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Guatemala’s leader promised Wednesday to allow a surge of deportation flights from the United States as he won a show of support from US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a boost after simmering tensions in the Central American country.President Bernardo Arevalo, who has been undermined by an elite that has connections to US conservatives, promised to allow a 40 percent increase in flights repatriating Guatemalans and others from third countries, addressing a key priority for President Donald Trump.”We’re not just neighbors. We’re allies — we’re friends — and I think that will be evidenced by the work that we’ve done here,” Rubio told a joint news conference with Arevalo.He also said the US Army Corps of Engineers would visit Guatemala to help develop plans for a more modern port.Rubio, a Cuban-American and fierce opponent of Latin American leftists, has quickly sought in his new role as the top US diplomat to bolster ties with the region’s conservatives.Arevalo is no ideological soulmate but he has been eager to avoid friction with the new Trump administration.He told Rubio he was committed to work “comprehensively and jointly to guarantee regional stability, the dignity of our peoples and the security of our countries.”Arevalo specified Wednesday his country — a major source of migration — would accept both “returning nationals, and foreigners” who will be sent on to their respective countries.The approach is a stark contrast to Colombia, whose leftist leader demanded “dignified” treatment for deportees and sent planes to repatriate migrants after refusing US military flights with shackled people on board — sparking a brief tariff tussle with Trump.- Praise for Guatemalan democracy -Arevalo is the son of a former president and pulled off a surprise victory in 2023 on a platform of reform and rooting out corruption in one of the region’s poorest countries.He immediately faced pushback from Guatemala’s entrenched conservative elite which sought to prevent him from taking office.Right-wing parties made allegations of electoral fraud, without providing evidence, and found support in Washington from elements of Trump’s “Stop the Steal” movement that refused to acknowledge his 2020 defeat to Joe Biden.Rubio, however, offered full backing to Arevalo and said they discussed the value of democracy over a dinner Tuesday in Guatemala City’s old town.”I would like to commend you for your commitment to democracy and to institutions,” Rubio said.Guatemala also appeals to the Trump administration as it is the most populous country that still recognizes Taiwan, the self-governing democracy claimed by China.Rubio, a longtime hawk on China, said the United States will “do all we can to facilitate more Taiwanese investment in the economy of Guatemala.”- Root causes -Guatemala is one of the largest origins of migration to the United States after decades of poverty, violence and political instability.According to the Guatemalan Foreign Ministry, some 3.2 million Guatemalans live in the United States — hundreds of thousands of them undocumented.Last year, the country received 508 flights from the United States with 61,680 deportees.The United States under previous administrations sought to address the root causes of migration through on-the-ground support.However, the Trump administration said Tuesday it was sending home nearly all officers around the world from the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which contributed some $178 million to projects in Guatemala in 2023.Rubio defended the decision, despite a furor from anti-poverty advocates who say that people will die, and Democratic lawmakers in Washington who say the United States is ceding leadership to China.Rubio said the Trump administration would maintain foreign assistance but have a review “from the bottom up” to see which programs meet the US national interest.He will head late Wednesday to the Dominican Republic, whose president, Luis Abinader, has championed a Trump-style hard line on chronically unstable and impoverished Haiti, including by starting work on a wall and ramping up deportations. 

