World

Biden ends failing reelection campaign, backs Harris as nominee

If Harris, 59, emerges as the nominee, she would become the first Black woman to lead a major-party ticket in U.S. history. A former attorney general of California and former U.S. senator, she ran unsuccessfully for president against Biden in 2020.

Published

1 year ago

July 22, 2024

Ariana News

U.S. President Joe Biden abandoned his reelection bid on Sunday under growing pressure from his fellow Democrats and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as the party’s candidate to face Republican Donald Trump in the November election, Reuters reported.

Biden, who at 81 is the oldest person ever to have occupied the Oval Office, said he would remain in the presidency until his term ended on Jan. 20, 2025, and would address the nation this week.

Biden, who has not been seen in public since testing positive for COVID-19 last week, was isolating at his home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.

“While it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” Biden wrote on X.

The move dramatically reshapes a White House contest that has been shaken repeatedly in the last month. Biden’s disastrous June 27 debate performance drove his fellow Democrats to urge him to drop out. Then on July 13, a gunman attempted to assassinate former President Trump, 78. And last week Trump named hardline Republican U.S. Senator J.D. Vance, 39, to serve as his vice presidential running mate, read the report.

In opinion polls, Americans had expressed widespread dissatisfaction with a potential Biden-Trump rematch. Shortly after Biden’s announcement, Trump told CNN: “Harris will be easier to beat than Joe Biden would have been.”

Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison said the American people would soon hear from the party on next steps and the path forward for the nomination process. It was the first time in more than a half-century that an incumbent U.S. president gave up his party’s nomination.

“My intention is to earn and win this nomination,” Harris said in a statement. “I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party — and unite our nation — to defeat Donald Trump.”

Harris campaign officials, allies and supporters have started making calls to secure the support of delegates for her nomination ahead of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago from Aug. 19-22, multiple sources said.

Democratic state party chairs held a Sunday afternoon call to discuss backing Harris as the party’s nominee. Several participants said Harris has the full support of the chairs, Reuters reported.

Opposition to Biden’s campaign from within his party gained steam over the past week with 36 congressional Democrats – more than one in eight – publicly calling on him to drop out, driven by concerns over his mental acuity.

Lawmakers said they feared he could cost them not only the White House but also the chance to control either chamber of Congress next year, which would leave Democrats with no meaningful grasp on power in Washington.

That stood in sharp contrast to what played out in Milwaukee last week, when Republican convention delegates united around Trump, whose refusal to acknowledge his 2020 loss to Biden sparked a Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol.

It was unclear whether other senior Democrats would challenge Harris for the nomination – she was widely seen as the pick of many party officials – or whether the party itself would choose to open the field for nominations.

Governor Gavin Newsom of California, who had been mentioned as a possible replacement for Biden at the top of the ticket, threw his support behind Harris.

“With our democracy at stake and our future on the line, no one is better to prosecute the case against Donald Trump’s dark vision and guide our country in a healthier direction than America’s Vice President, @KamalaHarris,” Newsom wrote on X.

Two other potential challengers, Governor Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan and Governor Andy Beshear of Kentucky, issued statements praising Biden but did not mention the vice president.

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg on Sunday issued statements backing Harris’ bid. Both are among a handful of Democrats seen as potential vice presidential material, read the report.

LAST-MINUTE SHIFT

As of Saturday night, Biden was telling allies that he planned to stay in the race, but changed his mind on Sunday afternoon, a source familiar with the matter said.

“At around 1:45 p.m. today, the president told his senior team that he had changed his mind,” the source told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity. Biden announced his decision on social media within minutes after that.

Polling shows that Harris performs no better statistically than Biden against Trump.

In a hypothetical head-to-head match-up, Harris and Trump were tied with 44% support each in a July 15-16 Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted immediately after the July 13 assassination attempt on Trump. Trump led Biden 43% to 41% in that same poll, though the 2 percentage point difference was not meaningful considering the poll’s 3-point margin of error.

Congressional Republicans argued on Sunday that Biden should resign the office immediately, which would turn the White House over to Harris and put House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, next in line in succession.

“If he’s incapable of running for president, how is he capable of governing right now? I mean, there is five months left in this administration. It’s a real concern, and it’s a danger to the country,” Johnson told CNN on Sunday before Biden’s announcement.

