‘This is the time of Gaza,' says Cannes-winning Palestinian director Arab Nasser
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The National
33 minutes ago
- The National
Israel pledges to conquer Gaza with or without Hamas truce deal
Israel has said it will conquer Gaza regardless of any ceasefire agreement with Hamas, as it increased its new offensive in the strip. At least 11 Palestinians were killed in Israeli bombings in Gaza city, local media said. The Israeli army told doctors to prepare for a "full evacuation" as it aims to seize the city and force its residents south. The Israeli war plan "requires you to prepare a plan to transfer the medical equipment from north to south, so that you will be able to provide treatment for all the patients in the southern strip", an Israeli army officer told medical officials in Gaza. Arab countries have repeatedly warned against Palestinians being displaced. Saudi Arabia was leading Arab diplomatic efforts on Thursday as it condemned "dangerous Israeli plans" to expand the war and build new settlements on Palestinian land. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for talks in the kingdom's Neom region. Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan held phone calls a day earlier with foreign ministers from Bahrain, Qatar and the UAE. Qatar and Egypt have proposed a 60-day truce and the release of some Israeli hostages. Hamas said it could accept the terms, while Israel has not formally responded but given every indication it plans to proceed with the war. Israel says it has taken first steps of military operation in Gaza city Asked by Sky News Australia whether Israel would retake Gaza even if Hamas accepted a deal, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it would. "We're going to do that anyway. There was never a question that we're not going to leave Hamas there," he said. Late on Thursday he said Israel was ready for "immediate negotiations" to end the war in Gaza. It was not known if his comments amount to a shift in Israel's position or are just rhetoric about ramping up pressure on Hamas. Mr Netanyahu said he had met troops to "approve the plans" for the capture of Gaza city. "At the same time, I have instructed to begin immediate negotiations for the release of all our hostages and the end of the war on terms acceptable to Israel," he said. "These two things – defeating Hamas and releasing all our hostages – go hand in hand." Authorities in Gaza said the war's death toll reached 62,192 on Thursday, with two more people pronounced dead from malnutrition. Palestinian news agency Wafa said 11 people were killed in two separate air strikes in the Al Sabra neighbourhood of Gaza city. Israel has resisted pleas from the Arab world and beyond to call off a campaign that has left many Gazans starving in desperate conditions. A report by British, Israeli and Palestinian news outlets claimed that 83 per cent of Palestinians killed during the Gaza war were civilians, quoting Israel's own intelligence database. The Israeli army denied the claims by Israeli-Palestinian publication +972 Magazine, the Hebrew-language outlet Local Call, and The Guardian. 'That proportion of civilians among those killed would be unusually high, particularly as it has been going on for such a long time,' said Therese Pettersson from the Uppsala Conflict Data Programme, which tracks civilian casualties worldwide. 'Pressure cooker' tactics Two former Israeli officials told The National that Mr Netanyahu's new war plan appeared designed to push Gazans out for good. Israel wants to "create a pressure cooker there and wait for it to explode, and for people to cross the border to Sinai and do the ethnic cleansing of Gaza', said former hostage negotiator Gershon Baskin. Eran Etzion, a former head of Israel's National Security Council, said Mr Netanyahu "is not interested in a deal … because he is fully committed to an overarching strategy of annihilation of the two-state solution, first in Gaza then the West Bank". A planning committee signed off on Wednesday on the construction of 3,400 homes in a wedge of land east of Jerusalem known as E1. One far-right Israeli minister has said the new settlements would "bury" Palestinian statehood. A group of 21 mainly European countries said on Thursday that the move "brings no benefits to the Israeli people". "Instead, it risks undermining security and fuels further violence and instability, taking us further away from peace," said the countries, including Britain and France. The UK separately announced it had summoned Israel's ambassador Tzipi Hotovely over the plan.
The National
an hour ago
- The National
UK summons Israel's Tzipi Hotovely for rebuke on settlements plan
Israeli Ambassador to the UK Tzipi Hotovely has been summoned by officials who condemned new settlement plans as unacceptable and a breach of international law. Israel's approval of a major settlement in Palestine's occupied West Bank saw more than 20 countries come together behind a joint statement calling for a rethink on Thursday. The E1 settlement east of Jerusalem would effectively cut the West Bank in a way that would make communication internally impossible. In the joint statement, foreign ministers from the UK, EU and 20 other countries called on Israel to reverse the decision, saying it is unacceptable and a breach of international law. 'We condemn this decision and call for its immediate reversal in the strongest terms,' it said. 'Unilateral action by the Israeli government undermines our collective desire for security and prosperity in the Middle East.' The E1 settlement has been under consideration by Israel for at least two decades, but has previously been prevented by pressure from the US. Israel's Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, who has been sanctioned by the UK, said the decision 'buries the idea of a Palestinian state, because there is nothing to recognise and no one to recognise'. The 20-plus countries warned that Israel could see this move backfire. 'Minister Smotrich says this plan will make a two-state solution impossible by dividing any Palestinian state and restricting Palestinian access to Jerusalem,' it said. 'This brings no benefits to the Israeli people. Instead, it risks undermining security and fuels further violence and instability, taking us further away from peace. 'The Government of Israel still has an opportunity to stop the E1 plan going any further. We encourage them to urgently retract this plan. 'The Israeli government must stop settlement construction in line with UNSC Resolution 2334 and remove their restrictions on the finances of the Palestinian Authority.' Signatories included the UK, France, Australia, Canada and Italy. Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden also signed the statement, as did the European Commission's foreign affairs chief.
