Trump expected to speak with Israel's Netanyahu, White House officials say
9 June 2025 18:34
WASHINGTON (REUTERS)US President Donald Trump planned to speak with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, two White House officials said.The call comes as Trump has been trying to accelerate aid into Gaza and to persuade Iran to give up its nuclear programme.Trump has occasionally expressed frustration with Netanyahu. Last week, he said he had warned Netanyahu not to take actions that could disrupt nuclear talks with Iran."I told him this would be inappropriate to do right now because we're very close to a solution now," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "That could change at any moment."
Iran will soon hand a counter-proposal for a nuclear deal to the United States via Oman, Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday, in response to a US offer that Tehran deemed "unacceptable."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Gulf Today
44 minutes ago
- Gulf Today
Reclaiming the US Flag for ‘No Kings Day'
Paul Loeb, Tribune News Service Will marchers carry flags on "No Kings Day"? On June 14, more than 1,000 local demonstrations will challenge President Donald Trump's North Korean-style military parade for his birthday with our defense of democracy. The 14th is also Flag Day and the 250th anniversary of the US Army. The flag can't replace protest signs. But it complements and amplifies them. The demonstrations send a message that even as Trump and his allies wrap themselves in their flags, they are betraying the best of America. They highlight a culture of corruption where the only Americans who matter are allies of Trump at the top and persons or institutions who would challenge this become subjects of attacks. Our flags make clear, in contrast, that we are defending Americans' fundamental right to speak out, without which all other rights become meaningless. They're a message to all who agree with us but also to all those Americans who voted for Trump or stayed home, rejecting both candidates. Because to change the direction of our country, the support of at least some of these people will be essential. As "No Kings Day" reminds us, 'The flag doesn't belong to Donald Trump. It belongs to us.' But at most anti-Trump protests, flags have been absent or marginal. I counted one when several thousand people marched in Seattle this past May Day, plus scattered Uncle Sam and Statue of Liberty images. That may be because carrying the flag feels uncomfortable, a false embrace for many who've marched to challenge American wars, call out racial injustice, or push back against corporate power. But the flag also stands for legacies of courage and sacrifice that should give us all hope and strength, like the classic World War II image of GIs raising it over Iwo Jima. The flag represents the imperfect but essential mechanisms of democracy that Trump's regime so profoundly threatens, ones that allow us to keep working for justice. In defending these mechanisms and the rule of law, Thomas Jefferson condemned the very Alien and Sedition Acts whose remnants Trump is now abusing. These acts created the power of kings, Jefferson warned, writing of threats to the 'constitutional rights and liberties of the States and by the suspicions of the President, or be thought dangerous to his or their election, or other interests, public or personal.' These acts first targeted 'the friendless alien,' Jefferson wrote, but 'the citizen will soon follow.' Flags have long been part of the protest tradition and may have even more impact when those speaking out are being marginalized or attacked. American labor activists from the radical IWW union carried them at the Lawrence Textile 'Bread and Roses' Strike. They fly next to Martin Luther King Jr. in photos from the 1963 March on Washington and his talks at anti-war rallies. This year, demonstrators who helped defeat South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's dictatorial power grab waved South Korean flags along with their signs. Some recent anti-Trump rallies have featured them. But they need to become protest staples to help take the flag back. A recent Vietnam trip reminded me of the power of national pride. Americans are welcomed now, even as museums, statues, and street names commemorate heroes in what they call 'the American war,' and the related fights against the Japanese and French occupations. But Vietnam also honors 13th, 15th, and 16th-century kings who resisted and eventually defeated repeated invasions by the Chinese and Mongols. The country's leadership could have dismissed them as the embodiment of now-discarded feudalism. Instead, they present their stories as part of a continuing story of resistance, a history they highlighted during the war as Ho Chi Minh and other leaders talked of fighting for their country, not communism. Whatever the limits of Vietnam's current regime in terms of democracy, this worked because the roots of national patriotism ran deeper than any particular ideology. The threat to American democracy that those of us marching address is internal, of course (with help from white South African billionaires Elon Musk, Peter Thiel, and David Sacks). But the lesson of patriotism and national pride as a wellspring of resistance still holds true. I've learned to appreciate those who bring flags to social justice protests. And I finally bought my own the other week at my local hardware store to complement a 'Don't Putinize America' sign I plan to carry. The young woman at the counter's initial look seemed to mark me, an older white man, as a likely Trump supporter. When I said I was buying it for the Trump protest, 'No Kings Day,' she broke into a grin. No matter our anger or disappointment for America failing to achieve much of what it should be, we need to defend what we have had and the possibility of what could be. Making the flag our own helps us do that.
