Source: United Nations secretary general
The Secretary-General met with H.H. Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Amir of the State of Qatar. The Secretary-General thanked Qatar for being an important partner to the United Nations and an advocate for international diplomacy. The Secretary-General and the Amir exchanged views on issues of mutual interest, including the wars in Gaza and Sudan.
MIL OSI Translation. Canadian French to English –
Source: Government of Canada – in French 1
The Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today announced that Canada is imposing additional sanctions under the Special Economic Measures (Hamas Terrorist Attacks) Regulations. These sanctions build on Canada’s efforts to combat Hamas and its acts of terrorism, as well as its affiliates and financial networks.
September 18, 2024 – Ottawa, Ontario – Global Affairs Canada
The Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today announced that Canada is imposing additional sanctions under the Special Economic Measures (Hamas Terrorist Attacks) Regulations. These sanctions build on Canada’s efforts to combat Hamas and its acts of terrorism, as well as its affiliates and financial networks.
These sanctions apply to eleven individuals and two entities involved in Hamas’ financial network. These individuals and entities directly or indirectly facilitated, supported, or contributed financially to the planning and execution of the attacks against Israel that began on October 7, 2023.
The eleven people are as follows:
Musa Muhammad Salim Dudin Amer Kamal Sharif Alshawa Ahmed Sadu Jahleb Walid Mohammed Mustafa Jadallah Zuhair Shamlakh Alaa Shamlakh Ahmed Shamlakh Imad Shamlakh Nabil Khaled Halil Chouman Khaled Chouman Reda Ali Khamis
The two entities are as follows:
Al-Markaziya Li-Siarafa (Al-Markaziya) Nabil Chouman
Canada unequivocally condemns the brutal terrorist attacks carried out by Hamas and its affiliates on October 7, 2023. These horrific attacks included the killing, maiming and abduction of innocent civilians, including children.
Today’s sanctions represent a further step in Canada’s response to the ongoing violence in the region. Canada remains deeply concerned about the impact of the conflict on Israeli and Palestinian civilian populations and is committed to promoting peace and security in the Middle East.
“Canada unequivocally condemns the brutal terrorist attack carried out by Hamas on October 7. The hostages who were abducted that day and who have been held captive by Hamas for over 300 days must be immediately released. By taking these steps today, Canada is taking another step to combat Hamas’ terrorist activities and disrupt its financial networks.”
– Mélanie Joly, Minister of Foreign Affairs
EDITOR’S NOTE: This article is a translation. Apologies should the grammar and/or sentence structure not be perfect.
Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA
(As prepared for delivery)
President, Secretary-General, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
“The best way to predict the future is to build it.” It is a truth worth remembering, especially when political division, climate change, war, hunger, and disease seem to overshadow our effort.
We have the tools to deal with these challenges. We have the knowledge, the technology, the financial means, the diplomacy and the robust international institutions.
The IAEA serves its 180 Member States with the lifesaving and lifeaffirming tools of nuclear science and technology. These contribute directly to the SDGs.
Health comes first. At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 we jumped into action, harnessing our equipment and knowledge for quick and reliable testing against COVID with the portable RT-PCR machines, or “labs in a suitcase”.
We launched what would become the largest emergency operation in the history of IAEA to nearly 130 States. In so doing, we reached tens of millions of people. For some countries these kits were the first, and sometimes the only equipment they had to conduct reliable testing against COVID-19.
Drawing on this and earlier experiencessupporting the fight against Ebola, avian influenza and Zika, we launched – in that same year – the Zoonotic Disease Integrated Action (ZODIAC). Under ZODIAC we have trained people from more than 95 countries in dealing with zoonotic diseases. Laboratories in developing countries have received equipment for 3 serology and molecular diagnostic or genetic sequencing. Many of these labs are now being used to combat Mpox.
The IAEA has more than 6 decades of experience in radiotherapy and medical imaging. But today the cancer crisis is hitting low and middleincome countries particularly hard and I am determined to make a greater impact in partnership with our Member States. That is why we launched Rays of Hope: Cancer Care for All at the African Union Summit in February 2022, with firm support from the World Health Organization (WHO). Africa is where the cancer care gap is the starkest: more than 20 African nations lack even a single radiotherapy machine. So far, 86 countries have reached out to the IAEA for support under Rays of Hope and concrete actions have been initiated in more than 30 States.
Under our new initiative, NUTEC: NUclear TEchnology for Controlling Plastic Pollution, 86 States around the world are participating in marine microplastic monitoring using nuclear and isotopic tracing techniques. This will help them to put in place better-informed policies that combat the plastic pollution threatening the ocean, its plants and creatures and therefore also the communities that rely on them for their livelihoods. Some 39 States are participating in plastic recycling using radiation technology, four of which are progressing towards establishing pilot-scale plants. This will allow them to reduce plastic waste and advance towards a circular economy. The Global Marine Monitoring Network continues to grow with 99 States now benefiting from capacity building efforts.
Atoms4Food was launched by the IAEA and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in October 2023. It offers tailor-made approaches in 4 Food and Agriculture, which for years has been the number 1 area of support sought by our Member States. Atoms4Foods supports countries in using innovative nuclear techniques to enhance agricultural productivity, reduce food losses, ensure food safety, improve nutrition, and adapt to the challenges of climate change. This supports farmers as well as the fight against deadly malnutrition.
There is no development without energy. Nuclear power provides about a quarter of the world’s low-carbon electricity. Much more is needed if we are to meet the climate goals set out on the Paris Agreement. In their historic first Global Stocktake, approved at COP28 in Dubai last year, the signatory countries to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change called for accelerating the deployment of low-emission energy technologies including nuclear power. The Pact for the Future adopted yesterday, in Action 26 reaffirmed the inalienable right of all countries to develop research, production and use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes without discrimination, in conformity with their respective obligations.
Today, in addition to the 415 nuclear power reactors operating in 31 countries there are 62 reactors under construction in 15 countries, most of them in Asia. The IAEA is assisting States, many of them developing countries, either with enlarging their civilian nuclear programs, or with safely embarking on them. We are working with industry and regulators on small modular reactors (SMRs) which will make more affordable the price of entry to the nuclear energy club.
The IAEA is also playing an important role in maintenance of 5 international peace and security.
Mandated by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), we conduct nuclear safeguards, making sure the increased amount of nuclear material around the world does not result in the secret proliferation of nuclear weapons. There is material for thousands of nuclear warheads in the world. Thanks to the robust international safeguards regime and our inspection system, who never stopped even during the COVID pandemic, the number of nuclear weapon States around the world is far fewer than had been feared before the IAEA was established and the NPT came into force.
The IAEA assists States in the creation and implementation of nuclearweapon-free zones, which already cover vast regions of the world. These are important steps towards a world without nuclear weapons.
Our work in Iran, Syria, other countries of the Middle East, and on different continents, contributes to international stability through nonproliferation and through the peaceful uses of nuclear technology.
Since February 2022 a large-scale conventional conflict has raged in a country with a large civilian nuclear program. Ukraine used to generate more than half its electricity from nuclear power plants. From the first months of the war, the IAEA has focused on assisting Ukraine in preventing a radiological or nuclear accident, which could have a serious transborder impact. Today, the IAEA has advisory and assistance missions stationed at all five of Ukraine’s nuclear power plants, including Zaporizhzhia, which is located right at the front line. Following months 6 of negotiations and consultations, on 30 May 2023 at the UN Security Council I outlined five concrete principles to help ensure nuclear safety and security at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya NPP. It received strong support from the Members of the Council.
The IAEA continues to monitor the safe discharge of water from the Fukushima Daichi Nuclear Power Station and engages in consultations with neighbouring and coastal countries with strong interest in the process. Our independent analysis and the data we publish relating to the discharge offer facts that dispel misunderstandings and fears about the process.
Ladies and gentlemen,
I firmly believe in supporting the ability of everyone, regardless of gender, to fully benefit and contribute to the IAEA’s work.
Conviction requires action. When I began my tenure as the IAEA’s Director General five years ago, one of my very first actions was to set a goal for gender parity by 2025 and to put in place the policies to achieve a more diverse workforce.
Five years ago, women represented less than 30% of the Agency. Today, they have surpassed 48%.
Mindful of the need to continue helping future generations, I also launched the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellowship Programme (MSCFP) in 2020. It drives diversity as well as scientific and technological innovation by encouraging women to pursue a career in the nuclear field. Since its launch, hundreds of women from over 120 countries have been awarded fellowships with generous stipends. They have studied in more than 70 7 countries and have also benefited from internships in many areas of the field. Our follow-up program, named after the scientist Lise Meitner, empowers early- and mid-career through career-enhancing opportunities like site visits.
The IAEA is a key multilateral player to make the Pact of the Future a reality. Thank you.
Source: Switzerland – Department of Foreign Affairs in English
Bern, 24.09.2024 – In her speech to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, 24 September, President Viola Amherd focused on peacebuilding and international humanitarian law. She emphasised Switzerland’s commitment to strong and effective multilateralism.
In various conflicts around the world civilian populations and infrastructure are not only afforded inadequate protection, but are being deliberately targeted, explained the President. International law, as the foundation of all joint efforts for peace, security and prosperity in the world, must serve as the basis for action. She cited Switzerland’s commitment to peacebuilding, including the Conference on Peace in Ukraine at the Bürgenstock, and called for focused and effective multilateralism. She warned against the fragmentation of the world into blocs and paid tribute to the central role of the UN as the only universal organisation to address common challenges.
The UN General Assembly was preceded by the Summit of the Future, which was aimed at strengthening international cooperation. Switzerland welcomes the Pact for the Future adopted at the summit as an important commitment to multilateralism. The Pact draws on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as a reference framework, sets priorities in peacebuilding and places human rights at the heart of each chapter. The Pact for the Future is a call for action by all UN member states, said President Amherd at the weekend.
The president’s programme during her visit to New York continues with her participation in a high-level debate of the UN Security Council on the topic of ‘Leadership for Peace’ on Wednesday. Ms Amherd will give a speech at an event on the equal participation of women in political decision-making processes, which will be attended by other female presidents and heads of government. An event on the inclusion of women in the peace process in Afghanistan has already taken place.
President Amherd is taking advantage of her time at the UN to meet with heads of state and government. She met with Kuwaiti Crown Prince Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Sabah and the new Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Monday. The talks with the Kuwaiti Crown Prince covered bilateral relations while focusing on the Middle East conflict; this subject was also addressed at the meeting with President Pezeshkian alongside the human rights situation in Iran, Switzerland’s protecting power mandate and the 2015 nuclear agreement.
A meeting with UN Secretary-General António Guterres is scheduled for Tuesday evening, which is set to address issues including multilateralism and Switzerland’s presidency of the UN Security Council in October.
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Source: European Parliament
Question for written answer E-001735/2024
to the Commission
Rule 144
Loucas Fourlas (PPE)
The results of the recent elections in Germany are compelling the German Government to take measures that place additional migratory pressure on frontline countries such as Cyprus and Greece.
The German Government’s new measures are at odds with the Pact on Migration. The reason is simple: the new, very strict unilateral measures effectively disregard the Pact on Migration, increasing migratory pressure on countries neighbouring Germany and on frontline countries.
Submitted: 17.9.2024
Source: Microsoft
Headline: Microsoft expands its Global Engineering Development Center’s footprint to the UAE’s capital, Abu Dhabi
ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates — Sept. 24, 2024 — Microsoft Corp. on Tuesday announced it is expanding its Global Engineering Development Center footprint to the UAE. A new development center, which will be established in Abu Dhabi, is Microsoft’s first engineering center to be launched in the Arab world, joining the company’s global portfolio of development centers across key strategic locations around the world.
Microsoft’s Engineering Development Center in Abu Dhabi will be part of a global ecosystem of centers dedicated to the creation of AI innovations, cloud technologies and advanced cybersecurity solutions. The engineering teams at the center will create cutting-edge solutions that will be part of Microsoft solutions globally.
