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Demonstrators protest Biden bombing Yemen outside White House

Demonstrators protest Biden bombing Yemen outside White House

Demonstrators furious with President Biden over the United States military’s bombing of Yemen gathered outside the White House to protest on Thursday. Activists chanted “Let Yemen live” and “Hands off Yemen” while holding anti-war signs and waving Iranian flags, FOX 5 DC reported.  The rally was organized by the Act Now to Stop War & End Racism (ANSWER) Coalition, a left-wing anti-war movement founded three days after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks to oppose the U.S. War on Terror. A similar demonstration was held in Times Square in New York City. The protests came in response to joint strikes by the U.S. and Britain targeting more than a dozen military locations that belong to the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen. President Biden said he had authorized the strikes “in direct response to unprecedented Houthi attacks against international maritime vessels in the Red Sea—including the use of anti-ship ballistic missiles for the first time in history.”  DEMOCRATS SLAM BIDEN FOR BYPASSING CONGRESS TO STRIKE YEMEN “Demonstrators raised their voice against this act of aggression that is aimed at helping Israel continue its assault on Gaza,” the ANSWER Coalition said in a news release. “The Pentagon war machine wants to punish Yemen for refusing to allow the waters off their coast to be used to sustain the genocide against Palestinians. It is a wanton violation of Yemen’s sovereignty and an extremely dangerous escalation. The Biden administration’s actions have raised the prospect of a devastating regional war.”  Biden and other U.S. officials have said the Houthi attacks on shipping vessels in the Red Sea have endangered U.S. personnel and its allies and have threatened freedom of navigation. “These targeted strikes are a clear message that the United States and our partners will not tolerate attacks on our personnel or allow hostile actors to imperil freedom of navigation in one of the world’s most critical commercial routes,” Biden said.  IN RARE MOVE TOP REPUBLICANS BACK BIDEN’S AIRSTRIKES ON HOUTHI REBELS IN YEMEN: ‘OVERDUE BUT WELCOME’ “I will not hesitate to direct further measures to protect our people and the free flow of international commerce as necessary.”  The U.S. airstrikes on Yemen have drawn criticism from members of Biden’s own party, who say the president needed authorization from Congress before taking military action. “The President needs to come to Congress before launching a strike against the Houthis in Yemen and involving us in another middle east conflict,” Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., wrote on X. “That is Article I of the Constitution. US-UK COALITION STRIKE IRAN-BACKED HOUTHI TARGETS IN YEMEN AFTER SPATE OF SHIP ATTACKS IN RED SEA “I will stand up for that regardless of whether a Democrat or Republican is in the White House,” he added. Other House Democrats expressed disapproval of Biden, including Reps. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., Cori Bush, D-Mo., and Val Hoyle, D-Ore.  Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi militants have stepped up attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea in recent weeks in protest against Israel’s war in Gaza. Various shipping lines have suspended operations, instead taking the longer journey around Africa. Fourteen countries, including the U.S., issued a joint statement last week saying: “The Houthis will bear the responsibility for the consequences should they continue to threaten lives, the global economy, or the free flow of commerce in the region’s critical waterways.”  Fox News Digital’s Bradford Betz and Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report. 