A US Marine veteran who was acquitted in the chokehold death of a homeless man on the New York subway — a high-profile case highlighting the divisive issue of race in America — has been hired by a major Silicon Valley firm allied with Donald Trump.California-based Andreessen Horowitz said Daniel Penny would join the company’s American Dynamism wing that supports the “national interest,” including aerospace, defense and public safety, according to the firm’s website on Wednesday.Penny, who is white, was found not guilty in December of criminally negligent homicide in the death of Jordan Neely, a 30-year-old Black homeless man.Neely’s May 1, 2023, death on a New York subway train was caught on video by onlookers, and the footage was shared widely on social media.According to witnesses, Neely, before being restrained by Penny, had been screaming at passengers for food and drink and saying he was willing to die.The video showed Penny pinning Neely, who had a history of mental illness, in a chokehold on the floor of the train for several minutes.Besides the racial element, the case brought into focus two issues in New York: mental illness among the city’s homeless population and safety on public transit.Protests erupted in New York after Neely’s death, resulting in several arrests, as some decried Penny’s actions as an example of white “vigilantism.”Marc Andreessen, a co-founder of the Silicon Valley firm, is a staunch backer of Trump and played a role behind the scenes in setting up the incoming tech-focused White House.Andreessen Horowitz has backed major tech companies including Twitter (now known as X), Airbnb and Coinbase, and he is one of the longest-serving members on Meta’s board alongside Mark Zuckerberg.Andreessen, who co-founded Netscape in the 1990s, fights against any restrictions on technological development, whether from government regulation or social concerns, believing they are fundamentally detrimental to human progress.

Palestinians, Arab governments and world leaders rejected on Wednesday US President Donald Trump’s shock proposal to take over the Gaza Strip and resettle its people, even as he insisted that “everybody loves” the idea.Trump made his initial announcement of the plan to audible gasps during a White House press conference with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.In a proposal that lacked details on how the United States could move out more than two million Palestinians or control Gaza, Trump said he would make the territory “unbelievable” by redeveloping it after removing unexploded bombs and rubble.”The US will take over the Gaza Strip and we will do a job with it, too. We’ll own it,” he said, adding that there was support from the “highest leadership” in the Middle East.But hours later, Hamas, the Palestinian Authority, Egypt, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates hit back, as have China, Britain, France, Germany and the United Nations.Netanyahu, however, welcomed the idea, saying it could “change history” and was worth “paying attention to”.Suggesting “long-term ownership” by the United States, Trump said his idea would make it “the Riviera of the Middle East. This could be something that could be so magnificent.”Hamas, which seized control of Gaza in 2007, rejected the proposal, branding it “racist”.The group said the proposal to “occupy” the territory was “aggressive to our people and cause, won’t serve stability in the region and will only put oil on the fire”.Asked about the widespread criticism of his plan, Trump told reporters in the White House on Wednesday that “everybody loves it.”Much of Gaza was levelled in a 15-month war triggered by Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel, and Trump has repeatedly claimed credit for sealing a ceasefire agreement that took effect last month.- ‘Miserable existence’ -While Netanyahu’s US visit was billed to focus on a second phase of the truce, it quickly turned into the revelation of a proposal that would, if implemented, completely transform the Middle East.Trump, who also floated travelling to Gaza, appeared to suggest it would not be rebuilt for Palestinians.”It should not go through a process of rebuilding and occupation by the same people that have… lived there and died there and lived a miserable existence there,” he said.Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas rejected the proposal, saying “legitimate Palestinian rights are not negotiable” and that it would constitute a “serious violation” of international law.A spokesman for United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said it was “essential to avoid any form of ethnic cleansing”, while UN human rights chief Volker Turk said deporting people from occupied territory was “strictly prohibited” under international law.It is not the first time that Trump has suggested Palestinians should move from Gaza. In recent days, he has cited Egypt and Jordan as possible destinations, but people from the territory have said they want to stay.”They can do whatever they want, but we will remain steadfast in our homeland,” said 41-year-old Gazan Ahmed Halasa.For Palestinians, any attempts to force them out of Gaza would evoke dark memories of what the Arab world calls the “Nakba”, or catastrophe — the mass displacement of Palestinians during Israel’s creation in 1948.Israelis in Jerusalem welcomed Trump’s proposal, though some did not believe it could be achieved.”I really like what he said, but in my wildest dreams… it’s hard for me to believe it will happen, but who knows,” said Refael, a 65-year-old massage therapist.Trump was vague on the details, but hinted it could require US boots on the ground “if necessary”.Egypt and Jordan have rejected any resettlement from Gaza, with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty calling for a swift reconstruction “without the Palestinians leaving”.Jordan’s King Abdullah II, in a meeting with Abbas, rejected “any attempts” to take control of Palestinian territories and displace people.- ‘Moral stain’ -In Washington, Netanyahu hailed Trump as Israel’s “greatest friend” and praised his “willingness to think outside the box”.The Israeli premier would not rule out a return to hostilities with Hamas, or with its other foes in the region including Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Iran.”We will end the war by winning the war,” Netanyahu said, while vowing to secure the return of all hostages held in Gaza.He voiced confidence a deal with Saudi Arabia to normalise relations was “going to happen”.But Riyadh said it would not formalise ties with Israel without a Palestinian state, while rejecting any “attempts to displace the Palestinian people from their land”.Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan also lashed out, saying relocating Palestinians was something “neither we nor the region can accept”.The UAE rejected “any attempts of displacement”, saying “regional stability can only be attained through the two-state solution”.British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Gazans “must be allowed home. They must be allowed to rebuild.”German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said Gaza “belongs to the Palestinians”, while Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said: “We are opposed to the forced transfer of the residents of Gaza.”The Arab League said Trump’s proposal was a “recipe for instability”.Israeli human rights group B’Tselem described Trump’s plan as “deranged and reprehensible” and a “moral stain on all involved”.The Gaza war began when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, resulting in the deaths of 1,210 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.Israel’s retaliatory response has killed at least 47,518 people in Gaza, the majority civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry. The United Nations considers the figures reliable.burs-ser/ysm/ami

US President Donald Trump will sign an executive order Wednesday barring transgender athletes from women’s sports, in his latest move targeting transgender people since returning to office.The move honors a pledge that Republican Trump made before returning for his second term in office with a radical right-wing agenda.The White House said in its daily guidance that Trump would sign a “No Men in Women’s Sports Executive Order” in a ceremony at 3:00 pm (2000 GMT).”Today, President Trump will deliver on his promise to PROTECT WOMEN’S SPORTS!” Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly said on X.Kelly said the order would “end the dangerous and unfair participation of men in women’s sports.”Trump repeatedly returned to the theme of transgender athletes during an election campaign that also specifically targeted Democratic rival Kamala Harris over her support for trans issues.The 78-year-old billionaire has repeatedly targeted gender non-conforming people in his blitz of executive orders and other moves since returning to office on January 20.Trump signed an order to rid the military of what he called “transgender ideology” and effectively ban transgender troops. He also issued an order to restrict gender transition procedures for people under age 19.His latest executive order comes after the Republican-led House of Representatives in January passed a bill severely restricting transgender athletes from participating in girls’ and women’s sports.Republicans hammered Democrats on transgender issues — especially when it came to youth and sports — ahead of the 2024 election, capitalizing on a broader culture war over LGBTQ rights.As transgender people — a small minority of the population — have become a more visible presence in the United States, sparking questions around gender norms and fairness, many conservatives have rallied around women’s sports.