This announcement is the latest in a series of investments by Microsoft that further strengthens the UAE’s position as a global hub of tech innovation and talent. Microsoft’s strategic partnership with G42 has been instrumental in establishing a thriving local technological ecosystem, and the new Microsoft Engineering Development Center will build on these efforts by not only creating cutting-edge technologies in the region but also attracting top tech talent from around the world to develop tailored solutions that tackle pressing challenges in critical industries globally.
His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, said, “As a hub of innovation, Abu Dhabi is well-positioned to lead global efforts in AI, championing transformative solutions that benefit both people and the planet. Abu Dhabi’s advanced digital and physical infrastructure, combined with the UAE’s strategic location at the heart of the world, allows us to drive positive, far-reaching impacts across industries and societies alike.”
Satya Nadella, Chairman and CEO, Microsoft, said, “We are committed to ensuring transformative technologies, like AI, benefit everyone broadly and create local opportunity. Our Engineering Development Center in Abu Dhabi will bring new talent to the region and help power innovation that will drive economic growth and job creation for both the UAE and the world.”
Peng Xiao, Group CEO, G42, said, “The establishment of Microsoft’s Engineering Development Center in Abu Dhabi underscores the growing importance of the UAE as a hub for technological innovation. While G42 and Microsoft have worked together in the past to drive advancements in AI and cloud infrastructure, this new center will complement our collective efforts in building a more robust digital future for the region and beyond.”
Samer Abu-Ltaif, Microsoft Corporate Vice President and President, Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa, said, “Today’s announcement reinforces our commitment to the region and our strategic partnership with the UAE. By empowering youth, collaborating with academia and fostering IP creation, we are unlocking the region’s potential. We are transitioning from consuming technology to contributing to its global creation. With a world-class Engineering Development Centre in Abu Dhabi, we drive innovation and support organizations worldwide to stay competitive in a digital world.”
The Engineering Development Center in Abu Dhabi will also play a key role in advancing Microsoft’s efforts to upskill the regional workforce by empowering professionals already in the workforce as well as upcoming talent with the skills necessary to effectively leverage the latest advancements in cutting-edge technologies. This will be achieved through a series of collaborations with local universities, training centers and government initiatives, particularly in the fields of cloud computing, AI and cybersecurity. Microsoft’s efforts to invest in human capital and improve the employability of professionals, specifically in tech-driven sectors, are aligned with the diversification efforts of local governments and their ambitions to transition into a knowledge-based economy.
Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) creates platforms and tools powered by AI to deliver innovative solutions that meet the evolving needs of our customers. The technology company is committed to making AI available broadly and doing so responsibly, with a mission to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.
For more information, press only:
Microsoft Media Relations, WE Communications, (425) 638-7777, [email protected]
Note to editors: For more information, news and perspectives from Microsoft, please visit Microsoft Source at https://news.microsoft.com/source. Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of publication but may have changed. For additional assistance, journalists and analysts may contact Microsoft’s Rapid Response Team or other appropriate contacts listed at https://news.microsoft.com/microsoft-public-relations-contacts.
Source: European Parliament
Question for written answer E-001744/2024
to the Commission
Rule 144
Geadis Geadi (ECR)
In the light of the European Union’s interest in supporting remote areas, one of the most remote areas in the whole of Europe is the Tellyria area in Cyprus.
This is an outlying border area trapped in an enclave between mountains, the sea and the territories illegally occupied by Türkiye, all of which makes the day-to-day lives of the inhabitants exceptionally difficult.
The challenges this area faces are enormous, owing to the Turkish occupation, which has led to geographical isolation and makes the day-to-day lives of the inhabitants even more difficult. This complex situation limits opportunities for economic development, impedes access to vitally important services and undermines social cohesion. This means that there is an urgent need for practical support for these areas, to boost the prosperity of their inhabitants.
In view of this:
Submitted: 18.9.2024
Source: European Parliament
Our infographic shows the overview of the BRICS+ countries’ economic and trade relations with the EU. All 9 BRICS+ states have experienced a relatively consistent increase in their GDP per capita (PPP) since 2007. Female labour force participation rates vary significantly from country to country. At the extremes are Iran with 14.4, and Ethiopia, with 74.8%. EU trade in goods (imports and exports) with the BRICS+ countries has risen steadily comparatively to 2007 volumes. The BRICS+ group is now the EU’s main trading partner for goods. Mechanical appliances and electrical equipment, vehicles and aircraft, and pharmaceutical products comprise about 54% of all goods exported by the EU to the BRICS+ countries.
Source: United Nations (Video News)
Remarks to the media by Danny Danon, Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations, on the situation in the Middle East.
Speaking to reporter today (24 Sep), Israeli Ambassador Danny Danon said, “We will not let Iran’s terrorist cronies dictate the future of our nation. Israeli forces have taken necessary actions to protect our nation, following indications that Hezbollah was about to begin a massive attack against Israeli civilian population centres.”
Ambassador Danon reiterated, “We will continue to degrade Hezbollah’s capabilities. We will continue to push Hezbollah terrorists back to the Litani River, and we will continue to work towards returning the people of the north to their homes.”
Asked about shutting down Al Jazeera’s bureau in Ramallah in the West Bank, Ambassador Danon said, “Unfortunately, Al Jazeera was involved with incitement. We got the legal experts to gather the information, to evaluate it and to recommend that for 45 days, the activity of Al Jazeera will not be allowed. And we make a distinct line between reporting and inciting.”
Asked about Lebanon, the Israeli Ambassador said, “We prefer diplomacy,” adding that “it’s not too late for the Lebanese government and the Lebanese people to put pressure on Hezbollah to stop their aggression. “
“If they will not fire rockets into Israel, and we will be able to bring back our residents back to their communities. That’s it. You have no escalation,” he said.
Source: United Nations (Video News)
Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Amir of the State of Qatar, addresses the General Debate of the 79th Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations (New York, 24 – 30 September 2024).
World leaders gather to engage in the annual high-level General Debate under the theme, “Unity and diversity for advancing peace, sustainable development, and human dignity, everywhere and for all.” Heads of State and Government and ministers will explore solutions to intertwined global challenges to advance peace, security, and sustainable development.
The UN General Assembly (UNGA) is the main policy-making organ of the Organization. Comprising all Member States, it provides a unique forum for multilateral discussion of the full spectrum of international issues covered by the Charter of the United Nations. Each of the 193 Member States of the United Nations has an equal vote.
General debate website: https://gadebate.un.org/
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مشاهدة هذا الفيديو باللغة العربية على موقع البث الشبكي للأمم المتحدة
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Source: United Nations (Video News)
Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein, King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, addresses the General Debate of the 79th Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations (New York, 24 – 30 September 2024).
World leaders gather to engage in the annual high-level General Debate under the theme, “Unity and diversity for advancing peace, sustainable development, and human dignity, everywhere and for all.” Heads of State and Government and ministers will explore solutions to intertwined global challenges to advance peace, security, and sustainable development.
The UN General Assembly (UNGA) is the main policy-making organ of the Organization. Comprising all Member States, it provides a unique forum for multilateral discussion of the full spectrum of international issues covered by the Charter of the United Nations. Each of the 193 Member States of the United Nations has an equal vote.
General debate website: https://gadebate.un.org/
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مشاهدة هذا الفيديو باللغة العربية على موقع البث الشبكي للأمم المتحدة
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Screenshot credit: UN Photo/Loey Felipe
#UNGA #UnitedNations
US Senate News:
Source: The White House
United Nations HeadquartersNew York, New York
10:12 A.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: My fellow leaders, today is the fourth time I’ve had the great honor of speaking to this assembly as president of the United States. It will be my last.
I’ve seen a remarkable sweep of history. I was first elected to office in the United States of America as a U.S. senator in 1972. Now, I know I look like I’m only 40. I know that. (Laughter.)
I was 29 years old. Back then, we were living through an inflection point, a moment of tension and uncertainty. The world was divided by the Cold War. The Middle East was headed toward war. America was at war in Vietnam, and at that point, the longest war in America’s history.
Our country was divided and angry, and there were questions about our staying power and our future. But even then, I entered public life not out of despair but out of optimism.
The United States and the world got through that moment. It wasn’t easy or simple or without significant setbacks. But we would go on to reduce the threat of nuclear weapons throughout the — through arms control and then go on to bring the Cold War itself to an end. Israel and Egypt went to war but then forged a historic peace. We ended the war in Vietnam.
The — last year, in Hanoi, I was — met with the Vietnamese leadership, and we elevated our partnership to the highest level. It’s a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the capacity for reconciliation that today the United States and Vietnam are partners and friends, and it’s proof that even from the horrors of war there is a way forward. Things can get better.
We should never forget that. I have seen that throughout my career.
In the 1980s, I spoke out against apartheid in South Africa, and then I watched the racist regime fall.
In the 1990s, I worked to hold Milošević accountable for war crimes. He was held accountable.
At home, I wrote and passed the Violence Against Women Act to end the scourge of violence against women and girls not only in America but across the world, as many of you have as well. But we have so much more to do, especially against rape and sexual violence as weapons of war and terror.
We were attacked on 9/11 by Al-Qaeda and Osama bin Laden. We brought him justice.
Then I came to the presidency in another moment in a crisis and uncertainty. I believed America had to look forward. New challenges, new threats, new opportunities were in front of us. We needed to put ourselves in a position to see the threats, to deal with the challenges, and to seize the opportunities as well.
We needed to end the era of war that began on 9/11. As vice president to President Obama, he asked me to work to wind down the military operations in Iraq. And we did, painful as it was.
When I came to office as president, Afghanistan had replaced Vietnam as America’s longest war. I was determined to end it, and I did. It was a hard decision but the right decision.
Four American presidents had faced that decision, but I was determined not to leave it to the fifth. It was a decision accompanied by tragedy. Thirteen brave Americans lost their lives along with hundreds of Afghans in a suicide bomb. I think those lost lives — I think of them every day.
I think of all the 2,461 U.S. military deaths over a long 20 years of that war. 20,744 American servicemen wounded in action. I think of their service, their sacrifice, and their heroism.
I know other countries lost their own men and women fighting alongside us. We honor their sacrifices as well.
To face the future, I was also determined to rebuild my country’s alliances and partnerships to a level not previously seen. We did — we did just that, from traditional treaty alliances to new partnerships like the Quad with the United States, Japan, Australia, and India.
I know — I know many look at the world today and see difficulties and react with despair, but I do not. I won’t.
As leaders, we don’t have the luxury.
I recognize the challenges from Ukraine to Gaza to Sudan and beyond: war, hunger, terrorism, brutality, record displacement of people, a climate crisis, democracy at risk, strains within our societies, the promise of artificial intelligence and its significant risks. The list goes on.
But maybe because of all I’ve seen and all we have done together over the decades, I have hope. I know there is a wa- — a way forward.
In 1919, the Irish poet William Butler Yeats described a world, and I quote, where “Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold; Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,” end of quote.
Some may say those words describe the world not just in 1919 but in 2024. But I see a cri- — a critical distinction.
In our time, the center has held. Leaders and people from every region and across the political spectrum have stood together. Turned the page — we turned the page on the worst pandemic in a century. We made sure COVID no longer controls our lives. We defended the U.N. Charter and ensured the survival of Ukraine as a free nation. My country made the largest investment in climate and clean energy ever, anywhere in history.
There will always be forces that pull our countries apart and the world apart: aggression, extremism, chaos, and cynicism, a desire to retreat from the world and go it alone.
Our task, our test is to make sure that the forces holding us together are stronger than those that are pulling us apart, that the principles of partnership that we came here each year to uphold can withstand the challenges, that the center holds once again.
My fellow leaders, I truly believe we are at another inflection point in world history where the choices we make today will determine our future for decades to come.
