Syria Leader Navigates Between US and Israel
Since leading the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad in December, Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa has received notable support from the US along with key regional players such as Saudi Arabia.
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Yahoo
4 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Gaza student leaves France over anti-Semitic social media posts spat
A Gazan student on a French scholarship left for Qatar after anti-Semitic posts were found on her social media, the foreign ministry said on Sunday. The case sparked political backlash and led the government to suspend its scholarship programme for students evacuated from Gaza. A student from Gaza who had been studying in France on a scholarship left for Qatar Sunday, ordered out over anti-Semitic comments found on her social media accounts, the foreign ministry said. Foreign minister Jean-Noël Barrot "stressed the unacceptable nature of the comments made by Ms. Nour Attaalah, a Gazan student, before she entered French territory", said the ministry statement. "Given their seriousness, Ms. Attaalah could not remain on French territory. She left France today to go to Qatar to continue her studies there," it added. The student's lawyer, Ossama Dahmane, said Attaalah had chosen to "pursue her studies in another country in a spirit of appeasement and to guarantee her security", even if "she firmly denies the accusations made against her". Read moreFrance suspends intake of Gazan evacuees over student's antisemitic posts The young woman, who had received a student visa and a government scholarship as part of a programme for Gazan students, had been due to join Sciences Po Lille in the fall. She arrived in France on July 11, according to a French diplomatic source. But social media posts from the past two years calling for the killing of Jews, since deleted, were discovered. That led to a judicial investigation for condoning terrorism, and an inquiry to determine why the posts had not been detected in advance. FRANCE 24 was unable to confirm the screen shots attributed to her by internet users and media outlets, but Sciences Po Lille said Wednesday that her social media comments had been confirmed, without elaborating. Dahmane, the lawyer, said the "alleged facts are largely based on shared tweets, taken out of context". Barrot said Friday that France was freezing all its student evacuation programmes from Gaza pending the outcome of the investigation into how the posts had been missed. The foreign ministry would not say how many students have been affected, citing privacy reasons. France has allowed in several hundred students from Gaza since the start of the war between Israel and the Hamas movement. (FRANCE 24 with AFP)
News24
an hour ago
- News24
Netanyahu asks Red Cross for help after ‘harrowing videos' of Gaza hostages emerge
Israelis held hostages in Gaza face starvation. Outrage is building in Israel over the continued captivity of the hostages. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked the International Committee of the Red Cross for help. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appealed to the International Committee of the Red Cross on Sunday for help aiding hostages in Gaza, as outrage built at videos showing two of them emaciated. The premier's office said he spoke to the ICRC coordinator for the region, Julien Lerisson, and 'requested his involvement in providing food to our hostages and... immediate medical treatment'. The ICRC said in a statement it was 'appalled by the harrowing videos' and reiterated its 'call to be granted access to the hostages'. In response, Hamas's armed wing said it would allow the agency access to the hostages but only if 'humanitarian corridors' for food and aid were opened 'across all areas of the Gaza Strip'. The Al-Qassam Brigades said it did 'not intentionally starve' the hostages, but they would not receive any special food privileges 'amid the crime of starvation and siege' in Gaza. READ | 'They managed to break Rom': Plea for return of Gaza hostages after Islamic Jihad shows video Over recent days, Hamas and its ally Islamic Jihad have released three videos showing two hostages seized during the 7 October 2023 attack on Israel that triggered the ongoing war. 'I am filled with even stronger determination to free our kidnapped sons,' Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said expressing shock at the video of emaciated hostages held by Hamas — Reuters (@Reuters) August 4, 2025 The images of Rom Braslavski and Evyatar David, both of whom appeared weak and malnourished, have fuelled renewed calls in Israel for a truce and hostage release deal. A statement from Netanyahu's office on Saturday said he had spoken with the families of the two hostages and 'expressed profound shock over the materials distributed by the terror organisations'. Netanyahu 'told the families that the efforts to return all our hostages are ongoing', the statement added. Earlier in the day, tens of thousands of people had rallied in the coastal hub of Tel Aviv to call on Netanyahu's government to secure the release of the remaining captives. There was particular outrage in Israel over images of David, who appeared to be digging what he said in the staged video was his own grave. How psychopathic is Hamas? It forced starving hostage Evyatar David to DIG HIS OWN GRAVE for the cameras. — Eylon Levy (@EylonALevy) August 2, 2025 The videos make references to the dire humanitarian conditions in Gaza, where UN-mandated experts have warned a 'famine is unfolding'. An emergency session on the 'dire situation of the hostages' will be convened by the UN Security Council on Tuesday, Israel's UN ambassador said Sunday in a post on X. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the images 'are appalling and expose the barbarity of Hamas', calling for the release of 'all hostages... immediately and unconditionally'. Kallas said in the same post on X that 'Hamas must disarm and end its rule in Gaza' - demands endorsed earlier this week by Arab countries, including key mediators Qatar and Egypt. She added that 'large-scale humanitarian aid must be allowed to reach those in need.' Israel has heavily restricted the entry of aid into Gaza, while UN agencies, humanitarian groups and analysts say that much of what Israel does allow in is looted or diverted in chaotic circumstances. Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images Many desperate Palestinians are left to risk their lives seeking what aid is distributed through controlled channels. On Sunday, Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli fire killed nine Palestinians who were waiting to collect food rations from a site operated by the US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) near the southern city of Rafah. 