Video: Maduro sends best wishes as leaders react to Biden decision
NewsFeed Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro sent his best wishes to US President Joe Biden for ‘health and a long life’, as world leaders including the prime ministers of Australia and Japan reacted to Biden’s decision not to run for re-election. Published On 22 Jul 202422 Jul 2024 Adblock test (Why?)
Ukraine’s foreign minister to press China on support for Russia
Dmytro Kuleba visits China to discuss ending Russia’s invasion and sustainable peace efforts. Ukraine’s foreign minister will head to China on Tuesday for two days of talks in a bid to persuade Beijing to reduce its support for Russia and get behind Kyiv’s push for “sustainable” peace. The main topic of discussion on Dmytro Kuleba’s trip, the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Monday, will be “the search for ways to stop Russian aggression and China’s possible role in achieving a sustainable and just peace”. A close political and economic ally of Moscow, Beijing denies that it supports Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. However, China has not condemned the war either and refused to join Ukrainian-led international peace conferences. Beijing confirmed the planned talks with the Ukrainian official. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said that Kuleba’s visit was initiated by China’s foreign minister. Last year, Beijing released a paper calling for a “political settlement” to the conflict. However, Ukraine dismissed the proposal and Western countries warned that the suggested solution could enable Russia to retain much of the territory it has seized in Ukraine. During a visit to Beijing in May, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin signalled his approval of China’s plan, calling it a “genuine desire” to end the war. Last month, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hosted a peace summit in Switzerland to set out his vision for a lasting peace. The summit drew about 100 delegations from various nations and international bodies though Russia was not invited. Beijing refused to attend in protest, provoking an accusation from Zelenskyy that China was collaborating with Russia to undermine the event. China said that “all efforts” to support peace measures should be recognised. Kyiv and Moscow have intensified fatal cross-border missile and drone attacks over recent months with both sides primarily targeting energy infrastructure. Russia makes nearly daily announcements about the interception of Ukrainian drones which Kyiv says are a response to Russian attacks aimed at military and civilian targets since Moscow launched its special military operation in February 2022. Adblock test (Why?)
Republicans want Biden to ‘resign immediately’ after election withdrawal
As US President Joe Biden announces his decision to drop out of the November election, top leaders from the Republican Party say he must resign as president “immediately”. “If Joe Biden is not fit to run for President, he is not fit to serve as President. He must resign the office immediately. November 5 cannot arrive soon enough,” House Speaker Mike Johnson, the top Republican in the US Congress, said in a statement on Sunday. Johnson characterised Biden’s withdrawal as an “unprecedented” moment in United States history. “We must be clear about what just happened. The Democrat Party forced the Democrat nominee off the ballot, just over 100 days before the election,” he wrote. “Having invalidated the votes of more than 14 million Americans who selected Joe Biden to be the Democrat nominee for president, the self-proclaimed ‘party of democracy’ has proven exactly the opposite.” Biden said he intends to serve out the remainder of his term, which ends on January 20, 2025. But Biden’s Republican opponents, including Donald Trump, slammed his presidency and called for the 81-year-old to resign before the end of his term. “Crooked Joe Biden was not fit to run for President, and is certainly not fit to serve – And never was!” Trump posted on his Truth Social network. The Republicans have seized on Biden’s poor debate performance last month to batter him as incapable of serving four more years. Now that he is out of the presidential election, many are saying he should resign from his office, too. Johnson, in a separate interview with the network ABC, hinted that the Republicans may mount legal challenges to the Democrats’ move to replace Biden on the ballot. Johnson also used his post for an attack on Vice President Kamala Harris, who Biden has proposed as his replacement candidate. Johnson described Harris as “a gleeful accomplice” who “co-owns the disastrous policy failures of the Biden Administration”. “Regardless of the chaos in the current White House, our adversaries around the globe should be reminded that the US Congress, the US military, and the American people are fully prepared and committed to defend our interests both at home and abroad,” Johnson wrote. Senator JD Vance, the Republican vice-presidential candidate, said on X that not running for re-election would be a “clear admission” that Trump was right all along about Biden “not being mentally fit enough to serve as Commander-in-Chief”. “There is no middle ground,” he added. Elise Stefanik, House Republican Conference chairperson, shared a similar sentiment, saying in a statement that if Biden can’t run for re-election, he is “unable and unfit to serve” as the US president. Meanwhile, the Democrats have defended Biden’s decision, calling it a “patriotic” and “selfless” move. In a joint statement, former President Bill Clinton and ex-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said they “join millions of Americans in thanking President Biden for all that he accomplished”. They also threw their weight behind Harris to be the Democratic nominee to face Trump in November. “Now is the time to support Kamala Harris and fight with everything we’ve got to elect her. America’s future depends on it,” the Clintons said. Former President Barack Obama, who picked then-Senator Biden as his running mate in 2008, called him a “patriot of the highest order”, but warned of “uncharted waters in the days ahead” – and stopped short of endorsing Harris. “I have extraordinary confidence that the leaders of our party will be able to create a process from which an outstanding nominee emerges,” the former US leader and Democratic Party member said in a statement. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement that Biden has not only been a “great president and a great legislative leader but he is a truly amazing human being”. “His decision of course was not easy, but he once again put his country, his party, and our future first,” he said. Schumer and Senator Dick Durbin, the top two Senate Democrats, however, did not offer support for Biden’s proposed replacement, Harris. “Now the Democratic Party must unite behind a candidate who can defeat Donald Trump and keep America moving in the right direction. I will do everything in my power to help that effort,” Durbin said. Adblock test (Why?)
