World
Shireen Abu Akleh family’s letter to Joe Biden: Full text
As Joe Biden prepares to embark on his first journey to Israel as US president, the household of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh has despatched him a letter laying out a listing of calls for to make sure accountability for her killing within the occupied West Financial institution in Could.
The letter on Friday berated Biden for what it referred to as efforts by his administration to “whitewash Shireen’s killing and perpetuate impunity” for Israeli forces who killed the journalist in Could.
The Biden administration infuriated Palestinian rights and press freedom advocates when it launched an announcement saying the bullet that killed Abu Akleh “possible” got here from an Israeli navy place however dismissed the incident because the unintentional “results of tragic circumstances”.
Abu Akleh’s household referred to as on the US administration to retract that assertion, expressing “grief, outrage and sense of betrayal” with Biden.
Beneath is the total textual content of the household’s letter. (Hyperlinks, emphasis in unique)
Pricey Mr. President:
We, the household of Shireen Abu Akleh, write to specific our grief, outrage and sense of betrayal regarding your administration’s abject response to the extrajudicial killing of our sister and aunt by Israeli forces on Could 11, 2022, whereas on project within the occupied Palestinian metropolis of Jenin within the West Financial institution.
Shireen was a outstanding, beloved Palestinian journalist. She was a job mannequin and a mentor to aspiring Palestinian feminine journalists, and a trusted colleague of many within the native and worldwide media. She was additionally a United States citizen. Regardless of sporting a protecting helmet and blue bulletproof vest clearly marked as “PRESS,” Shireen was murdered by an Israeli-fired bullet to the pinnacle. Israeli forces continued to fireplace dwell rounds as bystanders– together with different members of the press–tried to render help. Then, as we and lots of of others gathered to start her funeral procession, Israeli forces attacked us, beating mourners and pallbearers, violently disrupting the dignified burial procession she deserved.
Within the days and weeks since an Israeli soldier killed Shireen, not solely have we not been adequately consulted, knowledgeable, and supported by U.S. authorities officers, however your administration’s actions exhibit an obvious intent to undermine our efforts towards justice and accountability for Shireen’s dying. Investigations performed by the United Nations, the New York Occasions, the Washington Publish, CNN, the Related Press, Bellingcat, and B’Tselem all concluded an Israeli soldier fired the shot that killed Shireen. All accessible proof means that Shireen, a U.S. citizen, was the topic of an extrajudicial killing, but your administration has totally failed to satisfy the naked minimal expectation held by a grieving household—to make sure a immediate, thorough, credible, neutral, impartial, efficient and clear investigation that results in true justice and accountability for Shireen’s killing.
As an alternative, the USA has been skulking towards the erasure of any wrongdoing by Israeli forces. From the failure to right away guarantee an impartial and neutral investigation, to the rushed hand-off of the bullet that killed Shireen with out session not to mention permitting us to have a consultant current, which culminated within the July 4 assertion adopting the conclusions and speaking factors of the Israeli authorities, your administration’s engagement has served to whitewash Shireen’s killing and perpetuate impunity. Little info has been shared on who oversaw the American “summation” of investigations, who participated within the ballistics evaluation, or any particular particular person {qualifications} or findings resulting in the conclusions issued by your administration. It’s as in case you count on the world and us to now simply transfer on. Silence would have been higher.
You’ve got made clear that your administration is keen to abdicate its duty regarding Israel’s extrajudicial killing of Shireen. The July 4 press assertion by Division of State Spokesperson Ned Worth introduced that Shireen’s killing was possible unintentional, but when pressed by reporters in the course of the July 5 press briefing, Mr. Worth conceded that no person current was certified to succeed in a conclusion about intent. He additionally clarified that the USA authorities didn’t, in actual fact, conduct its personal investigation, not to mention authorized evaluation, and that the Division of State was content material with merely “summarizing”—and adopting—Israeli authorities’ investigation. Nonetheless, your administration deemed it essential to incorporate and perpetuate the baseless and damaging conclusion that the killing was not intentional, seemingly selecting political expedience over precise accountability for a overseas authorities’s killing of a U.S. citizen.
