World
‘They want to erase us:’ How DNC rejected demand for Palestinian speaker
Chicago, Illinois – Abbas Alawieh sat cross-legged on the ground outside the Democratic National Convention in an almost meditative posture.
Stretched out on the concrete in front of him were signs that read “Not another bomb” and “Arms embargo now”, their four corners pinned down by water bottles.
The searing August sun glared against his forehead. But Alawieh did not move, even as the concrete around him grew hot.
He and other delegates from the Uncommitted National Movement are staging a sit-in to protest the Democrats’ refusal to allow a Palestinian American speaker on the convention’s main stage at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois.
“This Palestinian speaker situation is a mistake on the party’s end, and I think that’s why we’re seeing an outpouring of support for the idea,” he told Al Jazeera on Thursday.
The Democratic National Committee confirmed its decision on Wednesday evening, sparking outrage from many progressives and Democratic-allied groups.
For many activists, turning down the request signalled an effort to silence Palestinians and exclude them from the “big tent” coalition that the Democratic Party claims to be building.
The move also highlighted the uphill political battle that Palestinian rights advocates say they are facing in their push to challenge the US’s unconditional support for Israel, as it wages a devastating war in Gaza.
That conflict has been looming over the Democratic convention, where the party has been celebrating and promoting Vice President Kamala Harris’s candidacy since Monday.
The ‘uncommitted’
Approximately 30 “uncommitted” delegates earned a spot at the event in Chicago after hundreds of thousands of people cast protest votes in the Democratic primaries against President Joe Biden’s staunch backing of Israel’s war in Gaza.
The Uncommitted National Movement emerged out of that protest movement. It wants Harris to back an immediate, permanent ceasefire and impose an arms embargo on Israel.
The call for a Palestinian speaker at the convention was the simplest of their demands, advocates explained. And it still got turned down.
Nevertheless, Alawieh said the movement’s presence at the convention has succeeded in bringing attention to the issue, as evidenced by the media frenzy around him on Thursday.
“We are forcing a conversation about a critical issue: Palestinian human rights,” he told Al Jazeera.
“We’re forcing a conversation about a critical issue that otherwise would not be discussed here, which is the need for an arms embargo that saves lives and that delivers a lasting ceasefire. That’s what we’re doing here, and that’s what we’re going to continue doing long after here.”
After more than 10 months of Israeli bombing in Gaza, the Palestinian death toll has spiralled past 40,000 people, provoking fears of a genocide.
Rights advocates have called for a meaningful shift in US policy towards Israel, a country it has provided military and diplomatic support to.
After Biden stepped out of the presidential race in July, some activists saw an opportunity as Harris took over as the Democratic nominee.
The vice president, after all, expressed sympathy for Palestinian suffering and called for an end to the war. But advocates say they want to see action, not mere rhetoric.
‘They want to erase us’
In Chicago, the “uncommitted” delegates have said that their aim is to convince Harris that aligning with their “popular” demands would help her win in November’s presidential election, when she faces her Republican rival Donald Trump.
But rejecting a brief speech by a representative of the Palestinian American community appears to have had a profound effect on the delegates and their allies.
At a news conference earlier on Thursday, progressive political strategist Waleed Shahid took deep breaths to keep his tears at bay as he recounted how the request for a Palestinian speaker was turned down after two months of making the demand.
“We came here with the intention of mobilising our communities for Vice President Harris to defeat Donald Trump,” said Shahid, whose black blazer covered a beige shirt that read, “Democratic majority for Palestine”.
He added that the demand for a speaker was just about including “Palestinian Americans as part of this party, just like any other community”.
On Wednesday evening, the convention featured the parents of an Israeli-American captive held in Gaza.
“The platform of the party says that our Democratic Party believes that Israelis and Palestinians are equal,” Shahid said. “What happened last night is not in line with the value of the party.”
Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, who spoke virtually at the news conference, said the Democratic leadership does not want to hear the voices of Palestinians calling for an end to atrocities in Gaza.
“They want to erase us,” she said. “They want to pretend that Palestinians and the voices that we have and the harm and the hurt [don’t] exist.”
Several speakers noted that the Chicago area is home to one of the largest Palestinian communities in the country, but Palestinians were still excluded from the main stage at the convention.
