Author: Steven Sahiounie

Pro-Palestinian protesters briefly blocked entrance roads to airports in New York and Los Angeles, forcing some travellers to set off on foot with luggage. As US airlines contended with a rush of holiday travel, the demonstrations snarled traffic on the outskirts of New York’s John F Kennedy International Airport and Los Angeles International Airport. In New York, activists locked arms and held banners demanding an end to Israel’s attack on Gaza and expanded rights for Palestinians, bringing traffic to a standstill on the expressway leading up to the airport for about 20 minutes. Video posted to social media showed passengers,…

A new report citing Israeli and Arab officials hints at a possible Middle East trip by US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, by the end of next week. A Middle East tour is expected by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken by the end of next week according to an Axios report that cited Israeli and Arab officials. The visit will aim to continue talks regarding the Israeli occupation’s genocide in the Gaza Strip, and will include stops in the occupied West Bank, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Qatar, according to the report. This will also constitute Blinken’s fifth visit to “Tel Aviv” since the launch…

Egypt said it welcomes the appointment of Dutch woman Sigrid Kaag as senior humanitarian and reconstruction coordinator for Gaza and the implementation of measures to facilitate the entry and monitoring of aid to the Gaza Strip. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced Kaag’s appointment on Wednesday and she is expected to start work on Jan. 8. In her role, Kaag will facilitate, coordinate, monitor and verify humanitarian relief consignments to Gaza and establish a UN mechanism to accelerate their movement through states that are not party to the conflict. She will be supported by the UN Office for Project Services. Egyptian…

Schaeuble served 8 years as finance minister under Angela Merkel and played pivotal role in early 1990s German reunification Longtime German politician Wolfgang Schaeuble died on Tuesday at home, surrounded by relatives, his family said in a statement to German media on Wednesday. He was 81. Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that with the death of Schaeuble, Germany had lost a “sharp thinker, a passionate politician and a fierce democrat. My thoughts are with his family today.” “Hardly any other politician has shaped recent German history and our democratic culture as much as Wolfgang Schaeuble. He has done such outstanding work…

US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan calls the appointment of Sigrid Kaag as the senior humanitarian and reconstruction coordinator for Gaza “an important step as we continue to work with the UN as a critical partner in the delivery and distribution of life-saving humanitarian assistance in Gaza”. A UN Security Council resolution passed last week mandated the appointment of a UN humanitarian coordinator for the enclave. However, it remains unclear what ability Kaag will have to scale up aid to Gaza. Following US opposition, the final version of the resolution did not call for a ceasefire or pauses in fighting to allow…

Antony Blinken talked to Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan about the Israel-Hamas conflict and “the importance of increasing the speed and scale of humanitarian assistance to Gaza”, US spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement. Fidan emphasised the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the commencement of peace talks, the Anadolu news agency reports. Source: AlJazeera

Turkey’s president Erdogan has spoken about Israel’s war on Gaza at a science awards ceremony in Ankara. Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Israeli violence and the number of Palestinian deaths, largely children and women, in Gaza since October 7 has functioned as “a litmus test” and showed who sought to either defend or exploit “human rights and dignity”. He then levelled criticism at those who “act as apostles of democracy”, including the UN Security Council, international media organisations, and the European Union. They have “failed in this crisis”, he added. Source: AlJazeera

Jordan ‘s King Abdullah and Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi said after a summit in Cairo on Wednesday that they rejected any Israeli move to expel Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, state media reported.In a statement, both leaders also said the international community should pressure Israel to agree to an immediate cease-fire and allow enough aid into war-torn Gaza to ease the “tragic plight” of over 2 million people under siege there. Source: Arab News

The Ministry of Finance announced today that in light of Israel’s continuous withholding of the Palestinian tax revenues and following an arrangement between the government, the Palestinian Monetary Authority, and the banks, it was decided to pay only 65% of the November salary for the public employees. Last month, the public employees received only 50% of their salaries with the Finance Ministry promising to pay all unpaid dues to the employees once the financial crisis is over. Israel’s fascist and racist far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich vowed after October 7 not to pay any of the tax revenues collected by Israel on behalf of…

The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Fayssal Mikdad, met Wednesday afternoon with the Ambassador of the State of Palestine to Syria, Samir al-Rifai, where the two sides reviewed the latest developments on the Palestinian arena. Minister Mikdad stressed that the steadfastness of the Palestinian people in the face of the criminal acts committed by the Israeli occupation is a source of pride for our Arab nation, Stressing the need for all Arabs to stand together to stop the barbaric Zionist liquidation policies and the Israeli occupation’s violations of all principles of international law, and that Syrian has always been…