Ex-Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn launches new UK political party
'It's time for a new kind of political party. One that is rooted in our communities, trade unions and social movements,' Corbyn and fellow independent MP Zarah Sultana said in a joint statement.
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Arab News
8 minutes ago
- Arab News
Trump plays golf in Scotland while protesters take to the streets and decry his visit
EDINBURGH: President Donald Trump played golf Saturday at his course on Scotland's coast while protesters around the country took to the streets to decry his visit and accuse United Kingdom leaders of pandering to the American. Trump and his son Eric played with the US ambassador to Britain, Warren Stephens, near Turnberry, a historic course that the Trump family's company took over in 2014. Security was tight, and protesters kept at a distance went unseen by the group during Trump's round. He was dressed in black, with a white 'USA' cap, and was spotted driving a golf cart. The president appeared to play an opening nine holes, stop for lunch, then head out for nine more. By the middle of the afternoon, plainclothes security officials began leaving, suggesting Trump was done for the day. Hundreds of demonstrators gathered on the cobblestone and tree-lined street in front of the US Consulate about 100 miles (160 kilometers) away in Edinburgh, Scotland's capital. Speakers told the crowd that Trump was not welcome and criticized British Prime Minister Keir Starmer for striking a recent trade deal to avoid stiff US tariffs on goods imported from the UK Protests were planned in other cities as environmental activists, opponents of Israel's war with Hamas in Gaza and pro-Ukraine groups loosely formed a 'Stop Trump Coalition.' Anita Bhadani, an organizer, said the protests were 'kind of like a carnival of resistance.' Trump's late mother, Mary Anne MacLeod, was born on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland and the president has suggested he feels at home in the country. But the protesters did their best to change that. 'I don't think I could just stand by and not do anything,' said Amy White, 15, of Edinburgh, who attended with her parents. She held a cardboard sign that said 'We don't negotiate with fascists.' She said 'so many people here loathe him. We're not divided. We're not divided by religion, or race or political allegiance, we're just here together because we hate him.' Other demonstrators held signs of pictures with Trump and Jeffrey Epstein as the fervor over files in the case has increasingly frustrated the president. In the view of Mark Gorman, 63, of Edinburgh, 'the vast majority of Scots have this sort of feeling about Trump that, even though he has Scottish roots, he's a disgrace.' Gorman, who works in advertising, said he came out 'because I have deep disdain for Donald Trump and everything that he stands for.' Saturday's protests were not nearly as large as the throngs that demonstrated across Scotland when Trump played at Turnberry during his first term in 2018. But, as bagpipes played, people chanted 'Trump Out!' and raised dozens of homemade signs that said things like 'No red carpet for dictators,' 'We don't want you here' and 'Stop Trump. Migrants welcome.' One dog had a sign that said 'No treats for tyrants.' Some on the far right took to social media to call for gatherings supporting Trump in places such as Glasgow. Trump also plans to talk trade with Starmer and Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president. But golf is a major focus. The family will also visit another Trump course near Aberdeen in northeastern Scotland, before returning to Washington on Tuesday. The Trumps will cut the ribbon and play a new, second course in that area, which officially opens to the public next month. Scottish First Minister John Swinney, who is also set to meet with Trump during the visit, announced that public money will go to staging the 2025 Nexo Championship, previously known as the Scottish Championship, at Trump's first course near Aberdeen next month. 'The Scottish Government recognizes the importance and benefits of golf and golf events, including boosting tourism and our economy,' Swinney said. At a protest Saturday in Aberdeen, Scottish Parliament member Maggie Chapman told the crowd of hundreds: 'We stand in solidarity, not only against Trump but against everything he and his politics stand for.' The president has long lobbied for Turnberry to host the British Open, which it has not done since he took over ownership. In a social media post Saturday, Trump quoted the retired golfer Gary Player as saying Turnberry was among the 'Top Five Greatest Golf Courses' he had played in as a professional. The president, in the post, misspelled the city where his golf course is located.
