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Blinken criticises settlements but stresses US support for Israel

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Blinken criticises settlements but stresses US support for Israel

In uncommon — albeit implicit — criticism of Israel, United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken has referred to as out Israeli insurance policies, together with settlement growth and residential demolitions, as detrimental to the two-state answer.

Nonetheless, at a information convention on the finish of his journey to Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories on Tuesday, Blinken reasserted Washington’s “ironclad” dedication to Israel.

“America is dedicated to working towards our enduring objective of guaranteeing that Palestinians and Israelis get pleasure from equal measures of freedom, safety, alternative, justice and dignity,” Blinken stated, stressing the necessity for preserving the “imaginative and prescient” of the two-state answer.

“America will proceed to oppose something that places that objective farther from attain, together with however not restricted to settlement growth and the legalisation of unlawful outposts, strikes in direction of annexation of the West Financial institution, disruption to the historic established order on Jerusalem’s holy websites, demolitions and evictions and incitement and acquiescence to violence.”

Rights advocates have lengthy urged Washington to press Israel to finish its abuses towards Palestinians.

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The US gives a minimum of $3.8bn in navy support to Israel annually whereas pushing to dam worldwide efforts to denounce Israeli violations, together with on the United Nations.

Successive US administrations, together with that of President Joe Biden, have maintained unconditional help for Israel as they rhetorically again the two-state answer — a prospect that many consultants say is now not lifelike due to Israel’s settlement insurance policies.

“I reaffirmed to Israel and its individuals the USA’ ironclad dedication to Israel’s safety. The rising tide of violence has resulted within the lack of many harmless lives on each side,” Blinken stated on Tuesday.

Blinken met with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in occupied Ramallah earlier within the day.

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Final week, Israeli forces killed 10 Palestinians within the West Financial institution, together with 9 within the Jenin refugee camp. A day later, a Palestinian gunman fatally shot seven Israelis in occupied East Jerusalem.

Abbas’s workplace launched a press release by way of the Palestinian information company WAFA, blaming Israel for the latest disaster and accusing it of stifling the two-state answer and violating worldwide regulation.

“This comes at a time when Israel continues — with none deterrent or accountability — its unilateral operations, together with settlements, de-facto annexation, settler terrorism,” the Palestinian president stated.

Abbas additionally decried that Israel was “violating the historic established order and breaching the Al-Aqsa Mosque” and “withholding [Palestinian] funds, together with insurance policies of ethnic cleaning and apartheid”.

Tensions between Israelis and Palestinians spiked earlier this month after an ultranationalist minister in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s authorities, Itamar Ben-Gvir, visited the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in a transfer condemned by Palestinian and Arab leaders as a “provocation”.

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On Tuesday, Abbas implicitly hit out at US opposition to a Palestinian diplomatic push to hunt accountability for Israeli abuses.

“The continued opposition to the efforts of the Palestinian individuals to defend their existence and their professional rights in worldwide boards and courts, and to supply worldwide safety for our individuals, is a coverage that encourages the Israeli occupier to commit extra crimes and violates worldwide regulation,” Abbas stated.

In his information convention, Blinken stated Washington’s quick precedence is “restoring calm” and defusing tensions between Israelis and Palestinians earlier than pushing in direction of a long-term settlement.

Blinken added that he requested members of his staff to remain within the area to assist with that purpose.

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The highest US diplomat didn’t point out Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, a US citizen who was fatally shot by Israeli forces final 12 months, in public statements whereas in Israel.

Requested whether or not Blinken raised the killing of Abu Akleh with Israeli officers, a US Division of State spokesperson referred Al Jazeera to “public readouts” of the highest diplomat’s conferences. Out there readouts didn’t point out the slain journalist.

Blinken stated on Tuesday that he mentioned with Israeli officers deepening cooperation to counter Iran amid the stalling of diplomatic efforts to revive the 2015 nuclear deal that noticed Tehran cut back its nuclear programme in change for the lifting of sanctions towards its economic system.

“We continued what has been an ongoing dialogue of ways in which we are able to proceed to work collectively, collaborate — and never simply us, with different international locations — in countering the malicious actions that Iran is engaged in, whether or not it’s on this area or past,” Blinken informed reporters.

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Orbán's meeting with FPÖ leaders in Vienna sparks controversy

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Orbán's meeting with FPÖ leaders in Vienna sparks controversy

The Hungarian prime minister arrived in Vienna on Thursday, where he was received by parliamentary president Walter Rosenkranz in a meeting condemned by several Austrian political parties.

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Despite criticism from other political parties, Austria’s newly elected parliament president, Walter Rosenkranz of the far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ), hosted Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in Vienna as his first official guest. 

The controversial visit took place in the Austrian parliament’s reception room, with the entire leadership of the FPÖ, including leader Herbert Kickl, reportedly in attendance. 

After the meeting concluded, Orbán had a separate, private meeting with Kickl. However, nothing was initially revealed about the content of their conversation.

Rosenkranz said the meeting had been arranged before he took office.