Israel rejects accusations of genocide in Gaza war at ICJ hearing

Israel rejects accusations of genocide in Gaza war at ICJ hearing

Israel has rejected the accusations brought by South Africa to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that its actions in Gaza amount to genocide, in a second day of a public hearing at the world body in The Hague. Israel’s legal representatives on Friday claimed South Africa’s case was “unfounded”, “absurd” and amounting to “libel”, and said Israel sought not to destroy a people but to protect its people. On Thursday, on the first day of hearings, South Africa argued Israel had committed “systematic” acts of genocide in Gaza, where more than 23,500 Palestinians have been killed amid Israel’s military campaign, with at least 70 percent of whom were women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. Israel’s arguments revolved around its “right to self-defence” following the attacks by Hamas on October 7, as well as what it called a lack of evidence of “genocidal intent”. Christopher Staker, a lawyer representing Israel, said, “The inevitable fatalities and human suffering of any conflict is not of itself a pattern of conduct that plausibly shows genocidal intent.” Malcolm Shaw, a professor of international law representing Israel, said the case relates only to charges of genocide, which “stands alone among violations of international law as the epitome of evil”. If the charge of genocide is levelled incorrectly, “the essence of this crime would be lost”, he said. Shaw added that such evidence was lacking in the arguments South Africa presented a day earlier. Detailing its evidence on Thursday, Tembeka Ngcukaitobi, a lawyer for South Africa, said, “The evidence of genocidal intent is not only chilling, it is also overwhelming and incontrovertible.” ‘Massive disconnect’ Israel’s legal representatives insisted its army has acted in compliance with international law in Gaza and aimed to mitigate civilian harm by warning of impending military actions, including via telephone calls and leafleting. Omri Sender, another lawyer, argued that Israel’s efforts to facilitate humanitarian assistance to people in Gaza testified to its objective of protecting the civilian population, rather than destroying it. However, Thomas MacManus, a senior lecturer in state crime at Queen Mary University of London, told Al Jazeera the ICJ is likely to see a “massive disconnect” between the picture Israel painted of its humanitarian concern for Gaza and “the reality on the ground where UN agencies say people are starving, lacking water, and seeing attacks on hospitals, schools, and universities”. Speaking before the ICJ hearing, Galit Raguan, acting director of the international justice division at Israel’s Ministry of Justice, refuted the claim that Israel had bombed hospitals. She argued Israel had found evidence of Hamas using “every single hospital in Gaza” for military purposes. Responding to claims that hospitals were used as military bases, Palestinian foreign ministry official Ammar Hijazi told Al Jazeera outside The Hague that Israel’s arguments were not based in fact or law. “What Israel has provided today are many of the already debunked lies,” he said. ‘Plausible right to self-defence’ The ICJ is set to rule on nine provisional measures effectively seeking the suspension of military operations in Gaza, but a timeline for when that will happen has not been stated. Israel has argued the provisional measures cannot require a state to refrain from exercising a “plausible right to defend itself”. On the issue of jurisdiction, Israel argued that one of the requirements of the ICJ’s mandate is that the state putting forward the case should try to sort out this problem first. According to Israel, they did not manage to talk to South Africa before they brought this case to the court. In turn, South Africa argued it had reached out to Israel but obtained no response. The Israeli team did make strong “jurisdictional and procedural arguments”, Al Jazeera’s senior political analyst Marwan Bishara said, but he added that “Israel lost the moral, factual, historical and humanitarian argument because of the way the situation has unravelled in Gaza – with the sheer death and industrial killing there.” Tal Becker, the legal adviser of Israel’s foreign ministry, told the ICJ hearing that South Africa enjoyed close relations with Hamas and was therefore attempting to put forward a “distorted factual and legal picture”. South Africa “firmly rejects” that claim, Al Jazeera’s Fahmida Miller said, reporting from South Africa. “The South African government has said that it doesn’t have bilateral relations with Hamas and that its stance in terms of supporting the Palestinian struggle against occupation does not equate to the support of Hamas,” she said. In its presentation on Thursday, South Africa’s lawyers also condemned Hamas’s actions on October 7. ICJ President Joan Donoghue ended the two-day hearing saying the court will announce its decision in the coming days. Adblock test (Why?)

