World
NATO takes over coordination of military aid to Kyiv from US, source says
Trump, who will take office in January, has said he wants to end the war in Ukraine swiftly but not how he aims to do so. He has long criticised the scale of U.S. financial and military aid to Ukraine, read the report.
NATO has taken over coordination of Western military aid to Ukraine from the U.S. as planned, a source said on Tuesday, in a move widely seen as aiming to safeguard the support mechanism against NATO sceptic U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, Reuters reported.
The step, coming after a delay of several months, gives NATO a more direct role in the war against Russia’s invasion while stopping well short of committing its own forces.
Diplomats, however, acknowledge that the handover to NATO may have a limited effect given that the U.S. under Trump could still deal a major setback to Ukraine by slashing its support, as it is the alliance’s dominant power and provides the majority of arms to Kyiv.
Trump, who will take office in January, has said he wants to end the war in Ukraine swiftly but not how he aims to do so. He has long criticised the scale of U.S. financial and military aid to Ukraine, read the report.
The headquarters of NATO’s new Ukraine mission, dubbed NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU), is located at Clay Barracks, a U.S. base in the German town of Wiesbaden.
A person familiar with the matter told Reuters it was now fully operational. No public reason has been given for the delays.
NATO’s military headquarters SHAPE said its Ukraine mission was beginning to assume responsibilities from the U.S. and international organizations.
“The work of NSATU … is designed to place Ukraine in a position of strength, which puts NATO in a position of strength to keep safe and prosperous its one billion people in both Europe and North America,” said U.S. Army General Christopher G. Cavoli, the Supreme Allied Commander Europe.
“This is a good day for Ukraine and a good day for NATO.”
In the past, the U.S.-led Ramstein group, an ad hoc coalition of some 50 nations named after a U.S. air base in Germany where it first met, has coordinated Western military supplies to Kyiv.
Trump threatened to quit NATO during his first term as president and demanded allies must spend 3% of national GDP on their militaries, compared with NATO’s target of 2%.
Meanwhile, the outgoing Biden administration in Washington is scrambling to ship as many weapons as possible to Kyiv amid fears that Trump may cut deliveries of military hardware to Ukraine.
NSATU is set to have a total strength of about 700 personnel, including troops stationed at NATO’s military headquarters SHAPE in Belgium and at logistics hubs in Poland and Romania, read the report.
Russia has condemned increases in Western military aid to Ukraine as risking a wider war.
World
Houthi-run health ministry says airstrikes kill 33 near Yemen capital
The ministry said the strikes hit homes in the town of Bani Hushaysh, a Houthi stronghold east of Sanaa, and that most of those killed were women and children.
At least 33 people were killed and 39 wounded in what the Houthi-run Saba news agency said were Saudi airstrikes on a village near Yemen’s capital Sanaa on Saturday, in one of the deadliest reported attacks since fighting between Saudi Arabia and the Iran-aligned group resumed in July.
Reuters could not independently verify the account. Saudi Arabia’s Center for International Communication said it was investigating the report.
The renewed fighting between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis has shattered a 2022 UN-brokered truce that largely halted attacks between the Saudi-led coalition and the group, which controls Sanaa. The Houthis have since launched missile and drone attacks on Saudi airports and oil facilities, while Riyadh has carried out airstrikes in Yemen in support of its Yemeni allies.
The ministry said the strikes hit homes in the town of Bani Hushaysh, a Houthi stronghold east of Sanaa, and that most of those killed were women and children.
Abdul-Aziz al-Dailami, director of Sehatuna Hospital in Sanaa, said many victims remained trapped under the rubble, including first responders.
“The strikes keep coming. Just as rescuers arrive, another strike hits. We have even lost some of our own medical responders, who have been martyred,” he told Reuters.
“We received a number of wounded individuals in very critical condition, with injuries to the head, chest and legs, as well as fractures,” al-Dailami added.
The fighting, a spillover from the wider US-Iran conflict, has revived a complex 12-year war in Yemen that has caused one of the worst humanitarian crises globally and fragmented the Arab world’s most impoverished country.
The number of people displaced since the latest round of fighting began has climbed to more than 200,000, the International Organization for Migration said in October.
World
White House declares ‘Trump is still your president’ after Republicans suffer sweeping midterm defeats
The White House has issued a defiant message following a crushing performance by Republicans in the US midterm elections, declaring that Donald Trump remains president despite significant gains by the Democrats.
In a post on X on Wednesday, the White House shared an image of Trump bearing the words: “TRUMP IS STILL YOUR PRESIDENT.” The accompanying message added: “Thank you for your attention to this matter.”
The statement came after Democrats secured a Senate majority and made major gains in traditionally Republican strongholds, including Texas, Kansas, South Carolina and Ohio.
The midterm elections, which determine control of Congress, were widely viewed as a referendum on Trump’s presidency. All 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 Senate seats were contested.
The war in Iran and mounting cost-of-living pressures were among the issues believed to have contributed to the Republican setbacks.
Trump acknowledged that the conflict with Iran had affected the election results, particularly through its impact on fuel prices, but defended his decision to pursue the war.
Speaking to Politico, he said the conflict had pushed gasoline prices higher in the short term, but maintained that military action was necessary in the long run.
Iranian officials welcomed the election outcome. Parliament Speaker and chief negotiator Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf wrote on X that American voters had rejected war, saying: “Conscience or the cost of living, Americans said NO TO WAR.”
Trump also reflected on his campaign rallies, saying the enthusiasm surrounding his appearances had failed to translate into support for Republican candidates.
“They just couldn’t transfer that love,” he said.
Although Trump indicated he was prepared to work with Democrats, he warned that political gridlock could follow, threatening to use his presidential veto to block their legislative agenda.
World
Democrat Abdul El-Sayed becomes first Muslim elected to US Senate
Democrat Abdul El-Sayed has won Michigan’s US Senate race, defeating former Republican lawmaker Mike Rogers and becoming the first Muslim elected to the US Senate, according to US television networks.
“Michigan, we did it!” El-Sayed declared at his victory celebration in Detroit, where hundreds of supporters gathered to celebrate.
“I am so proud and honoured to stand here as your senator-elect from the great state of Michigan,” the 42-year-old said.
El-Sayed secured the victory despite a late campaign setback when Democratic Congresswoman Haley Stevens, whom he defeated in the party primary, endorsed Rogers shortly before election day.
A former medical administrator, El-Sayed campaigned on progressive promises, including universal healthcare, reducing the influence of money in politics and tackling the rising cost of living.
He replaces retiring Democratic Senator Gary Peters and held a lead of nearly six percentage points over Rogers when US networks called the race.
His campaign attracted large crowds across Michigan, including in traditionally Republican areas, while drawing support from labour unions, activists and younger voters.
Republicans had launched a fierce campaign against El-Sayed, portraying him as a radical and questioning his patriotism. He also faced Islamophobic attacks and mockery over his Arabic name from President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance.
Addressing Vance during his victory speech, El-Sayed said the vice president was constitutionally obligated to swear him into office in January.
The victory came amid a strong showing by Democrats in several races, prompting jubilant supporters at El-Sayed’s headquarters to chant: “Tsunami! Tsunami!”
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