Latest News from Egypt Independent
Egypt Independent
16 hours ago
- Politics
- Egypt Independent
Israel approves biggest expansion of West Bank settlements in decades
Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, as well as in East Jerusalem and the occupied Golan Heights, are considered illegal under international law. For months, Israel's military has carried out a massive operation in the West Bank, deploying tanks to the territory for the first time in decades and displacing tens of thousands of Palestinians. In February, Katz ordered the military 'to prepare for a prolonged presence' as the military evacuated Palestinian refugee camps. Within the last several weeks, Israeli forces have carried out multiple waves of raids and arrests across the West Bank. He added the new settlements are 'illegal under international law, further imperil the two-state solution, and do not protect Israel.' The decision this week to expand settlements sparked international criticism. The United Kingdom's minister for the Middle East and North Africa, Hamish Falconer, called the move a 'deliberate obstacle to Palestinian statehood.' Jordan's foreign ministry also lambasted the move, saying in a statement that it 'represents a deliberate disregard for ongoing international calls to halt settlement activity and violations in the occupied Palestinian territories.' 'All Israeli actions and decisions in the West Bank are illegal and illegitimate,' the statement added. Earlier this month, France joined the UK and Canada to threaten 'concrete actions,' including targeted sanctions against Israel, if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government did not allow far more aid into Gaza and cease settlement expansion in the West Bank. Peace Now blasted the government for making such a decision in the midst of a war. 'The government is making clear – again and without restraint – that it prefers deepening the occupation and advancing de facto annexation over pursuing peace,' the organization said. 'The Israeli government no longer pretends otherwise: the annexation of the Occupied Territories and expansion of settlements is its central goal.' The Oslo Accords, signed in 1993 between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), were designed to pave the way for the establishment of a Palestinian state and the realization of a two-state solution.
Egypt Independent
18 hours ago
- Business
- Egypt Independent
Appeals court pauses ruling that blocked Trump's tariffs
A federal appeals court has paused Wednesday night's ruling from the Court of International Trade that blocked President Donald Trump's tariffs. The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit's ruling restores Trump's ability to levy tariffs using the emergency powers he declared earlier this year. The appeals court also ordered that both sides provide written arguments on the question of the blocking of Trump's tariffs, to be filed by early next month. The pause adds to the confusion and uncertainty swirling around Trump's tariffs, which have been a key pillar of his economic policy. The Court of International Trade ruled Wednesday that Trump did not have the authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose sweeping tariffs. The Trump administration immediately appealed the decision, setting the course for a legal battle over the economic policy that Trump promises will re-focus the American economy on manufacturing but that could raise prices for small businesses and consumers. The pause from the appeals court came less than 24 hours later. In a lengthy post on his Truth Social platform Thursday evening, Trump argued the CIT decision undermines presidential power, claiming it would force the president to get Congressional approval for his reciprocal tariffs. The president also called on the Supreme Court to step in and reverse the CIT decision. 'The U.S. Court of International Trade incredibly ruled against the United States of America on desperately needed Tariffs but, fortunately, the full 11 Judge Panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit Court has just stayed the order by the Manhattan-based Court of International Trade. Where do these initial three Judges come from? How is it possible for them to have potentially done such damage to the United States of America? Is it purely a hatred of 'TRUMP?' What other reason could it be?' Trump wrote. 'Hopefully, the Supreme Court will reverse this horrible, Country threatening decision, QUICKLY and DECISIVELY. Backroom 'hustlers' must not be allowed to destroy our Nation!' Trump wrote. Peter Navarro, Trump's top trade adviser, told reporters that while the pause was not a surprise, the administration is pursuing 'all strategic options.' 'We will hear, within the next day or two, at a minimum, from the United States Trade Representative on how we will respond to all of this. We will respond forcefully, and we think we have a very good case with respect to this,' Navarro added. Navarro suggested that the administration is looking at its other tools to impose tariffs, in addition to appealing the case through the courts. 'I can assure the American people that the Trump tariff agenda is alive, well, healthy and will be implemented to protect you, to save your jobs and your factories and to stop shipping foreign wealth, our wealth, into foreign hands,' he said. The Liberty Justice Center, which represented several companies suing to stop the tariffs, said in a statement Thursday that the decision by the appeals court 'is merely a procedural step as the court considers the government's request for a longer stay pending appeal.' 'We are confident the Federal Circuit will ultimately deny the government's motion shortly thereafter, recognizing the irreparable harm these tariffs inflict on our clients,' Jeffrey Schwab, senior counsel at Liberty Justice Center said in the statement. A whirlwind of decisions The two rulings – halting the tariffs, then staying that decision – came in under 24 hours, a whirlwind that adds to the chaos around Trump's economic policy. On Wednesday evening, the USCIT judges blocked all tariffs invoked under IEEPA – the 'Liberation Day' tariffs Trump announced on April 2 and also the tariffs placed earlier this year against China, Mexico and Canada, designed to combat fentanyl coming into the United States. Notably, the order does not include the 25% tariffs on autos, auto parts, steel or aluminum, which were under a different law, Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act. USCIT unanimously came to a summary judgement on two separate cases in one opinion. One was a lawsuit was filed in April by the Liberty Justice Center, a libertarian legal advocacy group representing wine-seller VOS Selections and four other small businesses. The other was filed by twelve Democratic states brought against the government over tariffs. The court also ordered a window of 10 calendar days for the administration to roll back the tariffs in question. The Trump administration appealed that same day, just hours after the decision. On Thursday, the administration threatened to take the case to the Supreme Court if it was not granted a stay by either the appeals court or the USCIT. And at a press briefing early Thursday afternoon, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt lambased the CIT's decision, calling the three-judge panel 'activist judges,' though it includes a judge appointed by Trump during his first term. The CIT's ruling, she said, was an effort to 'brazenly (abuse) their judicial power to usurp Trump's authority.' The appeals court granted the stay later on Thursday afternoon, setting a deadline of June 5 for the plaintiffs to respond and June 9 for the government to reply. Also on Thursday, in a separate lawsuit, US District Court Judge Rudolph Contreras ruled that two American family-owned toy companies, Learning Resources and hand2mind, would be irreparably harmed by Trump's tariffs, and the International Emergency Economic Powers Act that Trump cited contains no provision for tariffs. While Contreras issued a preliminary injunction protecting the two companies, the judge paused it for two weeks, expecting an appeal. The Trump administration has quickly appealed Contreras' ruling to the US DC Circuit Court of Appeals. This story has been updated with additional context and developments. CNN's Betsy Klein and Alejandra Jaramillo contributed reporting.
