Latest news with #FaizShakir
France 24
6 days ago
- Politics
- France 24
Israel bolsters border security after Syria attacks on Druze
Israeli soldiers in the occupied Golan Heights fired teargas to keep order along the heavily fortified frontier as dozens of people tried to cross over, said an AFP reporter in Majdal Shams, a mainly Druze town in the Israeli-annexed area. Large crowds of men, many of them in the traditional Druze attire of white caps and black tunics, gathered in front of the barbed wire, chanting and waving Druze flags, as Israeli soldiers looked on. "We just want to help our people. We want to help the parents, we want to help our families," said Faiz Shakir, from the Golan Heights. He said he was "very, very frustrated" after hearing of atrocities against the Druze in Syria. "There's nothing we can do. Our families are there... my wife is from there, my mother is from there, my uncles are there, my whole family is from there." The Israeli military said in a statement that "dozens of suspects" had tried to "infiltrate Israeli territory", with troops and border police "operating to prevent the infiltration and disperse the gathering". It added that "simultaneously, several Israeli civilians crossed the border fence into Syrian territory in the area of Majdal Shams" and troops were "operating to safely return" them. Tensions have surged after Syria's government deployed its security forces following unrest between members of the Druze religious minority and Bedouin fighters in the southern province of Sweida, which abuts the Golan Heights. Witnesses, Druze armed groups and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor said Syrian troops took part in fighting with the Bedouin against the Druze, which Israel has vowed to protect. The Observatory said that 27 Druze civilians had been killed sine Sunday in "summary executions... by members of the defence and interior ministries". Israel, home to 153,000 Druze citizens, has repeatedly stated its intention to defend the community in Syria, although some analysts say that is a pretext for pursuing its own military goal of keeping Syrian government forces as far from their shared frontier as possible. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in February that southern Syria must be completely demilitarised and that Israel would not accept the presence of Damascus's Islamist-led government near its territory. 'Very serious' In the Golan Heights, which Israel seized from Syria in 1967, more than 22,000 Druze hold permanent resident status, and maintain family ties inside Syria. Only around 1,600 have taken up the offer of Israeli citizenship. The remainder maintain their Syrian identity. The minority also accounts for about three percent of Syria's population and is heavily concentrated in the southern province of Sweida. On Wednesday, Netanyahu described the situation in Sweida as "very serious" and urged concerned Druze not to cross the border. "You are endangering your lives," he said. "You could be killed, you could be kidnapped, and you are harming the efforts of the (Israeli military)." The Israeli military, which announced the reinforcement of the border with more troops including some from Gaza, said earlier it had struck the Syrian army headquarters in Damascus. Defence Minister Israel Katz said that "the signals to Damascus are over -- now come the painful blows", sharing Syrian television footage of an explosion in Damascus on his X account. He promised that troops would "operate forcefully in Sweida to eliminate the forces that attacked the Druze until their full withdrawal".
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
'Now with reduced staff': Billboard calls out DOGE cuts to Cuyahoga Valley National Park
A national pro-labor organization has placed at least one billboard in the Columbus area targeting the Department of Government Efficiency. The satirical billboard advertising that Cuyahoga Valley National Park will now have fewer rangers because of DOGE-backed cuts to the federal workforce has been spotted near the Scioto Downs Resort and Casino off of Highway 23. More Perfect Union paid for hundreds of billboards in several states, including Ohio, Colorado and Pennsylvania. The executive director of the organization Faiz Shakir recently told GoErie, part of the USA TODAY Network, that staffing cuts to national parks could mean visitors have a less than ideal experience that can include longer wait times. 'My understanding is that some national parks are going to have some reduced staffing. Some people are looking forward to going there with their families and my impression is that this year, sadly, you will have a worse experience because of what Trump and Musk are doing with unnecessary cuts,' Shakir said. Thousands of federal workers have lost their jobs after DOGE-led cuts. The recently formed department was until very recently led by the richest man in the world, Elon Musk. In Cuyahoga Valley National Park, three probationary employees lost their jobs, in addition to a freeze on seasonal hires, according to previous Akron Beacon Journal reporting. The park in northeastern Ohio is the only national park in the Buckeye State. Anna Lynn Winfrey covers the western suburbs for the Columbus Dispatch. She can be reached at awinfrey@ This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio billboard calls out DOGE cuts to Cuyahoga Valley National Park
NBC News
01-06-2025
- Politics
- NBC News
Targeting DOGE, labor group puts up billboards warning of heat deaths at national parks
LAS VEGAS — On West Bonanza Road near Martin Luther King Boulevard, not far from the glittering casino lights of the Strip, motorists pass a dire message for the upcoming summer tourism season. A billboard mimicking a postcard from one of the most extreme places on the continent reads: 'Greetings from Death Valley National Park,' before a more sinister warning: 'Heat deaths rise. Safety staff cut. Made possible by D.O.G.E.' It's one of around 300 billboards placed across Arizona, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida by More Perfect Union, a nonprofit labor advocacy organization seeking to bring attention to staffing cuts brought on by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency. The National Parks Conservation Association, an independent advocacy organization, estimates that around 2,500 employees — roughly 13% of the National Park Service's staff — took buyouts or accepted early retirements or deferred resignations as part of DOGE's efforts to significantly slash the size of the federal government. There are concerns that deep cuts across the National Park Service could jeopardize public safety. 'In far-flung places like Death Valley, park rangers are there to help maintain your safety,' said Faiz Shakir, More Perfect Union's founder and executive director. 'If you pass out from heat exhaustion, they're the ones making sure you're taken care of.' In Nevada alone, 19 billboards are on display in Las Vegas and Reno, highlighting the public safety risk of heat-related illness and death for park visitors this summer. Death Valley National Park extends from eastern California to Nevada and is about a 2.5-hour drive from Las Vegas. The area is often known as the hottest place in North America, with temperatures often reaching 130 degrees Fahrenheit or higher in the summer.
