Trump vows ‘firm’ stance with Netanyahu on ending Gaza war

0 seconds of 54 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
00:00
00:54
00:54
 
Short Url
Updated 02 July 2025
Follow

Trump vows ‘firm’ stance with Netanyahu on ending Gaza war

US President Donald Trump shakes hands with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as Netanyahu departs the White House.
  • Asked at the detention center how firm he will be with Netanyahu on ending the war, Trump replied: “Very firm”
  • The visit next Monday will be Netanyahu’s third since Trump returned to power in January

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump vowed Tuesday to be “very firm” in his stance on ending the war in Gaza when he meets next week with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The remarks by the president, made during a tour of a migrant detention center in Florida, came after he said earlier that he was hoping for a truce in the nearly 21-month conflict by “sometime next week.”

The Republican leader is set to host Netanyahu at the White House on July 7 and the swift resolution of Israel’s 12-day war with Iran has revived hopes for a halt to the Gaza fighting.

Almost relentless combat in the Palestinian territory since Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel has created dire humanitarian conditions for the population of more than two million.

Trump was asked Tuesday by reporters if a ceasefire could be in place before Netanyahu’s visit.

“We hope it’s going to happen, and we’re looking for it to happen sometime next week,” he said before departing for Florida.

Trump has previously urged Israel to “make the deal in Gaza,” but on the ground, Israel has continued to pursue its offensive across the Palestinian territory.

The end of Israel’s 12-day war with Iran — which followed a US bombing mission on Tehran’s nuclear sites — has provided a window of opportunity for a deal, with Trump keen to add another peace agreement to a series of recent deals he has brokered.

Asked at the detention center how firm he will be with Netanyahu on ending the war, Trump replied: “Very firm.”

“But he wants it too.... He wants to end it too,” Trump added.

The visit next Monday will be Netanyahu’s third since Trump returned to power in January, and comes on the heels of the US president making a rare intervention into domestic Israeli politics.

Trump appeared over the weekend to threaten US aid to Israel as he called in a social media post for prosecutors to drop long-running corruption charges against Netanyahu.

Netanyahu became the first foreign leader to visit Trump in his second term in February, when the US president surprised him by suddenly announcing a plan for the United States to “take over” Gaza.

The Israeli premier visited again in April.

 


State Department lays off over 1,300 employees under Trump administration plan

State Department lays off over 1,300 employees under Trump administration plan
Updated 9 min 11 sec ago
Follow

State Department lays off over 1,300 employees under Trump administration plan

State Department lays off over 1,300 employees under Trump administration plan
  • The cuts have been roundly criticized by current and former diplomats

WASHINGTON: The US State Department fired more than 1,300 employees on Friday in line with a dramatic reorganization plan from the Trump administration that critics say will damage America’s global leadership and efforts to counter threats abroad.

The department sent layoff notices to 1,107 civil servants and 246 foreign service officers with assignments in the United States, according to a senior department official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss personnel matters.

Notices said positions were being “abolished” and the employees would lose access to State Department headquarters in Washington and their email and shared drives by 5 p.m., according to a copy obtained by The Associated Press.

As fired employees packed their belongings, dozens of former colleagues, ambassadors, members of Congress and others spent a warm, humid day protesting outside. Holding signs saying, “Thank you to America’s diplomats” and “We all deserve better,” they mourned the institutional loss from the cuts and highlighted the personal sacrifice of serving in the foreign service.

“We talk about people in uniform serving. But foreign service officers take an oath of office, just like military officers,” said Anne Bodine, who retired from the State Department in 2011 after serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. “This is not the way to treat people who served their country and who believe in ‘America First.’”

While lauded by President Donald Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and their Republican allies as overdue and necessary to make the department leaner and more efficient, the cuts have been roundly criticized by current and former diplomats who say they will weaken US influence and the ability to counter existing and emerging threats abroad.

The layoffs are part of big changes to State Department work

The Trump administration has pushed to reshape American diplomacy and worked aggressively to shrink the size of the federal government, including mass dismissals driven by the Department of Government Efficiency and moves to dismantle whole departments like the US Agency for International Development and the Education Department.

