International
Israel PM Netanyahu discusses Iranian threat with Trump
Israel PM Netanyahu discusses Iranian threat with Trump
JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed the “Iranian threat” in a call with US president-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday as the wars in Gaza and Lebanon show no sign of easing.
Netanyahu’s office said in a statement the Israeli premier “congratulated Trump on his election victory, and the two agreed to work together for Israel’s security.
“The two also discussed the Iranian threat,” it added.
Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran, said Wednesday tens of thousands of its militants were ready to fight Israel, adding that the US election result would have no bearing on the war in Lebanon.
Its leader warned that nowhere in Israel would be “off-limits” to attacks, as the Israeli military said about 120 projectiles were fired across the border on Wednesday.
Israel’s military also said a missile was fired into southern Israel from central Gaza, where it has battled the Tehran-backed Hamas group since Palestinian militants launched a deadly attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
Hezbollah’s main bastion of south Beirut came under Israeli air attack after a warning to evacuate.
Israel and Hezbollah have been at war since late September, when the Israeli military widened the focus of its Gaza war to securing its northern border with Lebanon.
Hezbollah began low-intensity cross-border attacks on Israel last year, in support of its Palestinian ally Hamas after the October 7 attack.
Efforts to end the war in Gaza sparked by the Hamas attack have yet to bear fruit, and the war in Lebanon has killed at least 3,050 people since October 2023, the health ministry said Wednesday.
In a televised speech marking 40 days since his predecessor Hassan Nasrallah was killed in a strike, new Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem said: “We have tens of thousands of trained resistance combatants” ready to fight.
READ ALSO:
- Ex-NYSC member kidnapped after passing out parade in Kebbi
- Tax reform: Tinubu should unite, not divide Nigeria, says Bauchi gov
- Horror, 10 farmers, 8 vigilante brutally killed, two Indians, others abducted in Niger State
His address aired after Trump’s victory was announced, but had been recorded earlier.
Qassem said whoever won the election would have no impact on any possible ceasefire deal for Lebanon.
“What will stop this… war is the battlefield” he said, citing fighting in south Lebanon and Hezbollah attacks on Israel.
Hezbollah announced Wednesday it had Iran-made Fatah 110 missiles, a weapon with a 300-kilometer range that military expert Riad Kahwaji described as the group’s “most accurate.”
It also said it targeted a naval base near the Haifa in Israel with drones and missiles, the fourth attack on the base in as many weeks.
Earlier, Hezbollah said it targeted a military base near Israel’s main airport close to commercial hub Tel Aviv, but Israel’s Airports Authority said operations were not disrupted.
Lebanon’s official National News Agency reported Israeli air strikes on the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon and the southern city of Nabatiyeh.
An AFP correspondent in the eastern city of Baalbek reported intense strikes in and around the city.
Israel is “betting on prolonging the war so it becomes a war of attrition… We are ready,” Qassem said in his second speech since being named Hezbollah secretary-general last week.
He also called for Lebanese sovereignty to be safeguarded in any truce talks.
Qassem demanded explanations from the Lebanese army after Israeli commandos seized a man from north Lebanon on Saturday who they said was a senior Hezbollah operative.
He said the operation was “a great offense to Lebanon” and a “violation” of its sovereignty.
On Tuesday, a Lebanese judicial official told AFP Israeli commandos used a speedboat equipped with advanced devices capable of jamming UN peacekeepers’ radar in the operation, according to a preliminary probe.
The UN Maritime Task Force has helped Lebanon’s military to monitor territorial waters and prevent the entry of arms or related material by sea since 2006, according to the mission’s website.
In Gaza, where the 13-month war has had a devastating impact, people were desperate for a solution and voiced the hope Trump might offer one.
Hamas’s October 7 attack resulted in 1,206 deaths, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.
Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed 43,391 people in Gaza, a majority of them civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry the United Nations considers reliable.
“We were displaced, killed… there’s nothing left for us, we want peace,” said 60-year-old Mamdouh Al-Jadba, who was displaced to Gaza City from Jabalia.
“I hope Trump finds a solution, we need someone strong like Trump to end the war and save us…”
Netanyahu earlier feted Trump’s “huge victory” as “history’s greatest comeback.”
The United States is Israel’s top ally and military backer, and the election came at a critical time for the Middle East.
While maintaining the steady flow of aid to Israel, US President Joe Biden’s administration had for months piled pressure on Netanyahu to agree to a truce.
