World
UN urges more Gaza aid, UN chief says Israel creating distribution ‘obstacles’
The U.N. Security Council called for boosting humanitarian assistance for Gaza, but the U.N. chief said the way Israel was conducting its military operation was creating “massive obstacles” to aid distribution inside the battered enclave.
After days of wrangling to avert a threatened U.S. veto, the Security Council on Friday passed a resolution urging steps to allow “safe, unhindered, and expanded humanitarian access” to Gaza and “conditions for a sustainable cessation” of fighting, Reuters reported.
The resolution was toned down from earlier drafts that called for an immediate end to 11 weeks of war and diluting Israeli control over aid deliveries, clearing the way for the vote in which the United States, Israel’s main ally, abstained.
Washington repeatedly has backed Israel’s right to self-defense following the Oct. 7 rampage into Israel by Gaza’s ruling Hamas militants, who killed 1,200 people and took 240 hostages back into the enclave.
Gilad Erdan, Israel’s U.N. ambassador, said the Security Council should have focused more on freeing the hostages and that concentrating on “aid mechanisms” was unnecessary as Israel permits “aid deliveries at the required scale.”
Hamas and the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority split over the measure, with the former saying it was “insufficient” to meet the stricken enclave’s needs and defied international calls for an end to “Israel’s aggression.”
The authority’s foreign ministry welcomed the resolution as a step that would help “end the aggression, ensure the arrival of aid and protect the Palestinian people.”
The United States and Israel, which has vowed to eradicate Hamas, oppose a ceasefire, contending it would allow the Islamist militant group to regroup and rearm.
U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration, however, has grown increasingly critical of the mounting casualty toll and humanitarian crisis that has worsened as Israel presses on with its ground and air offensive.
U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres said the way Israel is conducting its operation is “creating massive obstacles to the distribution of humanitarian assistance” in Gaza, where the United Nations says the aid available is just 10 percent of what is needed.
Israel says 5,405 aid trucks – bearing food, water and medical supplies – have entered Gaza since the war started.
The latest casualty update from Gaza’s health ministry said 20,057 Palestinians have been killed and 53,320 wounded in the Israeli offensive that has destroyed huge swaths of the enclave and displaced most of the population of 2.3 million.
Israel says 140 of its soldiers have been killed since it launched its ground incursion on Oct. 20.
World
Trump says United States will get uranium from Iran
One of Trump’s central objectives in launching military strikes against Iran was to ensure Tehran does not develop a nuclear weapon.
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday the United States would get enriched uranium from Iran, as the two countries struggle to reach an agreement on ending the Gulf war, Reuters reported.
“We’re going to get it,” Trump told a reporter as he left a White House event.
One of Trump’s central objectives in launching military strikes against Iran was to ensure Tehran does not develop a nuclear weapon. Iran has yet to hand over more than 900 pounds (408 kg) of highly enriched uranium.
World
Trump says Iran “should wave the white flag of surrender”
When asked what Iran would need to do to violate the ceasefire, Trump said: “Well, you’ll find out, because I’ll let you know … They know what not to do.”
President Donald Trump on Tuesday dismissed Iran’s military capability and said Tehran “should wave the white flag of surrender” but is too proud to do so, Reuters reported.
Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that Iran’s military has been reduced to firing “peashooters” and that Tehran privately wants to make a deal despite its public sabre-rattling.
“They play games, but let me just tell you, they want to make a deal. And who wouldn’t, when your military is totally gone?” he said.
Trump heaped praise on the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports in the region. “It’s like a piece of steel. Nobody’s going to challenge the blockade. And I think it’s working out very well,” he said, read the report.
When asked what Iran would need to do to violate the ceasefire, Trump said: “Well, you’ll find out, because I’ll let you know … They know what not to do.”
Trump said Iran “should save the white flag of surrender.”
“If this were a fight, they’d stop it,” said Trump.
World
Secret Service says it exchanged gunfire with armed suspect near White House
The suspect was not on the White House property, Quinn said.
The U.S. Secret Service said on Monday its officers confronted an armed and “suspicious individual” near the White House who later fired at them before fleeing on foot and being shot by law enforcement, Reuters reported.
The incident led to a brief lockdown at the White House.
Agents patrolling the outer perimeter of the White House complex identified a person who Secret Service Deputy Director Matthew Quinn said was a “suspicious individual that appeared to have a firearm.”
He briefly fled on foot after being approached by Secret Service officers and fired in their direction, Quinn said at a press conference.
Secret Service then fired at the suspect who was hit and subsequently hospitalized, Quinn added.
Vice President JD Vance’s motorcade transited through the area “not long before” the incident, Quinn said. There was no indication that the suspect intended to approach Vance’s motorcade, the Secret Service deputy director said.
A juvenile bystander was hit by the suspect but did not receive any life-threatening injuries and was being treated at a hospital, Quinn added.
Agents observed “visual print of a firearm” in considering the individual’s behavior as suspicious when he was spotted, Quinn told reporters.
The suspect was not on the White House property, Quinn said.
Law enforcement have been on alert in recent days in the U.S. capital following a shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner late last month over which a man has been arrested, read the report.
Quinn was asked if Monday’s incident was linked to “other recent attempts” on President Donald Trump’s life. Trump was in the White House when this incident unfolded.
“Whether or not it was directed to the president or not, I don’t know but we will find out,” Quinn said.
The Secret Service deputy director confirmed that a weapon was recovered from the suspect but did not elaborate.
The Secret Service said earlier its personnel were on the scene of the officer-involved shooting at 15th Street and Independence Avenue in Washington, D.C.
The DC Police Department was handling the probe.
-
Regional5 days agoIran says it has received US response to its latest offer for talks
-
Business5 days agoAfghan economic commission approves 12 major development projects across key sectors
-
Sport4 days agoAfghanistan set for Maldives four-nation tournament
-
Latest News5 days agoUN warns funding cuts are slowing mine clearance efforts in Afghanistan
-
Business4 days agoKazakhstan grain exports to Afghanistan jump sharply
-
Tahawol5 days agoTahawol: Efforts for US-Iran agreement
-
Regional4 days agoUS plans operation to assist ships stranded in Strait of Hormuz
-
Latest News4 days agoLeadership reshuffle announced across Afghanistan’s admin and security sectors