Will we stand behind the principles that unite us? We stand firm against aggression. We — will we end the conflicts that are raging today? Will we take on global challenges like climate change, hunger, and disease? Will we plan now for the opportunities and risk of a revolutionary new technologies?
I want to talk today about each of those decisions and the actions, in my view, we must take.
To start, each of us in this body has made a commitment to the principles of the U.N. Charter, to stand up against aggression. When Russia invaded Ukraine, we could have stood by and merely protested. But Vice President Harris and I understood that that was an assault on everything this institution is supposed to stand for.
And so, at my direction, America stepped into the breach, providing massive security and economic and humanitarian assistance. Our NATO Allies and partners in 50-plus nations stood up as well. But most importantly, the Ukrainian people stood up. And I ask the people of this chamber to stand up for them.
The good news is Putin’s war has failed in his — at his core aim. He set out to destroy Ukraine, but Ukraine is still free. He set out to weaken NATO, but NATO is bigger, stronger, and more united than ever before with two new members, Finland and Sweden. But we cannot let up.
The world now has another choice to make: Will we sustain our support to help Ukraine win this war and preserve its freedom or walk away and let aggression be renewed and a nation be destroyed?
I know my answer. We cannot grow weary. We cannot look away. And we will not let up on our support for Ukraine, not until Ukraine wins a just and durable peace [based] on the U.N. Charter. (Applause.)
We also need to uphold our principles as we seek to responsibly manage the competition with China so it does not veer into conflict. We stand ready to cooperate on urgent challenges for the good of our people and the people everywhere.
We recently resumed cooperation with China to stop the flow of deadly synthetic narcotics. I appreciate the collaboration. It matters for the people in my country and mether- — many others around the world.
On matters of conviction, the United States is unabashed, pushing back against unfair economic competition and against military coercion of other nations in — in the South China Sea, in maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits, in protecting our most advanced technologies so they cannot be used against us or any of our partners.
At the same time, we’re going to continue to strengthen our network of alliances and partnerships across the Indo-Pacific. These partnerships are not against any nation. They are building blocks for a free, open, secure, and peaceful Indo-Pacific.
We are also working to bring a greater measure of peace and stability to the Middle East. The world must not flinch from the horrors of October 7th. Any country — any country would have the right and responsibility to ensure that such an attack can never happen again.
Thousands of armed Hamas terrorists invaded a sovereign state, slaughtering and massacring more than 1,200 people, including 46 Americans, in their homes and at a music festival; despis- — despicable acts of sexual violence; 250 innocents taken hostage.
I’ve met with the families of those hostages. I’ve grieved with them. They’re going through hell.
Innocent civilians in Gaza are also going through hell. Thousands and thousands killed, including aid workers. Too many families dislocated, crowding into tents, facing a dire humanitarian situation. They didn’t ask for this war that Hamas started.
I put forward with Qatar and Egypt a ceasefire and hostage deal. It’s been endorsed by the U.N. Security Council. Now is the time for the parties to finalize its terms, bring the hostages home, en- — secure security for Israel, and Gaza free of Ha- — of Hamas’ grip, ease the suffering in Gaza, and end this war.
On October 7th — (applause) — since October 7, we have also been determined to prevent a wider war that engulfs the entire region. Hezbollah, unprovoked, joined the October 7th attack launching rockets into Israel. Almost a year later, too many on each side of the Israeli-Lebanon border remain displaced.
Full-scale war is not in anyone’s interest. Even as the situation has escalated, a diplomatic solution is still possible. In fact, it remains the only path to lasting security to allow the residents from both countries to return to their homes on the border safely. And that’s what working — that’s what we’re working tirelessly to achieve.
As we look ahead, we must also address the rise of violence against innocent Palestinians on the West Bank and set the conditions for a better future, including a two-state solution, where the world — where Israel enjoys security and peace and full recognition and normalized relations with all its neighbors, where Palestinians live in security, dignity, and self-determination in a state of their own. (Applause.)
Progress toward peace will put us in a stronger position to deal with the ongoing threat posed by Iran. Together, we must deny oxygen to terrorists — to its terrorist proxies, which have called for more October 7ths, and ensure that Iran will never, ever obtain a nuclear weapon.
Gaza is not the only conflict that deserves our outrage. In Sudan, a bloody civil war unleashed one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises: eight million — eight million on the brink of famine, hundreds of thousands already there, atrocities in Darfur and elsewhere.
The United States has led the world in providing humanitarian aid to Sudan. And with our partners, we have led diplomatic talks to try to silence the guns and avort — and avert a wider famine. The world needs to stop arming the generals, to speak with one voice and tell them: Stop tearing your country apart. Stop blocking aid to the Sudanese people. End this war now. (Applause.)
But people need more than the absence of war. They need the chance — the chance to live in dignity. They need to be protected from the ravages of climate change, hunger, and disease.
Our administration has arri- — has invested over $150 billion to make progress and other Sustainable Development Goals. It includes $20 billion for food security and over $50 billion for global health. We’ve mobilized billions more in private-sector investment.
We’ve taken the most ambitious climate actions in history. We’ve moved to rejoin the Paris Agreement on day one. And today, my country is finally on track to cut emissions in half by 2030, on track to honor my pledge to quadruple climate financing to developing nations with $11 billion thus far this year.
We’ve rejoined the World Health Organization and donated nearly 700 million doses of COVID vaccine to 117 countries. We must now move quickly to face mpox outbreak in Africa. We are prepared to commit $500 million to help African countries prevent and respond to mpox and to donate 1 million doses of mpox vaccine now. (Applause.) We call on our partners to match our pledge and make this a billion-dollar commitment to the people of Africa.
Beyond the core necessities of food and health, the United States, the G7, and our partners have embarked on an ambitious initiative to mobilize and deliver significant financing to the developing world. We are working to help countries build out their infrastructure, to clean energy transition, to their digital transformation to lay new economic foundations for a prosperous future.
It’s called the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment. We’ve already starting to see the fruits of this emerge in Southern Africa and in Southeast A- — Asia and in the Americas. We have to keep it going.
I want to get things done together. In order to do that, we must build a stronger, more effective, and more inclusive United Nations. The U.N. needs to adapt to bring in new voices and new perspectives. That’s why we support reforming and expanding the membership of the U.N. Security Council. (Applause.)
My U.N. ambassador just laid out our detailed vision to reflect today’s world, not yesterday’s. It’s time to move forward.
And the Security Council, like the U.N. itself, needs to get back to the job of making peace; of brokering deals to end wars and suffering; th- — (applause) — and to stop the spread of the most dangerous weapons; of stabilizing troubled regions in East Africa — from East Africa to Haiti, to Kenya-led mission that’s working alongside the Haitian people to turn the tide.
We also have a responsibility to prepare our citizens for the future. We’ll see more technological change, I argue, in the next 2 to 10 years than we have in the last 50 years.
Artificial intelligence is going to change our ways of life, our ways of work, and our ways of war. It could usher in scientific progress at a pace never seen before. And much of it could make our lives better.
But AI also brings profound risks, from deepfakes to disinformation to novel pathogens to bioweapons.
We have worked at home and abroad to define the new norms and standards. This year, we achieved the first-ever General Assembly resolution on AI to start developing global rules — global rules of the road. We also announced a Declaration of — on the Responsible — Responsible Use of AI, joined by 60 countries in this chamber.
But let’s be honest. This is just the tip of the iceberg of what we need to do to manage this new technology.
Nothing is certain about how AI will evolve or how it will be deployed. No one knows all the answers.
But my fellow leaders, it’s with humility I offer two questions.
First: How do we as an international community govern AI? As countries and companies race to uncertain frontiers, we need an equally urgent effort to ensure AI’s safety, security, and trustworthiness. As AI grows more powerful, it must grow also — it also must grow more responsive to our collective needs and values. The benefits of all must be shared equitably. It should be harnessed to narrow, not deepen, digital divides.
Second: Will we ensure that AI supports, rather than undermines, the core principles that human life has value and all humans deserve dignity? We must make certain that the awesome capabilities of AI will be used to uplift and empower everyday people, not to give dictators more powerful shackles on human — on the human spirit.
In the years ahead, there wa- — they may be — may well be no greater test of our leadership than how we deal with AI.
Let me close with this. Even as we navigate so much change, one thing must not change: We must never forget who we’re here to represent.
“We the People.” These are the first words of our Constitution, the very idea of America. And they inspired the opening words of the U.N. Charter.
I’ve made the preservation of democracy the central cause of my presidency.
This summer, I faced a decision whether to seek a second term as president. It was a difficult decision. Being president has been the honor of my life. There is so much more I want to get done. But as much as I love the job, I love my country more. I decided, after 50 years of public service, it’s time for a new generation of leadership to take my nation forward.
My fellow leaders, let us never forget, some things are more important than staying in power. It’s your people — (applause) — it’s your people that matter the most.
Never forget, we are here to serve the people, not the other way around. Because the future will be — the future will be won by those who unleash the full potential of their people to breathe free, to think freely, to innovate, to educate, to live and love openly without fear.
That’s the soul of democracy. It does not belong to any one country.
I’ve seen it all around the world in the brave men and women who ended apartheid, brought down the Berlin Wall, fight today for freedom and justice and dignity.
We saw it — that universal yearning for rights and freedom — in Venezuela, where millions cast their vote for change. It hasn’t been recognized, but it can’t be denied. The world knows the truth.
We saw it in Uganda LBGT [LGBT] activists demanding safety and recognition of their common humanity.
We see it in citizens across the world peacefully choosing their future — from Ghana to India to South Korea, nations representing one quarter of humanity who will hold elections this year alone.
It’s remarkable, the power of “We the People,” that makes me more optimistic about the future than I’ve ever been since I was first elected to the United States Senate in 1972.
Every age faces its challenges. I saw it as a young man. I see it today.
But we are stronger than we think. We’re stronger together than alone. And what the people call “impossible” is just an illusion.
Nelson Mandela taught us, and I quote, “It always seems impossible until it’s done.” “It always seems impossible until it’s done.”
My fellow leaders, there is nothing that’s beyond our capacity if we work together. Let’s work together.
God bless you all. And may God protect all those who seek peace.
Thank you. (Applause.)
10:36 A.M. EDT
Source: Government of Italy (English)
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24 Settembre 2024
The President of the Council of Ministers, Giorgia Meloni, met with the Prime Minister of Iraq, Mohammed Al Sudani, in New York today.
The two leaders discussed bilateral relations, reaffirming the common will to build a strategic partnership between the two nations in all areas, from political to economic collaboration, from security to cultural cooperation.
The meeting also provided an opportunity to reiterate Italy’s commitment as part of international support for Iraq’s security, providing training for security forces and countering terrorism.
President Meloni and Prime Minister Al Sudani also discussed the situation in the Middle East, agreeing on the need to keep working on a de-escalation in the region.
Source: The Conversation – USA – By Mireille Rebeiz, Chair of Middle East Studies & Associate Professor of Francophone & Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies, Dickinson College
Lebanese families have been fleeing the country’s south in the thousands amid escalating tensions and an Israeli bombardment that has so far killed hundreds.
Their fear, echoed by many onlookers, is that Israel will accompany the airstrikes with something that has the potential to have far worse consequences: a ground invasion of south Lebanon.
The rational behind such a move, from the Israeli government’s perspective, is that a ground offensive may be its best chance to push Hezbollah fighters beyond the Litani River in the middle of the country. This would achieve an Israeli war goal of securing its northern borders and allowing an estimated 60,000 residents who have been forced to flee northern Israel to go back to their homes.
Irrespective of motive, a ground invasion and potential occupation is more than wild speculation. Israel has placed thousands of soldiers on standby close to the Lebanon border for such an eventuality.
Nor is such a move without precedent.
