US Sees Backing Syrian Leader as Key to Countering Iran and ISIS
'The US objectives, and his objectives, and all of the allies' objectives at the moment are aligned, but there's so many constituencies who would like to interfere with that relationship,' Tom Barrack, who is also US ambassador to Turkey, told reporters in Washington on Thursday. 'Iran, on the other side, is a much more intense issue and problem for all of us.'
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29 minutes ago
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Hamas orders starving hostage to dig his own grave
Hamas has released a video of an emaciated Israeli hostage digging his own grave inside a small tunnel in Gaza. In the video, Evayatar David says: 'This is the grave I think I'm going to be buried in. Time is running out. You are the only ones who can end this.' The video was approved for publication by his family despite concerns that Mr David was speaking under duress and being used as a propaganda tool by the terror group. It is the third time Hamas and affiliated groups have released videos of what appear to be starving hostages in recent days. On Sunday morning the EU called the videos appalling and barbaric and Benjamin Netanayahu, the Israeli prime minister, said he had met families of hostages to express his 'profound shock'. It comes as Gazans face a major food crisis, with widespread reports of malnutrition and hunger. Israel has been accused of intentionally starving the Strip to force Hamas into a surrender as part of a hostage release deal. Six more people died of starvation and malnutrition in Gaza over the past 24 hours, the Hamas-run health ministry said on Sunday. It came as Israel said it allowed a delivery of fuel to the enclave. Egyptian state news said two trucks carrying 107 tons of diesel were set to enter Gaza, months after Israel severely restricted aid access to the enclave before easing it somewhat as starvation began to spread. COGAT, the Israeli military agency that coordinates aid, said later in the day that four tankers of UN fuel had entered to help in operations of hospitals, bakeries, public kitchens and other essential services. In the most recent video, Mr David is heard appealing to Mr Netanyahu to get him and the remaining 49 hostages out, accusing him of 'abandoning' them. Mr David, 24, shows a calendar of the month of July that he himself made, explaining which days he ate, mostly lentils and beans. At the end of the video Mr David, bare chested, pale and weak, is shown digging his own grave. His brother, Ilay, accused Hamas of using him in 'one of the most horrific and calculated campaigns of cruelty imaginable - a live hunger experiment'. 'It's an act so vile, it scars the very soul of humanity,' he said at a rally for the hostages in Tel Aviv on Saturday. The David family also released a joint statement, predicting that he only has a few days left to live in his current condition. 'The humanitarian aid that the world, together with Israel, provides to the residents of Gaza must also reach Evyatar,' the family said, calling on the Israeli government, the US and the rest of the world to do 'everything possible to save Evyatar from death and ensure, by any means necessary, that he urgently receives food and medical care'. Omer Wenkert, an Israeli former hostage, also spoke at the rally on Saturday, saying that he believed the Hamas captors will have a plentiful supply of food. 'I know they have food there beyond the door. I used to smell it every day while I was getting two handfuls of rice a day. They have light, they have everything there to give, so why, why, why don't they give it?' he said. Other former hostages have also testified that Hamas brought humanitarian aid from international NGOs down the tunnels, 'eating like kings' without offering anything to the captives. 'Terrible suffering' Gideon Sa'ar, Israel's foreign minister, called on his counterparts around the world to express a 'moral and ethical stance and to exert every possible influence to end the terrible suffering of the Israeli hostages'. Mr Sa'ar also initiated a special UN Security Council meeting on the issue of the Israeli hostages and their situation. 'The world cannot remain silent in the face of the difficult images that are the result of deliberate sadistic abuse of the hostages, which also includes starvation by Hamas and Islamic Jihad,' Mr Sa'ar said. David Lammy, the Foreign Secretary, said: 'The images of hostages being paraded for propaganda are sickening. Every hostage must be released unconditionally. Hamas must disarm and have no control over Gaza.' Kaja Kallas, the EU's foreign affairs chief, called the videos 'appalling', saying that they 'expose the barbarity of Hamas'. 