Israel Vows to Stop Greta Thunberg's Flotilla Reaching Gaza
Israel won't allow a flotilla of activists — including Swedish environmentalist Greta Thunberg — sailing toward the Gaza Strip to reach the coastal enclave, Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Sunday.
Katz said no one will be permitted to breach the naval blockade that's primarily intended to prevent the transfer of weapons to Hamas.
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Washington Post
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- Washington Post
Syria's post-war economic recovery will require 'substantial' international support, IMF says
DAMASCUS, Syria — Syria will need 'substantial international' support for its efforts to rehabilitate the economy, meet urgent humanitarian needs, and rebuild essential institutions and infrastructure, the International Monetary Fund said Tuesday. Syria cannot afford hundreds of billions of dollars of damages and losses from the conflict that first started as protests in 2011 against former President Bashar Assad's totalitarian government.
San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Arizona governor vetoes bill banning teaching antisemitism, calls it an attack on educators
PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs has vetoed a proposal that would have banned teaching antisemitism at the state's public K-12 schools, universities and colleges and exposed educators who violate the new rules to discipline and lawsuits. The proposal would have prohibited teachers and administrators from teaching or promoting antisemitism or antisemitic actions that create a hostile environment, calling for the genocide of any group or requiring students to advocate for an antisemitic point of view. It also would have barred public schools from using public money to support the teaching of antisemitism. Hobbs, a Democrat, said Tuesday that the bill was not about antisemitism but rather about attacking teachers. 'It puts an unacceptable level of personal liability in place for our public school, community college, and university educators and staff, opening them up to threats of personally costly lawsuits," she said in a statement. "Additionally, it sets a dangerous precedent that unfairly targets public school teachers while shielding private school staff." Hobbs described antisemitism as a very troubling issue in the U.S., but said students and parents can go through the state's Board of Education to report antisemitism. The measure cleared the Legislature last week on a 33-20 vote by the House, including a few Democrats who crossed party lines to support it. It's one of a few proposals to combat antisemitism across the country. Democrats tried but failed to remove the lawsuit provision and swap out references to antisemitism within the bill with 'unlawful discrimination' to reflect other discrimination. The bill's chief sponsor, Republican Rep. Michael Way, of Queen Creek, has said his proposal would create accountability when educators fail to protect students from the rise in antisemitism since the start of the Israel-Hamas war. Opponents said the bill aimed to silence people who want to speak out on the oppression of Palestinians and opened up educators to personal legal liability in lawsuits students could file. Students over the age of 18 and the parents of younger pupils would have been able to file lawsuits over violations that create a hostile education environment, leaving teachers responsible for paying any damages that may be awarded, denying them immunity and prohibiting the state from paying any judgments arising from any such lawsuits. Last week, Lori Shepherd, executive director of Tucson Jewish Museum & Holocaust Center, wrote in a letter to Hobbs that if the bill were approved it would threaten teachers' ability to provide students with a full account of the holocaust. Under the bill, 'those discussions could be deemed 'antisemitic' depending on how a single phrase is interpreted, regardless of intent or context,' she said. The bill would have created a process for punishing those who break the rules. At K-12 schools, a first-offense violation would lead to a reprimand, a second offense to a suspension of a teacher or principal's certificate and a third offense to a revocation of the certificate. At colleges and universities, violators would have faced a reprimand on first offense, a suspension without pay for a second offense and termination for a third offense. The proposal also would have required colleges and universities to consider violations by employees to be a negative factor when making employment or tenure decisions. Under the proposal, universities and colleges couldn't recognize any student organization that invites a guest speaker who incites antisemitism, encourages its members to engage in antisemitism or calls for the genocide of any group. Elsewhere in the U.S., a Louisiana lawmaker is pushing a resolution that asks universities to adopt policies to combat antisemitism on campuses and collect data on antisemitism-related reports and complaints. And a Michigan lawmaker has proposed putting a definition of antisemitism into the state's civil rights law.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Syria's post-war economic recovery will require 'substantial' international support, IMF says
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Syria will need 'substantial international" support for its efforts to rehabilitate the economy, meet urgent humanitarian needs, and rebuild essential institutions and infrastructure, the International Monetary Fund said Tuesday. Syria cannot afford hundreds of billions of dollars of damages and losses from the conflict that first started as protests in 2011 against former President Bashar Assad's totalitarian government. Since current President Ahmad al-Sharaa led an insurgency that ousted the Assad dynasty in December 2024, countries have gradually restored ties with Syria. During a five-day visit by the IMF in early June — the first to Syria by the 191-country lending organization since 2009 — its team met with officials from the public and private sectors, notably the finance minister and central bank governor. 'Syria faces enormous challenges following years of conflict that caused immense human suffering and reduced its economy to a fraction of its former size,' the IMF said. 'While the years of conflict and displacement have weakened administrative capacity, staff at the finance ministry and central bank demonstrated strong commitment and solid understanding.' Some 6 million people fled Syria during the conflict, and the United Nations estimates that 90% of those who stayed lived in poverty and relied on humanitarian aid to survive. Half a million people were killed in the conflict. Damascus now anticipates investments and business projects with Qatar, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and others, as they reestablish flight paths and hold high-level political and economic meetings. U.S. President Donald Trump said that Washington will lift decadeslong sanctions against Syria, but it is unclear how long that process could take. Britain and the European Union had eased some restrictions. Meanwhile, oil-rich nations Saudi Arabia and Qatar paid off Syria's debt to the World Bank, valued at near $15 billion. The IMF said it is developing a roadmap for Syria's policy and capacity building priorities for key economic institutions, including the finance ministry, central bank, and statistics agency. But Syria has a laundry list of reforms it must undertake, including improving its tax collection system, making sure its national budget can pay public sector salaries and basic healthcare and education, empowering the central bank to take measures to bring back confidence to the local currency, and rehabilitate its outdated and battered banking system in line with international standards. In 2017, the United Nations estimated that rebuilding Syria would cost about $250 billion. Since Assad was overthrown, some experts say that number could be as high as $400 billion. Associated Press, The Associated Press