Lawmakers voice support for delegates
Additionally to Tlaib, several lawmakers have voiced solidarity with the “uncommitted” delegates. Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who delivered a forceful endorsement of Harris on Monday, phoned Alawieh at the sit-in on Wednesday evening to express her support.
Congressman Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, who represents parts of Chicago, said many of the 40,000 Palestinians killed in Gaza were relatives of his constituents.
“As Chicago hosts the National Democratic Convention, we cannot ignore the Chicagoland Palestinian community as one of the largest in the country — and they, too, deserve to be reflected on the national stage,” Garcia said in a statement.
“It is crucial to recognize the humanity of the Palestinian community tonight with the Palestinian speaker.”
The Chicagoland Palestinian community is one of the largest in the country — and they too deserve to be reflected on the national stage. #DNC2024CHICAGO pic.twitter.com/TG5oQHzOpN
— Jesús “Chuy” García (@Chuy4Congress) August 22, 2024
The United Auto Workers (UAW), one of the largest unions in the country, also called for a Palestinian speaker at the convention.
“If we want the war in Gaza to end, we can’t put our heads in the sand or ignore the voices of the Palestinian Americans in the Democratic Party,” the union said in a social media post.
The UAW is particularly strong in the swing state of Michigan, home to the US car industry, which also happens to have the largest concentration of Arabs in the country.
Michigan state Representative Alabas Farhat told Al Jazeera at the sit-in that Democrats must listen to and acknowledge the pain of Palestinians and Arab Americans.
“There’s a genocide going on, and this government is playing an active role in enabling it in many ways,” he said. “Here today, the nominee for the Democratic Party is laying out a vision that has to include us.”
He said his constituents are “frustrated” with the political process, stressing that Harris has “work to do” to earn the votes of people in the antiwar movement.
Civic engagement implications
Biden, a Democrat, has provided staunch support for Israel throughout the war, leading some activists to question whether to work with the Democratic Party.
Hatem Abudayyeh, spokesperson for the Coalition to March on the DNC, which has been organising protests around the convention, said there was “no chance” that the Democratic Party would let a Palestinian speaker address the convention.
While he saluted the “uncommitted” delegates’ efforts, he argued that it is more important to unite with other communities to “organise in the streets” and push for social justice.
“Clearly, the powers that be are not listening to us. They don’t care about what’s going on with [us], and they’re not going to stop the genocide unless we force them to,” he told Al Jazeera at a protest on Wednesday.
Maya Berry, the executive director of the Arab American Institute (AAI), which has been promoting civic engagement in Arab communities for years, said the Democrats’ decision to exclude Palestinians from the convention stage sends the wrong message about political participation.
“Our theory of change is based on saying: If you want something to happen, you must participate in the process,” she told Al Jazeera outside the United Center.
“And the very people who are participating in the process, who have devoted their lives to this process, had to step outside from inside that convention to spend the night here … because democracy didn’t work on Palestine. That can’t be the lesson,” she added.
“This is political malpractice that is harming people’s connection to their democracy.”
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Denise Powell won the Democratic primary in Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District on Wednesday in a contest focused on the state’s “blue dot” status in presidential elections.
The Omaha-area district, where Republican U.S. Rep. Don Bacon is retiring, is one of Democrats’ biggest targets this midterm season. It’s also a national focus every four years in presidential contests because Nebraska is one of just two states that splits its electoral votes. The 2nd District has gone to Democratic presidential candidates three out of five times since 2008 — a “blue dot” in an otherwise sea of red.
Powell, a political activist, defeated state Sen. John Cavanaugh and several other candidates in the Democratic primary. She and Cavanaugh were in a tight race that could not be called Tuesday.
Powell will face Brinker Harding, an Omaha City Council member endorsed by President Donald Trump. He ran unopposed in Tuesday’s GOP primary.
“This country and Nebraska are worth fighting for — and I’m ready to spend the next six months working for every vote and sharing my vision for Nebraska so we can finally have a representative in Congress who will serve us,” Powell said in a statement. “It’s time to be brave.”
Powell led Cavanaugh by 2.1 percentage points, or 1,080 votes, out of more than 51,000 votes counted.
