Trump says Hamas will be ‘hunted down’ as Gaza ceasefire talks wane
Washington, DC – United States President Donald Trump has suggested that Hamas is refusing to agree to a Gaza truce because it fears what comes after all the Israeli captives are released. Trump’s comments at the White House on Friday appear to suggest that the US and Israel are not ready to guarantee a lasting end to the war but rather a short-term truce to get Israeli captives out of Gaza. “We’re down to the final hostages, and they know what happens after you get the final hostages,” the US president told reporters. “And basically because of that, they really didn’t want to make a deal.” Trump blamed the Palestinian group solely for the apparent collapse of the ceasefire talks, saying the group is going to be “hunted down”. “Hamas didn’t really want to make a deal. I think they want to die, and it’s very, very bad,” he said. On Thursday, Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said Washington was cutting short its involvement in the negotiations, accusing Hamas of showing “a lack of desire to reach a ceasefire”. Israel also said it withdrew its negotiators from Qatar, where the ceasefire talks were taking place. Hamas expressed bewilderment at the US position, saying it had made “a sincere commitment to the success of the mediators’ efforts” to reach a deal. The group also said the mediators — Qatar and Egypt — welcomed its “constructive and positive” position. Talks have been ongoing for months to secure a 60-day truce that would see the release of 10 Israeli captives and a pause in the Israeli bombardment of Palestinians in Gaza. Advertisement Hamas has insisted that it is seeking a permanent ceasefire. Witkoff previously said the truce “will lead to a lasting peace in Gaza”. However, Israeli officials repeatedly described plans to return to the fighting and remove all Palestinians from Gaza after the captives are released. In fact, Israeli Minister of Defence Israel Katz has said that the country would use the truce to move hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to an internment camp in southern Gaza, in preparation for their removal from the territory altogether. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during a visit to Washington, DC, earlier this month that Israel “still has to finish the job in Gaza” despite the ceasefire talks. In February, Trump called for depopulating Gaza and turning the territory into a “Riviera of the Middle East” — a proposal that legal experts say would amount to ethnic cleansing, a crime against humanity. Israel has systematically flattened large parts of Gaza, using bombardment, explosives and bulldozers in what advocates say is an effort to make the territory unliveable. Netanyahu has argued, however, that the departure of Palestinians would be “voluntary”. But human rights experts warned that people do not actually have a choice when they are under the threat of bombardment and starvation. On Thursday, Trump suggested that Gaza is set to experience more violence, saying Israel is “going to have to fight”. “They’re going to have to clean it up. You’re going to have to get rid of it,” he said. Trump dismisses French recognition of Palestine The US president’s comments come as deadly hunger continues to spread in Gaza due to an Israeli blockade impeding the flow of aid and other essential supplies into the territory. The Israeli-imposed starvation in Gaza has garnered international condemnation, even from close allies of the US and Israel. On Thursday, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney slammed the denial of humanitarian aid to Gaza as a “violation of international law”. French President Emmanuel Macron also said his country will recognise Palestine as a state at the United Nations General Assembly in September. Before leaving for the United Kingdom on Friday, Trump dismissed his French counterpart’s statement, saying it “doesn’t carry any weight”. “Here’s the good news: What he says doesn’t matter,” Trump said. “It’s not going to change anything.” Adblock test (Why?)
Fact check: Did US go from ice cream trade surplus to deficit under Biden?
