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Trump and Putin meet at closely watched Helsinki summit

16, July 2018

Trump and Putin meet at closely watched Helsinki summit 0

US President Donald Trump is sitting down with Russia’s Vladimir Putin, in Helsinki, Finland on Monday for a meeting that comes amid heightened tensions with Europe and an ongoing inquiry into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election.

The US and Russian leaders opened the historic summit on Monday with Trump promising an “extraordinary relationship” and Putin saying it was high time they thrashed out disputes around the world.

Looking sombre, they exchanged opening remarks in front of reporters before their closed-door meeting. Trump underlined his sentiment that getting along with Russia would be “a good thing, not a bad thing”. Putin, for his part, said, “The time has come to talk in a substantive way about our relations and problem areas of the world.”

Hours before his first ever summit with Putin, Trump had said that “US foolishness” was responsible for Washington’s poor relationship with Moscow.

“Our relationship with Russia has NEVER been worse,” he tweeted from Helsinki on Monday morning, blaming “many years of US foolishness and stupidity and now, the Rigged Witch Hunt!”

Trump’s comments showed how much domestic political pressure he is under over the summit. Critics and his own advisers have urged him to use the meeting to pressure Putin over his country’s role in the 2016 election and other “malign” activities.

On Friday, the special counsel investigating Russian meddling indicted 12 Russian military intelligence officers for hacking the Democratic National Committee and the campaign of Trump’s rival, Hillary Clinton.

Yet Trump has refused to criticise Putin, instead focusing his frustration over US-Russian ties on his own country. His stance has raised questions back at home, with Clinton tweeting: “Great World Cup. Question for President Trump as he meets Putin: Do you know which team you play for?”

Despite the criticism, Trump appeared upbeat during a breakfast with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö just hours before his meeting with Putin. Asked what he would say to Putin, Trump said: “We’ll do just fine, thank you.”

The two leaders were expected to first meet one-on-one with only their interpreters, followed by a working lunch accompanied by advisers, and a joint news conference.

A win for Russia

Neither side expects major breakthroughs from the talks and the outcome is uncertain given sharp differences between Washington and Moscow over everything from Syria to Ukraine.

For Putin, the fact that the summit is even happening despite Russia’s semi-pariah status among some Americans and US allies is a geopolitical win because, in Russian eyes, it shows that Washington recognises Moscow as a great power that cannot be isolated or ignored.

The Kremlin made clear beforehand it did not expect an easy meeting, taking Trump to task over his criticism of a planned Russian gas pipeline to Germany and suggesting it would be hard to find common ground on Syria because of differences over Iran.

Russia hoped however that the summit would be “the first step” in overcoming a crisis in relations, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russia’s RT TV station. “Presidents Trump and Putin respect each other and they get along well,” said Peskov. “There is no clear agenda. It will be determined by the heads of state themselves as they go along.”

Trump wants Russia to use its influence in Syria, where it is backing President Bashar al-Assad militarily, to push Iranian and Iranian-allied forces out.

“Of course Syria will be discussed by the two presidents,” said Peskov. “We all know what Washington thinks of Iran. But at the same time Iran is a good partner to us in terms of trade, economic cooperation and political dialogue. So this will not be an easy exchange of views.”

Trump has predicted he will be accused of being too soft on Putin no matter how the summit goes. “If I was given the great city of Moscow as retribution for all of the sins and evils committed by Russia…I would return to criticism that it wasn’t good enough – that I should have gotten Saint Petersburg in addition!” he tweeted on Sunday.

He has said he will raise the issue of Russian election meddling, but does not expect to get anywhere.

The Helsinki summit is the capstone to a nearly week-long trip for Trump, during which he has sown doubts over his commitment to the NATO military alliance, undermined the US’s so-called special relationship with Britain, and denigrated the European Union as a trade “foe”.