Analysts say Netanyahu wanted a Trump return, given their longstanding personal friendship and the American’s hawkishness on Israel’s arch-foe Iran.
Israel PM Netanyahu discusses Iranian threat with Trump
ARAB NEWS
International
Canada orders TikTok to shut down operations
Canada orders TikTok to shut down operations
In a bold move to address national security concerns, Canada has ordered TikTok’s Chinese-owned business operations in the country to be dissolved.
The announcement came on Wednesday as Canadian officials cited potential risks associated with TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, which is based in China.
While the government has not restricted Canadians from accessing TikTok or creating content on the platform, the decision underscores growing worries about the app’s data privacy and security implications.
Many governments worldwide are scrutinizing the potential influence and data-gathering practices of apps connected to foreign entities, particularly those with ties to China.
By mandating the dissolution of TikTok’s business operations within Canada, officials aim to reduce potential national security vulnerabilities without infringing on users’ access to the popular platform.
READ ALSO:
- BREAKING: Again, Nigerians thrown into darkness as national grid collapses
- Ex-NYSC member kidnapped after passing out parade in Kebbi
- Tax reform: Tinubu should unite, not divide Nigeria, says Bauchi gov
“The government is taking action to address the specific national security risks related to ByteDance Ltd’s operations in Canada through the establishment of TikTok Technology Canada Inc,” Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said in a statement.
Ottawa last year began reviewing TikTok’s plan to invest and expand its business in Canada.
Under Canadian law, the government can assess potential risks to national security from foreign investments, such as the TikTok proposal.
The law prevents the government from revealing the details of such investments.
“The decision was based on the information and evidence collected over the course of the review and on the advice of Canada’s security and intelligence community and other government partners,” Champagne added.
TikTok said it would challenge the order in court.
“Shutting down TikTok’s Canadian offices and destroying hundreds of well-paying local jobs is not in anyone’s best interest, and today’s shutdown order will do just that,” a TikTok spokesperson said in a statement.
Canada has banned the TikTok app from government-issued devices, saying it presents an unacceptable level of risk to privacy and security.
TikTok and ByteDance sued the United States federal court in May, seeking to block a law signed by President Joe Biden on April 24 which gave ByteDance until January 19 to sell TikTok or face a ban.
The White House said it wanted to end Chinese-based ownership in the state, citing national security, explaining that the ban was not on TikTok.
Canada orders TikTok to shut down operations
International
Obama congratulates Trump, says ‘Our point of view won’t always win’
Obama congratulates Trump, says ‘Our point of view won’t always win’
Former United States President Barack Obama has congratulated Republican Donald Trump on his victory in the presidential election.
“This is obviously not the outcome we had hoped for, given our profound disagreements with the Republican ticket on a whole host of issues,” Obama said in a joint statement with wife, Michelle.
“But living in a democracy is about recognising that our point of view won’t always win out, and being willing to accept the peaceful transfer of power.”
The United States had been “through a lot” over recent years, “from a historic pandemic and price hikes resulting from the pandemic, to rapid change and the feeling a lot of folks have that, no matter how hard they work, treading water is the best they can do,” the former Democratic president wrote.
“Those conditions have created headwinds for democratic incumbents around the world, and last night showed that America is not immune,” Obama said.
“But progress requires us to extend good faith and grace even to people with whom we deeply disagree.
“That’s how we’ve come this far, and it’s how we’ll keep building a country that is more fair and more just, more equal and more free.”
In the final stretch of campaigning, Obama came out strongly for Democratic presidential candidate, Kamala Harris, asserting that she would stand up for the people.
Mocking his Republican successor Trump, Obama highlighted his privileged background and financial failures. (NAN)
International
Tens of thousands of fighters ready to battle Israel says Hezbollah
Hezbollah says tens of thousands of fighters ready to battle Israel
-
metro3 days agoBreaking: Tinubu orders immediate release of minors facing trial
-
News1 day agoBreaking: Tinubu announces death of Chief of Army Staff Lagbaja at 56
-
International1 day agoTrump wins US election, Netanyahu, Starmer react
-
Education3 days agoFG removes tertiary institutions from IPPIS platform
-
International2 days agoHarris, Woman For Whom United State’s Presidential Door Opened in 1984
-
International1 day agoUS Election: Michigan Muslims shun Harris over Mideast turmoil
-
metro2 days agoBreaking: Freed #EndBadGovernance protesting minors, others in Presidential Villa
-
News19 hours agoLagbaja: National flag at half-mast as Remi Tinubu visits widow