The National
3 hours ago
- The National
Lebanon needs IMF for fiscal 'discipline' rather than $3bn loan, Carlos Ghosn says
Fugitive car tycoon Carlos Ghosn has said Lebanon needs the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to ensure fiscal discipline rather than to lend money, which can be easily sourced from Lebanese diaspora to fund rebuilding efforts. The IMF's $3 billion programme by itself will not save Lebanon but it would help restore investors' confidence in the economy, Mr Ghosn said in an exclusive interview with CNN Business Arabic. 'We are going to the IMF to organise us [the Lebanese], not because of the $3 billion,' he said in Beirut. 'The $3 billion you can easily collect from the Lebanese living abroad … Why? because it is good business, not because of sentiment. Everything is so cheap in Lebanon,' he said referring to land, companies and asset prices. If investors were confident in the government's rebuilding efforts, they would buy assets now and sell them later for a bigger profit, he added. Lebanon has been grappling with deep financial crises, as successive governments' unrestrained borrowing sent the economy into a tailspin in 2019. Lebanon's economy, which plunged into the worst crisis in its history after the Covid-19 pandemic, suffered another blow after Israel bombed the country heavily during its fight against Hezbollah. The bombing campaign has severely damaged critical infrastructure and devastated residential neighbourhoods in several areas of the country. In April 2022, Lebanon reached a staff-level agreement with the IMF on a comprehensive economic reform programme supported by a 46-month extended fund facility, proposing access to about $3 billion. However, Lebanese authorities have been accused of dragging their feet on the required reforms. Lebanon's new government is committed to implementing vital reforms to lift the country out of its economic crisis, but such changes could take time, Minister of Economy and Trade Amer Bisat told The National in April. Mr Ghosn was speaking about Lebanon's economy during an interview in Beirut, where he has lived in exile for the last six years since his dramatic escape from Japan. The former Nissan chief executive, who is wanted by France and Japan over financial misconduct claims, last year said he remains 'blocked in Lebanon' due to an Interpol red notice issued after he fled Tokyo in a musical equipment case. Mr Ghosn has Lebanese, French and Brazilian nationality, and Lebanon does not extradite its citizens. 'Theft' not reform The former auto executive urged the private sector in Lebanon to help run government-owned projects, but stopped short of calling for the privatisation of state assets. 'I'm not talking about privatisation, because today prices are so cheap … If you privatised [projects] in Lebanon today it would be theft, you'd be robbing the government and the Lebanese people,' he said. Private companies should manage these projects, while the state continues to own them without interfering with their work, Mr Ghosn said. This will boost the quality of these entities and increase their value and profitability. 'This alone will help the country stand back up,' he said. Despite a $93 billion deposit hole in Lebanese banks since 2019, Mr Ghosn is cautiously optimistic about the banking system. 'Deposits will come back, but it will take a long time,' he said. Lebanese banks imposed arbitrary restrictions on their clients in 2019 after the state failed to honour its bond commitments and the economy went into a tailspin. Customers have been waiting to access their life savings, which have been stuck in banks for the past six years. Chinese EVs to dominate In the wide-ranging interview, the motors tycoon turned his trademark candour on China's automotive dominance, Nissan's decline, AI disruption and cryptocurrencies versus banks. Mr Ghosn traced China's rise back to 2006–2007, when Beijing turned the auto-making industry into a strategic national priority. 'It was clear that the Chinese will be a very important factor in the industry,' he said. 'Legacy players mocked Chinese cars back then. Today, BYD's market cap dwarfs Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi.' The rapid rise to supremacy of China's electric vehicles is enabling Beijing to wage a successful economic contest with the US, analysts have said. China's BYD is locked in a supercharged competition in the electric vehicle market with Tesla Motors. China has transformed from 10 to 20 years ago and is now competing with US, German and Japanese car makers, Mr Ghosn said. 'The Chinese will become a major part in the car manufacturing industry from now and into the next 10 years, especially in EVs,' he said. Toyota, Mercedes and BMW are among the rivals who will endure and will face Chinese competition, he added. 'Companies who fear [competition] and hide in their own markets and ask the state to protect them and put tariffs, will disappear,' he said. 'It might take a year, two or three, but they will vanish.' The former Nissan executive highlighted the Japanese company's early EV lead with the Leaf model, which debuted in 2009, and Renault's Zoe model, which entered the market in 2012. 'Five per cent is strategy, 95 per cent is execution. Nissan lost because of poor management after I left,' Mr Ghosn said. Nissan's stock now trades at less than $2, compared to $15 during his tenure, even during global recessions, he said. He slammed current executives for 'empty promises and TV appearances', saying trust and vision are the only levers to restore market value.
