Equities and oil prices extended a global rout for markets Friday after China hit back over President Donald Trump’s tariff blitz with its own mammoth levy on US goods, inflaming international trade war fears.The Chinese government said Friday it would impose an additional 34 percent tariffs on all imports of US goods, making it the …
Stocks, oil slump as China retaliates and Trump digs in heels Read More »
California Governor Gavin Newsom said Friday that he will seek agreements with the rest of the world to avoid the expected retaliations against US President Donald Trump’s tariffs.”California is not Washington, DC,” Newsom said in a video posted to social media.”Donald Trump’s tariffs do not represent all Americans, particularly those that I represent here in …
California to defy Trump’s tariffs to allay global trade fears Read More »
Israeli forces have launched a ground offensive in Gaza City, the military said Friday, expanding their operations as rescuers reported at least 30 killed across the Palestinian territory since dawn.Since renewed military operations last month ended a short-lived truce in its war with Hamas, Israel has pushed to seize territory in the Gaza Strip in what it said was a strategy to force militants to free hostages still in captivity.Israel has also escalated attacks on Lebanon, where a US envoy was visiting on Friday, hours after a pre-dawn strike on the port city of Sidon killed a Hamas commander.In Gaza City, the Israeli army said ground troops were operating in the Shujaiya area “in order to expand the security zone” established by the military inside the Palestinian territory.”The situation is very dangerous, and there is death coming at us from every direction,” Elena Helles told AFP via text message, saying her family were trapped in her sister’s house in Shujaiya.Others fled the area following an Israeli evacuation order on Thursday, AFPTV footage showed.The civil defence agency said Israeli military operations across Gaza killed at least 30 people on Friday.A single strike on Khan Yunis killed at least 25 people, a medical source at the southern city’s Nasser Hospital told AFP.Ahmed al-Aqqad, whose family owned the bombarded building, told AFP more bodies may be buried “under the rubble, but we cannot get them out due to the lack of necessary equipment”.”We call on the entire world to stand together to stop the bloodshed,” said relative Diaa al-Aqqad.- ‘Couldn’t find our children’ -Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Wednesday that the military would bolster its presence inside Gaza to fight militants and “destroy… terrorist infrastructure”, with unspecified “large areas” to be “incorporated into Israeli security zones”.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the army was dividing Gaza and “seizing territory” to force Hamas to free the remaining Israeli hostages taken captive during the October 2023 attack that sparked the war.Out of 251 people abducted during the Hamas attack on Israel, 58 remain hostage in Gaza including 34 the military says are dead.Hamas’s armed wing, the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades, on Friday warned that the offensive was putting hostages’ lives at risk.”Half of the living Israeli (captive) are located in areas that the Israeli occupation army has requested to be evacuated in recent days,” spokesman Abu Obeida said.One Israeli strike on Thursday hit a school used as a shelter for displaced Palestinians in the Gaza City area, the civil defence agency said, reporting at least 31 killed including children.”They bombed us with missiles and everything went dark… We couldn’t find our children,” sobbed Raghda al-Sharafa, who was among the displaced civilians sheltering at the Dar al-Arqam School compound in the Al-Tuffah neighbourhood of Gaza City.The Israeli military confirmed it struck the school, telling AFP it targeted “prominent terrorists who were in a Hamas command and control centre”.In Nuseirat in central Gaza, Ziad Abu Rialah said on Friday: “I’m afraid to close my eyes during the night, out of fear that when I get up I will not find my family members, because of the shelling that we witness on a daily basis.”