AP called the race after Douglas County election officials said there were only 5,125 outstanding mail-in ballots in the Democratic primary, and a total of 830 provisional ballots from all political parties. Even if all those ballots are counted in the Democratic primary, Cavanaugh would have to win them by about 18 percentage points over Powell to close the gap, a margin he didn’t come close to achieving in any of the five vote updates provided by Douglas County so far. Cavanaugh trailed in all three counties in the district, though Douglas accounted for about 93% of the votes.
The matchup between Powell and Harding is expected to be among this fall’s most competitive House races, as Democrats try to win control of the chamber for the second half of Trump’s term.
The 2nd District is one of just three districts in the country that supported Democrat Kamala Harris for president in 2024 while also electing a Republican representative. Trump won the district in 2016, and the retiring Bacon, who has clashed with Trump, has held the House seat for five terms.
The Nebraska GOP said in a statement Wednesday that Republicans are ready to fight back against a “radical left” that has poured money into the state.
“The left wants Nebraska, and we are going to make sure they don’t get it,” said NEGOP Chairman Mary Jane Truemper.
Powell, who is Latina, co-founded Women Who Run Nebraska, a political action committee that supports progressive female candidates, and she has a decade of Democratic political activism. She had the backing of EMILY’s List and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus’ campaign operation.
Powell has never held office but said her deep connections have helped her with independents and third-party voters, who make up nearly 30% of the district’s electorate.
Some Democratic critics argued that a Cavanaugh primary victory would have jeopardized the district’s “blue dot” status because he’d be leaving his valuable state legislative seat, making it easier for Republicans in the Nebraska Legislature to change the law that allows the state to split its electoral votes.
___
Peoples reported from New York.
World
Iran says its small subs deployed to Strait of Hormuz as expert explains threat: ‘Vulnerable to detection’
US tightens Iran blockade in Strait of Hormuz as Trump warns to shoot boats
Fox News national correspondent Bryan Llenas discusses Middle East tensions and U.S. policy towards Iran. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt details a ceasefire extension for Iran’s regime. Bryan Llenas reports on U.S. efforts to clear the Strait of Hormuz of Iranian mines. Former Secretary of the Navy Kenneth Braithwaite emphasizes America’s naval power and its importance for global commerce and preventing conflict in the Gulf.
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Iran says it has deployed small submarines to act as an “invisible guardian” of the Strait of Hormuz amid a series of rejected peace deals between Tehran and the U.S., according to reports.
The deployment claim came as analysts said that although the Iranian Ghadir-class mini-subs could threaten U.S. naval forces, the vessels’ limited range, firepower and endurance would blunt any real strategic impact.
The submarine deployment was highlighted by Bloomberg and first reported by the semi-official Tasnim News Agency.
Rear Admiral Shahram Irani, commander of Iran’s navy, said that his forces deployed its light submarine, referred to as the “dolphins of the Persian Gulf,” according to the Iranian state media outlet.
IRAN TURNS TO PUTIN AS US TALKS COLLAPSE, HORMUZ STANDOFF THREATENS GLOBAL OIL FLOW
Iran claims that it has deployed small submarines to act as an “invisible guardian” of the Strait of Hormuz. (Vahid Reza Alaei / AFP via Getty Images, File)
It also comes as Tehran seeks to reinforce its control over the strait, now defining it as a far larger zone, Reuters reported.
“Time would be limited, probably a couple of days at the most,” defense analyst Tom Shugart told Fox News Digital about the Iranian vessel deployment.
The retired U.S. Navy submarine warfare officer also said the small diesel-electric submarines face fundamental operational constraints.
IRAN HOLDS WORLD ENERGY HOSTAGE WITH ‘NIGHTMARE’ STRAIT OF HORMUZ SEA MINES, FORMER CENTCOM OFFICIAL WARNS
U.S. Marines aboard USS New Orleans (LPD 18) stand watch in the Arabian Sea during naval blockade operations against Iran. (U.S. Central Command)
“If they run their diesel engines to snorkel and recharge batteries, that could generate sound that could be detected,” Shugart said.
“Their snorkel mast projecting from the water could be detected by radars on patrol aircraft or helicopters,” Shugart added.
The submarines are said to be designed for shallow waters like the Strait of Hormuz and can operate quietly for limited periods on battery power.
“While they may be able to sit on the bottom for a while and operate somewhat quietly on their batteries for a while, they have no air-independent propulsion system (AIP) like more modern diesel-electric submarines,” Shugart said before adding that they’ll, “eventually have to come up and snorkel. This will make them more vulnerable to detection and destruction.”
