Trump says if Iran attacks, ‘full strength' of US military will ‘come down'
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Al Arabiya
34 minutes ago
- Al Arabiya
Nearly 700,000 Afghans driven out of Iran return to uncertain future
Hajjar Shademani's family waited for hours in the heat and dust after crossing the border into Afghanistan, their neat pile of suitcases all that remained of a lifetime in Iran after being deported to their homeland. The 19-year-old and her three siblings are among tens of thousands of Afghans who have crossed the Islam Qala border point in recent days, the majority forced to leave, according to the United Nations and Taliban authorities. Despite being born in Iran after her parents fled war 40 years ago, Shademani said the country 'never accepted us.' When police came to her family's home in Shiraz city and ordered them to leave, they had no choice. But Afghanistan is also alien to her. 'We don't have anything here,' she told AFP in English. Between Iranian universities that would not accept her and the Taliban government, which has banned education for women, Shademani's studies are indefinitely on hold. 'I really love studying... I wanted to continue but in Afghanistan, I think I cannot.' At Herat province's Islam Qala crossing, the checkpoint is usually busy handling everything from smuggling to deportation as young men seek work in Iran. But since Tehran ordered Afghans without the right to remain to leave by July 6, the number of returnees—especially families—has surged. More than 230,000 departed in June alone, the United Nations International Organization for Migration (IOM) said. Since January, more than 690,000 Afghans have left Iran, '70 percent of whom were forcibly sent back,' IOM spokesperson Avand Azeez Agha told AFP. Of the more than a dozen returnees AFP spoke to, none said they had fled the recent Iran–Israel conflict, though it may have ramped up pressure. Arrests, however, had helped spur their departures. Yadullah Alizada had only the clothes on his back and a cracked phone to call his family when he stepped off one of the many buses unloading people at the IOM-run reception center. The 37-year-old said he was arrested while working as a day laborer and held at a detention camp before being deported to Afghanistan. Forced to leave without his family or belongings, he slept on a bit of cardboard at the border, determined to stay until his family could join him. 'My three kids are back there, they're all sick right now, and they don't know how to get here.' He hopes to find work in his home province of Daikundi, but in a country wracked by entrenched poverty and unemployment, he faces an uphill climb. The UN mission for Afghanistan, UNAMA, has warned that the influx of deportees—many arriving with 'no assets, limited access to services, and no job prospects'—risks further destabilizing the crisis-wracked country. Long lines snaked into tents encircling the reception center where returnees accessed UN, NGO, and government services. Gusty wind whipped women's Iranian-style hijabs and young men's trendy outfits, clothing that stood out against the shalwar kameez that has become ubiquitous in Afghanistan since the Taliban swept to power in 2021, imposing their strict interpretation of Islamic law. Deputy Prime Minister Abdul Salam Hanafi inspected the site on Saturday, striding through the crowd surrounded by a heavily armed entourage and pledging to ensure 'that no Afghan citizen is denied their rights in Iran' and that seized or abandoned assets would be returned. Taliban authorities have consistently called for 'dignified' treatment of the migrants and refugees hosted in Iran and Pakistan, the latter having also ousted hundreds of thousands of Afghans since the latest decades-long war ended. Over one million Afghans have already returned to Afghanistan this year from both neighboring countries. The numbers are only expected to rise, even as foreign aid is slashed and the Taliban government struggles for cash and international recognition. The IOM said it can only serve a fraction of the returnees, with four million Afghans potentially impacted by Iran's deadline. Some of the most vulnerable pass through the agency's transit center in Herat city, where they can get a hot meal, a night's rest, and assistance on their way. But at the clean and shaded compound, Bahara Rashidi was still worried about what would become of her and her eight sisters back in Afghanistan. They had smuggled themselves into Iran to make a living after their father died. 'There is no man in our family who can work here, and we don't have a home or money,' the 19-year-old told AFP. 'We have nothing.'