President Donald Trump’s administration dished out a cold burn to Trump’s ice-cream-loving predecessor, Joe Biden, saying he led the US ice cream industry down an economic rocky road. “America had a trade surplus in ice cream in 2020 under President Trump’s leadership, but that surplus turned into a trade deficit of $40.6 million under President Biden’s watch,” the Office of the US Trade Representative wrote July 20 on X. The post included a chart that shows the US ice cream trade deficit with Japan, South Africa, the European Union, Brazil, Canada and Turkiye. The US ice cream trade balance did change dramatically in 2021, the year Biden took office. The trade balance officially flipped negative – which means imports outnumber exports – in 2022 and has remained so since then. But industry experts caution that US ice cream imports account for a minuscule fraction of all the US ice cream consumed in the US, and exports account for a tiny fraction of all US ice cream produced. The trade change was driven mostly by a jump in imports. Exports have remained largely unchanged since 2020. And the cherry on top? Disagreement over which products to classify as “ice cream” also affects data, experts say. For example, the data referenced by the office of the US Trade Representative also includes “edible ice”, which some experts (and dairy defenders) say doesn’t qualify as ice cream. Removing edible ice shows that “the US is a net exporter by a significant margin of ($193 million) or +85% larger by value,” International Dairy Foods Association Executive Vice President Matt Herrick told PolitiFact via email. Advertisement Ice cream imports increase causes US trade deficit From 1995 to 2020, the US had an ice cream trade surplus, ranging from about $20m to about $160m, according to the Observatory of Economic Complexity, an online economic data platform. Longtime customers include Mexico, followed by Saudi Arabia and Canada. In 2021, that surplus nearly vanished, and in 2022 and 2023, the US notched up an ice cream trade deficit of $92m and $33m, respectively. At first glance, importing frozen foods doesn’t seem practical. “Shipping refrigerated and frozen products overseas is expensive,” dairy economist Betty Berningat of HighGround Dairy said. “Mexico is the top destination for US dairy exports.” But many US and European companies have tapped into global markets. “Consumers may also want a specific treat that is styled after or known to be from another country,” Herrick said. Italy, the birthplace of gelato, is now the United States’ largest single source of imported ice cream. Italian ice cream imports more than quintupled from about $12m to almost $65m between 2020 and 2021 alone, before decreasing somewhat in 2023, the last year for which data is available. Some of this stems from increased consumer demand for specialty pints. A report by Mordor Intelligence, a global market research firm, said “product innovation and premiumisation” have become key in the US ice cream industry. “This trend is particularly evident in the growth of premium pint offerings and individually wrapped novelties that cater to both indulgence and portion control preferences,” the report said. The US produces far more ice cream than it imports or exports To get to the pint: The vast majority of ice cream consumed in the United States is made there, not overseas. The Trump administration is cherry-picking stats from a fraction of a sliver of the US ice cream industry. According to US Agriculture Department data, US ice cream makers churned out 1.31 billion gallons of ice cream in 2024. This includes regular ice cream, low-fat and nonfat ice cream, sherbet and frozen yoghurt. By comparison, the US imported 2.35 million gallons of traditional ice cream in 2024 – that’s 0.18 percent of the amount produced domestically, Herrick said. The US exported 16.4 million gallons of that domestic production, which is also a tiny fraction of 1.31 billion gallons of ice cream – a little more than 1 percent. Factoring in ice cream mixes, excluding ‘edible ice’ products Another caveat about the international trade data: It does not include “mixes”, which skews the totals, said Herrick of the International Dairy Foods Association. Advertisement Mixes are used to make ice cream shakes and soft-serve products, and they account for a significant portion of US ice cream exports. “Inclusion of such data points would change the picture quite significantly,” said Herrick. “While it is true that traditional ice cream and edible ice exports have seen decreased exports, the same cannot be said for exports of mixes.” US milk-based drink exports increased 621 percent over the past five years, he said. In 2024, the US exported nearly $35m in mixes to the European Union. Americans and dairy-based ice cream: A centuries-old love affair melting away? The White House has churned out plenty of ice cream devotees. George Washington stocked the capital with ice cream-making equipment. Thomas Jefferson is credited as being the first American to record an ice cream recipe. Ronald Reagan declared July National Ice Cream Month in 1984. Barack Obama even slung scoops back in the day. Biden, who was often sighted with a cone in hand, proclaimed while visiting Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream headquarters in 2016: “My name is Joe Biden, and I love ice cream.” But consumption of regular dairy ice cream – a category that does not include frozen yoghurt, sherbet or nonfat and low-fat ice creams – has been trending down for years. In 1975, Americans ate an average of 18.2 pounds each of ice cream per year. That figure fell to 11.7 pounds by 2023. Our ruling The office of the US Trade Representative purported a summertime scoop: “America had a trade surplus in ice cream in 2020 under President Trump’s leadership, but that surplus turned into a trade deficit of $40.6 million under President Biden’s watch.” It’s accurate that the US ice cream trade balance had a surplus for a quarter of a century before turning negative while Biden was president. But the US Trade Representative’s statement makes the US
Deadly typhoon causes flooding across Philippines
[unable to retrieve full-text content] A powerful typhoon has caused extreme flooding across the Philippines, affecting millions of people.