We remind you that on Could 11, the day an Israeli soldier killed Shireen, Mr. Worth stood on the Division of State podium to strongly condemn her killing and name for “a direct and thorough investigation and full accountability.” Then, on July 5, that decision for full accountability was decreased to nothing greater than a contorted assertion that Israel “quickly will likely be ready to think about steps to additional safeguard noncombatants.” We’re incredulous that such an expectation could be the head of your administration’s response to the killing of Shireen. Israeli forces have for lengthy identified no bounds, perpetrating warfare crimes and killing Palestinian civilians with impunity, together with these clearly identifiable as youngsters, medical personnel and journalists. Israeli officers and armed forces are enabled and empowered by unconditional U.S.-sourced weapons and monetary help after which supplied with close to absolute diplomatic assist to defend Israeli officers from any accountability.
Since Israeli forces killed our Shireen, lawmakers have pressed you to ship on the robust condemnation and name for “full accountability” regarding Shireen’s dying. On Could 19, 57 members of Congress despatched a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Christopher Wray to demand the State Division and the FBI launch an investigation into the killing of Shireen. On June 6, Sens. Jon Ossof and Mitt Romney despatched a letter to Secretary Blinken insisting that the administration guarantee a “full and clear investigation and accountability”. On June 23, Senator Chris Van Hollen and 23 of his Senate colleagues despatched you a letter demanding you make sure the direct involvement of the USA within the investigation of Shireen’s killing, stressing the significance of an impartial, thorough, and clear investigation.
We reaffirm these calls for on behalf of our beloved Shireen as your administration’s actions thus far haven’t solely fallen woefully in need of “full accountability” however they quantity to specific acceptance for Shireen’s killing. Your administration’s actions can solely be seen as an try and erase the extrajudicial killing of Shireen and additional entrench the systemic impunity loved by Israeli forces and officers for unlawfully killing Palestinians.
We name on you to:
- Meet with us throughout your upcoming go to and listen to instantly from us about our issues and calls for for justice.
- Present us with all the info gathered by your administration thus far regarding Shireen’s killings, together with any proof reviewed and assessed by U.S. officers, the identities and {qualifications} of all people current in the course of the newest evaluation of proof, any forensics studies or different info that has not been supplied to us or our authorized crew.
- Retract the Division of State’s July 4 press assertion, provided that the Division’s personal account signifies that it isn’t based mostly on any credible evaluation.
- Direct the Division of Justice, together with the Human Rights and Particular Prosecutions Bureau, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and some other related U.S. workplaces or companies to take motion on Shireen’s extrajudicial killing.
- Lastly, and it needs to be for sure, we count on the Biden administration assist our efforts to push for accountability and justice for Shireen, wherever they take us.
Sincerely,
Anton Abu Akleh
On behalf of the Abu Akleh Household
CC: Secretary of State Mr. Antony Blinken
World
Wife of US hostage Keith Siegel pleads for holiday miracle: 'we need to get them back'
FIRST ON FOX – Aviva Siegel, the wife of American hostage Kieth Siegel and a former hostage herself, is pleading with everyone and anyone involved in the hostage negotiations to get her husband, and the others, freed from Hamas captivity after they have spent more than 440 days in deplorable conditions.
“Hamas released a video of Keith, and I just saw the picture,” Aviva told Fox News Digital in an emotional interview in reference to a video Hamas released in April. “He looks terrible. His bones are out, and you can see that he’s lost a lot of weight.
“He doesn’t look like himself. And I’m just so worried about him, because so [many] days and minutes have passed since that video that we received,” she said. “I just don’t know what kind of Keith that we’re going to get back.”
7 US HOSTAGES STILL HELD BY HAMAS TERRORISTS AS FAMILIES PLEAD FOR THEIR RELEASE: ‘THIS IS URGENT’
“I’m worried about all the hostages, because the conditions that they are in are the worst conditions that any human being could go through,” Aviva said. “I was there. I touched death. I know what it feels being underneath the ground with no oxygen.
“Keith and I were just left there. We were left there to die,” she added.
Aviva and her husband of, at the time 42 years, were brutally abducted from their home in Kibbutz Kfar Aza by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, and held together for 51 days before she was released in the November 2023 hostage exchange after suffering from a stomach infection that left her incredibly ill.
She has since tirelessly fought for Kieth’s release, meeting with top officials in the U.S. and Israel, traveling to the United States nine times in the last year and becoming a prominent advocate for the hostages.
“I just hope that he’s with other people from Israel, and if he has them, he’s going to be okay,” Aviva said. “He’s just the person that will make them feel that they’re together. That’s what he did when I was there – he was 100% for me and the hostages that we were with.”
“If you get kidnapped, get kidnapped with Keith, because he was outstanding to everybody. He was strong for all of us. And I’m sure that he’s keeping strong and keeping his hope to come out,” she said.