As a scholar of Lebanese history, I know Israel and Lebanon have been here before. In 1982, Israel invaded Lebanon in the middle of the latter’s civil war, imposing a siege on the capital Beirut. The results were catastrophic for the whole region. Not only did the ground invasion result in the death of thousands of civilians, the occupation of Lebanon plunged an already fragile nation into lasting political and economic chaos and led to the birth of Hezbollah, the very group that threatens northern Israel today.
The Israeli invasion of Lebanon in June 1982 had its roots in the Palestinian–Israeli conflict, much as the fighting between Hezbollah and Israel does today.
The creation of the state of Israel in 1948 was accompanied by the Nakba, or “catastrophe,” for the Palestinians. In the violent birth pangs of a Jewish state on land inhabited by, among others, Arab populations with deep ancestral ties to villages, more than 750,000 Palestinians were expelled or fled.
Many refugees entered Lebanon, where in 1964 the Palestine Liberation Organization was born. By the mid-1970s, the armed resistance group had recruited and trained over 20,000 fighters who actively participated in launching attacks on Israel from Lebanese soil.
By 1982, Lebanon was already seven years into its civil war, with violence flaring between Lebanese Christians and Lebanese and Palestinian Muslims. On June 6, 1982, Israeli Defense Minister Ariel Sharon, a future leader of the country, launched Operation Peace for Galilee and invaded Lebanon with the purpose of eliminating the PLO.
More than 40,000 Israeli troops with hundreds of tanks entered Lebanon from three points: by land across the border into south Lebanon; by sea from the coast of Sidon; and by air as the Israeli forces bombed the Beqaa Valley, Beirut and its Palestinian refugee camps.
For two months, Beirut was under siege, with water and electricity cut off. As a result of the heavy bombardment and lack of access to basic needs, an estimated 19,000 Lebanese, Syrian and Palestinian civilians and combatants died, of which 5,500 were civilians from West Beirut.
The Lebanese authorities appealed to the United States, France, Italy and the United Kingdom for help. These countries formed the multinational peacekeeping force, which was designed to restore peace in Lebanon, assist the Lebanese armed forces and evacuate PLO fighters to Tunisia.
By August 1982, the multinational force had successfully relocated PLO fighters and began pulling out of Lebanon. They were called back, however, as violence flared.
After the assassination of Lebanese President-elect Bashir Gemayel on Sept. 14, 1982, the Christian Phalangist militia entered the two Palestinian refugee camps of Sabra and Shatila and killed over 2,000 Palestinian civilians. The Israeli government later set up the Kahan Commission of Inquiry to look into the killings, which concluded that Israel was indirectly responsible for the massacres.
All of this history remains relevant to the current situation in the region. Israel’s invasion and occupation of Lebanon, its siege on Beirut and the massacres that followed all led to the birth of Hezbollah.
While members of Lebanon’s marginalized Shiite community in the south had long sought to mobilize through pan-Arab political parties and militias, it was Israel’s invasion that galvanized members of the community to ultimately create Hezbollah in 1985. As former Israeli Defense Minister and Prime Minister Ehud Barak noted in a 2006 interview: “It was our presence there that created Hezbollah.”
Israel’s invasion also soured Lebanon’s relations with the West. Many Lebanese and Palestinian Muslims considered the multinational force – especially the United States – to be a failure and even an accomplice to Israel.
From 1982 onward, Americans and other Westerners became a target. In the following decade, more than 80 Americans and Europeans were taken hostage by Hezbollah fighters. Some were tortured for months; others died in custody.
And on Oct. 23, 1983, a terrorist attack targeted the American barracks in Beirut, killing over 300 people, including 220 Marines, 18 sailors and three soldiers. Minutes later, a second suicide attack killed 58 French paratroopers. The Islamic jihad claimed responsibility for the two attacks; some of its members are thought to be among those who officially founded Hezbollah in February 1985.
Israel’s 1982 invasion of Lebanon failed to accomplish its goals of stemming attacks on Israel from southern Lebanon. If anything, it had the opposite effect by turning many Lebanese against Israel and creating the conditions in which Hezbollah could recruit.
Although Israel retreated from Beirut in August 1982, it continued to occupy south Lebanon until 2000. During that period it unlawfully detained many Lebanese suspected of resisting the Israeli occupation. Some were detained without charges in inhumane conditions, while others were illegally transferred into Israel.
With such a backdrop, Hezbollah’s legitimacy in the eyes of many Lebanese grew – as did its support. So much so that in 1989, at the end of the Lebanese civil war, the authorities signed an agreement that, although not referencing Hezbollah directly, asserted Lebanon’s right to resist the Israeli occupation in the south.
This clause was interpreted by Hezbollah as legitimizing its armed fight against occupation.
After occupation ended in 2000, Hezbollah had to reinvent its role, claiming that it would continue fighting against Israel until the liberation of the disputed Shebaa Farms, the Golan Heights and occupied Palestine.
In 2006, Hezbollah entered Israeli territory for the first time, killing three soldiers and kidnapping two, demanding the release of Lebanese prisoners in exchange. In retaliation, the Israel Defense Forces attacked Lebanon by air, sea and land, with Israeli ground forces entering Lebanon and carrying out a number of operations on Lebanese territory. A subsequent war saw no such prisoner swap but resulted in the deaths of about 1,100 Lebanese civilians and 120 Israelis, mostly soldiers.
Until Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, there had been hopes that decades of hostilities between Lebanon and Israel could be on the cusp of turning. In October 2022, Lebanon and Israel signed a maritime border agreement brokered by the U.S – interpreted as the beginning of normalizing relations between two countries technically at war.
But the magnitude of the human crisis in Gaza and the series of events that followed in Lebanon have ended such hopes for now. Hezbollah’s vow of solidarity with Hamas has resulted in a running series of tit-for-tat attacks with Israel that have escalated over the past year.
The attack using booby-trapped pagers that targeted Hezbollah fighters and killed several civilians across Lebanon on Sept. 17, 2024, has set off a chain of events that have now seen nearly 500 Lebanese killed and Hezbollah extend the geographical scope of its missile attacks in Israel. Its long-range ballistic missiles can reach 250-300 kilometers (155-186 miles) and have reached Haifa and the city’s Ramat David Airbase.
The next step in this deadly escalation could well be a ground invasion. But in 1982, such an operation resulted only in catastrophic results for all concerned – and set in place the conditions for decades of hostilities across the Lebanon-Israel border. A similar offensive today would almost certainly have similar results – especially for the people of Lebanon.
Mireille Rebeiz is affiliated with American Red Cross.
– ref. Lebanese civilians are fleeing the south, fearing an Israeli invasion − a look back at 1982 suggests they have every reason to worry – https://theconversation.com/lebanese-civilians-are-fleeing-the-south-fearing-an-israeli-invasion-a-look-back-at-1982-suggests-they-have-every-reason-to-worry-239653
US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for Florida Marco Rubio
Rubio, Colleagues to Biden-Harris Officials: Individuals Tied to Cuban Regime Are Not Welcome
Sep 24, 2024 | Press Releases
Under U.S. law, any individual who has been, or is affiliated with a Communist Party is deemed inadmissible for entry into our nation. However, under the Biden-Harris Administration’s mass immigration program, it’s been reported that individuals tied to the…
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Rubio, Scott Introduce Bill to Punish Colleges That Allow Antisemitism
Sep 24, 2024 | Press Releases
Since the October 7, 2023 terrorist attack against Israel, cases of antisemitic harassment have increased more than 500 percent at college campuses across the United States. Yet, many Institutes of Higher Education (IHEs) have failed to prevent or stop antisemitism…
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Rubio, Scott Support Florida Request for Pre-landfall Emergency Declaration
Sep 23, 2024 | Press Releases
Potential Tropical Cyclone Nine, soon to be Hurricane Helene, is expected to make landfall in Florida as a major hurricane later this week. The storm will bring strong winds, heavy rain, severe storm surge, flooding, and hazardous seas to Florida’s impacted areas….
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ICYMI: Rubio, Clement Present Plan to Stop Antisemitism on College Campuses
Sep 23, 2024 | Press Releases
Congress Can Protect Jews on College Campuses U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Paul Clement September 23, 2024 Wall Street Journal The ancient poison of antisemitism has infected American higher education…. Campus antisemitism isn’t restricted to…widely publicized…
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ICYMI: Rubio Joins Face the Nation
Sep 22, 2024 | Press Releases
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) joined Face the Nation to discuss foreign election interference, threats to President Donald Trump’s life, the impact of illegal mass migration on communities across America, and more. See below for highlights and watch the full…
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Rubio, Colleagues to Garland: Tren De Aragua Continues to Terrorize Our Nation
Sep 20, 2024 | Press Releases
Tren de Aragua, a criminal Venezuelan transnational organization known for committing major international crimes such as human trafficking, drug-trafficking, arms trafficking, and money laundering, continues to terrorize communities across our nation. Following calls…
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US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for Alabama Tommy Tuberville
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senators Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) and Katie Britt (R-AL) joined U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and 41 bicameral Republican colleagues in signing a letter urging President Biden and Vice President Harris to work with Congress to root out abuses in the unaccompanied alien children (UAC) program and stop the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) cover-up of its gross mismanagement of the program. As an example, HHS has failed to comply with two out of every three Department of Homeland Security (DHS) subpoenas and other information requests issued amid its investigation into more than 100 identified suspicious UAC sponsors.
“As a result of your open-borders policies, overseen by Vice President Harris, who was tasked with ‘stemming the migration’ at our border with Mexico, more than 500,000 unaccompanied alien children (UACs) have crossed the southwest border without a parent or guardian to provide care since you took office, a massive increase when compared to previous administrations. These UACs often experience horrible sexual, physical, and emotional abuse on the journey and are victims of cartel trafficking and exploitation, a business that surged an estimated 2,500 percent from the Trump Administration to the middle of your term in 2022,” wrote the Senators.
U.S. Senators Tuberville, Britt, and Grassley were joined by U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Mike Braun (R-IN), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), John Cornyn (R-TX), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Steve Daines (R-MT), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Josh Hawley (R-MO), John Hoeven (R-ND), Ron Johnson (R-WI), John Kennedy (R-LA), James Lankford (R-OK), Mike Lee (R-UT), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Jim Risch (R-ID), Rick Scott (R-FL), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), John Thune (R-SD), and Roger Wicker (R-MS) in signing the letter.
Additional co-signers in the House include Representatives Cliff Bentz (R-OR-02), Dan Bishop (R-NC-08), Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05), Ben Cline (R-VA-06), Russell Fry (R-SC-07), Matt Gaetz (R-FL-01), Harriet Hageman (R-WY-At-Large), Wesley Hunt (R-TX-38), Jim Jordan (R-OH-04), Laurel Lee (R-FL-15), Tom McClintock (R-CA-05), Barry Moore (R-AL-02), Chip Roy (R-TX-21), Michael Rulli (R-OH-06), and Scott Fitzgerald (R-WI-05).
Read the full letter below or here.
“President Biden and Vice President Harris:
As a result of your open-borders policies, overseen by Vice President Harris, who was tasked with “stemming the migration” at our border with Mexico, more than 500,000 unaccompanied alien children (UACs) have crossed the southwest border without a parent or guardian to provide care since you took office, a massive increase when compared to previous administrations. These UACs often experience horrible sexual, physical, and emotional abuse on the journey and are victims of cartel trafficking and exploitation, a business that surged an estimated 2,500 percent from the Trump Administration to the middle of your term in 2022. Sadly, the suffering these children endure does not end at the border. Your Administration also fails them when they arrive in the United States by rushing them out of the custody of your Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) into the hands of unvetted sponsors who often continue to exploit and abuse them.