- Lebanon strike -Doctors Without Borders said on Friday that its staff member Hussam Al Loulou, 58, was killed along with family members in an air strike earlier this week in central Gaza, one of hundreds of aid workers killed during the war.”We strongly condemn his killing and call yet again for the immediate restoration of the ceasefire and protection of civilians,” the medical charity said.The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said 1,249 people have been killed since Israel resumed intense bombing last month, bringing the overall death toll since the war began to 50,609.The October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that sparked the war resulted in 1,218 deaths, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.In Lebanon, Hamas’s military wing said its commander Hassan Farhat was killed in an Israeli strike that hit “inside his apartment” in Sidon, also killing his son Hamza and daughter Jenan.The Israeli military, confirming it had killed Hassan Farhat, accused him of orchestrating attacks on Israeli soldiers and civilians including deadly rocket fire on the town of Safed last year.Lebanon condemned a “flagrant attack” on its sovereignty and what it said was a violation of a November truce between Israel and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, a Hamas ally.The US deputy special envoy for the Middle East, Morgan Ortagus — whose country has helped oversee the truce — was in Beirut for meetings with top officials, Lebanon’s official National News Agency said.burs/ami/jsa
In unleashing global tariffs, President Donald Trump has vowed to remake the world to benefit US workers. One beneficiary could be the country he sees as the primary adversary — China.Asia’s largest economy promptly slapped identical tariffs on the United States and said it would impose export controls on rare earth elements vital in consumer …
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu came under fire again on Friday over his decision to dismiss internal security chief Ronen Bar, with the attorney general accusing him of a “conflict of interest”.In a statement, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara said the government’s “decision to terminate the tenure of the head of the Shin Bet is fundamentally flawed, tainted by a personal conflict of interest on the part of the Prime Minister due to the criminal investigations involving his associates”.She added that the move would lead to the politicisation of the position. The statement was issued alongside letters from Bar and Baharav-Miara to the supreme court.In his letter to the court, Bar said Netanyahu had requested his intervention to help delay the prime minister’s ongoing corruption trial.”In November 2024, the prime minister repeatedly asked that I provide a security assessment that would determine that the security circumstances do not allow for his continuous testimony in his criminal trial,” which could extend gaps between court appearances, Bar said.”After I managed to discuss the issue with the professional parties, I reached the conclusion that there was no security risk to the prime minister attending his trial,” Bar wrote in the letter aimed at challenging his dismissal.”I informed the prime minister. When I refused to deliver his request in this matter, this is when I felt that there was lack of trust between us.”Netanyahu announced Bar’s dismissal on March 21, citing an “ongoing lack of trust”. The supreme court swiftly suspended the decision until April 8.- ‘Lack of trust’ -Netanyahu on Friday said Bar’s letter was “full of lies”.”The Prime Minister spoke with the head of the Shin Bet about ways to allow his testimony in court in light of the missile threats against Israel and the Prime Minister in particular,” a statement from Netanyahu’s office said.”The discussion that took place on the subject was about the location of the testimony, not its existence.”Netanyahu said the “lack of trust” in Bar “did not stem from a question of personal loyalty, but rather stemmed from a lack of trust in his performance”.”The only one motivated by personal motives is the Shin Bet chief,” Netanyahu said in the statement, accusing both Bar and Baharav-Miara of a “severe conflict of interest”. Bar’s relationship with the Netanyahu government soured after he blamed the executive for the October 7, 2023 security fiasco and following a Shin Bet probe into alleged covert payments from Qatar to some Netanyahu aides.Israeli police on Monday announced the arrest of two Netanyahu aides, Yonatan Urich and Eli Feldstein, for their alleged involvement in the case dubbed “Qatargate” in domestic media.Netanyahu testified in the investigation, and later denounced it as a “political witch hunt” aimed at “preventing the dismissal” of Bar.The move to dismiss Bar has sparked mass protests in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
It took just one 50-minute speech by US President Donald Trump to undermine global economic stability and raise the prospect of a recession, with China’s countermeasures only amplifying the risk of a debilitating tit-for-tat trade war.The Wednesday White House event, billed by Trump as “Liberation Day”, unveiled levies on dozens of countries including all major …
Trump’s tariff Big Bang puts global economy under threat Read More »