(FRANCE 24 with REUTERS and AFP)


New Age Africa Energy providing French Cameroon £ 1.5 Billion to fund Genocide in Southern Cameroons

11, June 2018

New Age Africa Energy providing French Cameroon £ 1.5 Billion to fund Genocide in Southern Cameroons 0

The Interim Government of Federal Republic of Ambazonia (Southern Cameroons) condemns in the strongest possible terms the signing of the corrupt genocidal Limbe Floating LNG deal with London based New Age African Global Energy and Och-Ziff in Ambazonia.

We call on the US Department of Justice (DOJ), the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the United Kingdom Authorities to investigate Steve Lowden, New Age Africa and Och-Ziff business deal in Cameroun, where the company have spent millions of dollars corrupting the government of La Republique du Cameroun to approve the Limbe Floating LNG project at the expense of more than 200,000 Internally Displaced People (IDP), 65,000 Refugees in neighboring Nigeria, over a 1000 dead and an unknown number of Southern Cameroonians sitting in uninhabitable prisons in French Cameroun.

We demand that Steve Lowden, New Age Africa and Och-Ziff disclose all financial payments made to Aldophe Moudiki, Paul Biya, Cameroon Peoples Democratic Movement and Jean Jacque Koum.

These resources belong to the people of Southern Cameroons, therefore New Age Africa Global Energy, Och-Ziff and Steve Lowden who have had a long history of propping up dictatorships and paying bribes should be put on notice that Southern Cameroonians will not standby idly while they plunder their resources and fund a genocide against our people.

We hereby call on Steve Lowden, New Age Africa and Och-Ziff to repudiate, cancel the corrupt deal and immediately call on the Cameroun government to release our leaders, HE. Sissiku Julius Ayuktabe, Nfor Ngala Nfor, Dr. Fidelis Nde Che, Dr. Henry Kimeng, Barrister Shufai Beriyuy, Prof. Che Awasum, Dr.

Cornelius Kwanga, Mr. Wifred Tassang, Dr. Ogork Egbe, Barrister Eyambe Elias and many others currently languishing in jails.

This is the kind of corruption and theft that Southern Cameroonians despise and we will not tolerate any kind of deals done with the rogue regime in Yaounde at the expense of our people.

It will be wise and prudent for Bowleven, LUKOIL, and other financial backers to immediately disassociate themselves with Steve Lowden, New Age Africa, Och-Ziff and Paul Biya.

We call for a vigorous Cameroon Economic Divestment Campaign and we will continue to aggressively campaign against companies and individuals like Steve Lowden, New Age Africa and Och-Ziff.

It is time for Western governments to pass a Cameroon Divestment Act that will compel governments to cut investment ties with companies and individuals doing business with La Republique du Cameroon.

It should be noted that New Age Africa and Och-Ziff was formed in Jersey in 2007 by Steve Lowden. The company is backed by US Hedge-Fund Och-Ziff which had to pay more than $400 million( £295 million) in bribery settlements following an investigation by the US government after finding out that the company had paid more than $100 million (£74 million) in bribes to government officials in Libya, Zimbabwe, Chad, Niger, Guinea and the Democratic Republic of Congo to secure natural resources deals and investments.

The Interim Government is warning companies and individuals that they will be held accountable as accomplices for the burning down of our villages, the target killing of our people, the destruction of property, abduction and incarceration of our people by the genocidal crime syndicate regime in La Republique du Cameroun.

Done this 10th Day of June 2018

Tabenyang Etchu Secretary of State, Interim Government Federal Republic of Ambazonia


At least 46 refugees killed as boat sinks off Tunisia coast

3, June 2018

At least 46 refugees killed as boat sinks off Tunisia coast 0

At least 46 refugees have been killed and 67 have been rescued after their boat sank off the coast of Tunisia.

Tunisia’s Defense Ministry said on Sunday that the refugees were of Tunisian and other nationalities, adding that the rescue operation was still ongoing in the Mediterranean.

Some 180 refugees, including 80 from other African countries had been travelling on the packed boast when it sank, security sources said.