Other Austrian parties, including the Greens and Social Democrats, had resisted Orbán’s visit. Green party parliamentary leader Sigrid Maurer said the FPÖ views Orbán as a role model, which should be considered “an absolute warning signal.” 

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FPÖ finished first in the recent Austrian parliamentary elections, garnering 29.2% of the vote in the country’s first far-right election win since World War II.

Experts say the party managed to tap into Austrian anxiety on housing and healthcare, as well as often successfully blaming migration for a host of other issues. 

As is customary within Austria, the group with the highest number of votes appoints the President of Parliament – hence Rosenkranz being elected to the second-highest state office in the country last week. 

Orbán will reportedly not meet with Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer during the visit.

Far-right alliance in Europe

Austria’s Freedom Party and Orbán’s Fidesz party both belong to the new European far-right group Patriots for Europe.  

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The party shares a deep aversion to the Green Deal, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s flagship initiative to achieve climate neutrality by 2050, and have challenged the project of European integration as well as the power granted to EU institutions.  

Patriots for Europe are also opposed to providing Ukraine with military equipment, question the efficiency of Western sanctions against Moscow and want to maintain close relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and his government. 

It is the third-largest group in the European Parliament, boasting dozens of MEPs from countries like France, Italy and the Netherlands. 

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Analysis-US Crypto Industry Expects Friendlier Washington, Whoever Wins White House

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Analysis-US Crypto Industry Expects Friendlier Washington, Whoever Wins White House
By Hannah Lang (Reuters) – The cryptocurrency industry has spent years clashing with Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration over regulatory issues, but executives expect an easier ride from Washington, regardless of who wins the White House next week. Crypto asset managers including Bitwise …
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Iran and Russia close in on deal as Tehran threatens revenge against Israel

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Iran and Russia close in on deal as Tehran threatens revenge against Israel

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Iran and Russia are closing in on a deal that will bolster their defensive cooperation and strengthen military ties at a time when Western nations are increasingly concerned about regional wars in Europe and the Middle East. 

“The treaty on a comprehensive strategic partnership between Russia and Iran that is being prepared will become a serious factor in strengthening Russian-Iranian relations,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday, according to a Reuters report. 

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The foreign minister, who said the treaty would be signed “in the near future,” claimed that the deal will “confirm” both Iran and Russia’s “interests of peace and security at the regional and global levels.”

President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian during a meeting on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, Oct. 23, 2024. (Reuters/Maxim Shemetov/Pool)

PENTAGON SAYS IRAN SUPPLYING RUSSIA WITH BALLISTIC MISSILES

The details of the treaty remain unclear and Lavrov did not expand on what form this defensive partnership would take.

A similar agreement signed between Russia and North Korea earlier this year was followed by Pyongyang’s decision to send some 10,000 soldiers to its warring neighbor, which may potentially be deployed to fight in Ukraine, according to concerns signaled by the Pentagon. 

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But given that Iran already supplies Russia with defensive aid to propel its brutal war in Ukraine, it’s not only the repercussions this partnership could have for the war in Europe that concern Western security officials.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who once shared a solid relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has not appeared to be overtly involved in the unfolding fight in the Middle East, unlike Russia’s top adversary, the U.S.

But a report by the Wall Street Journal earlier this month found that Moscow has been providing the Houthi terrorist group with satellite data to assist it in its repeated attacks on Western ships in the Red Sea. According to the report, the information was passed from Russia to “members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)… embedded with the Houthis in Yemen.” 

Houthi supporters rally in Yemen

Houthi supporters attend a rally against the U.S.-led strikes on Yemen and Israel’s war in Gaza Strip, in Sanaa, Yemen, on Feb. 23, 2024. (AP/Osamah Abdulrahman)

PENTAGON THREATENS NO NEW LIMITS ON UKRAINE WEAPONS IF NORTH KOREA JOINS RUSSIA’S WAR

Russia has also increasingly called on Israel to show “restraint” when it comes to escalating tensions in the Middle East as it launched an incursion into Lebanon and struck Iran – which directly funds and arms the terrorist organizations, including Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis, warring with Jerusalem.

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Tehran has once again threatened Jerusalem with a retaliatory hit after Israel launched aerial strikes on Friday. The series of tit-for-tat attacks continue as Israel pushes to eliminate Hamas in the Gaza Strip and Hezbollah in Lebanon. 

Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, chief of the general staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), on Tuesday responded to these threats and said, “If Iran makes the mistake of launching another missile barrage at Israel, we will once again know how to reach Iran.”

the-chief-of-the-general-staff,-ltg-herzi-halevi

Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, chief of the general staff of the IDF, commands the strike on Iran from Camp Rabin, with the commanding officer of the Israeli Air Force, Maj. Gen. Tomer Bar. (IDF)

Halevi warned Israel will continue to escalate its attack “capabilities and locations” previously “set aside” if Iran responds with another strike on the Jewish state.

“We did this for a very simple reason, because we may be required to [strike] again. This event is not over, we are still in the midst of it,” he said while speaking from the Ramon Airbase in Israel. “I say this to you: we are highly prepared across all fronts.” 

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