AFP Asia Business

The armed wing of Palestinian militant group Hamas handed over a US-Israeli hostage held in Gaza since October 2023 on Monday, ahead of a regional visit by US President Donald Trump.”The (Ezzedine) Al-Qassam Brigades have just released the Zionist soldier and American citizen Edan Alexander, following contacts with the US administration, as part of the efforts undertaken by mediators to achieve a ceasefire,” Hamas said in a statement.Israel’s military said he was back inside Israel to be “reunited with his family”.Flag-waving crowds gathered to greet the convoy carrying Alexander, and in Tenafly, New Jersey, where he grew up, large crowds celebrated his release.Close friends and family chanted his name and applauded at the news that Alexander had been freed, footage released by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum showed.The Israeli army later said he was being taken by helicopter to a hospital where he would “receive medical treatment” and “be reunited with other members of his family”.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed Alexander’s return, adding: “The Government of Israel is committed to the return of all hostages and missing persons — both the living and the fallen.”He credited “political pressure” from Trump and “our military pressure” for the release.The Forum in a statement urged Netanyahu to say he was “ready to negotiate a comprehensive agreement” to bring home all the hostages.Meirav Etrogbar, 52, a volunteer at the Forum, told AFP: “They should stop the war and bring all the hostages back home in a deal, not military pressure.”- ‘Intensification of fighting’ -Alexander’s release comes a day after Hamas revealed it was engaged in direct talks with Washington towards a Gaza ceasefire.”We affirm that serious and responsible negotiations yield results in the release of prisoners, while the continuation of aggression prolongs their suffering and may kill them,” a Hamas statement said.”We urge President Trump’s administration to continue its efforts to end this brutal war.” Alexander was the last living hostage in Gaza with American citizenship. His release came with Trump heading for Saudi Arabia on the first leg of a regional tour.On Monday, Netanyahu thanked Trump “for his assistance in the release”, and also said he had instructed a negotiating team to head to Qatar on Tuesday to discuss the further release of hostages.Netanyahu earlier said “Israel has not committed to a ceasefire of any kind or the release of terrorists but only to a safe corridor that will allow for the release of Edan”.Negotiations for a possible deal to secure the release of all hostages would continue “under fire, during preparations for an intensification of the fighting”, he added.Meanwhile, the UN- and NGO-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) warned Monday that Gaza was at “critical risk of famine”, with 22 percent of the population facing an imminent humanitarian “catastrophe” after more than two months of a total aid blockade by Israel.Ahead of Alexander’s release, a Hamas source said that mediators informed the group that Israel would halt military operations for the handover of the 21-year-old soldier.The pause offered a much-needed respite for residents of the war-battered territory.Somaya Abu Al-Kas, 34, who had been displaced to the southern city of Khan Yunis, said that “calm settled over Gaza, there was no shelling, and no nearby aircraft, which is very rare”.But Um Mohammed Zomlot, 50, also displaced in Khan Yunis, said: “Everyone is afraid that the shelling might resume suddenly after the prisoner is released.”Gaza’s civil defence agency earlier reported at least 10 killed in an overnight Israeli strike on a school housing displaced people.- ‘Good faith gesture’ -After Hamas announced Sunday it would release Alexander, Trump hailed the “monumental news” in a post on social media, describing it as a “good faith gesture”.”Hopefully this is the first of those final steps necessary to end this brutal conflict,” he added.Egypt and Qatar, which along with the United States have mediated talks between Hamas and Israel, called it “an encouraging step toward a return to the negotiating table” in a joint statement.Of the 251 hostages seized during Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, 57 are still held in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.Israel ended a two-month ceasefire on March 18, ramping up its bombardment of the territory.Earlier this month, Israel’s government approved plans to expand its Gaza offensive, with officials talking of retaining a long-term presence there.Hamas’s 2023 attack on southern Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said Monday at least 2,749 people have been killed since Israel resumed its campaign, bringing the overall death toll since the war broke out to 52,862.burs-acc/srm/dcp/fec

The United States and China announced Monday an agreement to drastically reduce tit-for-tat tariffs for 90 days, an outcome President Donald Trump dubbed a “total reset” as he said talks with counterpart Xi Jinping could soon follow.After the first meetings between Washington and Beijing since Trump ratcheted up his trade war, the world’s two biggest …