USAID, the six-decade-old foreign assistance agency, was absorbed into the State Department last week after the administration dramatically slashed foreign aid funding.

A recent ruling by the Supreme Court cleared the way for the layoffs to start, while lawsuits challenging the legality of the cuts continue to play out. The department had advised staffers Thursday that it would be sending layoff notices to some of them soon.

In a May letter notifying Congress about the reorganization, the department said it had just over 18,700 US-based employees and was looking to reduce the workforce by 18 percent through layoffs and voluntary departures, including deferred resignation programs.

“It’s not a consequence of trying to get rid of people. But if you close the bureau, you don’t need those positions,” Rubio told reporters Thursday during a visit to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. “Understand that some of these are positions that are being eliminated, not people.”

Foreign service officers affected will be placed immediately on administrative leave for 120 days, after which they will formally lose their jobs, according to an internal notice obtained by AP. For most civil servants, the separation period is 60 days, it said.

Protesters gather to criticize the job cuts

Inside and just outside the State Department, employees spent over an hour applauding their departing colleagues, who got more support — and sometimes hugs — from protesters and others gathered across the street.

As speakers took to a bullhorn, people behind them held signs in the shape of gravestones that said “democracy,” “human rights” and “diplomacy.”

“It’s just heartbreaking to stand outside these doors right now and see people coming out in tears, because all they wanted to do was serve this country,” said Sen. Andy Kim, a New Jersey Democrat who worked as a civilian adviser for the State Department in Afghanistan during the Obama administration.

Robert Blake, who served as a US ambassador under the George W. Bush and Obama administrations, said he came to support his peers at a very “unjust time.”

“I have a lot of friends who served very loyally and with distinction and who are being fired for nothing to do with their performance,” Blake said.

Gordon Duguid, a 31-year veteran of the foreign service, said of the Trump administration: “They’re not looking for people who have the expertise ... they just want people who say, ‘OK, how high’” to jump.

“That’s a recipe for disaster,” he added.

The American Foreign Service Association, the union that represents US diplomats, said it opposed the job cuts during “a moment of great global instability.”

“Losing more diplomatic expertise at this critical global moment is a catastrophic blow to our national interests,” the AFSA said in a statement. “These layoffs are untethered from merit or mission.”

As the layoffs began, paper signs started going up around the State Department. “Colleagues, if you remain: resist fascism,” said one.

An employee who was among those laid off said she printed them about a week ago, when the Supreme Court cleared way for the reductions. The employee spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity out of fear of retaliation.

She worked with about a dozen colleagues to put up the signs. They focused on bathrooms, where there are no security cameras, although others went in more public spaces.

“Nobody wants to feel like these guys can just get away with this,” she said.

The State Department is undergoing a big reorganization

The State Department is planning to eliminate some divisions tasked with oversight of America’s two-decade involvement in Afghanistan, including an office focused on resettling Afghan nationals who worked alongside the US military.

Jessica Bradley Rushing, who worked at the Office of the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts, known as CARE, said she was shocked when she received another dismissal notice Friday after she had already been put on administrative leave in March.

“I spent the entire morning getting updates from my former colleagues at CARE, who were watching this carnage take place within the office,” she said, adding that every person on her team received a notice. “I never even anticipated that I could be at risk for that because I’m already on administrative leave.”

The State Department said the reorganization will affect more than 300 bureaus and offices, as it eliminates divisions it describes as doing unclear or overlapping work. It says Rubio believes “effective modern diplomacy requires streamlining this bloated bureaucracy.”

The letter to Congress was clear that the reorganization is also intended to eliminate programs — particularly those related to refugees and immigration, as well as human rights and democracy promotion — that the Trump administration believes have become ideologically driven in a way that is incompatible with its priorities and policies.

___

Lee reported from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and Amiri from New York. Chris Megerian in Washington contributed.

___

Follow the AP’s coverage of the US Department of State at https://apnews.com/hub/us-department-of-state.