Aviva recounted their last moments together before they were separated ahead of her release, telling Fox News Digital, “When I left him, I told him to be the strongest – that he needs to be strong for me, and I’ll be strong for him.”
PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY UNDER PRESSURE AMID RISING RESISTANCE, POPULARITY OF IRAN-BACKED TERROR GROUPS
Top security officials from the U.S., Egypt, and Qatar have been pushing Israel and Hamas to agree to a cease-fire and the return of hostages.
Reports on Thursday suggested that negotiators are pushing for a 42-day cease-fire in which 34 of the at least 50 hostages still assessed to be alive, could be exchanged.
Hamas is also believed to continue to hold at least 38 who were taken hostage and then killed while in captivity, along with at least seven who are believed to have been killed on Oct. 7, 2023 and then taken into Gaza.
Though all the hostages are believed to have been held in deplorable conditions, the children, women – including the female IDF soldiers – the sick and the elderly have reportedly been front listed to be freed first in exchange for Hamas terrorists currently imprisoned.
“I’m keeping my hope and holding on and just waiting – waiting to hug Keith, and waiting for all the families, to get their families back,” Aviva said. “We need to get them back.”
Aviva said she dreams of the moment that she gets to hug her husband again and watch their grandchildren “jump into his arms.”
“We’ll be the happiest people on Earth,” she said. “All the hostages, I can’t imagine them coming home. It’ll be just the happiest moment for all of the families. We need it to happen.”
Reports in recent weeks suggest there is an increased sense of optimism in bringing home the hostages, but Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged some caution when speaking with MSNBC Morning Joe on Thursday when he said, “We are encouraged because this should happen, and it should happen because Hamas is at a point where the cavalry it thought might come to the rescue isn’t coming to the rescue, [Hezbollah’s] not coming to the rescue, [Iran’s] not coming to the rescue.”
“In the absence of that, I think the pressure is on Hamas to finally get to yes,” he added. “But look, I think we also have to be very realistic. We’ve had these Lucy and the football moments several times over the last months where we thought we were there, and the football gets pulled away.
“The real question is: Is Hamas capable of making a decision and getting to yes? We’ve been fanning out with every possible partner on this to try to get the necessary pressure exerted on Hamas to say yes,” Blinken added.
World
Trump threatens to take back control of Panama Canal over ‘ridiculous fees’
Trump also hinted at China’s growing influence around the canal, which connects the Atlantic to the Pacific oceans.
United States President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to demand control of the Panama Canal after accusing Panama of charging excessive rates on US ships passing through one of the busiest waterways in the world.
“Our Navy and Commerce have been treated in a very unfair and injudicious way. The fees being charged by Panama are ridiculous,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform on Saturday.
“This complete ‘rip-off’ of our Country will immediately stop.”
The US largely built the canal in 1914 and administrated territory surrounding the passage for decades. But Washington fully handed control of the canal to Panama in 1999 after a period of joint administration.
Trump also hinted at China’s growing influence around the canal, which connects the Atlantic to the Pacific oceans.
“It was solely for Panama to manage, not China, or anyone else,” he said. “We would and will NEVER let it fall into the wrong hands!”
The post was an exceedingly rare example of a US leader saying he could push a sovereign country to hand over territory.
“It was not given for the benefit of others, but merely as a token of cooperation with us and Panama. If the moral and legal principles of this magnanimous gesture of giving are not followed, then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us, in full, and without question,” Trump said.
Trump’s tariff plan
It also underlines an expected shift in US diplomacy under Trump, who has not historically shied away from threatening allies and using rhetoric when dealing with counterparts.
Last month, Trump said he would impose tariffs on Mexican and Canadian imports on day one of his administration and that the measures would remain until the “invasion” of undocumented migrants and drugs came to an end.
“Both Mexico and Canada have the absolute right and power to easily solve this long-simmering problem. We hereby demand that they use this power, and until such time that they do, it is time for them to pay a very big price!” he posted on his Truth Social platform.
Authorities in Panama did not immediately react to Trump’s post.
An estimated 5 percent of global maritime traffic passes through the Panama Canal, which allows ships travelling between Asia and the US East Coast to avoid the long, hazardous route around the southern tip of South America.
The Panama Canal Authority reported in October that the waterway had earned record revenues of nearly $5bn in the last fiscal year.
World
Lo que nos dice la decisión de Trump de involucrarse en disputa de gastos sobre los próximos 4 años
WASHINGTON (AP) — Tras días de amenazas y exigencias, Donald Trump tuvo por qué mostrar una vez que los legisladores aprobaron un acuerdo presupuestario en las primeras horas del sábado, evitando por poco que las dependencias estatales se vieran obligadas a cerrar antes de Navidad por falta de fondos.