US, China agree to slash tariffs as Trump says will speak to Xi Read More »

US President Donald Trump on Monday angrily dismissed concerns over his plans to receive a jet from Qatar to be used as Air Force One, saying it would be “stupid” not to accept such a gift.The offer from Qatar’s royal family to donate the $400 million 747-8 to be used as the US presidential plane raised major questions about ethics and security, but Trump played them down.”It’s a great gesture,” the 78-year-old billionaire told reporters at the White House when asked if the oil-rich Gulf state would expect anything in exchange.”I would never be one to turn down that kind of an offer. I mean, I could be a stupid person (and) say ‘no we don’t want a free, very expensive airplane.'”Qatar’s offer came after Trump repeatedly complained of delays and cost overruns in aerospace giant Boeing’s contract to provide two new Air Force One jets to replace the current aging models.Trump responded particularly angrily when asked if he would use the jet in a personal capacity after he left the presidency.”You should be embarrassed asking that question,” Trump told a reporter. “They’re giving us a free jet. I could say, no, no, no, don’t give us I want to pay you $1 billion or $400 million, or whatever it is. Or I could say, thank you very much.”Trump said that instead it would be donated to his future presidential library as an exhibit, in the same way that Ronald Reagan’s library holds a former Air Force One jet.- ‘Nuclear-grade graft’ -Qatar swiftly sought to downplay the uproar, saying the jet would not be a gift.”The possible transfer of an aircraft for temporary use as Air Force One is currently under consideration between Qatar’s Ministry of Defense and the US Department of Defense,” said Ali Al-Ansari, Qatar’s media attache to Washington.But the plan has raised major ethical questions, as the US Constitution prohibits government officials from accepting gifts “from any King, Prince or foreign State.”It has also raised deep security concerns about using a plane donated by a foreign power for use as the ultra-sensitive Air Force One. The jet is designed to serve as a mobile command center for the president in case of an attack on America.Democrats slammed the plan.”Any president who accepts this kind of gift, valued at $400 million, from a foreign government creates a clear conflict of interest,” said a statement by four members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.The statement by Senators Cory Booker, Brian Schatz, Chris Coons and Chris Murphy said it also “raises serious national security questions, invites foreign influence, and undermines public trust in our government.” Murphy said separately that he would also block any arms sale to a “nation that is doing direct personal business with Trump,” describing Qatar’s proposed gift as “nuclear-grade graft.”- ‘Utmost transparency’ -Trump and the White House however claim the Qatari jet would be a gift to the US Department of Defense, which would also get around constitutional concerns.White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Qatar had “graciously offered” to donate a plane to the Pentagon but that the “legal details of that are still being worked out.””Any donation to this government is always done in full compliance with the law, and we commit ourselves to the utmost transparency, and we will continue to do that,” she told Fox News.Trump has long been unhappy with the current Air Force One jets — two highly customized Boeing 747-200B series aircraft that entered service in 1990 under president George H.W. Bush.Earlier this year Trump said his administration was “looking at alternatives” to Boeing following delays in the delivery of two new 747-8 aircraft.Trump also has a model of the future Air Force One in his handpicked red, white and blue colors on the coffee table in the Oval Office, in front of where he sits with foreign leaders.