PSG’s success lies in team ethic, not individual stars, says manager Luis Enrique

PSG’s success lies in team ethic, not individual stars, says manager Luis Enrique
Updated 28 min 20 sec ago
Follow

PSG’s success lies in team ethic, not individual stars, says manager Luis Enrique

PSG’s success lies in team ethic, not individual stars, says manager Luis Enrique

EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey: Paris St. Germain manager Luis Enrique emphasized on Friday that the key to his side’s resurgence is a collective team ethic rather than reliance on individual brilliance, as the French and European champions prepare to face Chelsea in Sunday’s Club World Cup final.

The Parisians, buoyed by their historic Champions League triumph a little over a month ago, are chasing their first Club World Cup title.

Luis Enrique has overseen a significant transformation at PSG, replacing departing stars Neymar, Lionel Messi, and Kylian Mbappe with a dynamic, youthful squad that embodies his total football philosophy.

Speaking at a press conference at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, the Spaniard downplayed suggestions that he is the team’s central figure, instead crediting the players’ shared commitment to a common goal.

“I’m not a star... I like the work I do. I enjoy my career, especially during difficult times,” Luis Enrique said. “When things aren’t going well, I feel better. It’s nice when everything works out because the best thing about winning is making the people who follow us happy. I’ve been much better when I’ve been criticized than when I’ve been praised.”

Luis Enrique, who previously guided Barcelona to Champions League glory, hinted that this campaign could be among the finest of his managerial career but stressed that success would only be defined after Sunday’s final.

“Maybe this could be the best season of my coaching career. But there’s still a final to win. When we’ve won it, we’ll talk about it,” he said.

The Spaniard also highlighted the volatile nature of football, citing Manchester City’s recent struggles as a cautionary tale.

“We’ve seen Manchester City, for example. They won everything last year and then they lose 10 games and they’re crushed. Pep Guardiola is still the best coach in the world and they’re killing him. So I prefer criticism over praise because it makes you feel humble, it’s the crude reality.”

Luis Enrique reiterated his vision for a team-first approach, declaring, “We have to be a team with eleven stars, not just one or two. Not even eleven, maybe thirteen, fifteen stars... The real star should be the entire team. That’s what our club stands for. We’ll lose again soon, for sure. We want stars, but in the service of the team.”

PSG’s clash with Chelsea promises to be an enthralling encounter, with both sides vying to add a coveted international trophy to their respective honors. The Parisians will be aiming to cap off a groundbreaking year by lifting the Club World Cup for the first time in their history.


‘All our crew are Muslim,’ fearful Red Sea ships tell Houthis

‘All our crew are Muslim,’ fearful Red Sea ships tell Houthis
Updated 37 min 28 sec ago
Follow

‘All our crew are Muslim,’ fearful Red Sea ships tell Houthis

‘All our crew are Muslim,’ fearful Red Sea ships tell Houthis
  • Increasingly desperate messages from commercial vessels trying to avoid attack by Yemen militia

LONDON: Commercial ships sailing through the Red Sea are broadcasting increasingly desperate messages on public channels to avoid being attacked by the Houthi militia in Yemen.

One message read “All Crew Muslim,” some included references to an all-Chinese crew and management, others flagged the presence of armed guards on board, and almost all insisted the ships had no connection to Israel.

Maritime security sources said the messages were a sign of growing desperation to avoid attack, but were unlikely to make any difference. Houthi intelligence preparation was “much deeper and forward-leaning,” one source said.

Houthi attacks off Yemen’s coast began in November 2023 in what the group said was in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza war. A lull this year ended when they sank two ships last week and killed four crew. Vessels in the fleets of both ships had made calls to Israeli ports in the past year.

“Seafarers are the backbone of global trade, keeping countries supplied with food, fuel and medicine. They should not have to risk their lives to do their job,” the Seafarers' Charity.


Tunisian jailed after refusing to watch president on TV: lawyer

Tunisian jailed after refusing to watch president on TV: lawyer
Updated 12 July 2025
Follow

Tunisian jailed after refusing to watch president on TV: lawyer

Tunisian jailed after refusing to watch president on TV: lawyer
  • The man had himself been deported from Italy, where he had been living without documentation

TUNIS: A Tunisian inmate was sentenced to six months in prison after he was reported to authorities for refusing to watch a TV news segment about President Kais Saied, his lawyer and an NGO said Friday.

