The Latest: Trump says US and Iranian officials will talk next week as ceasefire holds
Trump, who helped negotiate the ceasefire that took hold Tuesday on the 12th day of the war, told reporters at a NATO summit that he wasn't particularly interested in restarting negotiations with Iran, insisting that U.S. strikes had destroyed its nuclear program.
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Globe and Mail
an hour ago
- Globe and Mail
Trump expects final decision on Hamas peace proposal in 24 hours
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday it would probably be known in 24 hours whether the Palestinian militant group Hamas has agreed to accept what he has called a 'final proposal' for an Israel-Hamas ceasefire in Gaza. The president also said he had spoken to Saudi Arabia about expanding the Abraham Accords, the deal on normalization of ties that his administration negotiated between Israel and some Gulf countries during his first term. Trump said on Tuesday Israel had accepted the conditions needed to finalize a 60-day ceasefire with Hamas, during which the parties will work to end the war. He was asked on Friday if Hamas had agreed to the latest ceasefire deal framework, and said: 'We'll see what happens, we are going to know over the next 24 hours.' A source close to Hamas said on Thursday the Islamist group sought guarantees that the new U.S.-backed ceasefire proposal would lead to the end of Israel's war in Gaza. 94 Palestinians killed in air strikes and shootings in Gaza, including 45 people waiting for aid, authorities say Hamas seeks ceasefire guarantees as Israeli strikes kill dozens more people Two Israeli officials said those details were still being worked out. Dozens of Palestinians were killed on Thursday in Israeli strikes, according to Gaza authorities. The latest bloodshed in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict was triggered in October 2023 when Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1,200 and taking about 250 hostages, Israeli tallies show. Gaza's health ministry says Israel's subsequent military assault has killed over 56,000 Palestinians. It has also caused a hunger crisis, internally displaced Gaza's entire population and prompted accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice and of war crimes at the International Criminal Court. Israel denies the accusations. A previous two month ceasefire ended when Israeli strikes killed more than 400 Palestinians on March 18. Trump earlier this year proposed a U.S. takeover of Gaza, which was condemned globally by rights experts, the U.N. and Palestinians as a proposal of 'ethnic cleansing.' Trump made the comments on the Abraham Accords when asked about U.S. media reporting late on Thursday that he had met Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman at the White House. 'It's one of the things we talked about,' Trump said. 'I think a lot of people are going to be joining the Abraham accords,' he added, citing the predicted expansion to the damage faced by Iran from recent U.S. and Israeli strikes. Axios reported that after the meeting with Trump, the Saudi official spoke on the phone with Abdolrahim Mousavi, chief of Iran's General Staff of the Armed Forces. Trump's meeting with the Saudi official came ahead of a visit to Washington next week by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Toronto Star
2 hours ago
- Toronto Star
A year before declaring independence, colonists offered ‘Olive Branch' petition to King George III
NEW YORK (AP) — Alarmed by the policies of President Donald Trump, millions turned out last month for protests around the United States and overseas. Mindful of next year's 250th anniversary of American independence, organizers called the movement 'No Kings.'