Gulf Today
44 minutes ago
- Gulf Today
Trump's new travel ban goes into effect against citizens of 12 nations
President Donald Trump's sweeping new travel ban came into effect early on Monday immediately after midnight, barring citizens from a dozen nations from entering the United States and reviving a divisive measure from his first term. The move is expected to disrupt refugee pathways and further restrict immigration as the Trump administration expands its crackdown on illegal entries. Many of the nations covered by the restrictions have adversarial relations with the United States, such as Iran and Afghanistan, while others face severe crises, like Haiti and Libya. In announcing his restrictions last week, Trump said the new measure was spurred by a recent "terrorist attack" on Jews in Colorado. The group had been protesting in solidarity with hostages held in Gaza when they were assaulted by a man the White House said had overstayed his visa. That attack, Trump said, "underscored the extreme dangers posed to our country by the entry of foreign nationals who are not properly vetted" or who overstay their visas. The move bans all travel to the United States by nationals of Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, according to the White House. Trump also imposed a partial ban on travelers from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela. Some temporary work visas from those countries will be allowed. New countries could be added, Trump warned, "as threats emerge around the world." Mehria, a 23-year-old woman from Afghanistan who applied for refugee status, said the new rules have trapped her and many other Afghans in uncertainty. "We gave up thousands of hopes and our entire lives... on a promise from America, but today we are suffering one hell after another," she told AFP. World Cup, Olympics, diplomats excluded The ban will not apply to athletes competing in the 2026 World Cup, which the United States is co-hosting with Canada and Mexico, or in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, Trump's order said. Nor will it apply to diplomats from the targeted countries. United Nations rights chief Volker Turk warned that "the broad and sweeping nature of the new travel ban raises concerns from the perspective of international law." US Democratic lawmakers and elected officials blasted the ban as draconian and unconstitutional. "I know the pain that Trump's cruel and xenophobic travel bans inflict because my family has felt it firsthand," congresswoman Yassamin Ansari, who is Iranian-American, posted Sunday on X. "We will fight this ban with everything we have." Rumours of a new travel ban had circulated following the Colorado attack, with Trump's administration vowing to pursue "terrorists" living in the United States on visas. US officials said suspect Mohamed Sabry Soliman, an Egyptian national according to court documents, was in the country illegally having overstayed a tourist visa, but that he had applied for asylum in September 2022. Trump's new travel ban notably does not include Egypt. His proclamation said Taliban-ruled Afghanistan and war-torn Libya, Sudan, Somalia and Yemen lacked "competent" central authorities for processing passports and vetting. Iran was included because it is a "state sponsor of terrorism," the order said. For the other countries, Trump's order cited an above-average likelihood that people would overstay their visas. Agence France-Presse
Middle East Eye
an hour ago
- Middle East Eye
Madleen: Social media users slam Israel's 'mocking' of Gaza flotilla activists
The Israeli military seized a charity vessel carrying international activists attempting to break the blockade of the Gaza Strip in the early hours of Monday. Israeli soldiers boarded the Madleen and ordered the 12 international activists - including Swedish climate compaigner Greta Thunberg and member of the European Parliament from France, Rima Hassan - to throw their phones into the sea before filming themselves handing out sandwiches and bottles of water in series of clips and posts shared on social media saying the "show was over". Social media users slammed Israel's move as a political stunt and used its labelling of the humanitarian vessel as a "selfie yacht' in a series of social media posts to highlight selfies taken by Israeli soldiers while committing abuses in the war-torn Palestinian enclave. Several people shared widely circulated selfies and photos taken by Israeli soldiers themselves, some of which depict potential war crimes. Others responded to the Israeli government's posts with the hashtag #selfiegenocide. 'Israel calls the Madleen a 'selfie yacht' while their soldiers snap selfies with war crimes. Hypocrites!' wrote one social media user. "Wild to go with the 'selfie' thing when your own cowardly soldiers have been uploading their war crimes to social media all through the genocide," another posted. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Several people criticised Israel for mocking a humanitarian mission and accused the government of staging the moment soldiers handed out sandwiches for propaganda purposes. Not sure 'selfie yacht' is the best talking point for a country whose soldiers routinely take photos of themselves with the underwear of dead/displaced Palestinian women. — Daniel Wickham (@DanielWickham93) June 9, 2025 "Israel is mocking a ship that is bringing humanitarian aid to a population that they are deliberately starving," posted one person. "Since the IOF (Israeli army) is putting out propaganda videos to show everyone 'hey look at how nice we are we gave them a sammie!' I'd like to remind everyone the reason the Madleen was going there in the first place was to break the siege on the Palestinians they've been STARVING FOR MONTHS!" another person added. Another said, 'This was a humanitarian mission. Stopping a civilian aid boat in international waters is both illegal and immoral. Posting a video saying 'we gave them sandwiches and water, the show is over' is not diplomacy—it's a PR stunt." I thought Israel doesn't occupy Gaza and here it is deciding who and what can enter the borders of Gaza 🤔 Also it's actually a violation of international law to kidnap unarmed civilians. I mean it's not as if you care about law since you're starving 2 million people you keep… — Isabelle (@Darkiora) June 9, 2025 Beyond social media, Madleen's seizure has drawn condemnation from legal experts, rights groups and international observers. Amnesty International's secretary general, Agnes Callamard, denounced Israel's interception of Madleen as a 'violation of international law'. #Madleen, launched by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC), was seeking to bring humanitarian aid in an attempt to breach Israel's illegal blockade of the occupied Gaza Strip. It was carrying unarmed civilians on a humanitarian mission. Israel interception of Madleen violates… — Agnes Callamard (@AgnesCallamard) June 9, 2025 Palestinian rights organisation Al-Haq condemned Israel's "unlawful interception" and demanded the immediate release of all detained activists, asserting: "Israel has no legal authority to restrict access to Palestine, since such is within the exclusive right of the Palestinian people." UK MP Zarah Sultana described the activists aboard the Madleen as 'heroes', calling Israel's actions a 'flagrant breach of international law' and urging the UK government to 'sanction Israel, end all arms and surveillance deals, and expel its ambassador'. Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territory, said the UK government should take action to secure the British-flagged ship and called on "every Mediterranean port" to send boats with aid in an act of solidarity with Gaza. "They shall sail together—united, they will be unstoppable. #BreakingTheSiege is a legal duty for states, and a moral imperative for all of us," she said on X.