Donald Trump’s stunning proposal that the United States could take control of the Gaza Strip has drawn criticism from governments around the world.But the US president’s apparent plan — announced at the White House alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — remains thin on details.It came in the context of mediated negotiations between Israel and Hamas to reach the “second phase” of a ceasefire deal that would bring a more permanent end to the devastating war in Gaza.This is what Trump said at Tuesday’s news conference:- ‘Long-term ownership’ -“The US will take over the Gaza Strip and we will do a job with it, too. We’ll own it. And be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site.”Level the site, and get rid of the destroyed buildings, level it out, create an economic development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs and housing for the people of the area.”Pressed for details, he added later: “I do see a long-term ownership position, and I see it bringing great stability to that part of the Middle East and maybe the entire Middle East.”- Palestinian displacement -“It should not go through a process of rebuilding and occupation by the same people that have really stood there and fought for it and lived there and died there and lived a miserable existence there.””The only reason the Palestinians want to go back to Gaza is they have no alternative,” Trump said.He later said: “I envision world people living there. The world’s people. I think you’ll make that into an international, unbelievable place… And I think the entire world, representatives from all over the world, will be there.”Palestinians, also, Palestinians will live there. Many people will live there. But they’ve tried the other and they’ve tried it for decades and decades and decades. It’s not going to work. It didn’t work. It will never work.”- US troops -The president hinted his plan could require US boots on the ground in Gaza “if necessary.””As far as Gaza is concerned, we’ll do what is necessary. If it’s necessary, we’ll do that,” Trump said when asked if American troops would be involved. – ‘Riviera of the Middle East’ -Trump said the Gaza Strip could become “the Riviera of the Middle East. This could be something that could be so magnificent.”He added: “We’re going to take over that piece, and we’re going to develop it, create thousands and thousands of jobs, and it will be something that the entire Middle East can be very proud of.”Trump later said, “I think the potential in the Gaza Strip is unbelievable.”- Support from Arab leaders? -Trump claimed that Arab leaders supported his plan, despite their overwhelming opposition after his announcement. “I can tell you, I spoke to other leaders of countries in the Middle East, and they love the idea. They say it would really bring stability, and what we need is stability.”

The US trade gap swelled last year to its second-largest on record, government data showed Wednesday, as deficits come under the spotlight with President Donald Trump’s return to the White House.In 2024, the overall US trade deficit grew to $918.4 billion, widening 17 percent from 2023 as imports ballooned more than exports, said the Commerce Department.The trade deficit in goods also reached a new record for the year, in official data going back to 1960.The high figures could attract renewed scrutiny under the new US administration, with Trump already threatening tariffs on major US partners over trade imbalances and other issues.Over the weekend, Trump announced fresh duties on the United States’ three biggest trading partners in goods — Canada, Mexico and China — before reaching deals with Canada and Mexico to halt the levies for a month as talks continued.Chief among his justifications were concerns over illegal immigration and the flow of deadly fentanyl across US borders, but he has previously also pointed to America’s trade deficits with its neighbors.Stock markets wavered as tariffs targeting Beijing came into effect Tuesday, with an accompanying suspension of duty-free exemptions for low value parcels sparking worry.With Beijing’s announced retaliation, economies are on edge over the prospect of broadening trade wars.For all of last year, imports jumped by 6.6 percent or $253.3 billion while exports increased 3.9 percent by $119.8 billion.Driving the growth in goods exports were products like computer accessories and semiconductors, while travel was a key factor behind services exports growth.Imports surged on the back of goods like consumer goods, computers and semiconductors, as well as foods.