The deaths are the latest to come from a refugee crisis that has gripped countries on various sides of the Mediterranean.

Nine people including six children died on Sunday near Turkey’s southern province of Antalya after a speedboat carrying 15 refugees sank off the coast.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM), which is affiliated to the United Nations, estimates that 660 had died attempting to cross into Europe through the Mediterranean since the start of this year.

Tunisia has become a major embarkation point for refugees from Africa who seek to reach southern coasts of Italy.

Many have died over the past years while taking the risky journey from neighboring Libya to the Italian coast. However, the flow from Libya ebbed after the former government of Italy, backed by the European Union, reached an agreement with the militia and government of the North African country to contain the departures.

A new government in Italy is now trying to further reduce the number of arrivals. New interior minister Matteo Salvini, who leads Italy’s the anti-immigrant League party, has vowed to deport up to 100,000 refugees per year while doing his best to block the arrival of boats carrying refugees from Africa.

“I will work to ensure that all the international organizations commit to stop departures, landings and deaths,” Salvini said in a statement after he was sworn in as interior minister on Friday, adding, “The objective is to save lives. And this is done by preventing the departures of the boats of death that are a business for some and a disgrace for the rest of the world.”

 

Culled from Presstv

 


Southern Cameroons Crisis: British Foreign Secretary tells Philemon Yang peace is possible

20, April 2018

Southern Cameroons Crisis: British Foreign Secretary tells Philemon Yang peace is possible 0

British Foreign Secretary, Boris Johnson, has again stressed the need for the Biya regime to hold talks with the leadership of the Southern Cameroons revolution. The UK’s chief diplomat observed that there was an urgent need for dialogue in solving the political crisis in Southern Cameroons. Boris Johnson made public the position of Her Majesty’s Government during a meeting with Prime Minister Philemon Yang on the sidelines of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in London. The 85 year old President Biya was conspicuously absent.

Cameroon Concord News Group gathered that the London talks between the British Foreign Secretary and the Anglophone Prime Minister were frank, intensive and “productive”.  Johnson pointed out that it was in Yaounde’s best interest to pursue dialogue and respect human rights.

When the Southern Cameroons crisis started in October 2016, few people thought it would last for a week. Very few even thought it would have an impact on the government. The two English-speaking regions were considered insignificant, especially as they only constitute 20% of the country’s population.

Senior government officials such as Laurent Esso and Jacques Fame Ndongo felt it was not even necessary to pay attention to the English-speaking minority. To the government, it had everything under control and if the population insisted on carrying through with its demands, then the government would stop at nothing to crush the English-speaking minority.

Mr. Fame Ndongo, who is the country’s higher education minister, is alleged to have compared the two regions to “two cubes of sugar” which could be easily melted in an ocean; with the ocean being the 80% Francophone majority. Little did he know that those “cubes of sugar” had stood the test of time and after 56 years of marginalization, the people of the North West and South West regions had had enough and were prepared to make their grievances known to the international community.

The fighting is ongoing, and it is getting nastier by the day, as government soldiers erase whole villages from the country’s map, a tactic it used to intimidate French-speaking freedom fighters popularly known as “Marquisards” in the 60s. These acts of violence do not seem to be producing the desired impact. Far from dissuading the determined Southern Cameroonian fighters, they are instead breeding revenge which is feeding the circle of violence that the government has triggered in the country.

Today, Cameroon government officials are gradually coming to terms with the fact that the two “cubes of sugar” will not easily melt. Instead of intimidating the fighters, the violence has now become a reason why the people of Southern Cameroons have to fight to the finish. They know the government is not willing to solve the problem and yielding to government pressure will only imply that they will have to go back to the status quo ante where they were regarded as second-class citizens.