It is arguably the world’s most iconic plane, an instantly recognizable symbol of the US presidency. But now Air Force One — like many other American institutions once considered sacred — is getting the Donald Trump treatment.- A name, not a plane – Technically Air Force One is the callsign for whichever US Air Force plane, no matter how small, is carrying the US president.But most people identify it with the two heavily modified versions of the Boeing 747-200 jet liner that usually shuttle the US president around the world.The two current models, called the VC-25A in military speak, both entered service in 1990 during the presidency of George H.W. Bush.With its classic blue and white livery the current jumbo jet has become so famous that it even spawned a Hollywood thriller named after it, starring Harrison Ford.Sometimes presidents use smaller planes based on Boeing 757s for shorter flights, dubbed “Baby Air Force One.”- Presidential suite -“Big Air Force One” boasts luxury features fit for a commander-in-chief.The president himself has a large suite that includes an office with leather chairs and a polished wooden desk — a space Trump used for a press conference to sign a proclamation renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.A medical suite on board can also function as an operating room, should the worst happen.There are special cabins for senior advisors, Secret Service members and 13 traveling press. It has two galleys that can feed 100 people at a time, all on specially branded crockery.- Special features – But the plane’s main role is keeping the US president safe.Inflight refueling capability means it can stay in the air almost indefinitely.A hardened electronics system protects against electromagnetic pulses — whether from nuclear explosions or hostile jammers — “allowing the aircraft to function as a mobile command center in the event of an attack on the United States,” the White House said.Those communications also keep Trump constantly in touch with the ground — and able to send social media posts in mid-air.The jet also has top secret air defenses, according to aviation specialists.These reportedly include countermeasures that can jam enemy radars and infrared tracking systems, plus dispensers for chaff — metal shavings that distract radar-guided missiles — and flares that blind heat-seeking missiles.- Historic roles – Inevitably, Air Force One has also played its role in history.The first specially-designed jets were brought in by John F. Kennedy in 1962, using modified Boeing 707s. One of those jets brought Kennedy’s body back to Washington after his assassination in Dallas in 1963.Then in 2001, George W. Bush took to the skies aboard Air Force One after the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington.- Trump obsession – But Trump has long had something of an obsession with the presidential jets.The Republican has consistently sought to upgrade them, agreeing a deal with Boeing in 2018 during his first term for two new models based on the newer 747-8 jet.He also dreamed up a new color scheme — replacing the one largely in place since Kennedy’s time — with a deep red stripe down the middle of the aircraft and a dark blue underbelly.Trump likes the new look so much that he still has a model of it on his coffee table in the Oval Office, and showed it off at his inauguration for a second term.But now he has repeatedly complained about delays and cost overruns.”We’re very disappointed that it’s taking Boeing so long… We have an Air Force one that’s 40 years old,” Trump said on Monday.”You look at some of the Arab countries and the planes they have parked alongside of the United States of America plane, it’s like from a different planet.”One of those same Arab countries, Qatar, has now offered the United States a Boeing 747-8 from the royal family to use as a stopgap Air Force One.But with ethical concerns and security worries about using a plane from a foreign power for such an ultra-sensitive purpose, it’s unclear whether the scheme will ever leave the ground.

Stock markets, the dollar and oil prices all rallied Monday after the United States and China declared a 90-day truce in their trade war.Wall Street’s main stock indices jumped at the start of trading and held steady much of the day before finishing with a flourish. The broad-based S&P 500 ended up 3.3 percent.”Stocks are …

Markets rally after China, US slash tariffs Read More »