Why is India’s Dharmasthala temple at the centre of a mass murder case?
NewsFeed A former cleaner claims he was forced to bury the bodies of hundreds of women and girls, on the orders of supervisors at one of southern India’s most revered temples. As Soraya Lennie explains, the case has shocked the country and sparked accusations of a three-decade old cover up. Published On 25 Jul 202525 Jul 2025 Adblock test (Why?)
India’s Pant defies injury but England control of fourth Test
India’s injured Rishabh Pant hits 54 after surprise return before England takes control of fourth test England might have thought it had seen the last of Rishabh Pant in this Test series against India. Pant had other ideas. After retiring early on Day One of the fourth Test at Old Trafford with a foot injury, Pant returned Thursday, albeit with a limp, and posted a half-century as India reached 358 all out, with England captain Ben Stokes taking 5-72. While Pant’s involvement came as a surprise and prolonged the visitors’ first innings, England went on to take control of the match with a blistering opening partnership of 166 by Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett. The hosts reached 225-2 at stumps on Day Two at Old Trafford to trail by 133 runs, largely thanks to the explosive batting of Crawley (84) and Duckett (94), which included 26 fours between the pair – 13 each – and a six for Crawley. Ollie Pope (20 not out) and Joe Root (11 not out) are at the crease. England leads the five-match series 2-1. India resumed on 264-4 and England took the wickets of Ravindra Jadeja (20) and Shardul Thakur (41) in the morning session. But Pant’s return presented an unexpected obstacle for England when he came out to replace Thakur after overnight reports that he had sustained a fracture. Walking slowly and uncomfortably, he made his way to the crease to cheers from all around the stadium and resumed his innings on 37. India batsman Rishabh Pant sets off for his first run as Ben Stokes looks on during Day Two [Stu Forster/Getty Images] It was a gutsy display from Pant, who was hurt a day earlier when his showmanship got the better of him, and an attempted reverse sweep off Chris Woakes saw the ball deflect onto his right foot. He lay on the field in pain and had to leave on a cart, with his foot badly swollen. Advertisement He went on to add 17 more runs to get to 54 before being bowled by Jofra Archer, who sent the stumps crashing. England wasted no time in chasing down India’s total with Crawley and Duckett on a mission. The hosts were 77-0 at tea in reply, with Duckett hitting 43 off 41 balls with seven fours, while Crawley was 33 off 44. The pair kept on finding the boundary when play resumed, and both were looking on course for centuries until India’s breakthrough. Crawley was caught by KL Rahul at slip off Jadeja and Duckett was caught by substitute Dhruv Jurel off Anshul Kamboj. Duckett’s head dropped as the realisation sunk in that he’d fallen just six short of a test century. The England captain is now the leading wicket-taker for the series after his haul of five in the fourth test. Stokes added the wickets of Thakur (41), Washington Sundar (27) and Kamboj (0) to those of Shubman Gill (12) and Sai Sudharsan (61) on Day One. Stokes has 16 wickets for the series, and this was the first time he had taken five in a match for eight years. Adblock test (Why?)
Israeli settler attacks show new level of violence, organisation
NewsFeed Israeli settlers are becoming more brazen and heavily armed, attacking Palestinians with impunity as the Israeli government and Palestinian Authority stand by. Saeed Al Umoor’s story exemplifies this desperate situation. Published On 24 Jul 202524 Jul 2025 Adblock test (Why?)