Full text: Biden’s letter announcing withdrawal from presidential race
‘It is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down,’ the US president writes. The following is the letter from United States President Joe Biden, announcing he will no longer run for re-election in November: “My Fellow Americans, Over the past three and a half years, we have made great progress as a Nation. Today, America has the strongest economy in the world. We’ve made historic investments in rebuilding our Nation, in lowering prescription drug costs for seniors, and in expanding affordable health care to a record number of Americans. We’ve provided critically needed care to a million veterans exposed to toxic substances. Passed the first gun safety law in 30 years. Appointed the first African American woman to the Supreme Court. And passed the most significant climate legislation in the history of the world. America has never been better positioned to lead than we are today. I know none of this could have been done without you, the American people. Together, we overcame a once in a century pandemic and the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. We’ve protected and preserved our Democracy. And we’ve revitalized and strengthened our alliances around the world. It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President. And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term. I will speak to the Nation later this week in more detail about my decision. For now, let me express my deepest gratitude to all those who have worked so hard to see me reelected. I want to thank Vice President Kamala Harris for being an extraordinary partner in all this work. And let me express my heartfelt appreciation to the American people for the faith and trust you have placed in me. I believe today what I always have: that there is nothing America can’t do — when we do it together. We just have to remember we are the United States of America.” – Joe Biden Adblock test (Why?)
What’s behind the recurring unrest in Bangladesh?
Student protesters won’t stand down despite the top court reducing quotas for government jobs. After weeks of widespread unrest in Bangladesh, the Supreme Court has changed a controversial quota system for government jobs. It has significantly reduced the share of public sector positions reserved for war veterans’ family members. But despite the ruling, the protests appear to be far from over. Initially student led, they have grown to include people frustrated by rising inflation and high food prices. Dozens of student leaders, activists and opposition figures have been arrested. With soldiers on the streets, a nationwide curfew in place and a communications blackout, there are also growing calls for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to take accountability. So will the quota reforms be enough to restore calm? Presenter: Mohammed Jamjoom Guests: Mubashar Hasan – Political analyst and post-doctoral fellow at the University of Oslo Zaman Ashraf – Bangladeshi activist who works with the Asian Human Rights Commission Sreeradha Datta – Professor at the Jindal School of International Affairs whose research focuses on India-Bangladesh relations Adblock test (Why?)
Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 877
As the war enters its 877th day, these are the main developments. This is where the war stands on Sunday, July 21, 2024: Fighting Russian missiles and artillery fire in northeast Ukraine killed at least two people before dawn, according to law enforcement agencies. The northeast Kharkiv regional prosecutor’s office said two men, aged 48 and 69, were killed and about 50 buildings were damaged in the attack, apparently using three Russian Iskander missiles. Separate artillery shelling killed a 44-year-old man in the city of Nikopol, in the south of the country, national police said. The death toll in a Russian attack on Friday on a playground in the southern city of Mykolaiv rose to four, including one child, with 24 injured, Mayor Oleksander Senkevitch posted on the Telegram messaging app. Air defence systems destroyed 35 of the 39 attack drones that Russia launched overnight, Ukraine’s air force said on Telegram. Russia launched its fifth drone attack on Kyiv in two weeks, with Ukraine’s air defence systems destroying all the air weapons before they could reach the capital, Ukraine’s military said. No casualties or damage was reported, Serhiy Popko, head of Kyiv’s military administration, said on Telegram. Russia’s air defence systems destroyed eight Ukrainian drones overnight, the Russian Ministry of Defence said. Three of the drones were destroyed over the Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine, and three were intercepted in the Black Sea, the ministry said on Telegram. Cyberspace Spanish police said they arrested three people accused of taking part in cyberattacks by a pro-Russian group targeting public institutions and strategic sectors in Spain and other NATO countries. Two of the suspects were arrested in Huelva and Seville in southern Spain, while the third was detained in the Balearic Islands, a Civil Guard statement said. They were accused of “computer-related offences with terrorist intent” over a string of distributed denial-of-service attacks, which make websites or network resources unavailable by flooding them with malicious traffic. Adblock test (Why?)