China says will ‘crush’ Taiwan independence efforts before vote

China says will ‘crush’ Taiwan independence efforts before vote

The governing DPP, which champions Taiwan’s separate identity, will be seeking a third term in elections on Saturday. China’s military has promised to “crush” any efforts to promote Taiwan’s independence, a day before a crucial election on the self-ruled island which Beijing claims is part of its territory. Hundreds of thousands of people attended final pre-election rallies in Taiwan on Friday in advance of critical presidential and parliamentary polls on Saturday. “The Chinese People’s Liberation Army maintains high vigilance at all times and will take all necessary measures to firmly crush ‘Taiwan independence’ attempts of all forms,” China’s defence ministry spokesperson Zhang Xiaogang said in a statement. Responding to a question on Taiwan’s air force upgrading F-16 fighter jets and buying more from the United States, Xiaogang said even with purchases of US weapons the governing Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) “cannot stop the trend of complete reunification of the motherland”. Taiwan has been a democratic success story since holding its first direct presidential election in 1996, the culmination of decades of struggle against authoritarian rule and martial law. The DPP, which champions Taiwan’s separate identity and rejects China’s territorial claims, will be seeking a third term in office with its candidate, current Vice President Lai Ching-te. Supporters attend a campaign rally of the governing DPP before the presidential and parliamentary elections in Taipei, Taiwan [Carlos Garcia Rawlins/Reuters] China has framed the elections as a choice between “peace and war”, calling the DPP dangerous separatists and urging Taiwanese to make the “right choice”. The DPP has rejected China’s sovereignty claims, and said only Taiwan’s people can decide their future. Speaking at a rally in Taipei’s neighbouring city New Taipei, Lai said the world was watching how Taiwan voted. “If Taiwan moves closer to China again, Taiwan will lose its advantage, and foreign investment in Taiwan is more likely to be suspended or stopped,” he told the crowd. “Therefore, Taiwan must win this battle.” China repeatedly denounced Lai in the run-up to Saturday’s election and rebuffed repeated calls from him for talks. Al Jazeera’s Tony Cheng, reporting from Taipei, said Taiwan had witnessed Chinese military actions “in the background” over the past few weeks. “There have been military exercises, information gathering balloons flying overhead, and we’ve even seen in the last week a Chinese satellite causing an alert across the island,” Cheng said. Lai is facing two opponents for the presidency – Hou Yu-ih of Taiwan’s largest opposition party the Kuomintang (KMT) and former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je of the small Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), only founded in 2019. Hou wants to re-start engagement with China, beginning with people-to-people exchanges, and has, like China, accused Lai of supporting Taiwan’s formal independence. Lai has said Hou is pro-Beijing, which Hou rejected. “If Lai Ching-te is elected, the Taiwan Strait will likely fall into turmoil. Do you also want Taiwan to fall into war, folks?” Hou told his supporters. Ko has won a passionate support base, especially among young voters, for focusing on bread-and-butter issues like the high cost of housing. He also wants to re-engage China, but insists that cannot come at the expense of protecting Taiwan’s democracy and way of life. Al Jazeera’s Cheng said, “All three parties can see that China is a threat and their platforms are pretty much the same when it comes to China, so this [election] may go down to domestic issues.” Polls open at 8am local time (00:00 GMT) and close at 4pm (08:00 GMT), with ballot counting by hand starting almost at once. The result should be clear by late evening Saturday when the losers concede and the winner gives a victory speech. Adblock test (Why?)

