Israeli Deputy Minister Outlines Gaza Civil Administration Plan for War's End
The other principles include the release of hostages still held in Gaza, the surrender of weapons by Hamas, the full demilitarization of Gaza, and Israel retaining overriding security control, he said, Reuters reported.
Meanwhile, the European Union said it rejects any territorial change involving Israel and Gaza that is not part of a political agreement, a European Commission spokesperson said in response to questions on Thursday.
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Arab News
4 hours ago
- Arab News
Putin says he and Trump reached an ‘understanding,' but neither offers details on Ukraine war talks
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska: President Donald Trump and Russia's Vladimir Putin said they reached an understanding on ending the war in Ukraine after meeting for about 2 1/2 hours on Friday in Alaska, but offered no details on what they agreed and left without answering questions. In brief remarks, Putin said the pair had hammered out an 'understanding' on Ukraine and warned Europe not to 'torpedo the nascent progress.' Speaking moments later, Trump said he'd yet to speak with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky but that he'd be speaking to him and European leaders soon. He suggested there hasn't been a deal yet. The two leaders met for about 2 1/2 half hours on Friday at a summit in Alaska that started with a handshake, a smile and a ride in the presidential limousine — an unusually warm reception for a US adversary responsible for launching the largest land war in Europe since 1945. When they greeted each other, they gripped hands for an extended period of time on a red carpet rolled out at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage. As they chatted, Putin grinned and pointed skyward, where B-2s and F-22s — military aircraft designed to oppose Russia during the Cold War — flew overhead. Reporters nearby yelled, 'President Putin, will you stop killing civilians?' and Russia's leader put his hand up to his ear as though to indicate he couldn't hear them. Trump and Putin then shared the US presidential limo known as 'The Beast' for a short ride to their meeting site, with Putin offering a broad smile as the vehicle rolled past the cameras. It was the kind of reception typically reserved for close US allies and belied the bloodshed and suffering in the war Putin started in Ukraine. Although not altogether surprising considering their longtime friendly relationship, such outward friendliness before hours of closed-door meetings is likely to raise concerns from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders, who fear that Trump is primarily focusing on furthering US interests and not pressing hard enough for Ukraine's. Zelensky and European leaders were excluded from Trump and Putin's discussions, and Ukraine's president was left posting a video address in which he expressed his hope for a 'strong position from the US' 'Everyone wants an honest end to the war. Ukraine is ready to work as productively as possible to end the war,' he said, later adding, 'The war continues and it continues precisely because there is no order, nor any signals from Moscow, that it is preparing to end this war.' The summit was a chance for Trump to prove he's a master dealmaker and peacemaker. He likes to brag about himself as a heavyweight negotiator and has boasted that he could easily find a way to bring the slaughter to a close — a promise he's been unable to keep so far. For Putin, it was an opportunity to try to negotiate a deal that would cement Russia's gains, block Kyiv's bid to join the NATO military alliance and eventually pull Ukraine back into Moscow's orbit. Not meeting one-on-one anymore White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said shortly before Air Force One touched down that the previously planned one-on-one meeting between Trump and Putin was now a three-on-three discussion including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff. Putin was joined by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov. The change seemed to indicate that the White House was taking a more guarded approach than it did during a 2018 meeting in Helsinki, where Trump and Putin met privately with their interpreters and Trump then shocked the world by siding with the Russian leader over US intelligence officials on whether Russia meddled in the 2016 campaign. The two leaders began their meeting Friday by sitting with their aides in front of a blue backdrop printed with 'Alaska' and 'Pursuing Peace.' The pair are expected to hold a joint press conference at the end of the summit. There are significant risks for Trump. By bringing Putin onto US soil — America bought Alaska from Russia in 1867 for roughly 2 cents per acre — the president is giving him the validation he desires after his ostracization following his invasion of Ukraine 3 1/2 years ago. Zelensky's exclusion is also a heavy blow to the West's policy of 'nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine' and invites the possibility that Trump could agree to a deal that Ukraine does not want. Any success is far from assured, meanwhile, since Russia and Ukraine remain far apart in their demands for peace. Putin has long resisted any temporary ceasefire, linking it to a halt in Western arms supplies and a freeze on Ukraine's mobilization efforts, which are conditions rejected by Kyiv and its Western allies. Trump said earlier in the week there was a 25 percent chance that the summit would fail, but he also floated the idea that if the meeting succeeds he could bring Zelensky to Alaska for a