US, Israel recall teams from Gaza ceasefire talks after Hamas proposal
US special envoy Steve Witkoff accuses Palestinian group of showing ‘a lack of desire’ to reach a ceasefire in Gaza. United States special envoy Steve Witkoff has said he is cutting short talks aimed at reaching a truce in Israel’s war on Gaza, after the latest proposal from Hamas showed “a lack of desire to reach a ceasefire”. Witkoff made the announcement in a statement on Thursday, just hours after the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel had also recalled its negotiating team from Qatar amid the latest diplomatic flurry. There was no immediate comment from Hamas. The group has repeatedly accused Israel of blocking a ceasefire agreement. Earlier in the day, Hamas had submitted its latest response to a ceasefire framework floated by mediators Qatar, Egypt and the US. Netanyahu’s office confirmed receipt of the response, and said it was under review. Neither side disclosed the contents. Both Israel and Hamas are facing growing international pressure to reach an agreement as the humanitarian and hunger crisis in the territory continues to deteriorate sharply amid Israel’s severe restrictions on the entry of aid. At least 115 people have died from malnutrition since Israel launched its war on Gaza in October 2023, mostly in recent weeks, as the United Nations and aid agencies have warned that Gaza’s residents were facing mass starvation. “While the mediators have made a great effort, Hamas does not appear to be coordinated or acting in good faith,” Witkoff said in a statement. “We will now consider alternative options to bring the hostages home and try to create a more stable environment for the people of Gaza,” Witkoff said, without elaborating. Advertisement Witkoff, a businessman with no formal diplomatic experience prior to his appointment, said the US remains “resolute” in seeking an end to the war in Gaza, adding it was “a shame that Hamas has acted in this selfish way”. The current proposal under discussion has been reported to include a 60-day ceasefire in which Hamas would release 10 living captives and the remains of 18 others. In turn, Palestinians imprisoned by Israel would be released and aid supplies would be ramped up as the two sides held negotiations on a lasting truce. Details of the current sticking point were not immediately clear, but officials from both sides have previously pointed to a dispute over what would happen in the wake of any new ceasefire. Israel has repeatedly said it plans to deploy the military long term in Gaza, seeking a complete defeat of Hamas, despite warnings that such a goal is unrealistic. Earlier this month, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz reportedly laid out a plan for the forced transfer of Palestinians to a “humanitarian city” within Gaza, a maximalist approach that critics say would violate international law. Israel’s government has also faced domestic pressure over the plan, amid fears it would foreclose ceasefire negotiations and block the release of captives still held in Gaza. Reporting from Washington, DC, Al Jazeera’s Shihab Rattansi said it remained unclear whether the US withdrawal from the talks was a “negotiating tactic”. “It’s a very sternly worded tweet, talking about ‘alternative options for a more stable environment for the people of Gaza,’” he said. “We know that Trump simply hasn’t ruled out ethnic cleansing, so-called ‘self deportation’, in his words, of Palestinians.” “Right now, we simply don’t know whether it’s a negotiating position or the end of the negotiations,” Rattansi said. Israel’s war in Gaza has killed at least 59,587 Palestinians since it began in the wake of the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which killed at least 1,139 people. This week, more than 100 aid groups blamed Israel’s restrictions on aid for “mass starvation” in the enclave. Adblock test (Why?)