Egypt Independent
18 hours ago
- Climate
- Egypt Independent
Friday forecast: Warm spring conditions and morning mist
The Egyptian Meteorological Authority (EMA) forecasts spring-like weather on Friday, tending to be warm to hot during the daytimeacross the northern parts of the country, extending to Greater Cairo and northern Upper Egypt. It will be extremely hot in southern Upper Egypt. Temperatures will be moderate at night and in the early morning. The EMA has warned of morning mist on some agricultural and highway roads, as well as those close to water bodies. There's a slight chance of light rainfall in isolated areas along the far northwestern coasts, occurring intermittently. Temperatures in Cairo will reach a high of 32°C and a low of 22°C.
Egypt Independent
18 hours ago
- Politics
- Egypt Independent
Israel accepts new US proposal for ceasefire with Hamas, says Israeli official
Hamas wants the humanitarian assistance to be carried out through the United Nations channels. And lastly, they want the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to pull back to the positions that they held on March 2 this year, before Israel re-launched its military operations Another person familiar with the Hamas counterproposal confirmed the three points. According to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the hostage families earlier in the day that he had accepted Witkoff's proposal. During her briefing on Thursday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed that 'special envoy Witkoff and the President submitted a ceasefire proposal to Hamas that Israel backed and supported' and that discussions are ongoing. 'We hope that a cease fire in Gaza will take place so we can return all of the hostages home and that's been a priority for this administration from the beginning,' Leavitt added. 'We want to stop this' The senior Hamas official told CNN that they responded to Witkoff's proposal via Palestinian-American interlocutor Bishara Bahbah, who has been in direct discussions with Hamas negotiators in Doha. The Hamas official said that two days ago, they discussed the Hamas terms with Bahbah, which were sent to Witkoff. Then, the official said, after Witkoff met with Israeli official Ron Dermer in Washington this week, 'everything changed 100%.' 'We were shocked because we were told 2-3 times from Bishara [Bahbah] he approved the framework and had no problem,' said the senior Hamas official, calling the latest Witkoff proposal an 'Israeli paper.' 'We are ready to return all the hostages in one day, just we want a guarantee that war will not come again after that,' the official said. 'Now in this paper we didn't find it,' the Hamas official said. 'They want to continue the war, we want to stop this,' he added. Naim, a member of Hamas' political bureau, wrote on Facebook that a proposal had been agreed upon with Witkoff last week and that the latest framework comes from Israel and it 'means perpetuating the occupation and continuing the killing and famine.' After this latest proposal, Hamas is ready to release half of the remaining 20 living hostages, which the first Hamas official called a 'big risk' because there's no guarantee Israel will respect the agreement. 'We know that Witkoff is a strong man he can do something. He's the only one who can impact Israel,' the official said The same official said the Trump administration reneged on terms following the release of Israeli-American Edan Alexander, including a thanks to Hamas from President Trump and humanitarian aid that didn't immediately start flowing back into Gaza. 'Hamas is very, very interested to reach an agreement to end the war and return the hostages,' said the official. Earlier on Thursday, Israel's far-right Finance Minister Bezalal Smotrich said accepting the proposal would be 'sheer madness,' writing on social media that he 'will not allow such a thing to happen. Period.' But Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to accept the proposal 'publicly and immediately.' He said he would support the government, even if its far-right members abandoned it.
Egypt Independent
19 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Egypt Independent
Global superstar Jennifer Lopez chooses Sharm El Sheikh for 'UP ALL NIGHT' World Tour launch
Global superstar Jennifer Lopez will launch her highly anticipated 'UP ALL NIGHT: LIVE IN 2025' World Tour with a live performance at Rixos Radamis Sharm El Sheikh on July 4, 2025. As an exclusive benefit, guests staying at Rixos Radamis Sharm El Sheikh, Club Privé by Rixos Sharm El Sheikh, Rixos Premium Seagate, and Rixos Sharm El Sheikh with bookings from April 28th will enjoy complimentary concert access. This concert is a significant milestone for Rixos Radamis Sharm El Sheikh, a pioneering hospitality project actively redefining luxury tourism in Egypt and the region. Hosting Jennifer Lopez's world tour debut further solidifies the hotel's status as a top choice for major international events. 'We are incredibly proud to host Jennifer Lopez and launch her world tour from our flagship hotel, Rixos Radamis Sharm El Sheikh,' said Mr. Erkan Yildirim, Managing Director of Rixos Hotels Egypt. 'This event is not only a celebration of 25 years of Rixos excellence, but also a statement about Egypt's growing presence on the global luxury hospitality and entertainment map.' A multi-platinum selling artist and true entertainment powerhouse, Lopez commands the stage with chart-topping hits, dynamic performances, and unmatched versatility in music, film, and fashion. Her highly anticipated tour is set to deliver a breathtaking spectacle of her greatest hits and new crowd-pleasers.