Al Arabiya
4 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
UK party threatens to ‘force vote' on recognizing Palestinian state
A minor opposition party in the British parliament on Sunday threatened to bring forward legislation on recognizing Palestinian statehood and 'force a vote' if Prime Minister Keir Starmer continues to oppose the mov e. The Scottish National Party (SNP), which pushes for the independence of Scotland, said it would table a 'Palestine Recognition Bill' when parliament returns after its summer recess if Starmer did not change his position. The prime minister has committed to recognizing Palestinian statehood but said it must be part of a peace process in the Middle East. The SNP threat comes after more than 220 British MPs, including dozens from Starmer's ruling Labour party, demanded Friday that the UK government follow France and recognize a Palestinian state. The call, in a letter signed by lawmakers from nine UK political parties, came less than 24 hours after French President Emmanuel Macron said that his country would formally do so at a UN meeting in September. 'Unless Keir Starmer stops blocking UK recognition of Palestine, the SNP will introduce a Palestine Recognition Bill when Parliament returns in September and force a vote if necessary,' said Stephen Flynn, SNP's leader in the UK parliament. 'Keir Starmer must stop defending the indefensible, finally find a backbone and demand that Israel ends its war now,' he added. If France formally recognizes a Palestinian state it would be the first G7 country -- and the most powerful European nation to date -- to make the move. Starmer has come under rising domestic and international pressure over recognizing Palestinian statehood, as opposition intensifies to the ongoing war in Gaza amid fears of mass starvation there. The UK leader on Saturday spoke to his French and German counterparts and outlined UK plans to airdrop aid to people in Gaza and evacuate sick and injured children, his office said. The SNP holds nine seats in the 650-seat UK parliament.
Al Arabiya
6 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
US President Donald Trump golfs in Scotland as Epstein questions persist
US President Donald Trump kept a low profile on his Scottish golf course on Saturday, ahead of meetings with top British and European leaders, as questions swirled at home about his ties to disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Trump arrived on Friday on a visit that has triggered protests in Scotland, with hundreds lining the streets of the capital Edinburgh waving placards saying: 'NOT MY PRESIDENT.' The U.S. leader told reporters on arrival that he would visit his two golf properties in Scotland - one in Turnberry on the west coast where he is playing on Saturday and the other near Aberdeen on the country's eastern coast. He is also due to meet British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Scottish leader John Swinney and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, whom he called a 'highly respected woman.' Von der Leyen headed to Scotland on Saturday, ahead of the meeting, with two top US officials flying in from Washington and officials on both sides expressing cautious optimism that a framework trade agreement could be reached. Trump will meet with von der Leyen at 1530 GMT on Sunday, the White House said. Frustrated by continued questions about his administration's handling of investigative files related to Epstein's criminal charges and his 2019 death in prison, Trump on Friday told reporters to focus on bigger issues and other people. 'You make it a very big thing over something that's not a big thing,' Trump said. 'Don't talk about Trump. What you should be talking about is the fact that we have the greatest six months in the history of a presidency.' Trump, normally a master at changing the subject when a topic stings politically, has been unable to shake off persistent unrest from his usually loyal base about Epstein, who died by suicide in prison in 2019. The US president was spotted on the golf course on Saturday morning, but had no public events on his schedule. Reporters and supporters were kept away by enhanced security. The White House said Trump was golfing with his son, Eric Trump, and the US ambassador to Britain, Warren Stephens, and his son. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt was also on the course. White House officials hope some time out of the limelight will allow the Epstein controversy to die down, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. Gaza concerns Away from the golf course, hundreds of anti-Trump protesters gathered outside the US consulate in Edinburgh, with some holding up placards with images of Trump with Epstein. Others in the crowd held pro-Palestinian signs. Cat Cutmore, 31, an Edinburgh resident, said she felt compelled to protest Trump's visit given her deep concerns about the worsening situation in Gaza after 21 months of war and what she sees as the US president's attacks on democratic principles. She chafed at his warm reception by Scottish and British officials. 'There comes a point where if you roll out the red carpet to somebody who has put citizens of his own country and people who are seeking asylum into prison camps, you're complicit,' she said. Janet MacLeod Trotter, another Edinburgh resident and an author of historical fiction, said she was particularly angry that Trump was capitalizing on his mother's name, which she shares. On the trip, Trump will open a golf course near Aberdeen named after his mother, Mary Anne MacLeod, who was born and raised on a Scottish island before emigrating to the United States. 'We're just fed up with the way that he's using political clout to browbeat people around the world ... He's coming here and using that as a gimmick to help his business interests,' Trotter said. Gabriele Negro, an Italian who works at the University of Edinburgh, said he was there to send a signal that he, like others, did not agree with Trump's immigration policies and stance on Gaza. Trump bought the Turnberry property, which includes a hotel and golf course, for $60 million in 2014, in the hope of returning the course to the rotation for the Open Championship, but said his visit was 'not about that.' It has not hosted the event since 2009 amid concerns about the lack of accommodation and infrastructure for an event that draws hundreds of thousands.