Thailand, Cambodian troops trade heavy fire in latest border dispute clash
DEVELOPING STORYDEVELOPING STORY, Two civilians reported killed in Cambodian shelling of Thailand as Southeast Asian neighbours clash over long-running border dispute. At least two civilians have been reported killed in Thailand and two Thai soldiers injured in heavy clashes with Cambodian troops at a disputed area of their shared border. Thailand’s military said on Thursday that Cambodian troops had opened fire earlier in an area near the disputed Ta Moan Thom Temple – located in a border area in northwestern Cambodia’s Oddar Meanchey province, and intense fighting was ongoing. Thailand’s military said Cambodia had deployed a surveillance drone before sending troops to the area, adding that Cambodian forces had then opened fire with heavy weapons, including artillery and long-range BM21 rockets. At least two Thai soldiers have been injured, Royal Thai Army spokesperson Richa Suksuwanon told reporters. Sutthirot Charoenthanasak, a district chief in Thailand’s Surin province, told the Reuters news agency that two people were killed and others injured by Cambodian shelling on Thursday morning. Some 40,000 Thai civilians from 86 villages along the border have also been evacuated to safer locations, the district chief said. Cambodia’s Ministry of National Defence issued its own statement on Thursday, accusing Thailand of attacking first. According to the statement, Cambodian troops retaliated after coming under attack from Thailand’s army and had only acted in self-defence. The country’s influential former prime minister, Hun Sen, said in a post on social media that Thailand’s military had shelled two Cambodian provinces bordering Thailand, Oddar Meanchey and Preah Vihear. Advertisement Hun Sen said that “the Cambodian army has no choice but to fight back and counterattack”. He also called for the public to remain calm and not panic-buy rice and other food supplies. “Please carry on normal business in all sectors and everywhere except the border areas,” he said. The Royal Thai Embassy in the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh, said the situation on the border had “continuously escalated” and, with clashes likely to “be prolonged and expand”, urged its nationals to leave Cambodia “as soon as possible”, unless they had urgent reasons to remain. Shortly after the Thai embassy’s announcement, Thailand’s military said it had deployed an F-16 jet fighter for combat action against Cambodian forces along the border. Thai soldiers inspect an area in the Ubon Ratchathani province, which borders Cambodia, where the Thai army said two antipersonnel landmines were found [Handout/Royal Thai Army via AP] Thailand, Cambodia downgrade diplomatic relations The latest fighting comes after a Thai soldier sustained injuries on Wednesday and lost his right leg in a landmine explosion, which authorities in Thailand have blamed on Cambodia. Three Thai soldiers were also injured by a mine blast while on a patrol along the disputed border area on July 16. Cambodia has denied planting mines, and claims that Thai soldiers have veered off agreed jungle paths and triggered long-buried mines left behind from Cambodia’s decades of civil war. Following the latest landmine incident, Thailand’s governing Pheu Thai Party said it had recalled Thailand’s ambassador to Cambodia and would expel Cambodia’s ambassador from the country. Thailand has also downgraded diplomatic relations with Cambodia, the party said. In response, Cambodia said that it would withdraw all of its diplomats from Thailand and ordered all Thai diplomats to leave the country. The Cambodian government has also downgraded diplomatic relations with Thailand to the “lowest level”, reducing it to the rank of “second secretary”, according to local news outlet the Phnom Penh Post. In May, the long-running border dispute between the two countries boiled over into military clashes that left one Cambodian soldier dead. Border tension has soured relations between the Southeast Asian neighbours, with the two sides trading barbs and tit-for-tat retaliatory measures, including the closure of border crossings. Cambodia has also blocked imports of fuel and gas, as well as fruit and vegetables, from Thailand. Thailand and Cambodia have for more than a century contested sovereignty at various undemarcated points along their 817km (508-mile) land border. Adblock test (Why?)
Iranian helicopter confronts US warship approaching territorial waters
Iranian state media describe the confrontation as ‘tense’, while US military says the encounter was ‘professional’. Iran has said it warned a United States Navy destroyer to change course as it approached Iranian territorial waters in the Gulf of Oman, but the US has claimed the confrontation was “professional” and had “no impact” on its naval mission. Iranian state media published video and images of Wednesday’s incident – the first direct encounter reported between Iranian and US forces since the 12-day war between Iran and Israel in June – taken from a helicopter dispatched to confront the USS Fitzgerald guided missile destroyer. “US destroyer ‘Fitzgerald’ attempted to approach waters under Iran’s monitoring, in a provocative move”, Iranian state television said. In video footage of the reported encounter, a helicopter is seen flying in close proximity to the warship and an Iranian crew member can be heard issuing what appeared to be a radio warning in English to the warship, ordering it to change course as it was approaching Iran’s territorial waters at about 10am local time (06:00 GMT). Iranian state media have described the encounter as a tense exchange. IRGC-affiliated Tasnim News on Wednesday released footage it claimed showed an Iranian navy helicopter forcing the USS Fitzgerald, a US guided missile destroyer, to alter its course. The report said the warship had approached waters under Iran’s supervision in the Sea of Oman. pic.twitter.com/gcfMQ23K6f — Iran International English (@IranIntl_En) July 23, 2025 The US destroyer reportedly responded by threatening to target the Iranian aircraft if it did not leave. The vessel eventually departed the area upon continued warnings from the Iranian military. Advertisement US Central Command disputed the Iranian account of tension, calling the incident a “safe and professional interaction”. Asked about the encounter, a US defence official, speaking on condition of anonymity with the Reuters news agency, also downplayed its seriousness. “This interaction had no impact to USS Fitzgerald’s mission, and any reports claiming otherwise are falsehoods and attempts by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to spread misinformation,” the official said. The official, who said the interaction took place entirely in international waters, identified the aircraft as an Iranian SH-3 “Sea King” helicopter. The US military inserted itself into Israel’s war against Iran last month when it bombed Iranian nuclear sites. US President Donald Trump hailed the strikes as a “spectacular” success that “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear programme. But media reports in the US, citing intelligence assessments, suggest the campaign was only partially successful, with just one of the three Iranian nuclear sites – the Fordow facility – reportedly destroyed. In an interview broadcast on Wednesday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran was committed to continuing its nuclear programme for peaceful purposes, and that his country is prepared for any future war that Israel might wage against it. He added that he was not optimistic about the ceasefire between the countries. Adblock test (Why?)