- Uncertain path ahead -“Looking forward, the path for trade remains uncertain due to the capricious nature of the Trump administration’s tariff policies,” said Matthew Martin, senior economist at Oxford Economics.”While Mexico and Canada may be spared, the tariffs on China stuck and we expect the European Union to be next in the cross-hairs,” he added in a note.Martin expects computer and electronic products from China would likely be impacted the most, adding that there are risks involving chemicals and manufacturing equipment from the EU.For all of 2024, the goods deficit with China — a major issue during Trump’s first administration — came in at $295.4 billion.This was wider than values for the trade gap with North American neighbors Canada and Mexico combined, and more than the gap with the EU as well, according to government numbers.In December alone, the US deficit rose by nearly 25 percent to $98.4 billion, said the Commerce Department.The figure was slightly above the consensus estimate by Briefing.com of $98.0 billion.Imports rose 3.5 percent to $364.9 billion while exports slipped 2.6 percent to $266.5 billion for the month.”The jump in import volumes may reflect companies efforts to accelerate imports to beat Trump import threats,” said Carl Weinberg and Mary Chen, of High Frequency Economics.But they added it was hard to prove, given that strong exports also indicate “a fast-growing economy that is near its full potential level of output.”Trump has threatened tariffs on the EU, previously saying they had treated Washington “very badly.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio was seeking cooperation on migration Wednesday in Guatemala, whose leader, an anti-corruption advocate, is eager to please the new US administration to bolster his standing at home.Rubio is touring Latin America on his first trip which has been overshadowed by jaw-dropping actions in Washington by President Donald Trump, including dismantling the US Agency for International Development (USAID), of which Rubio is now nominally the head.A former senator, Rubio is a Cuban-American and fierce opponent of Latin American leftists who has quickly sought in his new role to bolster US relationships with the region’s conservatives.An exception is Guatemala, where President Bernardo Arevalo is no ideological soulmate but has been eager to avoid friction with the new Trump administration.Arevalo welcomed Rubio to dinner Tuesday in Guatemala City’s old town and will hold further talks with him on Wednesday.A sociologist and former diplomat born in exile after a US-backed 1954 coup, Arevalo is the son of a former president and pulled off a surprise victory in 2023 on a platform of reform and rooting out corruption in one of the region’s poorest countries.Arevalo immediately faced pushback from Guatemala’s entrenched conservative elite which sought to prevent him from taking office.Right-wing parties made allegations of electoral fraud, without providing evidence, and found support in Washington from elements of Trump’s “Stop the Steal” movement that refused to acknowledge his 2020 defeat to Joe Biden.Since Trump’s political comeback, Arevalo has sought to avoid battles and has cooperated on the new US administration’s push to expel millions of migrants.Guatemala quickly accepted a military flight with deported citizens, shackled and flown in a military plane, unlike Colombia whose leftist leader pleaded for better treatment but backed down after Trump threatened massive retaliation.Arevalo’s administration “frankly in two weeks has turned out to be an extraordinary ally particularly in helping us deal with migration issues,” said Mauricio Claver-Carone, the US special envoy on Latin America.Guatemala also appeals to the Trump administration as it is the most populous country that still recognizes Taiwan, the self-governing democracy claimed by China.Rubio on a stop the day earlier to Costa Rica — which switched recognition to China in 2007 — vowed to support Latin American nations as they push back on China’s influence.China has wooed countries with major infrastructure projects in return for recognition, although Costa Rica has also faced economic retaliation after excluding Chinese telecom titan Huawei from consideration for its 5G network.- Deportation, not aid -Guatemala is one of the largest sources of migration to the United States after decades of poverty, violence and political instability.The United States under previous administrations sought to address the root causes of migration through on-the-ground support.USAID, whose officers around the world are being sent home by Trump, ran some $178 million in projects in Guatemala in 2023.Around 700,000 Guatemalans are estimated to live in the United States without documentation, and many more legally.Another source of migration is El Salvador, whose popular President Nayib Bukele has avidly courted the Trump administration.Meeting Rubio on Monday, Bukele made the extraordinary offer to take prisoners from the United States including US citizens, an outsourcing of the prison system that has no recent historic precedent for a democratic country.Bukele has succeeded in reducing crime through an unapologetic mass incarceration, which rights groups say has frequently included authorities without warrants rounding up innocent people.Rubio late Wednesday will head to the Dominican Republic, whose president, Luis Abinader, has championed a Trump-style hard line on chronically unstable and impoverished Haiti, including by starting work on a wall and ramping up deportations. The United States under Biden funded a multinational security force aimed at stabilizing Haiti, with Kenya taking the lead.The United Nations said Tuesday that the Trump administration was cutting off aid to the Haiti effort.

