UNITED NATIONS, United States: The United States on Monday announced a draft Security Council resolution supporting the Israel-Hamas ceasefire plan outlined by Joe Biden last week, urging Hamas to accept it.
“Numerous leaders and governments, including in the region, have endorsed this plan,” said US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield.
The draft text, seen by AFP, “welcomes the new deal announced on May 31, and calls upon Hamas to accept it fully and implement its terms without delay and without condition.”
Biden outlined on Friday what he called an Israeli plan that in three phases would end the bloody conflict, free all hostages and lead to the reconstruction of the devastated Palestinian territory without Hamas in power.
However fissures between the two allies emerged when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office stressed that the ongoing war in Gaza would continue until all of Israel’s “goals are achieved,” including the destruction of Hamas’s military and governing capabilities.
Israeli media have questioned to what extent Biden’s ceasefire speech and some crucial details were coordinated with Netanyahu’s team, including how long any truce would hold and how many captives would be freed and when.
Earlier Monday, the White House said Biden told the emir of mediator Qatar that he saw Hamas as “the only obstacle to a complete ceasefire” in Gaza, and urged him to press the group to accept it.
Hamas last week said it viewed Biden’s outline “positively,” but has since made no official comment on the stalled negotiations, while mediators Qatar, Egypt and the United States have not announced any new talks.
Before Biden had made his Friday announcement, Algeria had last week circulated a draft resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire and a halt of the Israeli offensive on the southern Gaza city of Rafah, citing the recent order to that effect from the International Court of Justice.
Washington at the time had said that the text wouldn’t be helpful, saying instead direct, on-the-ground negotiations were necessary for a truce.
No vote is scheduled for either draft resolution.
The council has struggled to find a unified voice since the war broke out with the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, followed by Israel’s retaliatory campaign.
After passing two resolutions centered on the need for humanitarian aid to people in Gaza, in March the council passed a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire — an appeal that had been blocked several times before by the United States.
Washington, increasingly frustrated with the mounting civilian death toll, finally allowed that resolution to pass by abstaining from voting.
US urges UN Security Council to back Israel-Hamas ceasefire plan
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US urges UN Security Council to back Israel-Hamas ceasefire plan
- Washington, increasingly frustrated with the mounting civilian death toll, finally allowed that resolution to pass by abstaining from voting
Driver charged with Liverpool football parade tragedy appears in court
- Prosecutors have charged him with dangerous driving and six serious offenses alleging grievous bodily harm
- The charges are related to two boys, two women and two men who were among the 79 people injured Monday during celebrations of Liverpool’s Premier League championship
LONDON: A driver charged with multiple counts of intentionally causing grievous bodily harm for ramming into a crowd of Liverpool football fans celebrating their team’s Premier League championship was ordered held in custody Friday at his first court appearance.
Paul Doyle, wearing a black suit, white shirt and gray tie, looked emotional as he spoke only to confirm his name, address and birth date in a hearing in Liverpool Magistrates’ Court. He did not enter a plea.
Doyle, 53, faces a charge of dangerous driving and six serious offenses alleging he caused or tried to cause grievous bodily harm. The charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison if he is convicted.
The father of three bowed his head as the charges were read. The counts are related to the injuries of two boys, two women and two men who were among the 79 people injured Monday. The victims ranged in age from 9 to 78, police said. Seven people remained hospitalized Thursday.
District Judge Paul Healey put an order in place restricting the publication of victims’ names.
Doyle was ordered to appear later in the day in Liverpool Crown Court.
The city had been celebrating Liverpool’s record-tying 20th title when Doyle turned down a street full of fans and joy quickly turned to tragedy. Police said they believed Doyle got past a road block by following an ambulance that was trying to reach a possible heart attack victim.
Videos showed the car hit and toss a person wrapped in a red Liverpool flag into the air and then swerve into a sea of people packed on the side of the road.
At least four people, including a child, had to be freed from beneath the vehicle when it came to a halt.
The driver was believed to have acted alone and terrorism was not suspected, Merseyside Police said. They have not disclosed an alleged motive for the act.
Kremlin expects Russia and Ukraine to discuss ceasefire conditions in Istanbul
MOSCOW: The Kremlin expects Russia and Ukraine to discuss the list of conditions for a ceasefire in the war in Ukraine next week in Istanbul, its spokesman said on Friday, praising the US role in mediating the talks.
Russia has proposed holding the second round of talks with Ukraine in Istanbul on June 2. However, Ukraine wants to see Russia’s proposals for a peace deal before it sends a delegation to Turkiye, Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on Friday.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Russian delegation would be traveling to Istanbul and would be ready for talks with Ukraine on Monday morning.
“At the moment, everyone is focused on the direct Russia-Ukraine negotiations. A list of conditions for a temporary truce is being developed,” Peskov told reporters. He said the details of the memorandum will not be published.
Reuters reported earlier this week that Putin’s conditions for ending the war in Ukraine include a demand that Western leaders pledge in writing to stop enlarging NATO eastwards.