'All hostages must be released immediately and unconditionally. Hamas must disarm and end its rule in Gaza. At the same time, large-scale humanitarian aid must be allowed to reach those in need,' Ms Kallas said. Emmanuel Macron, the French president, said the hostage videos showed 'inhumanity without bounds'. Speaking of the 'unbearable images', Mr Macron said: 'Abject cruelty, inhumanity without bounds: this is what Hamas represents.' On Saturday tens of thousands of people had rallied in Tel Aviv to urge Mr Netanyahu's government to secure the release of the remaining hostages. The Israeli premier, who has faced mounting international pressure to halt the war, called on 'the entire world' to take a stand against what he called 'the criminal Nazi abuse perpetrated by the Hamas terror organisation'. Israel's campaign in Gaza has killed at least 60,430 people, also mostly civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory's health ministry, deemed reliable by the UN. Overnight from Saturday to Sunday, air raid sirens sounded in Israeli communities near the Gaza border, with the military saying that 'a projectile that was launched from the southern Gaza Strip was most likely intercepted'. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Yahoo
an hour ago
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Israel minister who led prayers at a controversial holy site has a record of provocative actions
ML-Israel-minister TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel's far-right national security minister led prayers on Sunday at Jerusalem's most sensitive holy site, drawing international condemnation and escalating tensions as Israel faces strong criticism over the war in Gaza. Itamar Ben-Gvir has frequently visited the contested Jerusalem hilltop compound during the war in Gaza. Jews revere the site as the Temple Mount, where the biblical temples once stood. It is the holiest site in Judaism. Today, it is home to the Al Aqsa Mosque, the third-holiest site in Islam. Tensions at the compound have frequently spilled over into violence over the years. It was the latest act of defiance by the 49-year-old ultranationalist settler leader who transformed himself over the decades from an outlaw and provocateur into one of Israel's most influential politicians. Here is a closer look at Ben-Gvir: Why was the visit considered a provocation? Since Israel captured the site in 1967, Jews have been allowed to visit but not pray there. Palestinians consider the mosque a national symbol and view visits by Jewish leaders as provocative and as a potential precursor to Israel seizing control over the compound. Most rabbis forbid Jews from praying on the site, but there has been a growing movement in recent years of Jews who support worship there. Ben-Gvir has long called for greater Jewish access to the holy site. Ben-Gvir was visiting to mark the Jewish holiday of Tisha B'Av, a day of mourning and repentance when Jews reflect on the destruction of the First and Second Temples, key events in Jewish history. Visits like Ben-Gvir's are legal. Israeli media said the visit was the first time that a sitting minister actively and vocally led prayers. Ben-Gvir also called for Israel to conquer and declare sovereignty over all of the Gaza Strip and encourage 'voluntary' migration from Gaza in order to end the war and bring the hostages back. Palestinians say the migration plan is a disguise for forced expulsions. In response to Ben-Gvir's visit, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the status quo at the site had not changed and would not change to allow Jewish prayer. Run-ins with the law Ben-Gvir has been convicted eight times for offenses that include racism and supporting a terrorist organization. The army banned him from compulsory military service when he was a teen, deeming his views too extreme. Ben-Gvir gained notoriety in his youth as a follower of the late radical rabbi Meir Kahane. He first became a national figure when he broke a hood ornament off then-Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin's car in 1995. 'We got to his car, and we'll get to him too,' he said, just weeks before Rabin was assassinated by a Jewish extremist opposed to his peace efforts with the Palestinians. Two years later, Ben-Gvir took responsibility for orchestrating a campaign of protests, including death threats, that forced Irish singer Sinead O'Connor to cancel a concert for peace in Jerusalem. Moving to the mainstream The political rise of Ben-Gvir was the culmination of years of efforts by the media-savvy lawmaker to gain legitimacy. But it also reflected a rightward shift in the Israeli electorate that brought his religious, ultranationalist ideology into the mainstream and diminished hopes for Palestinian independence. Ben-Gvir is trained as a lawyer and gained recognition as a successful defense attorney for extremist Jews accused of violence against Palestinians. With a quick wit and cheerful demeanor, the outspoken Ben-Gvir also became a popular fixture in the media, paving his way to enter politics. He was first elected to parliament in 2021. Ben-Gvir has called for deporting his political opponents. In an episode in 2022, he brandished a pistol and encouraged police to open fire on Palestinian stone-throwers in a tense Jerusalem neighborhood. In his Cabinet post, Ben-Gvir oversaw the country's police force. He used his influence to encourage Netanyahu to press ahead with the war in Gaza and recently boasted that he had blocked past efforts to reach a ceasefire. As national security minister, he has encouraged police to take a tough line against anti-government protesters. Controversial minister Ben-Gvir secured his Cabinet post after 2022 elections that put Netanyahu and his far-right partners, including Ben-Gvir's Jewish Power party, into power. 