El presidente electo logró que los republicanos de la Cámara de Representantes eliminaran algunos gastos, pero no logró su objetivo principal de elevar el límite de la deuda. Esto demostró que, a pesar de su decisiva victoria electoral y sus frecuentes promesas de represalias, muchos miembros de su partido aún están dispuestos a desafiarlo abiertamente.
La decisión de Trump de involucrarse en el debate presupuestario un mes antes de su toma de posesión también mostró que sigue siendo más hábil para destruir acuerdos que para hacerlos, y presagió que su segundo mandato probablemente estará marcado por las mismas luchas internas, el caos y el juego al borde del precipicio que caracterizaron su primer mandato.
“Estén atentos. Abróchense los cinturones. Prepárense”, dijo el congresista Steve Womack, republicano de Arkansas, un asignador presupuestario sénior.
Una mirada a la agenda de Trump muestra una cascada de oportunidades para enfrentamientos similares en los años venideros. El presidente electo quiere ampliar los recortes fiscales que promulgó hace siete años, reducir el tamaño del gobierno, aumentar los aranceles a las importaciones y tomar medidas enérgicas contra los inmigrantes no autorizados. Muchos de esos esfuerzos necesitarán la aprobación del Congreso.
Para muchos de los seguidores de Trump, la disrupción podría ser un objetivo en sí mismo. El 37% de los que votaron por él este año dijeron que querían “un cambio total y completo”, según AP VoteCast, una extensa encuesta de más de 120.000 votantes. Un 56% adicional dijo que querían “un cambio sustancial”.
Pero los últimos días dejaron claro la dificultad que Trump podría enfrentar para cumplir rápidamente sus objetivos, especialmente dado que los republicanos solo cuentan con mayorías escasas en la Cámara de Representantes y el Senado. Algunos legisladores ya parecen cansados de la aparente ausencia de una estrategia unificada.
El senador Kevin Cramer, republicano de Dakota del Norte, dijo que la batalla presupuestaria fue “una lección valiosa sobre cómo organizarnos”.
El fracaso de las exigencias de Trump
El problema comenzó cuando los principales legisladores publicaron una copia de la iniciativa de ley, conocida como una resolución continua, que era necesaria para asegurar el funcionamiento del gobierno federal hasta marzo. No fue el presidente electo, sino Elon Musk, el hombre más rico del mundo y confidente de Trump, quien primero comenzó a generar oposición a la ley en las redes sociales al calificarla de gasto excesivo.
Trump eventualmente se sumó a la batalla. Ordenó a los republicanos cancelar el acuerdo bipartidista que habían hecho con los demócratas y exigió que aumentaran el límite de la deuda, el tope de cuánto puede pedir prestado el gobierno, con la esperanza de evitar que ese espinoso problema surgiera cuando ya estuviera en funciones.
Aumentó la presión incluso después de haber modificado sus demandas iniciales. Primero quería eliminar el límite de la deuda por completo. Luego quería suspenderlo hasta 2027. Luego propuso una extensión hasta 2029.
Si las dependencias estatales se vieran obligadas a cerrar por falta de fondos, el presidente demócrata Joe Biden sería culpado, insistió Trump.
“Todos los republicanos, e incluso los demócratas, deberían hacer lo que es mejor para nuestro país y votar ‘A FAVOR’ de esta iniciativa de ley, ¡ESTA NOCHE!”, escribió Trump el jueves, antes de una votación sobre una versión del proyecto de ley que incluía un límite de deuda más alto.
En cambio, 38 republicanos votaron en contra. Fue un desaire sorprendente para Trump, quien a veces pareciera no tener ningún control sobre su propio partido.
“Sin esto, nunca deberíamos hacer un acuerdo”, escribió en Truth Social, su red social.
Si no conseguía lo que quería, Trump dijo que debería haber un cierre del gobierno. También dijo que sus correligionarios pagarían el precio en las elecciones primarias si se negaban a seguir adelante, y dijo que “los obstruccionistas republicanos tienen que ser eliminados”. Señaló especialmente al representante Chip Roy, de Texas, por su nombre y con insultos.
Pero al final, los legisladores dejaron fuera ese aumento del techo de la deuda, y un acuerdo final se aprobó el sábado a primera hora.