Bangladesh top court scraps job quotas that caused deadly unrest
BREAKINGBREAKING, The top court scales back – but does not abolish – a contentious quota system that sparked deadly protests. Bangladesh’s Supreme Court has scrapped most of the quotas on government jobs that led to student-led protests in which more than 100 people have been killed, according to local media. The court’s Appellate Division dismissed a lower court order that had reinstated the quotas last month. Attorney General AM Amin Uddin told the AFP news agency: “The Supreme Court has said the High Court verdict was illegal.” He added that 5 percent of civil service jobs would remain reserved for children of independence war veterans and 2 percent for other categories. Previously, 30 percent of the jobs were reserved for the relatives of war veterans. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government scrapped the quota system in 2018, but the lower court reinstated it last month, sparking deadly protests and an ensuing government crackdown. The verdict comes after weeks of demonstrations — mostly led by students — against the quota system they believe is discriminatory. Protesters argued the quota system benefits supporters of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, whose Awami League party led the independence movement, saying it should be replaced with a merit-based system. Hasina defended the quota system, saying that veterans deserve the highest respect for their contributions in the war against Pakistan, regardless of their political affiliation. Last week the protests grew increasingly violent, with police firing tear gas and rubber bullets and hurling smoke grenades to scatter the activists who filled the streets and university campuses. On Friday a crowd of thousands besieged a prison in the central district of Narsingdi armed with machetes and steel rods, freeing more than 800 prisoners before setting part of the facility ablaze. The demonstrations are the biggest to rock Bangladesh since Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was re-elected to a fourth successive term this year. Full curfew To restore calm, Bangladesh imposed a full curfew ahead of the High Court ruling, which is to remain in place until at least 3pm (09:00 GMT) Sunday. Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said the curfew would be eased for two hours between 3pm to 5pm (09:00-11:00 GMT) for people to stock up on supplies before continuing for an “uncertain time”. The government also cut of phone and internet connections, creating an “information blackout”, reported Al Jazeera’s Tanvir Chowohury from the capital Dhaka. The harsh crackdown has fuelled even more anger towards the government, pushing protesters to move beyond calling for quota reform to demanding the whole government’s resignation. “It’s not just the issue of quotas right now. Many people died. Property was destroyed. And there’s an information blackout,” Chowohury told Al Jazeera. “We still don’t know the full account of the death toll and casualties from the last few days.” ‘At a crossroads’ Ali Riaz, professor and political scientist at Illinois State University, said the protest movement has “transformed” into an existential threat for the government, which has called on protesters to await the outcome of today’s verdict. “Bangladesh is standing at a crossroads,” Riaz told Al Jazeera. “I think the government will survive politically speaking… on the other hand if the protesters can persevere, they might actually push the government to resign.” It was not immediately clear how protesters would react to the court’s decision. Hasina’s government has declared Sunday and Monday as public holidays, with only emergency services allowed to operate. Adblock test (Why?)
More than 20 killed in Bolivia’s worst road accident this year
Initial investigation shows that the truck had crossed into the opposite lane while trying to overtake another vehicle. A head-on collision between a truck and a bus on a highway in the Bolivian Andes has killed 22 people and injured 16 in the country’s worst road accident this year, according to police. Fourteen of the dead have been identified so far, police said on Sunday, with Chile’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs saying there was at least one Chilean national among them. Earlier, officials said the drivers of both vehicles were among the dead. The accident happened on a road between Bolivia‘s town of Patacamaya and the town of Tambo Quemado in northern Chile, according to Unitel channel. The bus had been heading towards Chile on the busy commercial and tourism route linking the two South American countries. The initial investigation showed that the truck had crossed into the opposite lane while trying to overtake a vehicle, traffic officer Nilo Torrico said. “This truck made a prohibited manoeuvre and, as a result, we have this unfortunate accident,” he said. Images of the accident shared by Unitel showed the bus with its front section shattered and the smashed truck. Some bodies were seen on the road. First responders were working to remove bodies trapped in the destroyed vehicles, Torrico said. Bolivia sees about 1,400 traffic deaths each year, government statistics show. Accidents are mainly due to poor driving and mechanical failures. A collision on a busy road in southwestern Bolivia on April 4 killed 14 people and left two injured. Adblock test (Why?)