'Over the last year I've been on a mission to save Israel,' Ben-Gvir told reporters before that election. 'Millions of citizens are waiting for a real right-wing government. The time has come to give them one.' Ben-Gvir has been a magnet of controversy throughout his tenure — encouraging the mass distribution of handguns to Jewish citizens, backing Netanyahu's contentious attempt to overhaul the country's legal system and frequently lashing out at U.S. leaders for perceived slights against Israel. Resignation and return to Netanyahu's cabinet Ben-Gvir temporarily resigned from Prime Minister Netanyahu's cabinet earlier this year to express his disapproval of the Gaza ceasefire deal. The ceasefire ran from Jan. 19 to March 1. Hamas released 25 Israeli hostages and the bodies of eight others in return for nearly 1,800 Palestinian prisoners, including senior militants serving life sentences for deadly attacks. Israeli forces pulled back to a buffer zone, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians returned to what remained of their homes, and there was a surge of humanitarian aid. Ben-Gvir's resignation did not stop the ceasefire, but it did weaken Netanyahu's governing coalition. Ben-Gvir rejoined the cabinet when Israel ended the ceasefire and returned to active combat in Gaza in March 2025. Last week, the Netherlands banned Ben-Gvir and far-right Finance Minister Betzalel Smotrich from entering the country. Britain, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Norway imposed financial sanctions on the two men last month. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
an hour ago
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Ex-Trump Lawyer Says Trump Could Set Sights on Musk's Billions: 'It Bothers Him That He Is the Richest Man'
President Donald Trump's former personal attorney Michael Cohen has predicted that Trump might set his sights on the fortune of tech magnate Elon Musk following their recent spat. What Happened: Cohen thinks Trump's jealousy of Musk's position as the wealthiest man in the world could drive him to target Musk's wealth. Musk, who is the CEO of Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA), had earlier contributed $250 million to Trump's 2024 campaign and was chosen to spearhead a cost-reduction initiative under the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Earlier speaking with MSNBC, Cohen said, "I said from the very start that this bromance was going to come to an end. I'm going to go one step even further, again, and I'm going to say Trump will ultimately go after Elon's money next because it bothers him that he is the richest man in the world." Cohen, now a prominent critic of Trump, speculates that Trump could utilize DOGE to probe how Musk and his businesses 'exploited the United States of America' and try to 'reclaim' government subsidies given to Tesla. Also Read: Ex-Trump Lawyer Sent This Message To Elon Musk After Feud With Donald Trump Erupted However, White House communications director Steven Cheung dismissed Cohen's forecasts, describing him as a 'deeply disturbed' person spreading 'falsehoods and deception'. Why It Matters: The conjecture by Cohen, if it materializes, could lead to a significant shift in the dynamics between Trump and Musk. The latter's wealth, largely attributed to his leadership at Tesla, has been a subject of public interest. Musk's contribution to Trump's campaign and his role in DOGE further intertwine their professional relationship. Any action by Trump targeting Musk's fortune could potentially impact Tesla's operations and its standing in the market. However, these are mere predictions at this point, and it remains to be seen how the situation unfolds. Read Next Ex-Trump Family Attorney Raises Alarms Over Trump's Actions as President: 'I Have Never Been As Concerned' Image: Shutterstock Up Next: Transform your trading with Benzinga Edge's one-of-a-kind market trade ideas and tools. Click now to access unique insights that can set you ahead in today's competitive market. Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga? TESLA (TSLA): Free Stock Analysis Report This article Ex-Trump Lawyer Says Trump Could Set Sights on Musk's Billions: 'It Bothers Him That He Is the Richest Man' originally appeared on © 2025 Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