Musk y otros aliados de Trump intentaron presentarlo como una victoria porque la ley final se redujo significativamente y omitió elementos impopulares como un aumento salarial para los miembros del Congreso. Charlie Kirk, un prominente activista conservador, escribió en X que Trump ”¡ya está dirigiendo el Congreso antes de asumir el cargo!”.
El presidente de la Cámara de Representantes, Mike Johnson, republicano de Luisiana, dijo que había estado en “contacto constante” con Trump, quien, aseguró, estaba “ciertamente feliz con este resultado”.
Si Trump estuvo de acuerdo, él mismo no lo dijo.
Tras días de publicaciones frecuentes en redes sociales, Trump volvió a guardar silencio el viernes. No ofreció una reacción a la votación final ni emitió ningún comunicado. En cambio, fue a jugar golf en su resort en Florida.
Karoline Leavitt, una vocera de Trump, dijo que el presidente electo ayudó a prevenir un acuerdo original “lleno de despilfarros demócratas y aumentos salariales para los miembros del Congreso”.
“En enero, el presidente Trump y el Departamento de Eficiencia Gubernamental (DOGE, por sus siglas en inglés) continuarán esta importante misión de eliminar el despilfarro de Washington, una ley a la vez”, dijo. El DOGE es un panel asesor que será liderado por Musk y el empresario Vivek Ramaswamy.
Más enfrentamientos en el horizonte
La atmósfera circense de la lucha por el presupuesto recordó al primer mandato de Trump. En aquel entonces, un enfrentamiento presupuestario llevó a un cierre del gobierno cuando Trump exigió dinero para su muro fronterizo entre Estados Unidos y México. Después de 35 días, el cierre más largo de la historia, accedió a un acuerdo sin haber logrado los fondos que había exigido.
Fue un punto bajo político para Trump, y el 60% de los estadounidenses lo culparon por el cierre, según una encuesta realizada por The Associated Press y el NORC Center for Public Affairs Research en ese momento.
Trump no dejó de intentar doblegar a los republicanos a su voluntad en ese entonces y ciertamente no lo hará en este momento.
Trump está aumentando la presión sobre su propio partido por sus elecciones para el gabinete, empujando a senadores republicanos reacios a aceptar algunos de sus nombramientos más controvertidos, como el activista antivacunas Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a quien eligió como secretario de Salud y el presentador de Fox News Pete Hegseth como secretario de Defensa.
Pareciera que los debates sobre el presupuesto del próximo año definitivamente pondrán a prueba aún más la influencia de Trump en la Cámara de Representantes. Muchos conservadores ven el rápido crecimiento de la deuda federal como una amenaza existencial para el país que debe abordarse. Pero algunos republicanos temen una reacción negativa de los votantes si se realizan recortes drásticos a los programas federales de los que dependen los estadounidenses.
Las preocupaciones sobre el gasto deficitario podrían intensificarse si Trump impulsa los recortes fiscales costosos que prometió durante la campaña, como eliminar los impuestos sobre las propinas, la Seguridad Social y el pago de horas extras.
Trump también pretende ampliar los recortes fiscales que promulgó en 2017 y que deberán llegar a su fin el próximo año. Ha pedido una reducción adicional de la tasa de impuestos corporativos de Estados Unidos del 21% al 15%, pero sólo para las empresas que producen en Estados Unidos.
Trump ha dicho que pagará las caídas en los ingresos con aranceles agresivos nuevos, los cuales, advierten los economistas, resultarán en precios más altos para los consumidores.
El representante Dan Crenshaw, republicano de Texas, dijo que la reducción del gasto público probablemente seguirá siendo un abismo entre Trump y los republicanos de la Cámara de Representantes.
“Eso nunca ha sido realmente una promesa de campaña de Trump, pero es una gran prioridad para los republicanos de la Cámara de Representantes”, dijo.
No había indicios de que la animosidad estuviera disminuyendo el sábado. Algunos republicanos culparon al liderazgo de la Cámara de Representantes por no asegurar la “bendición” de Trump en el acuerdo original. Los demócratas presentaron a Trump como segundo violín de Musk.
Mientras Trump se mantenía callado, Biden anunció que había promulgado la ley presupuestaria.
“Este acuerdo representa un compromiso, lo que significa que ninguna de las partes obtuvo todo lo que quería”, dijo. “Pero rechaza el camino acelerado hacia un recorte de impuestos para multimillonarios que buscaban los republicanos, y asegura que el gobierno pueda continuar operando a plena capacidad”.
___
Boak reportó desde West Palm Beach, Florida, y Colvin desde Nueva York.
____
Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de la AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.
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