Winnipeg Free Press
3 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
The Baha'i faith is small, far-flung, and faced with repression in parts of the Middle East
The Baha'i faith — a small but global religion with an interfaith credo — fits comfortably into the religious spectrum of most countries. In several Middle East nations, however, Baha'i followers face repression that is drawing criticism from human rights groups. The abuse is most evident in Iran, which bans the faith and has been widely accused of persecuting its adherents, human rights advocates say. They also report systemic discrimination in Yemen, Qatar and Egypt. Iran has been a driving force in the spread of anti-Baha'i repression in countries where it holds influence, advocates say — a plan first made public in a leaked 1991 government document. These include Yemen, where Iran backs Houthi rebels who control much of the country, and Qatar, where links include co-ownership of the world's largest natural gas field. 'The sheer arsenal the Iranian government has expended to crush the Baha'is in every avenue of life has been astronomical,' said Nazila Ghanea, an Oxford University law professor and U.N. Special Rapporteur on religious freedom. 'It has also extended its reach, time and again, beyond the border of Iran,' she said. Anti-Baha'i discrimination includes forced deportations and family separations, as well as denial of marriage licenses, public school enrollment and access to burial grounds. In Qatar, the leader of the small Baha'i community has been detained since April. Remy Rowhani, 71, went on trial last month, charged with 'promoting the ideology of a deviant sect' on the country's Baha'i social media account. A far-flung faith The Baha'i faith was founded in the 1860s by Baha'u'llah, a Persian nobleman considered a prophet by his followers. He taught that all religions represent progressive stages in the revelation of God's will, leading to the unity of all people and faiths. There are no Baha'i clergy. Communities are organized through elected local spiritual assemblies. From the faith's earliest days, it was denounced by Shiite Muslim clerics in what is now Iran; they considered followers apostates. That repression continued after Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution, when many Baha'i followers were executed or went missing. There are less than 8 million believers worldwide, with the largest number in India. The faith is present in most countries. Michael Page of Human Rights Watch described Iran as 'a guiding animus against Baha'is because it perceived them as antithetical to the regime's own interpretation of Shia Islam.' 'This is an authoritarian government that brutally cracks down on people who don't agree with it,' Page told The Associated Press. 'The hate speech directed at them is so at odds with the Baha'i faith tradition, it would feel laughable if the consequences weren't so serious.' Not all Muslim countries are hostile. Saba Haddad, the Baha'i International Community's representative to the U.N. in Geneva, cited Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Tunisia as welcoming. 'We are the measure of tolerance — for any government, any country,' she said. 'We don't have any political stance, we don't interfere with politics, we don't have a Baha'i country. It's truly about … tolerance and acceptance.' Baha'i leader faces Qatar trial Rowhani has been detained since April 28 in what Human Rights Watch denounces as a violation of religious freedom reflecting long-running discrimination against Baha'i believers. He faces up to three years in prison. His trial is recessed until Aug. 6. Rowhani's daughter, Noora Rowhani, who lives in Australia with her husband and 9-year-old daughter, said she hasn't been able to speak to her father since a brief call before his arrest. 'As for why Qatar is doing this, I ask myself that every day,' she told AP. 'A country that brands itself as a leader on the world stage, hosting global conferences and sporting events, cannot justify the quiet targeting of its citizens … just because they belong to a different faith.' Qatar's International Media Office didn't respond to an AP email seeking comment about Rowhani's case or accusations of systemic abuse of Baha'i followers. Rowhani — former head of Qatar's Chamber of Commerce — was jailed twice before, accused of offenses like routine fundraising related to his leadership of Qatar's Baha'i National Assembly. The latest charge involves the sect's X account, which contains posts about Qatari holidays and Baha'i writings. 'These new charges highlight the lengths to which the authorities in Qatar are prepared to go to erase the Baha'is from their country,' said lawyers Helena Kennedy and Steven Powles of Doughty Street Chambers law firm — founded by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer — which is assisting in Rowhani's defense. Bias in Egypt and Yemen Since 1960, Egypt's government has denied legal recognition to its small Baha'i community. This includes denying marriage licenses and birth certificates, barring children from public schools and restricting where Baha'i families can bury their dead. The Baha'i International Community issued a statement in November decrying 'intensification of the persecution.' Egypt's Foreign Ministry didn't respond to AP queries about the accusations. In Yemen, 100-plus Baha'i followers have been detained by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, according to Amnesty International. Keyvan Ghaderi, 52, was imprisoned for four years on charges including spying for the U.S. and Israel. He was released in 2020 and deported without being allowed to see his wife and children. Sundays Kevin Rollason's Sunday newsletter honouring and remembering lives well-lived in Manitoba. Eventually, Ghaderi was granted a humanitarian visa to the U.S. He lives with his family in Salt Lake City. Ghaderi attributed the Houthis' animosity to fear of change. 'They had this fear that we'd change ideas in Yemen, in the middle of civil war … that we might change the narrative of young generations going to war,' he said. ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