subsequent meeting with himself and Putin. He said during an interview on Air Force One that he might walk out quickly if the meeting wasn't going well, but that didn't happen. Trump said before arriving in Alaska that he would push for an immediate ceasefire while expressing doubts about the possibility of achieving one. He has also suggested working for a broad peace deal to be done quickly. Russia has long favored a comprehensive deal to end the fighting, reflecting its demands, and not a temporary halt to hostilities. Trump has offered shifting explanations for his meeting goals Trump previously characterized the sit-down as ' really a feel-out meeting.' But he's also warned of 'very severe consequences' for Russia if Putin doesn't agree to end the war. Trump said his talks with Putin will include Russian demands that Ukraine cede territory as part of a peace deal, and that Ukraine has to decide on those — but he also suggested Zelensky should accept concessions. 'I've got to let Ukraine make that decision. And I think they'll make a proper decision,' Trump told reporters traveling with him to Anchorage. Trump said there's 'a possibility' of the United States offering Ukraine security guarantees alongside European powers, 'but not in the form of NATO.' Putin has fiercely resisted Ukraine joining the trans-Atlantic security alliance, a long-term goal for Ukrainians seeking to forge stronger ties with the West. Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, NATO's supreme allied commander Europe, is also in Alaska to provide 'military advice' to Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, according to a senior NATO military official who wasn't authorized to speak publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity. Grynkewich's presence is likely to be welcomed by European leaders who have tried to convince Trump to be firm with Putin and not deal over Kyiv's head. War still raging Foreign governments are watching closely to see how Trump reacts to Putin, likely gauging what the interaction might mean for their own dealings with the US president, who has eschewed traditional diplomacy for his own transactional approach to relationships. The meeting comes as the war has caused heavy losses on both sides and drained resources. Ukraine has held on far longer than some initially expected since the February 2022 invasion, but it is straining to hold off Russia's much larger army, grappling with bombardments of its cities and fighting for every inch on the over 600-mile (1,000-kilometer) front line. Alaska is separated from Russia at its closest point by just 3 miles (less than 5 kilometers) and the international date line. Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson was crucial to countering the Soviet Union during the Cold War. It continues to play a role today, as planes from the base still intercept Russian aircraft that regularly fly into US airspace.
Arab News
7 hours ago
- Arab News
Microsoft launches probe after Israeli mass surveillance claims
LONDON: Microsoft has opened an external investigation into allegations that a top Israeli military intelligence unit used its cloud technology to carry out mass surveillance of Palestinians. The probe follows a joint report by The Guardian, +972 Magazine, and Hebrew-language outlet Local Call. According to the report, Israel's Unit 8200 spy agency, the rough equivalent of the US National Security Agency, used Microsoft's Azure cloud service to store a vast archive of phone calls intercepted and recorded from Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza. The joint media report also revealed extensive ties between Microsoft's Israel office and the spy unit — a finding that prompted alarm among the tech giant's US executives who feared that Israel-based employees might have concealed information about the nature of their work with Unit 8200. Microsoft's Israel office, as part of its work with the unit, created a custom, segregated suite within the Azure platform in order to store the archive of intercepted phone calls. Unit 8200 chiefs aimed to use the surveillance project to record 'millions of calls per hour' across the Palestinian territories. In a statement, Microsoft said 'using Azure for the storage of data files of phone calls obtained through broad or mass surveillance of civilians in Gaza and the West Bank' would be prohibited under its terms of service. The tech giant appointed lawyers from US firm Covington & Burling to oversee the inquiry. It is the second external probe initiated by Microsoft in relation to its ties with the Israeli military. The first, conducted earlier this year, found 'no evidence to date' that the Israel Defense Forces had broken Microsoft's terms of service or used the Azure cloud service 'to target or harm people' in Gaza. However, the latest investigation will expand on the previous one, with Microsoft agreeing 'that The Guardian's recent report raises additional and precise allegations that merit a full and urgent review.' Pressure is also mounting within Microsoft through an employee-led campaign group, No Azure for Apartheid. The group, which is accusing the tech giant of 'complicity in genocide and apartheid,' has called for Microsoft to cut all ties with the Israeli military. Sources within Microsoft told The Guardian that the company's leadership was scrambling to assess Azure data. They are reportedly concerned about information revealed by Unit 8200 sources for the joint media report, which alleged that the data was used to identify targets for strikes in Gaza. Microsoft pledged to 'share with the public the factual findings that result from' the external review, a statement said.