By Chi Prudence Asong in London


Oblivious of the ongoing ICC preliminary examination, Buhari’s agent admits abducting Ambazonian leaders; Endorses another genocide in the Gulf of Guinea

6, February 2018

Oblivious of the ongoing ICC preliminary examination, Buhari’s agent admits abducting Ambazonian leaders; Endorses another genocide in the Gulf of Guinea 0

The statement in the Vanguard captioned “Nigeria pledges support to Cameroon over secession threat” dated 6 February 2018 if true, is the first statement made on behalf of President Mohammadu Buhari and the Federal Government of Nigeria admitting responsibility for the abduction and rendition to French Cameroun of the President and members of the Interim Government of the Federal Repuiblic of Ambazonia since the 5th of January 2018. This statement has profound consequences for Nigeria, President Buhari and elements of his government complicit in these crimes.

In its historical perspective, more than fifty years, ago, Buhari was a participant in the genocide that claimed more than three million Biafran lives. His endorsement of the genocide and the ideological motivation for the genocide against Southern Cameroons/Ambazonia by French Cameroun through his National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguna may therefore not be surprising.

Since President Buhari came to power, he has selectively activated his genocidal instincts to fulfill his political, ethnic and pecuniary interests.  While in the opposition to the government of President Good Luck Jonathan, he opposed the prosecution of the war against Boko Haram claiming then that it targeted the Northern Youth based on their ethnic and religious identity. With support from the circumstantially politically unreliable Yoruba politicians to the West, gullible corrupt political merchants in the South/South and in the Middle Belt he rode on his political Islamic support base of which Boko Haram is its militant vanguards to power.

Once in power he adopted an ambivalent policy towards the war against Boko Haram with whom he has maintained a clandestine fig leave of support while prosecuting the war against them. On occasion, he negotiated and released some members of Boko Haram and subtly deployed others in the guise of Fulani Herdsmen to kill and maim in the Middle belt, the East, South/South, Middle East and the West with impunity.  He has opposed dialogue with the Biafrans who unlike Boko Haram with whom he has been dialoguing, have not declared war against the Federation.  He has subverted the amnesty deal that Good Luck Jonathan negotiated with the Niger Delta militants and turned a blind eye to the systematic massacres of armless civilians in Bakassi and other frontier communities by Cameroun Gendarmes. In context therefore, the statement endorsing the genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes against Southern Cameroons by French Cameroons, does not come as a surprise.

The statement for the first time provides attempts to justify the unprecedented criminal act of abduction which is better associated with Boko Haram as intended to assist the government of French Cameroun to safeguard its territorial integrity.  The purpose for violating international law through an blatant act of international criminality to assist a genocidal reason committing international crimes which even France its colonial master has condemned places Nigeria as a conspirator in the crimes.  Prior to the admission, the Federal Government kept sealed lips and refused to acknowledge the abductions or admit orchestrating the crime.  With the admission of the crime and the endorsement and support of the genocide and international crimes against the Southern Cameroons/ Ambazonia, the Federal Government of Nigeria is the first government in the entire universe to admit its participation in the international violations and crimes against Ambazonia. Buhari has not demonstrated a Nigeria national interest need to justify commission of the crimes Nigeria has admitted to committing or to justify its support and complicity in the crimes perpetrated against Southern Cameroons. The Buhari administration has joined the crime cartel abducting and slaughtering hundreds of thousands of Southern Cameroons civilians for purely pecuniary interests. This is tantamount to sourcing for money through criminal means to finance his reelection efforts and that of his Vice President. The Boko Haram approach to accessing international crimes cartels like the government of French Cameroun to source and launder money to safeguard its threatened hold on power espouses the hypocrisy of his commitment to fight corruption in Nigeria.

With this admission, President Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osibanjo and the National Security Adviser Babagama Monguna hence bear individual criminal responsibility for the crimes of abduction, money laundering and complicity in the international crimes perpetrated against the Southern Cameroons. By relying on Babagama Monguna, the foot soldier that he and his Vice President relied on to conduct the entire operation including the negotiation and concealment of the colossal amounts paid for the criminal operation, Mr Buhari intended to keep the operation and its proceeds within his inner circle.