INSIDE IRAN’S MILITARY: MISSILES, MILITIAS AND A FORCE BUILT FOR SURVIVAL
A navy vessel sails in the Strait of Hormuz. (Sahar Al Attar / AFP via Getty Images)
The IRGC Navy is said to be the sole operator of this class of submarine, all of which serve in the Southern Fleet.
“Any remaining Ghadirs, if they exist and are actually deployed, may be able to lay mines and may be able to threaten merchant ships,” Shugart warned.
“But I don’t see them as a serious threat to U.S. Navy warships — and certainly not to U.S. submarines,” he said.
“But I can say for sure that I wouldn’t want to go out on one in the current environment.”
HORMUZ CHOKE POINT PERSISTS AS IRAN HALTS OIL TRAFFIC DESPITE TRUMP CEASEFIRE
The U.S. Navy confirmed May 10 that a U.S. Navy Ohio-class nuclear-armed submarine had arrived in Gibraltar.
“The port visit demonstrates U.S. capability, flexibility and continuing commitment to its NATO allies,” U.S. Sixth Fleet Public Affairs said in a statement.
“Ohio-class ballistic missile submarines are undetectable launch platforms for submarine-launched ballistic missiles, providing the U.S. with its most survivable leg of the nuclear triad,” it added.
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Meanwhile, Shugart’s remarks came as the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed, with commercial tanker traffic largely choked off amid ongoing military activity and the continued U.S. blockade of Iranian ports.
The United Arab Emirates and South Korea reported new strikes on stranded vessels Wednesday, while the IRGC increased its fast-attack craft activity, according to reports.
President Donald Trump has maintained Iran’s navy is “completely obliterated.”
The Pentagon did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
India is hosting a meeting of foreign ministers from BRICS nations on May 14-15 in a precursor to the 18th BRICS summit, which New Delhi will host in September. The meeting, which starts on Thursday morning, coincides with United States President Donald Trump’s three-day visit to Beijing for a state visit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Here is more about the foreign ministers’ meeting, who is attending and why it matters.
What is BRICS?
BRICS is a grouping of major emerging economies seeking to coordinate security and economic policy in order to amplify the demands of the Global South at international organisations and on issues where the West has traditionally dominated economically and politically.
The acronym stands for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The organisation was called BRIC in its initial form – Brazil, Russia, India and China – when its foreign ministers began meeting in 2006, and when it held its first summit in 2009. It became BRICS when South Africa joined in 2010.
In 2023, BRICS extended invitations to Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates after these countries applied for membership. Saudi Arabia has yet to formally join, but the others have. An invitation was also extended to Argentina, but was turned down as President Javier Milei, elected in December 2023, had campaigned on the promise of bolstering ties with the West.
Indonesia joined the group in January 2025, after its membership was approved during the summit in 2023 in Johannesburg.
The group sets priorities and holds discussions at an annual summit, which members take turns hosting. Last year, Brazil hosted the BRICS meeting and, in 2024, Russia hosted the annual meeting. This year, it is India’s turn to host.
This week’s meeting in New Delhi will bring together the foreign ministers of BRICS countries, who are expected to discuss economic cooperation and coordinate their positions on key global issues.
When and where is the BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting?
The BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting, held to prepare for the 18th BRICS summit in September, will take place on Thursday, May 14, and Friday, May 15, in New Delhi, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said on Tuesday.
On Thursday, foreign ministers are expected to arrive at 10:00am (04:30 GMT), and sessions are expected to take place throughout the day, concluding with a dinner at 7pm (01:30 GMT).
On Friday, one session is expected to take place, starting at 10:00am (04:30 GMT).
All of the meetings except one will take place in Bharat Mandapam, an exhibition hall and convention centre located close to the Supreme Court of India.
On Thursday at 1pm (07:30 GMT), Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will join a joint conference call with the visiting leaders from Seva Teerth, a new administrative complex that serves as the official headquarters of the prime minister’s office.
Who is attending the meeting?
Foreign ministers from within and outside the BRICS group are expected to attend the meeting.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has said that Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will attend the meeting. South Africa’s Ronald Lamola and Brazil’s Mauro Vieira are also both attending.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will not attend due to Trump’s visit to Beijing. Instead, China will be represented by China’s Ambassador to India Xu Feihong, Indian media has reported.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has landed in New Delhi to participate. Indonesia’s Foreign Minister Sugiono also arrived in New Delhi on Wednesday.