Even as the trafficking business and the number of children entering the U.S. surged, HHS ORR cut back significantly on background checks and vetting procedures to speed up the process, despite knowing children were being trafficked through HHS ORR’s UAC program. Your Administration likewise continued Vice President Harris’s longtime priority of cutting back on information sharing between HHS ORR and law enforcement related to unaccompanied children and sponsors. When the Trump Administration implemented a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) to provide for robust information sharing between the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and HHS ORR, then-Senator Harris called this attempt to protect children and communities “outrageous.” She also introduced legislation in response to the Trump MOA that slashed funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement by $220 million. Her bill was so extreme it failed to allow HHS information to be used by DHS for immigration enforcement even for potential sponsors and household members with convictions or pending charges of child abuse, sexual assault, child pornography, or any other crime. Even House Democrats considered Harris’s approach too radical and added these exceptions to counteract the extreme nature of her legislative proposal. Their approach, unlike Harris’s, allowed HHS information to be used to deport child predators and those convicted of serious felonies. Given her stated policy priorities, it is no wonder your Administration later revoked the Trump Administration’s MOA, seriously hampering the work of law enforcement, and promulgated a final rule enshrining the bar on sharing such information with law enforcement officials.
Your Administration further stripped Customs and Border Protection officials of their ability to conduct familial DNA testing, as was implemented by the Trump Administration to verify adults’ claims that they are related to children they bring across the border. This made the smuggling and trafficking of these kids that much easier. Early into your term, your Administration also canceled protections the Trump Administration proposed to provide post-release services for all children placed with sponsors, including in-person visits and extended follow-up after placement. These protections would have helped ensure children were safe. Instead, the actions of your Administration have been disastrous and now, HHS ORR is actively attempting to cover up the results of its egregious decisions. We call upon you to put an end to that cover-up.
When Senator Grassley and Senator Cassidy, ranking members of the Senate Budget Committee and Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, asked HHS ORR contractors and grantees whether they took necessary steps to protect children, HHS obstructed those inquiries, directing the entities not to respond. This included Southwest Key, which Senator Grassley asked, among other things, about its vetting of staff before they have access to minors. The Department of Justice has since sued Southwest Key for turning a blind eye to nearly a decade of child rape and sexual abuse by its staff. During this same time, HHS ORR provided Southwest Key with more than $3 billion to house UACs. These contractors and grantees receive large sums of taxpayer dollars, a lucrative business that has boomed during your Administration. Yet HHS ORR told them not to answer Congress when it asked whether basic protections were afforded to these kids. This is completely unacceptable.
At the same time, since early 2023, the House Judiciary Committee has sought information on the total number of UACs HHS ORR has lost contact with after placement during your Administration. According to the New York Times, as of February 2023, ORR had been unable to contact at least 85,000 UACs after placement with sponsors, or roughly 34 percent of total UACs released up to that point in your term. Applying the 34 percent figure to the most up-to-date number of 432,938 UACs the Administration has released to sponsors, we estimate ORR has been unable to contact nearly 150,000 UACs through Safety and Well-being calls after their release. When confronted by the House Judiciary Committee with an estimate based on the Times’s findings, ORR did not dispute it. Although the House Judiciary Committee twice subpoenaed HHS for internal agency data relating to the total number of UACs with whom it has lost contact after placement, HHS has refused to provide the subpoenaed data.
Unfortunately, the cover-up does not end there. Recently, DHS informed Senator Grassley’s office that HHS ORR has not sufficiently complied with two out of every three subpoenas and other information requests that resulted from his referral of possible child trafficking rings across the U.S. to DHS in January. By not supplying the information law enforcement requested, ORR denied Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents critical information, including the last known addresses of children and sponsors and the identity of other household members. In part because of HHS ORR’s lack of cooperation, DHS has so far only been able to locate less than four percent of sponsors identified as investigative targets, and a similarly small number of UACs.
At a recent Senate roundtable forum, “The Exploitation Crisis: How the U.S. Government is Failing to Protect Migrant Children from Trafficking and Abuse,” senators and members of the public heard from a panel with direct knowledge of this crisis. What the witnesses told the oversight panel was shocking. For example, HHS retaliated against one of the witnesses, Ms. Tara Lee Rodas, after she blew the whistle and tried to stop the placement of young children with a household in Ohio connected to the violent MS-13 gang. In addition, witnesses described how HHS and its contractors prioritized UAC placement speed over UAC safety by failing to verify the legitimacy of identity documents, failing to obtain criminal history from the countries of origin of UACs and sponsors, and failing to conduct legally required home studies for UACs who had endured sexual or other abuse. Other whistleblowers continue to come forward with similar information. Congress has the right to obtain information necessary to conduct oversight of these widespread failures to protect the lives of children without HHS standing in the way.
HHS’s failure to ensure UACs are in appropriate placements and to adequately vet sponsors is harmful not only to the UACs, but also to American citizens. As the Attorney General under the Trump Administration recognized, the UAC program has for years suffered from exploitation by criminals, including “gang members who come to this country as wolves in sheep[’s] clothing” and “use th[e UAC] program as a means by which to recruit new members.” As the House Judiciary Committee’s oversight has shown, under Secretary Becerra’s leadership, HHS has ignored the potential criminality and gang affiliation of UACs.
Indeed, as revealed in the House Judiciary Committee’s May 2023 interim report, in May 2022, HHS ORR released to a sponsor a UAC with a previous arrest record for “illicit association with MS13.” That UAC, released by your Administration, went on to brutally assault and murder 20-year-old American citizen Kayla Hamilton. Incredibly, HHS noted on several occasions to the House Judiciary Committee its focus on protecting the privacy of Kayla’s murderer. Although local police quickly identified Walter Javier Martinez as the primary suspect in the murder and expressed their concern about the threat he posed to society, according to new investigative reporting, Martinez was placed in a Maryland foster home with other children and enrolled in high school. Later, while in custody for murdering Kayla, the alien authored a letter in which he “admitted to committing [four] murders, [two] rapes, and additional other crimes.” Martinez has since been sentenced to more than 70 years in prison.
Despite having released to a sponsor a UAC with gang tattoos and a history of “illicit association” with MS-13, HHS told the House Judiciary Committee that it does not have a policy to refer known or suspected gang members to the Justice Department for investigation or, where appropriate, prosecution. At the same time, ORR Director Robin Dunn Marcos, the HHS official in charge of the UAC program, admitted that, while HHS sometimes contacts the consulate or embassy of a UAC’s country of origin or last habitual residence to verify some documents or claimed familial relationships, HHS does not even request UACs’ criminal records. Troublingly, HHS has also admitted that it does not currently have any secure facilities “in-network”—that is, facilities designed for the secure placement of UACs who pose a danger to themselves or others or who have been determined to have a criminal record.
An August 2024 House Judiciary Committee report highlighted yet another case of UAC criminality, detailing how Juan Carlos Garcia Rodriguez, a UAC from Guatemala released by your Administration, horrifically assaulted and murdered 11-year-old Maria Gonzalez. Maria’s father found “his daughter’s body wrapped in a trash bag and stuffed in a laundry basket that was put beneath her bed.” Garcia Rodriguez was encountered by Border Patrol after entering the U.S. illegally in El Paso in January 2023, smuggled to the U.S. border by a “guide” paid for by his parents. Despite being overheard commenting about his desire to run away while in HHS custody, HHS placed Garcia Rodriguez with an unrelated adult sponsor who had twice previously sponsored unrelated UACs. Unsurprisingly, shortly after the Biden-Harris Administration’s release of Garcia Rodriguez, he became one of the estimated 150,000 UACs with whom HHS has lost contact. Just months after HHS lost contact with Garcia Rodriguez, he ran away from his sponsor. Not long after his 18th birthday, and mere months after his release from HHS custody, Garcia Rodriguez, brutally assaulted and murdered Maria.
This is not a partisan issue. It can and should bring us together, as we try to protect Americans and UACs placed in HHS ORR custody alike. Your Administration must make changes to its policies and procedures for UACs to end this public safety crisis. It must also take urgent steps to provide information to law enforcement and Congress, to reveal the crisis’s full scope. We request that you immediately instruct HHS Secretary Becerra to take urgent steps to this end: HHS must provide access to the UAC Portal, HHS’s system of record for UACs, to federal law enforcement, HHS’s Inspector General, and Congress, allowing them to quickly conduct investigations and oversee the UAC placement program, and to analyze data regarding suspicious UAC placements; it must fully cooperate with DHS’s HSI and other federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies seeking to locate children and investigate trafficking, smuggling, and other forms of child exploitation; and it must thoroughly respond to congressional oversight requests and instruct HHS’s contractors and grantees to do the same.
HHS must stop its cover-up and cooperate with law enforcement and Congress to end this crisis and protect unaccompanied children and the American people. Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.
Sincerely,”
BACKGROUND:
More than 500,000 unaccompanied migrant children have crossed the southwest border under the Biden-Harris administration, while cartel trafficking activity surged an estimated 2,500 percent. Amid this crisis, the lawmakers note the Biden-Harris administration limited background checks for sponsors of unaccompanied children, cut back on familial DNA testing at the border, and decreased information sharing with law enforcement.
In December 2023, Senators Tuberville and Britt joined Senator Grassley and 36 colleagues in calling on HHS ORR to overhaul its harmful and deficient policies regarding the treatment of unaccompanied alien children in the U.S.
Senator Tommy Tuberville represents Alabama in the United States Senate and is a member of the Senate Armed Services, Agriculture, Veterans’ Affairs, and HELP Committees.
Thanks to the RNZRSA, a small piece of New Zealand is on its way to every member of the New Zealand Defence Force deployed overseas this Christmas.
Those serving personnel can expect some festive cheer from home, thanks to 140 RNZRSA Forces Gift Parcels which are now on the way to deployments around the world including in the Republic of Korea, South Sudan, Egypt, the Middle East and Antarctica.
The parcels were packed near Trentham Military Camp yesterday by a busy production line of `elves’ including the Minister for Veterans Hon Chris Penk, Commander Joint Forces New Zealand Major General Rob Krushka, RNZRSA National President Sir Wayne Shelford, staff from the RNZRSA’s National Office and volunteers from the New Zealand Defence Force.
Christmas boxes were filled with treats and Kiwi classics donated by the wonderful team from Pams. Each box also contained a poppy and a card handmade by students from Mt Cook and Silverstream Primary Schools in Wellington, to let those serving overseas know the country’s thoughts are with them.
Commander Joint Forces New Zealand Major General Rob Krushka, who helped to pack the boxes, said that these small packages make a big difference to those away from home at Christmas.
“We know it’s incredibly tough for our service personnel to be away from their families during special occasions such as birthdays and Christmas. The NZDF are very grateful to the RNZRSA for the packages which bring a little bit of joy to our personnel at what can be a challenging time.”
RNZRSA National President, Sir Wayne Shelford said the RNZRSA are proud to continue to support NZDF personnel around the world.
“This is the 84th year the RSA has sent these parcels to our military personnel overseas at Christmas. It’s a small thing we can do to thank them for the sacrifice they are making, and to brighten their day a little.
We are committed to continuing our support to New Zealand’s veterans of military service, including the more than 60,000 that have served since 1990.”
Background
The RSA is incredibly grateful for the generosity of Pams New Zealand and Packaging Products. Pams donate the majority of goodies inside the parcels, and this year included items such as microwave popcorn, party mix lollies, roasted and salted deluxe nut mix, packets of biscuits and much more. Packaging Products print and donate the boxes the goodies are packed in to.