Al Arabiya
34 minutes ago
- Al Arabiya
Israel's defense chief threatens to retaliate for Houthi missiles
Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz vowed to retaliate against Iran-aligned Houthi militia after his country's military intercepted a missile launched from Yemen toward Israeli territory. 'The fate of Yemen is the same as that of Tehran,' Katz said in a statement, referring to last month's 12-day conflict during which Israel targeted Iran's nuclear and missile programs. 'After striking the head of the snake in Tehran, we will also strike the Houthis in Yemen. Whoever raises a hand against Israel—that hand will be cut off,' the statement said. The Houthi militia claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement released late on Tuesday. Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said the group carried out four operations targeting an airport and other 'sensitive' Israeli targets. Israel has threatened the Houthi militia—which has been attacking Israel in what it says is solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza—with a naval and air blockade if its attacks on Israel persist. Since the start of Israel's war in Gaza in October 2023, the Houthis, who control most of Yemen, have been firing at Israel and at shipping in the Red Sea, disrupting global trade. Most of the dozens of missiles and drones they have launched have been intercepted or fallen short. Israel has carried out a series of retaliatory strikes. Mike Huckabee, US President Donald Trump's ambassador to Israel, posted on X: 'We thought we were done with missiles coming to Israel, but Houthis just lit one up over us in Israel. Fortunately, Israel's incredible interception system means we go to the shelter & wait until all clear. Maybe those B2 bombers need to visit Yemen!'
Al Arabiya
an hour ago
- Al Arabiya
Deal or no deal: What happens with Trump's July tariff deadline?
A week before US President Donald Trump reimposes steep tariffs on dozens of economies, including the EU and Japan, many are still scrambling to reach a deal that would protect them from the worst. The tariffs taking effect July 9 are part of a package Trump imposed in April citing a lack of 'reciprocity' in trading ties. He slapped a 10 percent levy on most partners, with higher customized rates to kick in later in countries the United States has major trade deficits with. But these were halted until July to allow room for negotiations. Analysts expect countries will encounter one of three outcomes: they could reach a framework for an agreement; receive an extended pause on higher tariffs; or see levies surge. 'There will be a group of deals that we will land before July 9,' said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent last Friday on CNBC. Policymakers have not named countries in this group, although Bessent maintains that Washington has been focused on striking deals with about 18 key partners. 'Vietnam, India and Taiwan remain promising candidates for a deal,' Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI) Vice President Wendy Cutler told AFP. Without a deal, Vietnam's 'reciprocal tariff' rises from the baseline of 10 percent to 46 percent, India's to 26 percent, and Taiwan's to 32 percent. Josh Lipsky, international economics chair at the Atlantic Council, cited Indian negotiators' extension of their US trip recently in noting that it 'seems like a frontrunner.' 'Japan was in that category, but things have set back a little,' Lipsky said, referring to Trump's criticism Monday over what the president called Japan's reluctance to accept US rice exports. The deals, however, will unlikely be full-fledged trade pacts, analysts said, citing complexities in negotiating such agreements. Since April, Washington has only announced a pact with Britain and a deal to temporarily lower tit-for-tat duties with China. Bessent has also said that countries 'negotiating in good faith' can have their tariffs remain at the 10 percent baseline. But extensions of the pause on higher rates would depend on Trump, he added. 'With a new government, (South) Korea looks well positioned to secure an extension,' Cutler of ASPI said. Lipsky expects many countries to fall into this bucket, receiving an extended halt on higher tariffs that could last until Labor Day, which falls on September 1. Bessent earlier said that Washington could wrap up its agenda for trade deals by Labor Day, a signal that more agreements could be concluded but with talks likely to extend past July. For countries that the United States finds 'recalcitrant,' however, tariffs could spring back to the higher levels Trump previously announced, Bessent has warned. These range from 11 percent to 50 percent. Cutler warned that 'Japan's refusal to open its rice market, coupled with the US resistance to lowering automotive tariffs, may lead to the reimposition of Japan's 24 percent reciprocal tariff.' Trump himself said Tuesday that a trade deal was unlikely with Japan and the country could pay a tariff of '30 percent, 35 percent, or whatever the number is that we determine.' Lipsky believes the European Union is at risk of having tariffs snap back to steeper levels too—to the 20 percent unveiled in April or the 50 percent Trump more recently threatened. An area of tension could be Europe's approach to digital regulation. Trump recently said he would terminate trade talks with Canada—which is not impacted by the July 9 deadline—in retaliation for the country's digital services tax, which Ottawa eventually said it would rescind. This week, EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic is in Washington in a push to seal a trade deal, with the EU Commission having received early drafts of proposals that officials are working on.