US President Donald Trump’s envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, said earlier on Friday that Russia’s concern over the eastward enlargement of NATO was fair and the United States did not want to see Ukraine in the US-led military alliance.
Commenting on Kellogg’s statement, Peskov said that Putin has been consistently conveying Russia’s position on the inadmissibility of NATO’s eastward expansion.
“We are pleased that these explanations by the president are understood, including in Washington. And, of course, this is quite appealing to us in terms of the mediating role that Washington continues to play,” Peskov said.
Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 after eight years of fighting in eastern Ukraine between Russian-backed separatists and Ukrainian troops.
Rockfall at Indonesian limestone quarry kills eight
CIREBON: At least eight people were killed and a dozen injured Friday in a rockfall at a limestone quarry on Indonesia’s Java island, police said.
The company overseeing the mine was operating legally but safety standards were lacking, according to West Java governor Dedi Mulyadi, who said he has ordered its closure following the collapse.
Workers and heavy equipment were buried when rocks suddenly crumbled at the mining site in the city of Cirebon in West Java province at around 09:30 am local time (0230 GMT).
“We are now focusing on evacuating victims. Until now, eight people have been found dead, and 12 others were injured and have been taken to hospitals,” local police chief, Sumarni, who like many Indonesians has one name told AFP.
Rescuers were still scouring the site to find more victims who might still be trapped under the debris, deploying excavators for the search effort.
Friday’s incident was the second time the quarry collapsed. Parts of the mine collapsed in February but there were no casualties reported.
“I decided to shut down the pit permanently, not just this pit but also other pits nearby,” Dedi told Metro TV.
Mining accidents are common across the mineral-rich Southeast Asian archipelago, especially in unlicensed sites where safety protocols are often ignored.
In 2023, eight workers died after being trapped in an illegal gold mine in Central Java.
In July, last year, at least 23 people died and 35 others were missing when a landslide hit a remote village near an illegal gold mine on the central island of Sulawesi.
EU to propose more flexible climate goal in July, sources say
- The proposal will set an EU goal to cut net greenhouse gas emissions 90 percent by 2040, compared with 1990 levels, the diplomats saiD
BRUSSELS: The European Commission will propose a new EU climate target in July that includes flexibilities for how countries meet it, as Brussels attempts to fend off mounting criticism of Europe’s environmental aims, EU diplomats told Reuters.
The European Union’s climate commissioner, Wopke Hoekstra, confirmed plans to present an EU climate target for 2040 on July 2, during a meeting with EU countries’ representatives on Wednesday, diplomats familiar with the closed-door talks told Reuters.
The proposal will set an EU goal to cut net greenhouse gas emissions 90 percent by 2040, compared with 1990 levels, the diplomats said. However, the EU executive plans to add flexibilities to that target, which could reduce what it demands from domestic industries.
The flexibilities include setting an emissions-cutting target for domestic industries that is lower than 90 percent and letting countries buy international carbon credits to make up the rest, to reach 90 percent, the diplomats said.
A European Commission spokesperson declined to comment on the plans.
The Commission has promised not to weaken Europe’s ambitious climate aims, despite mounting criticism from governments and lawmakers concerned about the cost for European businesses, which are struggling with high energy prices and looming US tariffs.
Europe is the world’s fastest-warming continent. The Commission has delayed its 2040 climate proposal for months, and has weakened other green laws in recent months to try to calm the political pushback.
EU countries are split over the 2040 goal, which they and EU lawmakers must approve. Finland, the Netherlands and Denmark are among those backing a 90 percent emissions cut. Opponents include Italy and the Czech Republic.
Germany has backed a 90 percent target if countries can use international carbon credits to meet three percentage points of the goal.
The Commission is also considering softening requirements for countries to cut emissions in specific sectors — giving them more choice over which industries do the heavy lifting to meet the goal, the diplomats said.
The 2040 goal will aim to keep EU countries on track between their 2030 emissions target — which they are nearly on track to meet — and the EU’s aim to reach net zero emissions by 2050.
At least 88 people dead after floods submerge market town in Nigeria
- Isah said that many more are still at risk, with rescue efforts underway on Friday
- The floods were triggered by torrential rains
ABUJA: At least 88 people have been confirmed dead after floods submerged Mokwa, a market town in Nigeria’s Niger State, on Thursday, an official said.
Husseini Isah, head of the operations office in Minna, capital of Niger State, said that many more are still at risk, with rescue efforts underway on Friday. Earlier reports said at least 20 died.
“The number keeps rising,” Isah told The Associated Press. “But at the last count, 88 bodies have been recovered.”
The floods were triggered by torrential rains that lasted several hours. According to local reports quoting residents and local government officials, a dam collapse in a nearby town worsened the situation.
Mokwa is a major meeting point for traders from the south and food growers in the north of the country.
In a similar occurrence last September, torrential rains and a dam collapse in Nigeria’s northeastern Maiduguri caused severe flooding, leaving at least 30 people dead and displacing millions, worsening the humanitarian crisis caused by the Boko Haram insurgency.
Nigeria often faces seasonal floods, particularly impacting communities along the banks of the Niger and Benue Rivers.