The alleged statement of Babagama Monguna places President Buhari and some of his close associates at the centre of the planning and execution of the crime. The fact that Buhari delegated Babagana Monguno, the alleged mastermind of the operation to deliver this statement on his behalf and not a cabinet member or a plenipotentiary member of the diplomatic corps is significant in some ways. It raises critical questions about the state of cohesion within the government of Nigeria on the matter and the possible frictions between the co-conspiring members of the crime cartel involved in the criminal enterprise in both government of Nigeria and French Cameroun.

It appears embarrassing and even surprising for the President of Nigeria to be represented in a supposed bilateral security meeting supposedly held in Nigeria by a national security adviser and not a cabinet level representative. It is doubtful that statements made by the national adviser can have the force of a binding international commitment on behalf of the people of Nigeria.  In his capacity as a corrupt mastermind of the abduction, the national security adviser might have deliver a message on his on his own behalf and that of the President as the General Overseer of the criminal operation.  There would be no constitutional basis in a genuine democracy for such a delegation of authority to a security operative to make commitments of an international nature with profound international, legal and diplomatic consequences. Diplomatic practice requires that such commitments can only be made by mandate holders recognized as such in international law.

That this individual represented the Federation or was mandated to deliver these statements to supposed delegates and representatives of French Cameroun in a supposed security meeting held in Nigeria carries with it serious diplomatic ramifications. This appeared to have been an open manifestation of a chaotic management of a criminal deal which exploded in the market place of international and national scrutiny.  This appears to have foreshadowed the nervousness, confusion and disagreement within a government    totally embarrassed by the international outcry over the criminal violations of international law by Nigeria and the exposure of the underlying corruption surrounding the violations.

There are reasons why persons involved in this crime, no matter their status will be held responsible for their role in these international crimes. The international focus on Nigeria and French Cameroun by several international judicial accountability mechanisms will force the crime cartels present in the governments of both countries to account for their crimes. The moment is soon coming when they will know the clear limits to impunity, reckless corruption and abuse of political power.                                                                                                                                                                                                      

Cameroon Concord News has critically examined the impugned statement.  Apart from being a statement endorsing the genocide against Federation of Ambazonia and admitting that Nigerian security operatives on his orders committed the crime of  abduction,  it’s contains no comprehensive information  relating to the exact whereabouts of His Excellency Sisiku Ayuk Tabe and members of the Interim Government of Ambazonia.  Cameroon Concord News News critically observes that the unspecified cooperation basis for which Nigeria committed this crime appears to be but a mere euphemism for the unprecedented corruption that informed the criminal conduct of President Buhari, his Vice President, his National Security Adviser and his close associates. The deployment of his security adviser and not the Vice President, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Attorney-General of the Federal or a Cabinet level Minister, to make statements of a legal and diplomatic nature on behalf of the President to representatives of an alien sovereign evokes the possibility of serious disagreement within the Buhari government about the legality and secretive nature of the abductions and high level corruption involved in the operation.  The violations of national and international law with profound consequences may also have alarmed many members of government who might not have been aware of the criminal corrupt deal but are required by the beneficiaries to deal with the consequences.

Babagana Munguno’s statement is an admission on behalf of President Buhari that Nigeria abducted Southern Cameroons leaders who were legally in Nigeria under the protection of International law. Statements by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the United States State Department alleging and condemning the violations of international law by Nigeria signifies that the consequences for this violation will follow. The statement admitting the abductions and the endorsement of international violations committed against the Southern Cameroons, the support to French Cameroun to realize it’s stated goals genocidal goals of preserving the unity of its territory through criminal means; genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes bring Nigeria and French Cameroun within the radar of the International Criminal Court (ICC) which fortunately has been conducting a preliminary examination in Nigeria since the 18 November 2010. The Babagana Monguno admission brings into focus following crimes falling within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court where Nigeria is a state party:  Genocide (article 6), Crime Against Humanity Article 7 (e) Imprisonment or other deprivation of physical liberty in violation of fundamental rules of international law. 7(i) Enforced disappearance of persons, Article 7(k) Other inhumane acts of a similar character intentionally causing great suffering or serious injury to body or to mental and physical health. Article 8 (vii) Unlawful deportation or transfer or unlawful confinement.