Israel says it struck Yemen’s Hodeidah in response to Houthi attacks
The Israeli military has said it has conducted strikes against Yemen’s Red Sea port city of Hodeidah in response to attacks by the Houthi group. The air raids on Saturday were carried out a day after the Houthis claimed responsibility for a drone attack that killed one person in Tel Aviv and injured 10 others. Houthi-affiliated Al Masirah TV said the Israeli attack targeted oil storage facilities and a power plant in Hodeidah, igniting a fire. The news outlet cited health officials as saying the air raids resulted in casualties, including fatalities, without specifying a number. The Ministry of Health, which operates in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, said more than 80 people have suffered burns as a result of the Israeli strikes. But the Israeli military said it hit “military targets” in Yemen. The Israeli air strikes are the first known direct attack by Israel against the Houthis since the start of the war on Gaza. The assault comes amid growing fears of escalating violence across the Middle East. The Houthi Supreme Political Council promised to respond to Saturday’s attack. “This aggression will not pass without an effective response against the enemy,” it said in a statement. Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdelsalam said the “brutal Israeli aggression against Yemen” aims to “pressure Yemen to stop supporting Gaza, which is a dream that will not come true”. General Yahya Saree, the Houthi military spokesman, added later on Saturday that the group would not hesitate in attacking “vital targets” in Israel. Hamas was quick to condemn the Israeli assault. “The occupation state will undoubtedly be burned by the fire ignited in Hodeidah today, and the mounting Zionist crimes will change the entire equation,” Izzat al-Rishq, a member of the Palestinian group’s political bureau, said in a statement. Hezbollah voiced support for the Houthis and the Yemeni people after the attack, as well. “We think that this stupid step by the Zionist enemy is a sign of a new, dangerous phase in the confrontation at the level of the entire region,” the Lebanese group said in a statement. But Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant lauded the attack as a warning to Israel’s adversaries. “The fire that is currently burning in Hodeidah is seen across the Middle East and the significance is clear,” Gallant said. “The Houthis attacked us over 200 times. The first time that they harmed an Israeli citizen, we struck them. And we will do this in any place where it may be required.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the port struck by fighter jets was used as an entry point for the Houthis to receive Iranian weapons. Netanyahu added that the strike, some 1,800 km (1,120 miles) from Israel’s borders, was a reminder to enemies that there is no place that Israel could not reach. Yousef Mawry, a Yemeni journalist and political analyst, told Al Jazeera that he witnessed people in Sanaa rushing to get fuel after the attack amid fears of shortages, stressing that the Israeli strikes targeted “public facilities”. He said the attack would place the burden on civilians, leaving them without “access to basic necessities”, including propane gas and fuel. The Iran-allied Houthis, who present themselves as Yemen’s official armed forces, have been targeting shipping lanes in the Red Sea in a campaign that they say aims to pressure Israel to end its war on Gaza, which has killed more than 38,900 Palestinians. The Yemeni group has also launched ballistic missiles and drones at Israel, most of which have been intercepted. But early on Friday, an explosive-laden Houthi drone eluded Israeli air defences and struck a building in Tel Aviv in what was seen as a major security breach in Israel. Israeli officials had promised to respond. Gallant promised in a message to the Houthis on Friday that Israel “will settle the score” with anyone who harms its security. The United States and United Kingdom have been conducting air strikes in Yemen for months in response to the Houthis’ Red Sea assaults. But the military campaign has failed to stop the Yemeni group’s attacks. Al Jazeera’s Hamdah Salhut said the latest developments will likely strain the Israeli military, which “is already stretched thin”, amid fears of an all-out regional war. Salhut noted that Israeli reservists are operating in both the northern and southern parts of the country as Israel fights Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. “If the air force is going to have to be additionally deployed to more parts of the Middle East like Yemen, it’s tough to say how exactly they’re going to manage that when they’re looking still to recruit more people for the army,” she said. “It’s a lot of pressure on the Israelis as yet another front has opened this morning.” Adblock test (Why?)
