitt, up 9.9 per cent, after the consumer goods company raised its annual revenue forecast. Healthcare stocks rose 1.9 per cent with AstraZeneca up 2.1 per cent after the drugmaker's rare immune disorder drug succeeded in an advanced trial. GSK added 1.4 per cent after the US Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday extended its review of the drugmaker's blood cancer drug. Media stocks advanced 2.3 per cent, led by ITV which rose 13.3 per cent after the broadcaster's half-year results beat forecasts. Conversely, precious metal miners fell 1.4 per cent, tracking a drop in gold prices. Endeavour Mining fell 1.3 per cent, and Fresnillo was down 2.1 per cent. Europe Shares on the Continent advanced amid reports the European Union and Washington were close to clinching a tariff agreement, close on the heels of a similar deal with Japan. MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe rose 3.03 points. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index rose 0.23 per cent, while Europe's broad FTSEurofirst 300 index rose 0.2 per cent. The Dax 40 in Frankfurt gained 0.2 per cent, but the Cac 40 in Paris fell 0.4 per cent. New York The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq hit record highs as big technology stocks rose after Google parent Alphabet's robust earnings, while the Dow was weighed down by losses in IBM, UnitedHealth, and Honeywell. In morning trading, the S&P 500 gained 0.25 per cent; and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.25 per cent. Alphabet rose 1.9 per cent after it raised its 2025 capital spending forecast, shrugging off trade jitters, and reinforcing investors' confidence in AI investments and returns. Losses in UnitedHealth, IBM and Honeywell weighed on the blue-chip Dow, which fell 0.33 per cent – though it remained close to its December 4th record high. UnitedHealth lost 3.7 per cent. The insurer revealed it's co-operating with a Department of Justice probe into its Medicare practices, following reports of both criminal and civil investigations. IBM dropped 8 per cent as its second-quarter results fell flat with investors, hampered by disappointing sales in its core software division. Honeywell, meanwhile, dipped 4.6 per cent despite topping Wall Street's expectations and raising its annual outlook. Electric vehicle maker Tesla tumbled 9 per cent, as CEO Elon Musk warned of 'a few rough quarters' due to cuts in EV incentives. The stock has fallen about 25 per cent for the year so far. Some of Wall Street's heavyweights were starting to feel the sting of Trump's sweeping tariffs. American Airlines fell 9.2 per cent after forecasting a bigger-than-expected third-quarter loss, hurt by sluggish domestic travel demand. – Additional reporting: Agencies
Irish Times
an hour ago
- Irish Times
TD Gary Gannon files legal proceedings against Central Bank over Israeli bonds
Social Democrat TD Gary Gannon has filed legal proceedings against the Central Bank over its role in facilitating the sale of Israeli bonds on the European market. McGarr Solicitors lodged papers with the High Court on behalf of the Dublin Central TD on Thursday. Mr Gannon is seeking a court order requiring the Central Bank to exercise its powers under European regulations to prohibit the marketing, distribution or sale of bonds issued by the state of Israel. Court papers show he is also seeking an order requiring the bank to 'properly consult' with the 'competent authorities in other member states that may be significantly affected by the action'. READ MORE In a draft affidavit to the court Mr Gannon said he believes and is advised that the investors in, and holders, purchasers and sellers of Israeli bonds risk being 'complicit in genocide, with various implications for them'. [ Israeli bond investors risk complicity in genocide, TD claims in letter to Central Bank governor Opens in new window ] There have been ongoing calls for the Central Bank to end its role in approving Israeli bonds for sale in the European Union. The bank is the designated authority in relation to the sale of Israeli bonds in the EU. The Central Bank's governor, Gabriel Makhlouf, told the Oireachtas Finance Committee last month that Israel has raised between €100 million and €130 million from the bonds. He said the Israeli government website marketing its 'war bonds' had stated it had sold bonds worth €5 billion. He said the EU accounted for only a fraction of that, with the US accounting for the bulk of it. On what the bank can and can't do, he said: 'The Central Bank cannot decide to impose sanctions for breaches or alleged breaches of international law. It is for international bodies such as the UN or the EU to determine how to respond to breaches or alleged breaches of international law.' Mr Gannon issued letters to the bank about investor protection concerns relating to the bonds, as well as the use of the bonds to finance the war in Gaza at the end of last month. In response, the Central Bank, through its solicitors, said in a letter that there is 'no valid legal basis' to support Mr Gannon's purported judicial review proceedings. It claimed that Mr Gannon lacked the 'necessary locus standi' or right to bring the proceedings, and said the bank was satisfied it did not meet the relevant criteria to exercise its powers under EU law. The letter also stated that judicial review proceedings would lead to court time being 'expended unnecessarily and substantial costs being incurred'. [ Central Bank's role in approving Israeli bonds can be traced back to Brexit Opens in new window ] Commenting on the action, Mr Gannon said: 'These bonds are not neutral financial instruments. They are a funding pipeline for a military campaign that includes the bombardment and starvation of thousands of civilians. 'While this is a technical case grounded in EU investor protection law, the issues at stake are deeply moral and ask whether our laws, Irish, European, and international, have the capacity to respond to that reality.' He added: 'If financing a regime accused of genocide doesn't meet that threshold, what does?'