Although French Cameroun signed but did not ratify the Rome Statute, the officially announced participation of Nigeria in these crimes must be considered within the context of the ongoing preliminary examination in Nigeria targeting the Nigerian Military and Security Agencies which the security operatives who participated in these international violations form part.  Through its admitted criminal conduct, Nigeria may have provided the required jurisdictional basis for the ICC to examine the crimes committed by French Cameroon against Southern Cameroon/Ambazonia in which Nigeria is an admitted and willing participant.  In this regard therefore, members of the Nigeria government who participated in perpetration of these crimes and the violation of international law cannot and will not hide behind the shield of national security or sovereignty to conceal their participation is crimes that have shock the conscience of humanity.

If the criminals who have violated international law and perpetrated these crimes are not held to account for their crimes, then the protection afforded humanity by international law will be held in contempt and the abduction and trade in human beings to satisfy the corrupt pecuniary interests of corrupt power merchants will encourage impunity.  Nigeria must not be allowed to become a laboratory for whitewashing Boko Haram criminal tactics and deploying them to security operations in total disregard the international rule of law.

For these reasons, Cameroon Concord News Group strongly holds that the responsibility to produce and free the President of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia and members of his government lies with Nigeria. Whether they are in French Cameroun or still held in Nigeria as it may well be the case, they are held at the pleasure of the Federal Government of Nigeria.  Nigeria must be held accountable for whatever happens to them.  Cameroon Concord News Group strongly urges the ICC which has been conducting a preliminary examination in Nigeria since 2010 to exercise its jurisdiction on the crimes of the abduction of the Southern Cameroons leaders who were legally in Nigeria under the protection of International law. The crime in which they were abducted and disappeared falls within the jurisdiction of the ICC. Cameroon Concord News Group strongly urges international human rights organizations, Ambazonians the world over and Nigerian of good will to submit petitions to the ICC to extend its ongoing preliminary examination in Nigeria to cover this crime of abduction and complicity in the international crimes coming within the statute of the ICC committed against Southern Cameroons/ Ambazonia.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

Chairman and Editor-in-Chief

Cameroon Concord News Group


UN urges return of 6 aid workers in S. Sudan

20, December 2017

UN urges return of 6 aid workers in S. Sudan 0

The United Nations’ humanitarian coordinator in South Sudan called Tuesday for the “swift and safe” return of six aid workers who have disappeared in the northwest of the country.

The coordinator, Alain Noudehou, said in a statement that one international and five national aid workers had gone missing on Sunday while travelling between the towns of Raga and Wau, where they were working on food security.

The six were employed by two foreign organizations, and one national organization.

On Monday, France-based NGO Solidarites International said it had “lost contact” with three of its workers, but said it could not be confirmed whether they had been kidnapped.

The South Sudanese government, and rebels led by exiled former vice-president Riek Machar, accused each other of attacking the aid workers during clashes which broke out in the area.

Soldiers suspected of raping five foreign aid workers and killing a local journalist, are escorted by security forces, as they get in a vehicle, after appearing in a military court, in the country’s capital Juba on May 30, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

 

The information ministry in the state of Lol, where Raga is situated, said in a statement that Machar’s “bandits” had ambushed vehicles 30 kilometers (18 miles) outside of Raga, killing eight civilians and kidnapping four aid workers.

Meanwhile, Lam Paul Gabriel, a spokesman for the rebel SPLA-IO, said his forces had “intercepted” a convoy carrying weapons between the second largest city of Wau and Raga which were to be used to attack rebel bases.