More than 350 figures from the cinema world including Hollywood stars Richard Gere and Susan Sarandon condemned “genocide” in Gaza in an open letter published Monday on the eve of the Cannes Festival.”We cannot remain silent while genocide is taking place in Gaza,” read the letter initiated by several pro-Palestinian activist groups and published in French newspaper Liberation and US magazine Variety. The signatories, which include acclaimed Spanish director Pedro Almodovar and former Cannes winner Ruben Ostlund, decried the death of Gazan photojournalist Fatima Hassouna.Hassouna, 25, is the subject of a documentary which will premiere in Cannes on Thursday by Iranian director Sepideh Farsi, titled “Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk”.Hassouna was killed along with 10 relatives in an Israeli air strike on her family home in northern Gaza last month, the day after the documentary was announced as part of the ACID Cannes selection.Farsi welcomed the impact of her film but called on Cannes Festival organisers to denounce Israel’s ongoing bombardment of the devastated Palestinian territory. “There needs to be a real statement,” she told AFP. “Saying ‘the festival isn’t political’ makes no sense.”This year’s Cannes jury president Juliette Binoche was initially said by organisers to have signed the petition, but her spokeswoman told AFP she had not endorsed it and her name was not published by Liberation.Other signatories include Jonathan Glazer, the British director of Jewish origin who won an Oscar for his 2023 Auschwitz drama “The Zone of Interest”, as well as US star Mark Ruffalo and Spanish actor Javier Bardem.- War programming -The Cannes Festival kicks off Tuesday on the French Riviera, with an opening ceremony headlined by Robert De Niro and three films showing the devastation of Russia’s war on Ukraine.Two documentaries featuring Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and a third film shot on the brutal frontlines of Europe’s biggest war in 80 years are to be screened on a “Ukraine Day” of programming.It is “a reminder of the commitment of artists, authors and journalists to tell the story of this conflict in the heart of Europe”, the festival said.Nothing similar has been planned for the war in Gaza, but the film on Hassouna is set to “honour” her memory, organisers have said previously.Gazan filmmakers Arab and Tarzan Nasser are also set to showcase their fiction feature set in 2007 in the Palestinian territory in one of the secondary sections of the festival.The opening film on Tuesday evening is “Leave One Day” by newcomer French director Amelie Bonnin before Hollywood heavyweight De Niro receives an honorary Palme d’Or. – Depardieu – De Niro is one of the most outspoken critics of Donald Trump in the American cinema world, with the “Taxi Driver” star often struggling to find words harsh enough for the US president. Trump has made himself one of the main talking-points in Cannes after announcing on May 5 that he wanted 100-percent tariffs on movies “produced in foreign lands”.The idea sent shockwaves through the film world, although few insiders or experts understand how such a policy could be implemented. Cannes director Thierry Fremaux talked up the festival’s “rich” American film programme on Monday, with movies from Wes Anderson, Richard Linklater, Ari Aster and Kelly Reichardt in the main competition.”American cinema remains great cinema. The United States remains a great country of cinema,” he said.Off-screen news in France is also likely to overshadow the red-carpet action in Cannes on Tuesday, with French film icon Gerard Depardieu facing a verdict in a sexual harassment case in Paris.Depardieu, who has acted in more than 200 films and television series, is the highest-profile figure caught up in France’s response to the #MeToo movement against sexual violence.- Cruise in town – While independent cinema forms the core of the Cannes festival, organisers also hand over part of the programme to major Hollywood studios to promote their blockbusters.Tom Cruise is set to return to the Riviera for the premiere of the latest instalment of his “Mission: Impossible” franchise on Thursday, three years after he lit up the festival while promoting “Top Gun: Maverick”.The festival will also see a series of high-profile debut films from actors-turned-directors, including “Eleanor the Great” from Scarlett Johansson and “The Chronology of Water” by Kristen Stewart.Organisers on Monday denied reports that they had banned provocative near-nude dresses from the red carpet.However, “full nudity on the red carpet” has been formally outlawed, “in keeping with French law”.

The armed wing of Palestinian militant group Hamas handed over a US-Israeli hostage held in Gaza since October 2023 on Monday, ahead of a regional visit by US President Donald Trump.”The (Ezzedine) Al-Qassam Brigades have just released the Zionist soldier and American citizen Edan Alexander, following contacts with the US administration, as part of the efforts undertaken by mediators to achieve a ceasefire,” Hamas said in a statement.Israel’s military said he was back inside Israel to be “reunited with his family”.Flag-waving crowds gathered to greet the convoy carrying Alexander, and in Tenafly, New Jersey, where he grew up, large crowds celebrated his release.Close friends and family chanted his name and applauded at the news that Alexander had been freed, footage released by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum showed.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed Alexander’s return, adding: “The Government of Israel is committed to the return of all hostages and missing persons — both the living and the fallen.”He credited “political pressure” from Trump and “our military pressure” for the release.The Forum in a statement urged Netanyahu to say he was “ready to negotiate a comprehensive agreement” to bring home all the hostages.Meirav Etrogbar, 52, a volunteer at the Forum, told AFP: “They should stop the war and bring all the hostages back home in a deal, not military pressure.”Alexander’s release comes a day after Hamas revealed it was engaged in direct talks with Washington towards a Gaza ceasefire.”We affirm that serious and responsible negotiations yield results in the release of prisoners, while the continuation of aggression prolongs their suffering and may kill them,” a Hamas statement said.”We urge President Trump’s administration to continue its efforts to end this brutal war.” Alexander was the last living hostage in Gaza with American citizenship. His release came with Trump heading for Saudi Arabia on the first leg of a regional tour.On Monday, Netanyahu thanked Trump “for his assistance in the release”, and also said he had instructed a negotiating team to head to Qatar on Tuesday to discuss the further release of hostages.Netanyahu earlier said “Israel has not committed to a ceasefire of any kind or the release of terrorists but only to a safe corridor that will allow for the release of Edan”.Negotiations for a possible deal to secure the release of all hostages would continue “under fire, during preparations for an intensification of the fighting”, he added.Meanwhile, the UN- and NGO-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) warned Monday that Gaza was at “critical risk of famine”, with 22 percent of the population facing an imminent humanitarian “catastrophe” after more than two months of a total aid blockade by Israel.- ‘Opportunity to breathe’ -Ahead of Alexander’s release, a Hamas source said that mediators informed the group that Israel would halt military operations for the handover of the 21-year-old soldier.The pause offered a much-needed respite for residents of the war-battered territory.Somaya Abu Al-Kas, 34, who had been displaced to the southern city of Khan Yunis, said that “calm settled over Gaza, there was no shelling, and no nearby aircraft, which is very rare”.But Um Mohammed Zomlot, 50, also displaced in Khan Yunis, said: “Everyone is afraid that the shelling might resume suddenly after the prisoner is released.”Gaza’s civil defence agency earlier reported at least 10 killed in an overnight Israeli strike on a school housing displaced people.- ‘Good faith gesture’ -After Hamas announced Sunday it would release Alexander, Trump hailed the “monumental news” in a post on social media, describing it as a “good faith gesture”.”Hopefully this is the first of those final steps necessary to end this brutal conflict,” he added.Egypt and Qatar, which along with the United States have mediated talks between Hamas and Israel, called it “an encouraging step toward a return to the negotiating table” in a joint statement.Of the 251 hostages seized during Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, 57 are still held in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.Israel ended a two-month ceasefire on March 18, ramping up its bombardment of the territory.Earlier this month, Israel’s government approved plans to expand its Gaza offensive, with officials talking of retaining a long-term presence there.Hamas’s 2023 attack on southern Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said Monday at least 2,749 people have been killed since Israel resumed its campaign, bringing the overall death toll since the war broke out to 52,862.burs-fec-acc/srm/dcp

The UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon said Monday that since a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah it had uncovered more than 225 weapons caches in the south and referred them to the army.Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem urged Lebanon’s government and the international community to act “more effectively” to make Israel comply with the November truce, which largely ended more than a year of hostilities between Israel and the Iran-backed group, including two months of all-out war.Under the deal, Hezbollah was to withdraw its fighters north of Lebanon’s Litani River and Israel was to pull all its forces from south Lebanon, however it has kept troops in five areas it deems “strategic”.The Lebanese army has been deploying in the area as Israeli forces have withdrawn and has been dismantling Hezbollah infrastructure there.Since the November 27 truce began, “peacekeepers have found over 225 weapons caches and referred them” to the Lebanese army, the UN Interim Force in Lebanon said in a statement.UNIFIL also has a seat on the ceasefire monitoring committee, alongside truce sponsors France and the United States, and the Israeli and Lebanese governments.”With UNIFIL support”, Lebanon’s army has “redeployed to more than 120 permanent positions south of the Litani”, the peacekeeping force said.”Full (army) deployment is hindered by the presence of Israeli forces in Lebanese territory,” it added.Israel’s military still carries out regular strikes in Lebanon, saying it is targeting Hezbollah operatives and infrastructure.The ceasefire deal was based on a UN Security Council resolution that says Lebanese troops and UN peacekeepers should be the only forces in south Lebanon, and that calls for the disarmament of all non-state groups.- ‘Playing with fire’ -Hezbollah’s chief said on Monday that Lebanon and Hezbollah had fulfilled their commitments under the ceasefire, and the army has deployed in south Lebanon, “while Israel has not withdrawn, has not stopped its attacks”.In a televised speech, Qassem said that “Israel wants to end the resistance”, referring to Hezbollah.Israel “thinks that continuing its pressure and aggression could lead to the political end of the resistance”, he said, adding: “This will not happen.”After heavy Israeli strikes in the Nabatiyeh area of south Lebanon last week, Qassem said Israel was “playing with fire”.He urged the Lebanese state and ceasefire sponsors Paris and Washington to act “more effectively” and to let Israel and its backers “know that we will not submit to threats and pressure”.He also called for swift efforts towards reconstruction.President Joseph Aoun said last month the Lebanese army was now deployed in more than 85 percent of the south and that the sole obstacle to full control across the frontier area was “Israel’s occupation of five border positions”.Lebanese authorities have vowed to implement a state monopoly on bearing arms, though Aoun has said disarming Hezbollah is a “delicate” matter that requires dialogue.Hezbollah, long a dominant force in Lebanon, was heavily weakened in its latest war with Israel.