MIL OSI Translation. Region: Italy –
Source: The Holy See in Italian
Tuesday, September 24, 2024 weapons
Mogadishu (Agenzia Fides) – Wars (for now?) of words and press releases in the Horn of Africa between Somalia, Somaliland and Ethiopia around recent military supplies that arrived in the region. On September 20, the government of Mogadishu condemned what it called “an illegal supply of weapons” by the government of Addis Ababa to Puntland, an autonomous Somali region that has its own institutions but which has not yet declared its intention to separate from the rest of Somalia. This choice was instead made by Somaliland, a northern region that has declared its independence from Mogadishu since 1991. On January 1, 2024, Somaliland signed a naval agreement with Ethiopia (see Fides 3/1/2024), which aroused the ire of Mogadishu because in exchange for the concession of a naval base and control of a stretch of its coast, Somaliland obtains from Ethiopia to be recognized as an independent state. Addis Ababa thus becomes the great military protector of Somaliland, increasing Mogadishu’s fears for the territorial integrity of Somalia. Concerns now accentuated by Ethiopia’s supply of weapons to Puntland. The authorities of the autonomous region, while recognizing those of Mogadishu, are at loggerheads with the latter, because they claim not to have received from Mogadishu the aid necessary to fight the jihadists present on its territory. These are both groups linked to the Shabaab and the Islamic State. The Ethiopian government therefore seems to be inserting itself into the tensions between Puntland and Somalia to widen its room for maneuver in the area. A few days after the tough stance taken by the government of Mogadishu, protests have arrived from Addis Ababa over the arrival in Somalia of Egyptian military supplies destined for the local armed forces. This is the second delivery of weapons by Cairo under the military agreement signed between Egypt and Somalia in August (see Fides 8/30/2024). According to the Ethiopian Foreign Minister, the supply of weapons by “external forces” risks “exacerbating the fragile security context” and also running the risk that these weapons “end up in the hands of terrorists in Somalia”. “The uncontrolled proliferation of weapons in an already fragile environment increases the risk of an arms race, with various factions probably trying to increase their stockpiles to safeguard their own interests,” echoed his colleague from Somaliland. Tensions between Egypt and Ethiopia regarding the management of the Nile waters have therefore moved to Somalia, with the Somali government, backed by Cairo (but Mogadishu also has important military agreements with Turkey which is currently trying to mediate, see Fides 2/7/2024)) attempted to fuel internal tensions in the neighboring country (see Fides 17/9/2024). (LM) (Agenzia Fides 24/9/2024) Share:
EDITOR’S NOTE: This article is a translation. Apologies should the grammar and/or sentence structure not be perfect.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced today that it has reached a settlement that will resolve its suit filed on behalf of former Utah Army National Guardsman and current Air Force Reservist Matthew T. Denning against Stonescape Pavers LLC. The settlement must be approved by the federal court in Las Vegas. The Department’s complaint, filed in June 2009, alleges that Stonescape violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) by terminating Denning during his statutorily protected reemployment time period. Under the terms of the settlement, embodied in an agreement that has been submitted to the court, Stonescape must provide Denning with $10,000 to compensate him for his lost wages and benefits as a result of Stonescape’s actions.
In its complaint, the Justice Department alleged that Denning was a salesman for Stonescape when he was called to active duty to deploy to Iraq with the Utah Army National Guard in January 2006. After he was honorably discharged in June 2006, he was reemployed by Stonescape. According to the complaint, Stonescape terminated Denning without cause in August 2006 during his statutorily-protected reemployment time period. The lawsuit was filed after the Labor Department’s Veterans’ Employment and Training Service completed an investigation of Denning’s complaint. Congress enacted USERRA in 1994 to protect service members from being disadvantaged in their civilian careers due to serving in the uniformed services. Among other things, USERRA prohibits employers from terminating a service member except for cause for 180 days after the employee’s date of reemployment if his or her recent period of uniformed service was more than 30 days but less than 181 days.
“We all have a duty to ensure the brave men and women who serve our country in uniform can land on their feet after they return from active duty. This settlement demonstrates our vigilant protection of the employment rights of our servicemembers, and our commitment to vigorous enforcement of the laws that protect them,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division has given a high priority to the enforcement of servicemembers’ rights under USERRA. During 2009, the Civil Rights Division has filed 20 USERRA lawsuits on behalf of service members. Additional information about USERRA can be found on the Justice Department’s Web sites at http://www.justice.gov/crt/emp and http://www.servicemembers.gov/, as well as on the Labor Department’s Web site at http://www.dol.gov/vets/programs/userra/main.htm
Source: Amnesty International –
In July the International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued a historic advisory opinion concluding that Israel’s decades long occupation and annexation of Palestinian territory is unlawful because it violates some of the most fundamental tenets of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and denies Palestinians their human rights.
The ICJ opinion also concludes that all states have an “obligation not to recognize as legal the situation arising from the unlawful presence of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory” and “not to render aid or assistance in maintaining the situation created by Israel’s illegal presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.” Meanwhile, the virtually unconditional transfer and sale of weapons, parts, and ammunition by governments where there is clear risk of use in harming civilians and violating international law has continued.
As the UN General Assembly prepares to vote on a resolution this week that would seek to bring the occupation to an end, the undersigned organizations call on all governments, including the UN Security Council and its members, to adhere to the ICJ’s advisory opinion, including through the halting the transfer and sale of weapons, parts and ammunition.
Humanitarian, development and human rights organizations, many of us with decades of experience working throughout the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, delivering lifesaving assistance and other services, have witnessed first-hand the humanitarian consequences of Israel’s occupation, and its devastating impact on the Palestinian population, including the well-being of children.
This includes but is not limited to:
● the use of weapons, by Israeli forces and settlers in attacks, including in apparent violations of international law, resulting in the killing and permanent disabilities of Palestinian civilians, including children, and instances of gender based violence;
● the arbitrary detention and systematic prosecution of Palestinians, including children, in Israeli military courts, often held in horrific conditions;
● the forced displacement of Palestinians through demolitions of Palestinian homes and property, Israeli settlement expansion, Israeli settler violence, and so-called “evacuation” orders amid Israeli bombardment in Gaza;
● a discriminatory permit regime that denies freedom of movement to Palestinians, depriving them of basic services, including vital medical assistance.
These practices have taken place without accountability for decades, but the intensification over the last 11 months has led to a staggering humanitarian catastrophe for Palestinians throughout the occupied Palestinian territory, fuelled by the virtually unconditional supply of weapons, parts, and ammunition.
More than 40,000 people in Gaza have been killed, and tens of thousands face life-altering injuries and potentially irreversible mental harm, including as a result of apparent violations of IHL. Meanwhile, the situation in the West Bank is deteriorating at a rapid pace, with large-scale Israeli military ground incursions and airstrikes killing and injuring people almost every day this year. The violence and restrictions under Israeli occupation have rendered the mandates of humanitarian, human rights, and development organizations almost impossible to fulfill.
Humanitarian support provided by Member States is regularly obstructed and destroyed by Israeli authorities. Assistance that humanitarian organizations have managed to provide has been insufficient to address the needs and does not address the root causes of the humanitarian consequences created by Israel’s decades-long occupation that the international community has allowed to continue for too long.
Failure to adhere to the ICJ’s advisory opinion will send a message that states can be selective in their application of international law. It is imperative that states reinforce and show their commitment to international institutions and the international order that has been in place for nearly 80 years. The time for empty statements has passed. All Member States must act decisively to adhere to the ICJ Advisory Opinion before more lives are irreparably destroyed.
Undersigned:
1. ActionAid
2. American Friends Service Committee
3. Amnesty International
4. BePax
5. CCFD-Terre Solidaire
6. Center for Peace Education (Miriam College, Philippines)
7. Christian Aid
8. Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
9. DanChurchAid 10.Danish Refugee Council
11. Finn Church Aid
12.Franciscans International
13.Gender Action for Peace and Security (GAPS) (Secretariat)
14.Global Ministries of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
15.Handicap International/Humanity & Inclusion (HI)
16.Human Concern International
17.Islamic Relief Worldwide
18.Médecins du Monde International Network
19.Mennonite Central Committee
20.Middle East Children’s Alliance
21.Norwegian Church Aid
22.Norwegian Refugee Council
23.Oxfam
24.Pax Christi Austria
25.Pax Christi England and Wales
26.Pax Christi International
27.Pax Christi Scotland
28.Pax Christi USA
29.Première Urgence Internationale
30.Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
31.Terre des hommes Foundation
32.Terre des Hommes Italy
33.United Church of Christ
34.War Child
Source: Amnesty International –
Responding to the adoption of a UN General Assembly resolution today demanding that Israel end its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) within 12 months, in compliance with the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) July advisory opinion, Amnesty International’s Secretary General, Agnès Callamard, said:
“Today’s resolution makes crystal-clear that Israel’s 57-year occupation of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, in flagrant violation of international law, cannot be allowed to continue any longer.
“Israel must comply with the resolution immediately by withdrawing its forces from the West Bank, including illegally annexed East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip, occupied since 1967. Israel must also remove all settlers from the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and reverse its annexation, both in law and in practice.
“This resolution vindicates long-standing calls from the Palestinian people and many countries around the world, by pursuing the implementation of the ICJ’s historic advisory opinion which confirmed Israel has a legal obligation to end its unlawful occupation of the OPT and its systemic discrimination against the occupied Palestinian population.
Today’s resolution makes crystal-clear that Israel’s 57-year occupation of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, in flagrant violation of international law, cannot be allowed to continue any longer.
Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General
“For decades Israel’s unlawful occupation has brought injustice, bloodshed and suffering to Palestinians on a mass scale. Over the past 11 months the systematic human rights violations that are a hallmark of Israel’s brutal occupation and system of apartheid have drastically intensified.
“Israel’s unprecedented onslaught against Palestinians in Gaza is exacting a deplorable toll on the civilian population, causing deaths, injuries, mass destruction of critical infrastructure, decimation of cities and successive waves of forced displacement. It has rendered Gaza virtually unlivable and plunged the Strip into one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, compounding an already dire humanitarian situation stemming from Israel’s 17-year-long illegal blockade of Gaza. In the meantime, Israel has intensified its oppressive campaign against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, through lethal military operations accompanied by extensive damage of civilian infrastructure, unlawful killings, escalation in arbitrary arrests, torture and other ill-treatment, while settler violence is spiking with impunity and displacing Palestinians.
“Implementing the UNGA’s resolution is key to restoring faith in international law. This is a critical juncture for the international community. States, including allies of Israel, must ensure Israel complies with the resolution and puts an end to its persistent disregard for international law, human rights and the historic injustices against Palestinians.
“Pending an end to Israel’s occupation, third states must immediately stop all forms of aid or assistance that help maintain the unlawful occupation, including halting arms transfers to Israel and ceasing all trade with illegal settlements.
“They must also support the establishment of the mechanisms indicated in the resolution namely, to record all damages caused by Israel’s military occupation and the one to address Israel’s violations of the Convention for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. These mechanisms must be designed and effectively resourced to hold perpetrators accountable, deliver justice to victims and put an end to Israel’s system of apartheid against all Palestinians whose rights it controls.”
Background
The UNGA resolution passed with 124 votes in favour, 43 abstentions and 14 against including the US and Israel. The resolution put forward by the State of Palestine was based on a July advisory opinion by the ICJ that said Israel’s continued presence in the OPT is illegal and that settlements should be removed as rapidly as possible.
Source: Amnesty International –
UNGA resolution passed with 124 votes in favour, 43 abstentions and 14 against including the US and Israel
The resolution was based on a July advisory opinion by the ICJ that said Israel’s continued presence in the OPT is illegal
‘For decades Israel’s unlawful occupation has brought injustice, bloodshed and suffering to Palestinians on a mass scale’ – Agnès Callamard
Responding to the news that the UN General Assembly has adopted a resolution today demanding that Israel end its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory within 12 months, in compliance with the International Court of Justice’s July advisory opinion, Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General, said:
“Today’s resolution makes crystal-clear that Israel’s 57-year occupation of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, in flagrant violation of international law, cannot be allowed to continue any longer.
“Israel must comply with the resolution immediately by withdrawing its forces from the West Bank, including illegally annexed East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip, occupied since 1967. Israel must also remove all settlers from the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and reverse its annexation, both in law and in practice.