Palestinian militant group Hamas lashed out Wednesday at President Donald Trump’s shock proposal for the United States to take over the Gaza Strip and resettle its people in other countries, seemingly whether they want to leave or not.Trump made his announcement to audible gasps during a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whom he was hosting at the White House for talks.In a proposal that lacked details on how he would move out more than two million Palestinians or control Gaza, Trump said he would make the war-battered enclave “unbelievable” by removing unexploded bombs and rubble, and economically redeveloping it.”The US will take over the Gaza Strip and we will do a job with it, too. We’ll own it,” Trump said.He said there was support from the “highest leadership” in the Middle East and upped pressure on Egypt and Jordan to take the Gazans — despite both governments flatly rejecting the idea.Suggesting “long-term ownership” by the United States, Trump said his idea would make it “the Riviera of the Middle East. This could be something that could be so magnificent.”Hamas, which seized sole control of Gaza in 2007, rejected the proposal, branding it a” racist” idea.”The American racist stance aligns with the Israeli extreme right’s position in displacing our people and eliminating our cause,” Hamas spokesman Abdel Latif al-Qanou said in a statement.Much of Gaza was levelled in a 15-month war triggered by Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel, and Trump has repeatedly claimed credit for sealing a ceasefire agreement that took effect last month.Netanyahu, who has vowed to bring home hostages taken by Hamas and to crush its capabilities, said Trump’s plan could “change history” and was worth “paying attention to”.Netanyahu was making the first visit by a foreign leader to the White House since Trump’s return to power, for what were billed as talks on securing a second phase of the truce.- ‘Miserable existence’ -But it quickly turned into the shock revelation of a proposal that would, if implemented, completely transform the face of the Middle East.Trump, who also floated travelling to Gaza, appeared to suggest it would not be rebuilt for Palestinians.”It should not go through a process of rebuilding and occupation by the same people that have… lived there and died there and lived a miserable existence there,” he said.Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas also rejected the proposal.”President Mahmud Abbas and the Palestinian leadership expressed their strong rejection of calls to seize the Gaza Strip and displace Palestinians outside their homeland,” Abbas’s office said in a statement, adding that “legitimate Palestinian rights are not negotiable”.Palestinians in Gaza have also denounced Trump’s resettlement idea.”Trump thinks Gaza is a pile of garbage — absolutely not,” said 34-year-old Hatem Azzam, a resident of the southern city of Rafah.For Palestinians, any attempts to force them out of Gaza would evoke dark memories of what the Arab world calls the “Nakba”, or catastrophe — the mass displacement of Palestinians during Israel’s creation in 1948.Trump was vague on the details of how he would execute a takeover, but hinted that it could require US boots on the ground in one of the most volatile places on earth “if necessary.”Standing at a podium beside Trump, Netanyahu hailed Trump as Israel’s “greatest friend” and praised his “willingness to think outside the box”.The two have had tense relations in the past, but Netanyahu has seized on the Republican’s return to power after his ties with former president Joe Biden became strained over the death toll in Gaza.- ‘Winning the war’ -The Israeli premier would not rule out a return to hostilities with Hamas, or with its other foes in the region including Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Iran.”We will end the war by winning the war,” Netanyahu said, while vowing to secure the return of all hostages held by Hamas.He did voice confidence that a deal with regional rival Saudi Arabia to normalise relations was “going to happen”.But after Trump aired his proposal, Saudi Arabia said it would not formalise ties with Israel unless a Palestinian state is established. Trump’s Gaza proposal is set to face harsh opposition.Egypt, Jordan and ceasefire mediator Qatar have all rejected Trump’s suggestion of moving Palestinians from Gaza.Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said relocating Palestinians was something “neither we nor the region can accept”.China too hit out at the proposal, with its foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian saying: “China has always maintained that Palestinian rule over Palestinians is the basic principle of the post-war governance of Gaza, and we are opposed to the forced transfer of the residents of Gaza.”The Gaza war began when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, resulting in the deaths of 1,210 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.Israel’s retaliatory response has killed at least 47,518 people in Gaza, the majority civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry. The United Nations considers the figures reliable.burs-ser/kir