World Cup 2.0 – Why women’s Olympic football is a must watch at Paris 2024
Less than a year after the global breakout success of the FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia, a good number of that tournament’s best players will be back; this time, the global football epicentre will be Paris Olympics 2024 with 12 teams fighting for the gold medal. World champions Spain is among the favourites to taste glory, even though the team will make its Olympic debut in the French capital, while perennial heavyweights the United States will be looking for redemption after suffering their worst-ever World Cup result. Team USA’s neighbours Canada are the defending Olympic champions after they did the unthinkable at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, defeating highly-favoured Sweden in the gold medal match. Disappointingly, the Swedes will not take part in the Paris 2024 Olympics after failing to qualify. Joining them on the absentees list will be the United Kingdom, who couldn’t secure an Olympic berth through the inaugural Women’s Nations League. With senior professional players and full-strength squads, the 12-team women’s Olympic football event offers a star-studded and premier global football competition of the highest quality when compared to the 16-team men’s event, which is restricted to under-23 players with an allowance for only three over-age professional players. The fan interest in women’s Olympic football competition is expected to be higher than ever, thanks to the success of the 2023 World Cup, which attracted record global television viewing figures. USA: A team in transition With a new coach at its helm and a squad featuring upcoming stars, a new-look Team USA will compete at the Olympics. England’s Emma Hayes has been hired to turn around the team’s fortunes and the experienced coach could be a breath of fresh air that the American women’s game needs. Hayes, who led Chelsea to seven Women’s Super League titles, took over the reins just before the Olympics, although her appointment was announced late last year after Vlatko Andonovski resigned in the wake of their bitter World Cup exit. The US women’s football team, who have won the World Cup a record four times, were knocked out in the round of 16 at the 2023 World Cup, their worst-ever finish at a major tournament [File: Asanka Brendon Ratnayake/Reuters] After successive triumphs in 2015 and 2019, the US was expected to complete a “three-peat” of titles at the 2023 World Cup, but the Americans were knocked out in the last 16, losing to Sweden on penalties. The pressure is on Hayes as she manages a team trying to find its way back to the top of the world rankings, having slipped to their lowest-ever spot (fifth). There is also pride on the line for the four-time world champions. “We all know the main ingredients of the American DNA, and that will not change under my stewardship,” Hayes said in her first press conference as head coach in June. US captain Lindsey Horan, who was part of the side that won bronze at the Tokyo Games, said the team has moved on from their World Cup heartbreak and is going for gold in Paris. “After the World Cup, we really regrouped,” Horan told reporters this month. “You look at the young players coming in, the leaders on this team, you know, just [a] big mesh of what we have. I think what you’re going to see and what’s in store for us is incredible.” Team USA’s 18-player Olympic roster features exciting new talent such as forward Sophia Smith and defender Naomi Girma, while veterans Horan, Alyssa Naeher and Crystal Dunn add quality depth to the squad. In a surprise omission, Alex Morgan, one of the last links to the great US women’s football team dynasty, was left out by Hayes. It will be the first time since the 2008 Olympics that the high-profile forward will not suit up for the national side in a major competition. By not picking Alex Morgan in the US Olympic squad for the Paris Games, coach Emma Hayes signaled the likely end of the star striker’s international career [Robert Cianflone/Getty Images] Team USA has won a medal in all but one of the seven Olympics that have featured women’s football, including four gold medals, the last of which came at London 2012. Goalkeeper Naeher said the Paris Olympics will give the team a chance to begin a new chapter, as they look to regain their supremacy on the global stage. “We’ve talked to this whole year about looking towards the future and turning the page and having this new identity and moving forward,” Naeher told reporters. “This is the start of that,” she said. “With Emma in here and the full new staff and the roster being set, I think now this is the opportunity to officially kind of move in that forward direction. And this is the first tournament for that. You can feel the energy.” The US are in Group B alongside 2016 Olympic champions Germany, Asian heavyweights Australia, and Zambia, whose squad includes the world’s most expensive female player, Racheal Kundananji. Can Spain do the double? Spain emerged as the 2023 FIFA World Champions in Australia and New Zealand despite dealing with off-field issues including an ugly player revolt. Later, their title triumph was marred by a scandal triggered by ex-Spanish FA chief Luis Rubiales. Rubiales provoked worldwide outrage by kissing star player Jenni Hermoso without consent during the medal ceremony after the World Cup final. The disgraced former official is set to stand trial in February 2025, while his close ally Jorge Vilda was also sacked as the coach by the Spanish FA. Unlike the World Cup, Spain will head to the Olympics without distractions and has the chance to become the first team to win the Olympic Gold-World Cup double. The Olympics will be a new experience for the top-ranked Spaniards but having won the World Cup and the Nations League last year, they know what it takes to win at a major tournament. Their squad is rich in world-class talent, featuring 2023