Columbia University to pay $200m to settle anti-Semitism claims
Settlement marks victory in US President Donald Trump’s efforts to exert greater control over third-level education. Columbia University, one of the top educational institutions in the United States, has agreed to pay $221m to settle claims by US President Donald Trump’s administration that it failed to police anti-Semitism on campus. Under the agreement announced on Wednesday, Columbia will see the “vast majority” of $400m in federal grants frozen by the Trump administration reinstated, the New York-based university said. Columbia will also regain access to billions of dollars in current and future grants under the deal, the university said. Columbia said the agreement formalised reforms announced in March to address harassment against Jews, including the hiring of more public safety personnel, changes to disciplinary processes, and efforts to foster “an inclusive and respectful learning environment”. The agreement also commits Columbia to maintaining merit-based admissions and ending programs that promote “unlawful efforts to achieve race-based outcomes, quotas [and] diversity targets”. Under the agreement, Columbia will pay the federal government $200m over three years, in addition to a $21m payment to settle claims by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Claire Shipman, Columbia’s acting president, said that while the settlement was “substantial”, the university could not continue with a situation that would “jeopardize our status as a world-leading research institution”. “Furthermore, as I have discussed on many occasions with our community, we carefully explored all options open to us,” Shipman said in a statement. Advertisement “We might have achieved short-term litigation victories, but not without incurring deeper long-term damage – the likely loss of future federal funding, the possibility of losing accreditation, and the potential revocation of visa status of thousands of international students.” Shipman said Columbia did not accept the Trump administration’s findings that it had violated civil rights law by turning a blind eye to the harassment of Jews, but acknowledged the “very serious and painful challenges our institution has faced with antisemitism”. “We know there is still more to do,” she said. The settlement marks a victory in Trump’s efforts to exert greater control over third-level education, including campus activism in support of Palestine and other causes. Trump hailed the settlement as “historic” in a post on his Truth Social platform. “Numerous other Higher Education Institutions that have hurt so many, and been so unfair and unjust, and have wrongly spent federal money, much of it from our government, are upcoming,” Trump wrote. Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD), a student activist group, slammed the settlement as an effective bribe. “Imagine selling your students out just so you can pay Trump $221 million dollars and keep funding genocide,” the group said on X. Columbia was among dozens of US universities that were roiled by protests against Israel’s war in Gaza throughout the spring and summer of 2024. Many Jewish students and faculty complained that the campus demonstrations veered into anti-Semitism, while pro-Palestinian advocates have accused critics of often wrongly conflating opposition to Israel with the hatred of Jews. On Tuesday, Columbia University’s Judicial Board announced that it had finalised disciplinary proceedings against students who took part in protests at the university’s main library in May and the “Revolt for Rafah” encampment last year. CUAD said nearly 80 students had been expelled or suspended for between one and three years for joining the protests, sanctions it argued “hugely” exceeded the precedent for non-Palestine-related demonstrations. Adblock test (Why?)