Israeli forces have launched a ground offensive in Gaza City, the military said Friday, expanding their operations as rescuers reported at least 30 killed across the Palestinian territory since dawn.Since renewed military operations last month ended a short-lived truce in its war with Hamas, Israel has pushed to seize territory in the Gaza Strip in what it said was a strategy to force militants to free hostages still in captivity.Israel has also escalated attacks on Syria and Lebanon, where a US envoy was visiting on Friday, hours after a pre-dawn strike on the port city of Sidon killed a Hamas commander.In Gaza City, the Israeli army said ground troops were operating in the Shujaiya area “in order to expand the security zone” established by the military inside the Palestinian territory.”The situation is very dangerous, and there is death coming at us from every direction,” Elena Helles told AFP via text message, saying her family were trapped in her sister’s house in Shujaiya.Others fled the area following an Israeli evacuation order on Thursday, AFPTV footage showed.The civil defence agency said Israeli military operations across Gaza killed at least 30 people on Friday.A single strike on Khan Yunis killed at least 25 people, a medical source at the southern city’s Nasser Hospital told AFP.”My grandfather’s house was bombed… without warning,” said Ahmed al-Aqqad, whose family owned the building.More bodies may be buried “under the rubble, but we cannot get them out due to the lack of necessary equipment”, he said.”We call on the entire world to stand together to stop the bloodshed,” said relative Diaa al-Aqqad.- ‘Couldn’t find our children’ -Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Wednesday that the military would bolster its presence inside Gaza to fight militants and “destroy… terrorist infrastructure”, with unspecified “large areas” to be “incorporated into Israeli security zones”.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the army was dividing Gaza and “seizing territory” to force Hamas to free the remaining Israeli hostages taken captive during the October 2023 attack that sparked the war.Out of 251 people abducted during the Hamas attack on Israel, 58 remain hostage in Gaza including 34 the military says are dead.The Israeli military said Thursday it had struck more than 600 “terror targets” across the Gaza Strip in its renewed offensive since March 18.One Israeli strike on Thursday hit a school used as a shelter for displaced Palestinians in the Gaza City area, the civil defence agency said, reporting at least 31 killed including children.”They bombed us with missiles and everything went dark… We couldn’t find our children,” sobbed Raghda al-Sharafa, who was among the displaced civilians sheltering at the Dar al-Arqam School compound in the Al-Tuffah neighbourhood, in northeast Gaza City.The Israeli military said it had struck a “Hamas command and control centre in the area of Gaza City”, without specifying its location.The Jordanian foreign ministry condemned the bombardment, accusing Israel of “systematic targeting of civilians and displacement centres, in blatant violation of international law”.Doctors Without Borders said on Friday that its staff member Hussam Al Loulou, 58, was killed along with family members in an air strike earlier this week in central Gaza, one of hundreds of aid workers killed during the war.”We strongly condemn his killing and call yet again for the immediate restoration of the ceasefire and protection of civilians,” the medical charity said.- Lebanon strike -The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said 1,249 people have been killed since Israel resumed intense bombing last month, bringing the overall death toll since the war began to 50,609.The October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that sparked the war resulted in 1,218 deaths, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.In Lebanon, Hamas’s military wing said its commander Hassan Farhat was killed in an Israeli strike that hit “inside his apartment” in Sidon.The group said his son Hamza, who was also a member of the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades, and daughter Jenan were killed too.The Israeli military, confirming it had killed Hassan Farhat, accused him of orchestrating attacks on Israeli soldiers and civilians including deadly rocket fire on the town of Safed last year.Lebanon condemned a “flagrant attack” on its sovereignty.The US deputy special envoy for the Middle East, Morgan Ortagus — whose country has helped oversee a November truce between Israel and Lebanese Hamas ally Hezbollah — landed in Beirut on Friday for meetings with top officials, Lebanon’s official National News Agency said.Ortagus has drawn Hezbollah’s ire by declaring in February the Iran-backed group’s “reign of terror” over. She has also called for “a political resolution” to Israel-Lebanon border disputes.burs/ami/jsa