As Arevalo inauguration approaches, Guatemalans express cautious optimism

As Arevalo inauguration approaches, Guatemalans express cautious optimism

Guatemala City, Guatemala – Guatemalan President-elect Bernardo Arevalo is poised to assume office on Sunday, following his landslide victory in the 2023 presidential elections. But Arevalo’s impending inauguration has been overshadowed by a string of recent legal attacks against him and his party — widely interpreted as attempts to overturn the vote. Now, as he prepares to be sworn in, analysts question how much the uncertainty of the past months has weakened Guatemala’s fragile democracy and shaken public confidence. Arevalo, an anticorruption candidate, first catapulted into the international spotlight with a surprise second-place finish in the June general elections. Those results assured the dark-horse candidate of a spot in the run-off election — and placed a target on his back. Guatemala has long struggled with corruption in its government, and several leading candidates had already been disqualified. Beginning in July, prosecutors under Attorney General Maria Consuelo Porras sought to suspend the legal status of Arevalo’s party, the Seed Movement, citing alleged irregularities with the years-old signatures used to form the party. Prosecutors also pursued court orders to raid the party’s headquarters, as well as the offices of Guatemala’s election authority. In the process, boxes with sealed ballots were opened, spurring concerns of election interference. Arevalo nevertheless delivered a commanding victory over his run-off opponent, former First Lady Sandra Torres, earning 60 percent of the vote. But the legal actions against him continued. In November, prosecutors issued a request to strip Arevalo and his allies of their political immunity over their support for student protesters in 2022. To date, Guatemala’s Supreme Court has not ruled on whether to lift Arevalo’s immunity, which would leave him potentially vulnerable to prosecution. In December, prosecutors went so far as to openly question whether to annul the 2023 election results — despite assurances from the country’s election authority that the tally was “unalterable”. All the while, the volley of legal attacks has ignited widespread outcry, both within Guatemala and from international observers. Indigenous leaders organised weeks of protest in the country, with some blocking highways and camping outside the attorney general’s office for 100 days. The United States and European Union, meanwhile, have both imposed sanctions on officials accused of undermining the 2023 election. But Arevalo has proceeded with his plans to take office on Sunday, announcing a largely traditional slate of cabinet picks on January 8. In the week ahead of his inauguration, Al Jazeera spoke to residents in Guatemala City about the attacks on the country’s democratic process — and whether they are optimistic for change under the new administration. Luis Mendez Salinas, right, and Carmen Lucia Alvarado expressed hope for the Arevalo administration [Jeff Abbott/Al Jazeera] Luis Mendez Salinas, 37, author and co-owner of the publisher Catafixia from Guatemala City “It’s strange to say, but every [legal attack] that has been made from June 25 until today — and probably until January 14 — has filled me with optimism. Because every attempt that has been made by these corrupt political elites and political clients has failed. “2023 was a historic year. It seems to me that the crisis generated by Arevalo’s victory, paradoxically, brings with it a possibility of redirecting Guatemala along the democratic path that was opened in 1985. “Why? Because we were seeing a very noticeable deterioration of all institutions and an authoritarian regression. “It seems to me that the fact that the population has surged in terms of voting for a candidate who was totally outside of that system is a great lesson in the possibility of hope.” Carmen Lucia Alvarado, 38, author and co-owner of the publisher Catafixia from Quetzaltenango “I hope that the population understands that we are not facing a miracle. We are facing the logical reaction of a society that collectively chose an option that can give us at least a path forward. “I hope the new government achieves the minimum to return dignity [to the people].” Jose Miguel Echeverria worried that highway blockades in support of President-elect Arevalo would negatively impact small businesses like his [Jeff Abbott/Al Jazeera] Jose Miguel Echeverria, 36, coffee roaster and small business owner from Guatemala City Echeverria was hopeful Arevalo’s administration would follow through with its promises to improve Guatemala’s healthcare and roadway infrastructure, but he expressed frustration with the highway blockades that accompanied pro-democracy protests in recent months. “The situation has been difficult and complex. “The roadblocks in October really affected the country. We were afraid that, if they lasted longer than 15 days, we would have to lay off people. “Sooner or later, these political conflicts will begin to affect small- and medium-sized businessmen and entrepreneurs. That is the most difficult issue, because we understand that the country’s situation is difficult. We also understand that there is horrible corruption that is taking advantage of our taxes. But on the other side, slowing [corruption] is sometimes complex, because no one knows where to start. “The only job of the politicians — of the president, of Congress, those who are developing policies — is to meet the needs of the people.” Elsira Rodriguez expressed frustration with the government of outgoing President Alejandro Giammattei [Jeff Abbott/Al Jazeera] Elsira Rodriguez, 70, flower vendor from San Pedro Sacatepequez “Everything [about the election crisis] has been bad for us. We do not have a government that supports us. “We hope to God that Arevalo is also a responsible person, that he fulfils what he promised us, and that he fulfils [the promise to] provide for security. “We truly hope that this new government will come to change everything.” Romelia Jalal accused past Guatemalan governments of knowing how to ‘steal’ the things they want [Jeff Abbott/Al Jazeera] Romelia Jalal, 58, vendor of artisanal crafts from Tactic Jalal said she is cautiously optimistic about Arevalo’s government. She credited the attacks on his campaign to establishment politicians refusing to accept defeat. “People do not know how to lose. Maybe [Arevalo] has new purposes, new goals, something new for Guatemala, but we Guatemalans do not know

Biden’s EPA lost track of billions of dollars in taxpayer funds: inspector general

Biden’s EPA lost track of billions of dollars in taxpayer funds: inspector general