It is not clear who will be representing the UAE at the BRICS meeting, even as the US-Israel war on Iran exacerbates tensions between the UAE and Iran.
What’s on the agenda?
The theme of this meeting is “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability”, according to India’s Foreign Ministry. This will focus on “people-centric and holistic healthcare, with an emphasis on collaboration on pressing health challenges, including communicable and non-communicable diseases”, it added.
However, the ongoing war on Iran is likely to dominate, and discussions will set the agenda for the annual BRICS summit in September, observers say.
“The Iran war is likely to cast a shadow over both the BRICS summit and the Trump-Xi meeting,” Rafael Loss, a policy fellow for defence, security and technology at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), told Al Jazeera.
The war on Iran entered its 76th day on Thursday, with diplomatic efforts to end the conflict hanging in the balance.
Iran’s Tasnim news agency reported that, as well as taking part in the main BRICS sessions, Araghchi will hold separate meetings with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and other officials attending the meeting.
In April this year, India hosted a BRICS Deputy Foreign Ministers and Special Envoys for the Middle East and North Africa meeting in New Delhi. That gathering ended without a joint statement after Iran and the UAE clashed over how to address the US-Israeli war on Iran, with the UAE also seeing itself as a victim of Iranian aggression.
Since then, tensions between Iran and the UAE have only risen, with Tehran’s war messaging increasingly targeting the UAE.
Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza is also another point of stress within the bloc. At the April meeting, India – recently an Israeli ally – attempted to soften criticism of Israel’s actions in Gaza, leading to a failure within the bloc to arrive at a consensus on the subject.
“The meeting in India occurs at a difficult time in which the cohesion of the BRICS confronts challenges due to the closer relations of India with the US and Israel, and the conflict in West Asia between Iran and the UAE,” Michael Dunford, emeritus professor at the School of Global Studies at the University of Sussex, UK, told Al Jazeera.
What about Trump’s meeting with Xi at the same time?
Trump landed in China on Wednesday evening and, after a ceremonial welcome, headed straight to his hotel. On Thursday, he will hold bilateral talks with the Chinese president, and will also join President Xi for a working lunch on Friday, before flying back to the US.
“A consequence of the coincidence of Trump’s visit to China with the BRICS foreign ministers’ summit in India is that Wang Yi will not attend, with China represented by its Indian ambassador Xu Feihong,” Dunford said.
ECFR’s Rafael Loss predicted that Trump is likely to try to convince Xi to put pressure on Iran to accommodate US demands to end the naval standoff in the Gulf and open the Strait of Hormuz.
In the past, he said, China avoided getting involved in protracted international conflict management efforts and instead attempted to “swoop in” to seal deals during the final stages, such as in the Iran-Saudi Arabia normalisation agreement of 2023, which has since collapsed.
“But if the price is right, and with Trump’s short-termism and disregard of traditional US allies, Xi could be persuaded to take a more vocal line vis-a-vis Iran,” Loss said. “Taiwan might end up bearing the brunt.”
How significant is this meeting?
This meeting of foreign ministers also comes amid an energy crisis triggered by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz during the US-Israel war on Iran.
Since early March, Iran has restricted shipping through the strait, a narrow waterway linking Gulf oil producers to the open ocean and through which 20 percent of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies were shipped before the war. Iran has allowed passage by vessels from select countries, but they are required to negotiate transit with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Iranian attacks on US assets and oil and gas facilities in the Gulf in the early weeks of the war have also affected energy supplies.
In April, the US announced a naval blockade on ships entering or leaving Iranian ports, further adding to the disruption of global oil and gas supplies.
This has had a direct impact on several BRICS members. Both India and China rely heavily on Gulf oil shipped through the strait. Saudi Arabia and the UAE both ship oil through the strait. While Brazil, Egypt and South Africa are not as directly reliant on the oil that moves through the strait, they are impacted by rapidly rising fuel prices.
“It is unlikely that the BRICS summit will produce a consensus statement that goes beyond condemning attacks on nations’ sovereignty in general terms as BRICS has opted to do in the past, including on Russia’s war against Ukraine,” ECFR’s Loss said.
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