“This resolution vindicates long-standing calls from the Palestinian people and many countries around the world by pursuing the implementation of the ICJ’s historic advisory opinion which confirmed Israel has a legal obligation to end its unlawful occupation of the OPT and its systemic discrimination against the occupied Palestinian population.
“For decades Israel’s unlawful occupation has brought injustice, bloodshed and suffering to Palestinians on a mass scale. Over the past 11 months the systematic human rights violations that are a hallmark of Israel’s brutal occupation and system of apartheid have drastically intensified.
“Israel’s unprecedented onslaught against Palestinians in Gaza is exacting a deplorable toll on the civilian population, causing deaths, injuries, mass destruction of critical infrastructure, decimation of cities and successive waves of forced displacement. It has rendered Gaza virtually unlivable and plunged the Strip into one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, compounding an already dire humanitarian situation stemming from Israel’s 17-year-long illegal blockade of Gaza.
“Israel has intensified its oppressive campaign against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank through lethal military operations accompanied by extensive damage of civilian infrastructure, unlawful killings, escalation in arbitrary arrests, torture and other ill-treatment while settler violence is spiking with impunity and displacing Palestinians.
“Implementing the UNGA’s resolution is key to restoring faith in international law. This is a critical juncture for the international community. States, including allies of Israel, must ensure Israel complies with the resolution and puts an end to its persistent disregard for international law, human rights and the historic injustices against Palestinians.
“Pending an end to Israel’s occupation, third states must immediately stop all forms of aid or assistance that help maintain the unlawful occupation, including halting arms transfers to Israel and ceasing all trade with illegal settlements.
“They must also support the establishment of the mechanisms indicated in the resolution namely, to record all damages caused by Israel’s military occupation and the one to address Israel’s violations of the Convention for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. These mechanisms must be designed and effectively resourced to hold perpetrators accountable, deliver justice to victims without and put an end to Israel’s system of apartheid against all Palestinians whose rights it controls.”
Source: Oxfam –
In response to the UNGA’s overwhelming support for a resolution providing a roadmap to implement the International Court of Justice’s recent opinion on the illegality of Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory, Oxfam’s Middle East and North Africa Director Sally Abi Khalil said:
“This historic vote has shown that the international community overwhelmingly recognises its obligations in ensuring the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and an immediate end to Israel’s illegal occupation.
“The UN Security Council must uphold its obligation to enforce this sober, responsible and detailed resolution or forever undermine any remaining credibility by flouting the legal and political opinion of the UN.”
The resolution lays out the steps necessary to implement July’s legally definitive International Court of Justice opinion that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian Territory (Gaza, East Jerusalem and the West Bank) is unlawful and must end immediately; that illegal settlers must leave; that Israel must pay reparations to Palestinians for harm caused since 1967; that no third State may provide any aid or assist Israel’s continuing crimes; and that Israel’s legislation and measures breach Article 3 of CERD, which condemns racial segregation and apartheid. The next stage is for the UNSC to adopt a resolution under Chapter VII of the UN Charter to enforce that implementation.
Source: Oxfam –
The UN Security Council (UNSC) is failing people living in conflict, with Russia and the United States particularly responsible for abusing their veto power which is blocking progress toward peace in Ukraine, Syria, and the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel.
A new Oxfam report, Vetoing Humanity, studied 23 of the world’s most protracted conflicts over the past decade, including Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Libya, Niger, the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Ukraine, Venezuela and Yemen, and found that 27 of the 30 UNSC vetoes cast on these conflicts were on OPT, Syria and Ukraine.
The report concludes that the five permanent members of the UNSC (the P5) are exploiting their exclusive voting and negotiating powers to suit their own geopolitical interests. In doing so, they have undermined the Council’s ability to maintain international peace and security.
More than a million people have been killed in these 23 conflicts alone and more than 230 million people are today in urgent need of aid – an increase of over 150 percent since 2015.
“China, France, Russia, the UK and the US took responsibility for global security at the UNSC in what is now a bygone colonial age. The contradictions of their acting as judge and jury of their own military alliances, interests and adventures are incompatible with a world seeking peace and justice for all,” said Oxfam International Executive Director Amitabh Behar.
For instance, in 2023 Russia vetoed a nine-month extension of cross-border assistance to Northern Syria which left 4.1 million people with little or no access to food, water and medicine. Russia has also used its veto four times on Ukraine, despite being an aggressor in the conflict and by UN rules should therefore be disqualified from voting.
“China, France, Russia, the UK and the US took responsibility for global security at the UNSC in what is now a bygone colonial age. The contradictions of their acting as judge and jury of their own military alliances, interests and adventures are incompatible with a world seeking peace and justice for all.”
Amitabh Behar, Oxfam International Executive Director
Oxfam International
While the UN General Assembly (UNGA) has passed at least 77 resolutions over the last decade supporting Palestinian self-determination and human rights and an end to Israel’s illegal occupation, the US has used its veto power six times to block resolutions perceived as unfavourable to its ally Israel. The US vetoes have created a permissive environment for Israel to expand illegal settlements in the Palestinian territory with impunity.
“More often than not the Security Council permanent members’ vetoes have contradicted the will of the UN General Assembly, in which all states are represented,” Behar said.
The report critiques another of the P5’s powers called “pen-holding”, which allows them to lead on negotiations and direct how resolutions are drafted and tabled, or ignored – again, too often according to their own interests.
While France and the UK have not used their veto last decade, they and the US have held the pen on two-thirds of resolutions relating to the 23 protracted crises studied by Oxfam. The UK holds the pen on Yemen, for example, where it has a colonial legacy and strategic interests to maintain the maritime routes. In 2023, Mali objected to French pen-holding given what it considered “acts of aggression and destabilization” there.
Many other initiatives are not even written up or tabled because they would inevitability be vetoed, the report says. As a result, the 23 crises studied by Oxfam are being treated in wildly different ways.
Nearly half of them have been largely neglected with fewer than five resolutions each over the last decade, including just one on Myanmar and none on Ethiopia or Venezuela.
“The erratic and self-interested behaviour of UNSC members has contributed to an explosion of humanitarian needs that is now outpacing humanitarian organizations’ ability to respond. This demands a fundamental change of our international security architecture at the very top.”
Amitabh Behar, Oxfam International Executive Director
Oxfam International
On the other hand, the UNSC has passed nearly 80 on both South Sudan and Sudan, 53 on Somalia and 48 on Libya. None have led to lasting peace. Despite the Democratic Republic of Congo having had 24 UNSC resolutions in the past 10 years, for instance, the UN mission there (MONUSCO) has been hindered by chronic underfunding and lack of coordination.
“The erratic and self-interested behaviour of UNSC members has contributed to an explosion of humanitarian needs that is now outpacing humanitarian organizations’ ability to respond. This demands a fundamental change of our international security architecture at the very top,” Behar said.
Globally, the number of people needing humanitarian assistance has risen nearly four times in the last decade, triggering massive funding needs. Between 2014 and 2023, the UN appeal has nearly tripled from $20 billion to over $56 billion – but less than half of this amount was met last year.
The report is critical of the fact that humanitarian funding remains entirely dependent upon voluntary contributions. In contrast, UN member state funding for peacekeeping operations is mandatory.
As the Summit of the Future kicks off this week to envision a revitalized UN, Oxfam calls for a wholesale reform of the UN Security Council, including the abolition of the P5’s veto power.
“We need a new vision for a UN system that meets its original ambitions and made fit for purpose for today’s reality,” Behar said. “A Council that works for the global majority not a powerful few. This starts with renouncing the veto and pen-holding privilege of the P5 and expanding membership to more countries.”
Source: Oxfam –
Oxfam leaders, experts, and partners are joining the UN 79th General Assembly, Summit of the Future, and Climate Action week in New York, hosting and attending events focused on UN Security Council Reform, gender, digital rights, inequality, climate action, and humanitarian issues. They will be urging global leaders to take bold decisions and action as they deliberate on the pressing issues of our time.
This year’s theme is “Leaving No One Behind: Acting Together for the Advancement of Peace, Sustainable Development and Human Dignity for Present and Future Generations.”
Here is an overview of Oxfam’s key events, including a press conference on a report on UN Security Council Reform, media spokespeople, and products:
“Our global systems have failed to address the unprecedented challenges we face today, leaving millions behind. Conflict is rampant, the climate crisis is at a breaking point, and inequality is soaring. As we gather at this year’s Assembly, leaders cannot squander the opportunity to restore people’s faith in the UN’s role as the flagbearer for global peace, security, and cooperation. They must move beyond mere rhetoric and make bold choices to create a system that serves all of humanity, not just the powerful few.”
Amitabh Behar, Oxfam International Executive Director
Oxfam International
Thursday, September 19: Oxfam will publish a report titled,“Vetoing Humanity,” which highlights how the five UN Security Council Permanent Member States’ (P5) have abused the veto and negotiating powers in their own geopolitical interests; and how they have paralyzed the Council’s ability to maintain international peace and security or mitigate prolonged conflicts and human suffering.
At 8:30am, Oxfam will be hosting a photo call at an art installation in Tudor City outside the UN, featuring a large dove shackled to a “veto” weight, signifying how the Security Council veto has restrained efforts for global peace. Brooklyn-based artist Miles Giordani built the installation with Oxfam.
At 11:00 am, Oxfam will also hold a press conference on the “Vetoing Humanity” report in the UN Correspondents Association briefing room.
At 5:30pm, Oxfam and other civil society organizations will be hosting a media happy hour for a chance for experts and journalists to connect. Media can RSVP here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/unga-media-civil-society-happy-hour-tickets-1009525918197
Saturday, September 21: Oxfam and partners will host a Summit of the Future Action Days Official Side Event on “Reforming the UN Security Council for an Equal and Sustainable Future” at the UN Headquarters. Speakers will include Amitabh Behar, Oxfam International Executive Director; Anne-Marie Slaughter, CEO of the New America; Ambassador Lazalous Kapambwe former Zambia Permanent Representative to the UN and 67th President of UN ECOSOC; Wameedh Shakir, Founder and Chairperson of Itar Foundation in Yemen; Augusto Lopez-Claros, Executive Director and Chair – Global Governance Forum and Ishaan Shah co-founded Stolen Dreams. Register to participate or watch the Livestream here: Reforming the UN Security Council for an Equal and Sustainable Future (Side Event, Action Day 2, Summit of the Future) | UN Web TV
Monday, September 23: Oxfam will publish “Multilateralism in an Era of Global Oligarchy: How Extreme Inequality Undermines International Cooperation,” a report highlighting how ultrawealthy individuals — often enabled by the richest countries — exert disproportionate influence over policy decision. The paper proposes the solutions needed for progress and provides new global data prepared for UNGA. On Thursday, September 26, a joint event with the Ford Foundation will outline key aspects the report; the panelists will include: Oxfam International Executive Director Amitabh Behar; Ronald Lamola, South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation; and Nanjala Nyabola, Kenyan writer, researcher, and political analyst; moderated by The Washington Post’s Karen Attiah.
Oxfam will be making statements regarding Summit of the Future outcomes, Heads of State Speeches during the High-Level Debate and other developments throughout.
Wameedh Shakir, Chairwoman of Itar Foundation for Social Development in Yemen; Yemen, Gender, UN Reform
Wednesday, September 18:
YEMEN JOINT NGO BRIEFING NOTE: Humanitarian Situation and Funding in Yemen on the Occasion of the 79th United Nations General Assembly
Thursday, September 19:
OXFAM JOINT CIVIL SOCIETY MEDIA HAPPY HOUR: Oxfam and civil society partners are hosting a happy hour to connect policy experts with media. Media RSVP: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/unga-media-civil-society-happy-hour-tickets-1009525918197
TIME: 5:30-8:30pm
LOCATION: The Stag’s Head, 252 E 51st Street (at 2nd Avenue)
Friday, September 20:
OXFAM STATEMENT: Oxfam will issue a statement ahead of President Biden’s address at the General Debate
Tuesday, September 24:
ABOUT OXFAM
Oxfam is a global organization that fights inequality to end poverty and injustice and will highlight the urgent need in tackling the intersections of rising inequality, humanitarian emergencies, and the climate crisis.