The inmate’s lawyer, Adel Sghaier, said his client was initially prosecuted under Article 67 of the penal code, which covers crimes against the head of state, but the charge was later revised to violating public decency to avoid giving the case a “political” dimension.

The local branch of the Tunisian League for Human Rights in the central town of Gafsa said that the inmate had “expressed his refusal to watch (coverage of) presidential activities” during a news broadcast that was playing on TV in his cell.

He was reported by a cellmate, investigated and later sentenced to six months behind bars, the NGO said, condemning what it called a “policy of gagging voices that even extends to prisoners in their cells.”

Sghaier said his client had been held over an unrelated case that was ultimately dismissed, and that his family only learnt of his other sentence when he wasn’t freed as expected.

He acknowledged that his client voiced insults and demanded the channel be changed when Saied’s image appeared on TV, explaining the man blamed the president for “ruining his life” by striking a deal with Italy for the deportation of irregular Tunisian immigrants.

The man had himself been deported from Italy, where he had been living without documentation.

A spokesman for the court in Gafsa could not be reached for comment.

Saied, elected in 2019, has ruled Tunisia by decree since a 2021 power grab, with local and international organizations decrying a decline in freedoms in the country considered the cradle of the “Arab Spring.”

 


Palestinian Authority says settlers beat man to death in West Bank

Palestinian Authority says settlers beat man to death in West Bank
Updated 12 July 2025
Follow

Palestinian Authority says settlers beat man to death in West Bank

Palestinian Authority says settlers beat man to death in West Bank
  • A spokesman for the Palestinian Authority ministry, Annas Abu El Ezz, told AFP that 23-year-old Saif Al-Din Kamil Abdul Karim Musalat “died after being severely beaten all over his body by settlers in the town of Sinjil, north of Ramallah, this afternoon”

RAMALLAH, Palestinian Territories: The Palestinian health ministry said a 23-year-old man was beaten to death by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank on Friday, in the latest deadly assault as violence surges in the territory.

In a statement, the Israeli military said clashes broke out between Palestinians and Israelis on Friday after rocks were thrown at Israeli civilians adjacent to the village of Sinjil, lightly injuring two.

It said the ensuing “violent confrontation... included vandalism of Palestinian property, arson, physical clashes, and rock hurling.”

“We are aware of reports regarding a Palestinian civilian killed and a number of injured Palestinians,” it said, adding that the incidents were being looked into.

A spokesman for the Palestinian Authority ministry, Annas Abu El Ezz, told AFP that 23-year-old Saif Al-Din Kamil Abdul Karim Musalat “died after being severely beaten all over his body by settlers in the town of Sinjil, north of Ramallah, this afternoon.”

AFP footage from Ramallah showed his body being carried through the streets draped in a Palestinian flag and flanked by around a hundred mourners.

“The young man was injured and remained so for four hours. The army prevented us from reaching him and did not allow us to take him away,” said Abdul Samad Abdul Aziz, from the nearby village of Al-Mazraa Al-Sharqiya.

“When we finally managed to reach him, he was taking his last breath.”

The Israeli military said its forces, police and border police were dispatched to the scene and used “riot dispersal means” to break up the confrontation.

A week earlier, AFP journalists witnessed clashes between dozens of Israeli settlers and Palestinians in Sinjil, where a march against settler attacks on nearby farmland had been due to take place.

Israeli authorities recently erected a high fence cutting off parts of Sinjil from Road 60, which runs through the West Bank from north to south.

Violence in the territory has surged since the outbreak of the war in Gaza triggered by the Palestinian militant group Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel.

Since then, Israeli troops or settlers in the West Bank have killed at least 954 Palestinians — many of them militants, but also scores of civilians — according to Palestinian health ministry figures.

At least 36 Israelis, including both troops and civilians, have been killed in Palestinian attacks or Israeli military operations, according to Israeli official figures.

Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967.