He said that in the course of this operation, four aid workers were “rescued”, adding they had been used as “being used as shields by the government in the transportation of these military hardware.”

“They are currently safe and sound with our forces around Raga and will be handed over to the concern third party as soon as possible,” said the statement.

It could not be immediately confirmed if all six aid workers mentioned by the UN humanitarian coordinator went missing in the same incident.

Wau and its surrounds have been the center of fierce fighting between the government and rebel forces since 2016.

In April three people delivering food aid were brutally killed in Wau, a sign of the difficulties for humanitarian workers in dealing with the fallout from the country’s four-year old war which has killed tens of thousands and driven nearly four million from their homes.

In eastern Jonglei, 60 humanitarian workers had to flee fighting in April.

South Sudan’s leaders fought for decades for independence, but once they got it in 2011, a power struggle between President Salva Kiir and his former deputy Riek Machar led to all out civil war in 2013.

(Source: AFP)


Jerusalem al-Quds: EU defies Trump

15, December 2017

Jerusalem al-Quds: EU defies Trump 0

European Union leaders have rejected a contentious US decision to recognize Jerusalem al-Quds as Israel’s “capital,” saying the 28-member bloc’s stance on the city remains “unchanged.”

“EU leaders reiterate firm commitment to the two-state solution and, in this context, the EU position on Jerusalem [al-Quds] remains unchanged,” President of the European Council Donald Tusk said in a message posted on his official Twitter account on Thursday.

The tweet came after EU leaders discussed Trump’s decision at a summit underway in the Belgian capital of Brussels.

On December 6, Trump sparked international outrage as he declared that Washington was recognizing Jerusalem al-Quds as the “capital” of Israel and that he had instructed his administration to begin the process of moving the American embassy from Tel Aviv to the ancient city.

The dramatic shift in Washington’s Jerusalem policy has drawn fierce criticism from the international community, including Washington’s own allies, while triggering demonstrations against the US and Israel worldwide.

European leaders attend the first day of a European Union summit in Brussels on December 14, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

 

Thursday’s statement by the bloc’s heads of state and government adds fresh weight to the criticism of Trump’s move.

According to media reports, French President Emanuel Macron had lobbied for a sharper statement against Trump’s declaration.

Israel failed to torpedo the statement, but managed to get the French text watered down with the help of the Czech Republic and Hungary.

On December 7, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini voiced alarm at the US decision and said it could take the region “backwards to even darker times.”

Mogherini also reaffirmed the position of the European Union on Tuesday, saying East Jerusalem, which hosts the al-Aqa Mosque compound, shall become the capital of a Palestinian state and the western part of the city shall go to Israel as part of a so-called two state solution.

“We have made it clear that we will continue to respect the international consensus on Jerusalem [al-Quds], as Europeans, including the relocation of our embassies until the final status of Jerusalem [al-Quds] is resolved through direct negotiations between the parties,” she added.

Jerusalem al-Quds remains at the core of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, with Palestinians hoping that the eastern part of the city would eventually serve as the capital of a future independent Palestinian state.

The entire city went under Israel’s control after the regime annexed East Jerusalem al-Quds in 1967 during the Arab War.

 



‘Merkel’s party, SPD agree to enter coalition talks’

1, December 2017

‘Merkel’s party, SPD agree to enter coalition talks’ 0

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, her Bavarian ally Horst Seehofer, and SPD Party leader Martin Schulz agreed during a meeting late on Thursday to enter into talks to find a way out of the recent political impasse in forming a coalition, a party official said on Friday.

The leaders of the three parties discussed various options for forming a coalition government, including a Merkel-led minority government, but they voiced skepticism about the latter option, said the party official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity and on the condition the party not be named.

Merkel has been looking for a coalition partner after her center-right bloc lost support to the far right in Sept. 24 elections and her attempts to form a three-way tie-up with the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) and the Greens failed.