Biden’s campaign had $95 million on hand at the end of June, according to a Saturday filing with the Federal Election Commission. Campaign finance law experts disagree on how readily that money could be shifted to a Harris-led campaign.

Small-dollar donors raised over $27.5 million on ActBlue in the first five hours of Harris’ presidential campaign, the fundraising platform said on X.

FIRST SINCE LBJ

Biden’s historic withdrawal – he is the first sitting president to give up his party’s nomination for reelection since President Lyndon B. Johnson during the Vietnam War in March 1968 – leaves his replacement with less than four months to wage a campaign.

Biden was the oldest U.S. president ever elected when he beat Trump in 2020. During that campaign, Biden described himself as a bridge to the next generation. Some interpreted that to mean he would serve one term, a transitional figure who beat Trump and brought his party back to power, Reuters reported.

But he set his sights on a second term in the belief that he was the only Democrat who could beat Trump again. In recent weeks, his advanced age became more apparent. His gait became stilted and a childhood stutter occasionally returned.

Calls for Biden to reconsider his candidacy grew much louder after his shaky, halting performance during a first debate with Trump on June 27, giving pause to even some of his biggest supporters.

Donors began to revolt and supporters of Harris began to coalesce around her. Top Democrats, including former House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a longtime ally, told Biden he cannot win the election.

Harris is a former prosecutor, and Trump, two decades her senior, faces two outstanding criminal prosecutions related to his attempts to overturn the 2020 election result.

The former president is due to be sentenced in New York in September, having been convicted of trying to cover up a hush-money payment to a pornographic movie star. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges and claims all are politically motivated attempts to block him from returning to power.

Earlier this year, facing little opposition, Biden easily won the Democratic primary race to pick its presidential candidate, despite voter concerns about his age and health.

His staunch support for Israel’s military campaign in Gaza eroded support among some in his own party, particularly young, more liberal Democrats and voters of color.

Many Black voters say Biden has not done enough for them, and enthusiasm among Democrats overall for a second Biden term had been low. Even before the debate with Trump, Biden was trailing the Republican in some national polls and in the battleground states he would need to win to prevail on Nov. 5.

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World

Saudi Arabia executes two people for plotting attacks on places of worship

Published

9 hours ago

November 9, 2025

Ariana News

Saudi Arabia said on Sunday that it had executed two citizens for joining a terrorist group that planned to carry out attacks on places of worship.

The two men also planned attacks against security facilities and personnel, Saudi state news agency SPA reported, citing a statement from the interior ministry.

The statement did not indicate when any of the attacks were planned to have taken place, Reuters reported.

World

North Korea threatens ‘offensive action’, condemns US-South Korea security talks

Published

2 days ago

November 8, 2025

Ariana News

North Korea’s defence minister No Kwang Chol threatened on Saturday to take “more offensive action” as he condemned U.S. security talks with Seoul and the arrival of a U.S. aircraft carrier in South Korea.

A day earlier, North Korea fired a ballistic missile towards the sea off its east coast, after denouncing on Thursday fresh U.S. sanctions against North Korean individuals and entities that Washington said were involved in cyber-related money-laundering schemes, Reuters reported.

South Korea’s defence ministry on Saturday condemned the missile launch, while saying the North’s criticism of the U.S.-South Korea meeting was regrettable.

No criticised a recent visit by U.S. and South Korean defence chiefs to the border between North and South Korea, as well as their subsequent security talks in Seoul, alleging they were conspiring to step up deterrence efforts towards the North and to integrate their nuclear and conventional forces.

“This is a stark revelation and an unveiled intentional expression of their hostile nature to stand against the DPRK to the end,” No said, referring to the country’s formal name – the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday the core of the alliance with Seoul will remain focused on deterring North Korea, although Washington will look at flexibility for U.S. troops stationed in South Korea to operate against regional threats.

No also said the visit of the U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carrier George Washington to South Korea’s southeastern port city of Busan this week following U.S.-South Korean joint air drills with Seoul had escalated tensions on the peninsula.

“We will show more offensive action against the enemies’ threat on the principle of ensuring security and defending peace by dint of powerful strength,” No said, according to North Korean state media KCNA.

South Korea’s navy said the carrier’s visit was to replenish supplies and grant leave for the crew.

While visiting South Korea last week, U.S. President Donald Trump repeated his willingness to sit down with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. No meeting took place, but Trump said he was willing to return to the region to meet Kim.