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) didn’t report a staggering $7 billion in award-level obligations and outlays during fiscal year 2022, according to an inspector general audit released this week. The EPA Office of the Inspector General (OIG) determined that the agency underreported its award-level outlays by $5.8 billion, or 99.9%, and its award-level obligations by $1.2 billion, or 12.9% during FY22, the period between October 2021 and September 2022. The agency further failed to report any of its Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act outlays and under-reported its coronavirus pandemic-related outlays. “The lack of complete and accurate reporting also led to taxpayers being initially misinformed about the EPA’s spending, and policy-makers who relied on the data may not have been able to effectively track federal spending,” the OIG report concluded. In response to the audit, House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., blasted the EPA and called for increased transparency into its activities.  JOE MANCHIN GOES SCORCHED-EARTH ON BIDEN ADMIN OVER EV ACTIONS BOOSTING CHINA “It’s outrageous and unacceptable that the EPA cannot keep track of its spending or inform Congress — and the American people — of how it is using taxpayer dollars,” McMorris Rodgers said in a statement Thursday. “This eye-opening report only further highlights the need for more transparency at the EPA.” “It also raises questions about whether the agency is incapable of managing its record-high budget or if the agency is attempting to hide the amount of taxpayer dollars it is spending to advance the administration’s radical rush-to-green agenda,” she added. “The Energy and Commerce Committee will continue holding this administration accountable for its actions that are driving up costs across the board and hurting Americans.” MICHIGAN DEMOCRAT SIGNED NDA INVOLVING CCP-TIED COMPANY, DOCUMENTS SHOW, CONTRADICTING HER PAST CLAIMS The EPA ultimately corrected its FY22 figures in May 2023 as a result of the OIG audit while making configuration changes a month later. Overall, the inspector general made five recommendations which it said the agency agreed to make. The report, meanwhile, comes as the EPA both manages a massive green energy fund and continues to request a larger budget. The Inflation Reduction, Democrats’ massive climate and tax bill passed in 2022, created the $27 billion Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, which in turn establishes a national green bank to fund green projects nationwide. HOUSE REPUBLICANS OPEN PROBE INTO BIDEN ADMIN FOR OPENING PUBLIC LANDS TO FOREIGN OWNERSHIP And the White House is requesting that Congress approve a FY24 EPA budget of more than $12 billion, a record level. Republicans have aimed to reduce the EPA budget to about $6 billion, which would be the agency’s smallest budget since the early 1990s. “The Biden administration is using EPA as a pass through for taxpayer dollars to fund left-wing groups that aim to get Democrats elected, not improve the environment,” Mandy Gunasekara, a Heritage Foundation visiting fellow who served as the EPA’s chief of staff during the Trump administration, told Fox News Digital. “A failure to report $7 billion is absurd and unacceptable, but also symbolic of how Team Biden operates: prioritizing their political goals over the needs of the American people,” she continued. “I’m glad Chair Rodgers is monitoring this and hope the committee brings forth the agency’s Chief Financial Officer to account for this serious oversight.” The EPA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Speaker Johnson meets with OpenAI CEO, says Congress ‘needs to play’ role in artificial intelligence

Speaker Johnson meets with OpenAI CEO, says Congress ‘needs to play’ role in artificial intelligence

House Speaker Mike Johnson met with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman at the U.S. Capitol on Thursday to discuss what kind of role Congress has to play in legislating on artificial intelligence. “It was a very good meeting,” Johnson told reporters afterward. “We talked about where we are with regard to the approach of Congress to AI.” He said they had a “very thoughtful discussion” about how the Senate and House can forge a bipartisan path forward. OPENAI’S SAM ALTMAN OPENS UP ABOUT SHOCK FIRING “There’s unlimited potential [in] AI, but we also all agree, and Sam agrees, that there are some dangers as well. And so there’s a role that Congress needs to play in figuring all that out, and we’re in the process of doing that,” Johnson said.  Altman would not go into specifics about what they discussed when asked by Fox News Digital. “I’m grateful for how much he cares about the issue and excited to see what the legislative process will do,” he said of the meeting. OPENAI CEO SAM ALTMAN SAYS PALESTINIANS IN TECH FEAR RETALIATION FOR SPEAKING OUT “It was a sort of pretty high level meeting, just about trying to balance this sort of tremendous upside and figure out how to mitigate the risk but make sure that the U.S. does really great here,” Altman added. Johnson did not answer a shouted question from Fox News Digital on Friday morning about whether he had any follow-up plans on AI after the meeting. OPENAI RAKED IN OVER $1.6 BILLION IN REVENUE THIS YEAR AMID CEO SAM ALTMAN DRAMA The meeting came a day after the top Republican and top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee announced a bipartisan working group to look at the impact of AI on the finance industry. “The rapid advance of artificial intelligence technology holds immense promise to transform society and our economy for the better, but it also comes with risks,” Chairman Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., said. “The Working Group will explore this technology’s potential, specifically its adoption in our financial system. It will also find ways to leverage artificial intelligence to foster a more inclusive financial system, while establishing the U.S. as the world leader in AI development and terms of use.” Ranking member Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., said the group would “investigate the ways in which this technology may embed historic inequities in the financial services and housing markets through the use of data that reflect underlying bias or discrimination.”