Public opinion also appeared to be behind the new sides opening talks, with a poll commissioned by Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung showing 61 percent of Germans wanted the SPD to enter coalition negotiations with Merkel’s conservatives.

Spiegel weekly noted that Thursday’s meeting was crucial for the chancellor.

“For Merkel, it’s a fight for political survival that’s starting,” said Spiegel.

“Merkel must do everything to forge this alliance — the only one that would ensure stable power,” it added.

(Source: Agencies)


Hollywood shaken by sex scandal involving Kevin Spacey

31, October 2017

Hollywood shaken by sex scandal involving Kevin Spacey 0

Sexual allegations against renowned Hollywood actor Kevin Spacey have shaken the US movie industry, which was already struggling to cover up a similar expose against powerful producer Harvey Weinstein.   

The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences said Monday that it would not “honor” Spacey by giving him the 2017 International Emmy Founders Award next month.

The move came after Star Trek: Discovery actor Anthony Rapp accused Spacey of making sexual advances on him more than 30 years ago.

Rapp, who was 14 at the time of the assault, said Spacey, then 26 years old, physically carried him into his bed and attempted to initiate sex with the teenaged actor.

The A-list actor claimed in response that he did not recall the incident at all and felt sorry for the effects of what would have been “deeply inappropriate drunken behavior.”

The actor also tried to avert media attention by revealing that he has been a homosexual throughout all these years.

The allegations led video streaming platform Netflix to cancel famous political show House of Cards, which featured Spacey in the leading role.

Media Rights Capital and Netflix, who produce House of Cards, said in a joint statement that they were “deeply troubled” by the news.

“In response to last night’s revelations, executives from both of our companies arrived in Baltimore this afternoon to meet with our cast and crew to ensure that they continue to feel safe and supported. As previously scheduled, Kevin Spacey is not working on set at this time,” the statement said.

Spacey’s fall from grace came days the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Hollywood’s de facto governing body, voted overwhelmingly to expel disgraced American film producer Harvey Weinstein amid mounting accusations of sexual harassment, assault and rape by at least 30 actresses.

The ouster was unprecedented since the academy was founded 90 years ago, turning one of the biggest Oscar players in history into a Hollywood pariah.

Weinstein’s films have received more than 81 Oscars, according to The Weinstein Company, which he co-founded with his brother Bob Weinstein in 1979 after selling Miramax.

The 65-year-old movie mogul, who was born in New York City to a Jewish family, has denied the rape allegations, while acknowledging that his behavior “caused a lot of pain.”

 

Source: Presstv


Trump seeks Obamacare dismantling with executive order

12, October 2017

Trump seeks Obamacare dismantling with executive order 0

US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order that he claims will bring affordable health insurance to millions, taking his first concrete step in dismantling Obamacare.

The executive order would give “millions of Americans with Obamacare relief,” Trump said on Thursday.

The order, which tasks the administration with developing policies to increase health care quality and lower prices, is aimed at letting small businesses band together across the country to buy cheaper, less regulated health plans for their employees.

The new plan would “cost the United States government virtually nothing and people will have great great health care. And when I say people, I mean by the millions and millions,” Trump said.

Trump resorted to using presidential powers to dismantle Obamacare after fellow Republicans in Congress had failed to repeal the 2010 law.

During the last year election campaign, Trump promised to dismantle  Obamacare, former President Barack Obama’s signature domestic policy achievement.

Chuck Schumer, the Senate Democratic leader,  accused Trump of using the executive order as a wrecking ball to single-highhandedly tear down and sabotage Obamacare after he failed to repeal the law in Congress.

“Having failed to repeal the #ACA in Congress, @POTUS is using a wrecking ball to singlehandedly rip apart & sabotage our healthcare system,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-New York, tweeted.

Trump’s efforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act failed after analyses of the GOP replacement plans showed the number of Americans without insurance would increase by more than 20 million people, as compared to current law.

Culled from Presstv


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