Arab News
8 hours ago
- Arab News
Israel's chokehold on US is beginning to loosen
Has Israel's government finally gone too far? Ever since it was founded in 1948, Israel has engaged in violence against Palestinians and used its support in America as a shield to prevent it from being punished at the UN. To ensure that America's support never wavers, pro-Israel groups have poured hundreds of millions of dollars into manipulating the American political system, influencing election results and ensuring members of Congress shy away from questioning its misconduct. But ever since Israel's government launched its war of vengeance against the Palestinians in Gaza in response to the Hamas attacks of Oct. 7, 2023, its excessive violence, war crimes, genocide and even the murder of a handful of Americans have seemed to tilt the balance of support in the US. Recent polling shows that the American public has started to react to Israel's excesses, with 60 percent now opposing Tel Aviv's military action in Gaza. Israel's violence, pushed by the influence of far-right religious extremists who control the government of right-wing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has pushed open a door of judgment that it might not be able to close. Even worse for Israel is that its excessive military response has sparked a seismic political tremor that has started to reverberate among some Republican conservatives and mainstream Democrats, who for generations could be counted on to close their eyes to Israel's extrajudicial killings, collective punishment and contempt for the international rule of law. We are starting to see the powerful chokehold that Israel has long had over American politics start to loosen. We have always seen the Democratic Party mildly slap Israel on the wrist for its violent excesses, but mainstream Democrats like Rep. Mike Quigley are now questioning Israel's military actions and even calling for the establishment of a Palestinian state. Israel's excessive violence, war crimes and genocide have seemed to tilt the balance of support in the US Ray Hanania We have long heard those on the far left in the Democratic Party scream and stamp their feet with no impact on American society. They have excoriated Israel's government for its hypocritical discriminatory policies against Christians and Muslims. Meanwhile, the Republicans and evangelical Christian movements have always stood by Israel, giving it a shield against any form of criminal prosecution, even when its victims have been Americans. Conservatives may have winced at Israel's abuses, but they never crossed the line to demand accountability or judgment. Until now. The tipping point came because Americans have begun to experience a weakening economy. Not only has inflation pushed the price of commodities like groceries, cars and clothing to new heights, but the costs of essentials like insurance, healthcare and property taxes have also risen dramatically. Many Americans are now struggling financially. The US also has a record national debt of more than $37 trillion, which is driving inflation and pushing the cost of products to unaffordable new heights. That economic reality is trumping America's love affair with Israel, causing many Americans to ask: 'Why?' One of the strongest voices leading the backlash is a core member of President Donald Trump's 'Make America Great Again' movement: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. The Republican from Georgia has started to question why America sacrifices so much for Israel. Greene, a staunch, unapologetic champion of Trump, is the face of the new movement that is challenging Israel's dominion over America and directly challenging Israel's political powerbase in the US, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. This group has spent hundreds of millions of dollars on donations to the campaign coffers of hundreds of US politicians in order to ensure their subordination and subservience to Israel's needs and demands. Today's economic reality is trumping America's love affair with Israel, causing many Americans to ask: 'Why?' Ray Hanania Greene is demanding that America stop giving Israel foreign aid. The US sends $4 billion in aid to Israel every year and it has also provided $18 billion in military assistance for Tel Aviv's war on Gaza. She has the audacity to ask why. Why is America giving Israel so much money, which could instead be given to Americans who are suffering financially? She posted on X this week: 'AIPAC is trying to paint my America First message as 'antisemitic' because I don't want to keep sending billions to the secular government of nuclear-armed Israel.' Greene has expanded her call to end all foreign aid — a call to arms that is being embraced by other mainstream MAGA Republicans like Rep. Thomas Massie. What is happening is a political revolution being driven by a worsening economy and by Israeli arrogance. In her post this week, Green concluded: 'With $37 TRILLION in debt, I'm unapologetically America ONLY at this point. My loyalty is to the American people and my children's generation. The people I was elected to represent. NOT ANY FOREIGN COUNTRY.' The growing criticism of Israel's policies, combined with the financial pain many Americans are experiencing and the arrogance of foreign lobbyists who believe they can politically suffocate mainstream congressional antagonists, is undermining Israel's grip over the American people. The changes may look small, but with the criticisms gaining momentum, at some point they will become unstoppable. There is an American idiom often used in politics that says, 'give someone enough rope and they will hang themselves.' Israel is today tightening the noose around its own moral profligacy. • Ray Hanania is an award-winning former Chicago City Hall political reporter and columnist. He can be reached on his personal website at X: @RayHanania