'The soldiers opened fire on people. I was there, no one posed any threat' to the Israeli forces, 31-year-old witness Jabr al-Shaer told AFP by phone. There was no comment from the military. Five more people were killed near a different GHF aid site in central Gaza on Sunday, while Israeli attacks elsewhere killed another five people, said civil defence spokesperson Mahmud Bassal. Khames Alrefi/Anadolu via Getty Images Braslavski and David are among the 49 hostages taken during Hamas' 2023 attack who are still being held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead. Most of the 251 hostages seized in the attack were released during two short-lived truces, some in exchange for Palestinians in Israeli custody. Hamas' 2023 attack resulted in the deaths of 1 219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. 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, which are deemed reliable by the UN. The Palestine Red Crescent Society said one of its staff members was killed in an Israeli attack on its Khan Yunis headquarters, in southern Gaza. Contacted by AFP, the Israeli military said it was 'not aware of a strike' in that area. Media restrictions and difficulties accessing many areas mean AFP cannot independently verify tolls and details provided by various parties.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Why copper, aluminium and steel are at the core of Trump's MAGA ideology
Like the US government's country-specific tariffs, the hefty 50% levies on all steel, copper and aluminium imports go beyond economics — reflecting Trump's desire to reclaim once-dominant US industries and rally his blue-collar base. "Much of the motivation for tariffs on the base inputs of production, such as copper, is primarily a political motivation," David Stritch, a senior FX Analyst at Caxton, told Euronews. "Trump has on several occasions become frustrated at the reversal in the production of all three materials, away from the United States, which was the dominant global producer as recently as the 1980's, and towards Chile for copper and China for steel and aluminium," he continued. Trump has long framed steel and aluminium as the backbone of American strength, linking their production to economic survival as well as national security. During his first term in 2018, he underscored just how central he believes these industries are. "A strong steel and aluminium industry are vital to our national security. Absolutely vital," Trump said. "Steel is steel. You don't have steel, you don't have a country. Our industries have been targeted for years and years — decades, in fact — by unfair foreign trade practices leading to the shuttered plants and mills, the laying off of millions of workers, and the decimation of entire communities. And that's going to stop, right? It's going to stop," he declared at the time. When it comes to copper, the US currently imports around half of its resources, mostly from Chile and Canada. On Wednesday, copper prices fell sharply before the 1 August deadline for the implementation of new tariffs, with US copper futures sinking 20% to around $4.55 or €3.94 per pound, marking the largest intra-day fall on record. This came after US copper prices surged to new records in July when Trump first announced the levy. Again taking investors by surprise, the president then announced this week that the raw material — as opposed to semi-finished products — would be exempt from the duty, threatening less of a supply squeeze. Imports of copper concentrate and cathodes won't be affected by new levies, although shipments of wire, pipes, and sheeting will be. Meanwhile the doubling of steel and aluminium tariffs, to 50% from their previous 25% tariff rate, has significantly raised US domestic metal prices, cutting off cost-competitive imports and increasing volatility for manufacturers. Higher input costs and shrinking availability are forcing US companies to consider reshoring their investments and redesigning their supply chains. Whether or not tariffs will actually boost domestic production nonetheless remains to be seen, as levies imposed by Trump during his first term failed to do so. By 2024, US steel output was actually 1% lower than in 2017, before Trump's initial tariffs, while aluminium production had declined by nearly 10%. According to recent analysis, Trump's tariffs could raise manufacturing costs by up to 4.5%, squeezing narrow-margin sectors like EVs and appliances, as well as delaying investment in key manufacturing hubs across the country. Industries 'snatched away' from the US For most of the 20th century, the United States was the world's top copper producer until Chile took this title, marking the end of US dominance. Today, Chile remains the largest global producer of the metal. In terms of steel production, the US peaked in the early 1970s before the industry faced a prolonged collapse, deepened by a series of recessions. Cheaper and more efficient systems in Japan, South Korea, Europe and elsewhere undercut high-cost US integrated steel mills. A strong dollar also made foreign steel even cheaper, while domestic plants were burdened with aging equipment, high labour contracts and rising environmental costs. Steel towns — the ones Trump now wants to reinvigorate nearly 50 years later — collapsed economically, despite government interventions to keep them afloat. This is why the region from New York through the Midwest continues to be called the Rust Belt, referring to corroding mills and production sites that have long fallen out of use. Related Copper prices near an all-time high amid Trump's tariff threats, China's stimulus US copper prices soar after Trump threatens 50% tariff on imports In terms of aluminium, the US was the world's leading aluminium producer for much of the 20th century, largely due to the abundance of cheap electricity needed for smelting and strong domestic demand from defence, aerospace and automotive industries. In the early 2000s, China overtook the US as the leading producer of aluminium. "Trump's greatest base of support, primarily blue collar non-college educated men, has seen the largest drop in employment opportunities as a result of this offshoring," Stritch told Euronews. Increasing costs, especially in green-adjacent industries Trump's sweeping 50% tariffs on copper, steel and aluminium are likely to disrupt industries that rely heavily on these materials, from construction and defence and even green technologies. "Practically, all three materials are used extensively from solar panels to car batteries, one may assume that it would thus be the US manufacturing base that suffers to the largest extent," Stritch continued. Nowhere is this pressure felt more acutely than in sectors like electric vehicles and renewable energy, where these metals are essential and profit margins are already minimal. Stritch added: "We may further speculate that owing to the high tariff placed on these goods and the general fragility of the electric car market at present, the high inputs of all three materials and the thin average industry profit margin of 5%, EV producers may endure the worst of the increased input costs." Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data