Source: Amnesty International –
Amnesty International’s Secretary General Agnès Callamard will be in New York for the opening of the high-level General Debate of the 79th Session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) and participating in the Summit of The Future. She will be available for interviews in New York City from 20 to 24 September, and can respond to developments during UNGA, as well as the ongoing conflicts in Gaza, Sudan, and Ukraine. Her opinion piece on the Summit of the Future, “We must act globally to safeguard the future of humanity,” was recently published in Newsweek.
“This year’s General Assembly and the Summit of the Future are being presented as a historic opportunity for world leaders to plot a course to a safer, fairer and greener world. To meet this ambitious goal, firm commitments and bold thinking are required. As they gather in New York, leaders must ask themselves whether this will be yet another meeting where they simply talk about greater co-operation and consensus, or whether they will show the imagination and conviction to actually forge it. With multiple crises around the world, a growing climate emergency, and a breaking down of the multilateral order, there is a very small window for leaders to acknowledge these issues and take collective action to fix them for the common good of humanity. If they miss this opportunity, I shudder to think of the consequences. Our collective future is at stake,” said Agnès Callamard.
“For Amnesty International, there is only one acceptable pathway to the future: that which is paved with universal and indivisible human rights. And there is only one acceptable destination: the sustainable equal dignity of all persons as rightsholders.”
Agnès Callamard will be hosting several meetings, including with State representatives and human rights defenders. She will be speaking at events on “UNMuting” civil society at intergovernmental level, on the importance of fomenting inclusive and participatory governance, and on the need for global tax reform and a rights-based economy that can deliver a sustainable future. She is available to discuss these and other priority issues, including the consolidation of authoritarian practices in countries like Tunisia and Venezuela; the need for stricter regulation of new technologies that pose a threat to human rights; the lacklustre global response to the climate crisis and worsening environmental devastation; and the relentless war on women, from assaults on abortion rights to the systemic oppression and discrimination in Afghanistan and Iran.
For Amnesty International, there is only one acceptable pathway to the future: that which is paved with universal and indivisible human rights.
Amnesty International’s Secretary General Agnès Callamard
Source: BNZ statements
On Valentine’s Day eve, BNZ is warning Kiwis to be wary of scammers with its customers reporting a 43% increase in relationship and romance scams over the past year.
“There were 167 reported cases in 2023 – and they’re only the ones that we know about as many of these sorts of scams go unreported,” says BNZ’s Head of Financial Crime Ashley Kai Fong.
This is up from 117 reported cases in 2022.
“This shows that despite the headline grabbing nature of these types of scams, relationship scams are still very fertile ground criminals are using to exploit vulnerable Kiwis,” says Kai Fong.
Relationship scams are a type of fraud where criminals pretend to be interested in a relationship with another person, sometimes for romance and occasionally simply for companionship, most commonly online, and then victims are conned out of their money or tricked into sharing personal details.
“All scams can be devastating for victims, but relationship scams are particularly heinous given the time criminals invest in building the relationship with their victims. It can be months before the scammer hints or asks directly for money. They steal your heart, then they steal your money,” says Kai Fong.
In a recent romance scam case, Barry (details have been changed) came to a BNZ branch wanting help to make an international payment to Italy. Barry revealed that the funds were going to his girlfriend’s friend for an airline ticket to New Zealand. They had been dating online for almost a year and he recently started sending his “girlfriend” money. The girlfriend had asked for the money to be sent to her “friend’s account” as her friend had the credit card to purchase the airline ticket.
“There is so much social engineering involved in romance scam cases, and victims often don’t believe that they are caught up in a scam. That is what has happened in this case. Barry refused to believe this was a scam and despite being warned of the risks, he sent the money,” says Kai Fong.
In another case, romance scam victim Sally (details have been changed) believed she was sending money to her US Army surgeon boyfriend stationed in Syria. But Sally’s “boyfriend” said he couldn’t access his bank account due to a poor internet connection and needed the money urgently to fly to NZ. This customer had already sent considerable funds to her “boyfriend” from a number of banks, despite being warned of the risks. The funds for the latest transaction were the proceeds of a personal loan from a finance company.
“As in this case, criminals can go to great lengths to provide evidence to support their fake personas,” says Kai Fong.
“They set up bogus social media profiles, and often share doctored documents such as boarding passes or letters from fake employers. While relationship scams primarily involve romantic relationships, criminals can also exploit friendships built up online too.
“So, while we’ve got an eye out for red roses this Valentine’s Day, and I know it’s not very romantic, my plea is that New Zealanders keep an eye out for the red flags of romance scams this year too.”
How to recognise a romance scam:
Top tips to protect yourself from romance scams:
The post From red roses to red flags – BNZ warns of increase in relationship scams ahead of Valentine’s Day appeared first on BNZ Debrief.
MIL Analysis : Here are the top five Russian language articles published today. The analysis consists of five articles that are currently being prioritised.
In today’s analysis, trends such as the economic performance of the Moscow Exchange are noticeable. In addition, the Moscow Metro has unveiled a new mock-up of the White Gyrfalcon train for the high-speed railway, which contributes to future trends and railway development. The new trend of ‘Chrono-work’ is gaining more and more popularity, which shows how the workforce can change. The training and culture of society is stable and improving.
You can read one of the articles below.
1. Financial news: ‘Portfolio’ of a student: shares take 66% in the portfolios of young investors
Moscow Exchange has compiled an investment portfolio of ‘student’ on the stock market – the analysis was carried out among private investors aged 18 to 22 years, making transactions on the stock market of the Moscow Exchange.
The most popular among young investors are shares. According to Moscow Exchange data, 66 per cent of the student’s ‘portfolio’ is held by shares, 22 per cent by bonds, and 12 per cent by units of investment funds. At the same time, the average market share of shares in investors’ portfolios is at the level of 35%.
Moscow Metro
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin presented a model of the newest Russian train ‘White Gyrfalcon’ for the high-speed railway Moscow – St. Petersburg, the project initiated by Russian President Vladimir Putin, at the exhibition ‘Manezh Station: Moscow Transport 2030’. The train will reach speeds of up to 400 kilometres per hour.
3. ‘Rosneft’ opened a master’s programme for foreign students in Ufa
The Rosneft Scientific Institute in Ufa has opened a Master’s programme for international students on the basis of the Ufa State Petroleum Technical University (USPTU) in Petroleum Engineering. The first students of the programme were 10 applicants from Egypt, Nigeria and Cameroon.
4. The ‘Street of the Far East’ exhibition opened on the starting day of the WEF
‘We are reopening the ‘Street of the Far East’ together again. It was born 9 years ago as a dream that we could show the vast Far East in one place, all the 11 regions that are quite different. Every year we show new projects at the exhibition: roads, hospitals, social and economic initiatives aimed at improving the quality of life of Far Easterners – everything about how our Far East is developing. We tell you what we are dreaming of and what we are achieving. I am confident that with our joint efforts we will achieve all our goals,’ said Yury Trutnev, Deputy Prime Minister and Presidential Plenipotentiary Envoy to the Far Eastern Federal District.
Robert Walters
Experts talk about a new trend that has the potential to change the way the workforce is used to working.
Almost half of respondents believe that being able to choose their own working hours would have a positive impact on their mental health
35% of people feel that their organisation’s flexible working hours policy does not meet their specific needs.
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Source: IMF – News in Russian
September 5, 2024
Washington, DC: With the successful launch of the new data portal, the National Summary Data Page (NSDP) today, Bahrain has implemented a key recommendation of the IMF’s Enhanced General Data Dissemination System (e-GDDS) to publish essential macroeconomic and financial data. The e-GDDS is the first tier of the IMF Data Standards Initiatives that promote transparency as a global public good and encourage countries to voluntarily publish timely data that is essential for monitoring and analyzing economic performance.
The implementation of the e-GDDS recommendations and the launch of the new data portal – are a testament to Bahrain’s commitment to data transparency. The publication of the data through the NSDP will enable national decision-makers, domestic and international stakeholders, investors, and rating agencies to have easy access to information that the IMF’s Executive Board has identified as essential for monitoring a country’s economic and financial developments. More broadly, having data in line with the e-GDDS means it should be accessible in a standardized way to facilitate analysis of economic trends across countries and to provide an early detection of risks to help avert economic crises, thus supporting sustainable economic growth and development.
Bert Kroese, Chief Statistician and Data Officer, and Director of the IMF’s Statistics Department, welcomed this major milestone in the country’s statistical development. “I am confident that Bahrain will benefit from using the e-GDDS as a framework for further development of its statistical system,” Mr. Kroese stated. The benefits, including better sovereign financing conditions for countries participating in the e-GDDS, have recently been reviewed by the IMF Executive Board in the context of the Tenth Review of the IMF Data Standards Initiatives.
The NSDP will serve as a one-stop publication for disseminating data covering national accounts and prices, government operations and debt, the monetary and financial sector, and the external sector. Making this information easily accessible in one place and following a predetermined schedule, including in a format that allows machine-to-machine readability and transfer, will enable all users to simultaneously access timely data, ensuring greater transparency.
A link to Bahrain’s NSDP is available on the IMF’s Dissemination Standards Bulletin Board. The data is provided by the Ministry of Finance and National Economy, the Central Bank of Bahrain, and the Information and eGovernment Authority. Today’s launch of the NSDP shows the country’s commitment to subscribe to the Special Data Dissemination Standard (SDDS) in the near future.
PRESS OFFICER: Mayada Ghazala
Phone: +1 202 623-7100Email: MEDIA@IMF.org
https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2024/09/05/pr-24318-bahrain-bahrain-implements-imfs-enhanced-general-data-dissemination-system
Source: USAID
Today, USAID joined consumer goods multinational companies PepsiCo, Unilever, Danone, McCormick & Company, and Nespresso in launching a new public-private partnership that aims to accelerate gender equality and enhance environmental sustainability in agricultural supply chains. The new initiative, Advancing Women for Resilient Agricultural Supply Chains, aligns with the Women in the Sustainable Economy (WISE) initiative – a partnership launched by Vice President Kamala Harris in 2023 to bolster women’s economic security in sectors that address climate change.
With a planned, collective investment of $50 million to start – including over $11 million of USAID funding – this new agricultural supply chain initiative will help catalyze industry-level change through learning, scaling, and providing evidence on how supporting women in agricultural supply chains can help deliver environmental sustainability goals. The initiative will drive scale by bringing in new organizations and additional funds, with a total target of $90 million over the next five years.
In parallel, USAID also welcomed the Skoll Foundation as the newest partner to WISE through its support of the USAID-led Climate Gender Equity Fund – a public-private partnership with Amazon, Reckitt, the UPS Foundation, and the Visa Foundation that seeks to increase access to climate finance for women-led and women-benefiting organizations working at the forefront of climate action. Three of its newest grantees – Altree Capital, The Rallying Cry, and Villgro Philippines – were also announced.
Finally, Acumen, Germany, Heading for Change, the Republic of Cyprus, and the United Kingdom announced $339 million in new aligned commitments to advance the WISE Initiative through their independent efforts that advance WISE objectives. The Millennium Challenge Corporation, the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, and the U.S. Department of Energy announced $289 million in additional aligned U.S. government commitments to the WISE initiative. In all, today’s announcements total $681 million in direct and aligned commitments – bringing the collective commitment of 33 governments, corporations, foundations, and civil society organizations to a total of over $2 billion towards the WISE Initiative.
For more information about the WISE Initiative, please visit ClimateLinks or email wise@usaid.gov.
Advancing Women for Resilient Agricultural Supply Chains Women in the Sustainable Economy WISE