Last week, North Korea also test-fired cruise missiles to the west of the Korean peninsula just as Trump and other leaders were set to gather in South Korea for regional meetings.

Regarding the latest missile launch, the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said on Saturday that it “does not pose an immediate threat to U.S. personnel or territory, or to our allies”.

“The missile launch highlights the destabilising impact” of North Korea’s actions, it added.

World

US military to establish presence at Damascus airbase – Reuters

Published

3 days ago

November 7, 2025

Ariana News

The United States is preparing to establish a military presence at an airbase in Damascus to help enable a security pact that Washington is brokering between Syria and Israel, Reuters reported citing sources familiar with the matter.

The U.S. plans for the presence in the Syrian capital, which have not previously been reported, would be a sign of Syria’s strategic realignment with the U.S. following the fall last year of longtime leader Bashar al-Assad, an ally of Iran.

The base sits at the gateway to parts of southern Syria that are expected to make up a demilitarised zone as part of a non-aggression pact between Israel and Syria. That deal is being mediated by U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration.

TRUMP SET TO MEET SYRIAN PRESIDENT ON MONDAY

Trump will meet Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa at the White House on Monday, the first such visit by a Syrian head of state.

Reuters spoke to six sources familiar with preparations at the base, including two Western officials and a Syrian defence official, who confirmed the U.S. was planning to use the base to help monitor a potential Israel-Syria agreement.

After publication, a Syrian foreign ministry source denied the Reuters report, saying it was “false”, state news agency SANA reported late on Thursday.

The source did not elaborate on what was false.

“Work is underway to transfer the partnerships and understandings that were necessarily made with provisional entities to Damascus, within the framework of joint political, military and economic coordination,” SANA added, citing the source.

The Pentagon and Syrian foreign ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the plan. The Syrian presidency and defence ministry did not immediately respond to questions about the plan sent via the Syrian information ministry.

A U.S. administration official said the U.S. was “constantly evaluating our necessary posture in Syria to effectively combat ISIS (Islamic State) and (we) do not comment on locations or possible locations of (where) forces operate.”

The official requested that the name and location of the base be removed for operational security reasons. Reuters has agreed to not reveal the exact location.

A Western military official said the Pentagon had accelerated its plans over the last two months with several reconnaissance missions to the base. Those missions concluded the base’s long runway was ready for immediate use.

Two Syrian military sources said the technical talks have been focused on the use of the base for logistics, surveillance, refueling and humanitarian operations, while Syria would retain full sovereignty over the facility.

A Syrian defence official said the U.S. had flown to the base in military C-130 transport aircraft to make sure the runway was usable. A security guard at one of the base’s entrances told Reuters that American aircraft were landing there as part of “tests”.

It was not immediately clear when U.S. military personnel would be dispatched to the base.

JOINT SYRIAN-AMERICAN PRESENCE

The new U.S. plans appear to mirror two other new U.S. military presences in the region monitoring cessation of hostilities agreements: one in Lebanon, which closely watches last year’s ceasefire between Lebanese armed group Hezbollah and Israel, and one in Israel that monitors the Trump-era truce between Palestinian military group Hamas and Israel.

The U.S. already has troops stationed in northeastern Syria, as part of a decade-long effort to help a Kurdish-led force there combat Islamic State. In April, the Pentagon said it would halve the number of troops there to 1,000.

Sharaa has said any U.S. troop presence should be agreed with the new Syrian state. Syria is set to imminently join the U.S.-led global anti-ISIS coalition, U.S. and Syrian officials say.

A person familiar with the talks over the base said the move was discussed during a trip by Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), to Damascus on September 12.

A CENTCOM statement at the time said Cooper and U.S. envoy to Syria Thomas Barrack had met Sharaa and thanked him for contributing to the fight against Islamic State in Syria, which it said could help accomplish Trump’s “vision of a prosperous Middle East and a stable Syria at peace with itself and its neighbors.” The statement did not mention Israel.

The U.S. has been working for months to reach a security pact between Israel and Syria, two longtime foes. It had hoped to announce a deal at the United Nations General Assembly in September but talks hit a last-minute snag.

A Syrian source familiar with the talks told Reuters that Washington was exerting pressure on Syria to reach a deal before the end of the year, and possibly before Sharaa’s trip to Washington.