DHAKA: Bangladesh’s largest development organization is hoping for greater collaboration with Saudi Arabia’s aid agency KSrelief to help refugees in Cox’s Bazar, Afghanistan and South Sudan, its executive director told Arab News on Tuesday.
Founded in Bangladesh in 1972, the Building Resources Across Communities organization works with marginalized communities in remote areas and post-disaster settings across Asia and Africa, with a focus on creating opportunities for the group.
The Rohingya refugee crisis and similar issues in Afghanistan and South Sudan were discussed during a meeting between BRAC’s Executive Director Asif Saleh and KSrelief’s Supervisor-General Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah last week, on the sidelines of the Human Capability Initiative Conference in Riyadh.
“It was my first meeting with Dr. Al-Rabeeah. Our discussions revolved around the refugee crisis and its management process,” Saleh told Arab News.
The BRAC organization is one of the largest responders to the Rohingya refugee crisis and has worked with communities in the Cox’s Bazar region for nearly four decades.
“BRAC works in the humanitarian sector with a mission to realize the life potential of the refugees. We have been working for the well-being of the refugees for many years. That work in Bangladesh, Afghanistan and South Sudan can be strengthened with the partnership of KSrelief.”
Saleh cited KSrelief’s ongoing work in those countries, which shows “much potential” for the two organizations to work together.
Saleh also discussed BRAC’s latest projects with Al-Rabeeah, including the organization’s ongoing work on a new refugee management model combining various services such as education, health and skills-building under one specific organization for a particular location.
As refugee management is currently the responsibility of several agencies covering different sectors, Saleh said the new model can increase effectiveness and reduce operational costs.
“We are at the design phase now and hope to complete the process by a couple of weeks. After evaluating the success of this new model, it can be gradually expanded in other camps. We will also share the updates of this new refugee management model with KSrelief, according to our discussions,” he added.
“Long-term refugee crises should be addressed in a different way. Coming out from life-saving initiatives, there should be approaches to making the refugees more self-sufficient.”
Trump chooses Pam Bondi for attorney general pick after Gaetz withdraws amid fallout over a sex trafficking probe
"It is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition,” Gaetz said
Bondi is a longtime Trump ally and was one of his lawyers during his first impeachment trial when he was accused of abusing his power
Updated 19 sec ago
AP
WASHINGTON: President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday named Pam Bondi, the former attorney general of Florida, to be US attorney general just hours after his other choice, Matt Gaetz, withdrew his name from consideration.
Bondi is a longtime Trump ally and was one of his lawyers during his first impeachment trial, when he was accused — but not convicted — of abusing his power as he tried to condition US military assistance to Ukraine on that country investigating then-former Vice President Joe Biden.
Bondi was among a group of Republicans who showed up to support Trump at his hush money criminal trial in New York that ended in May with a conviction on 34 felony counts. She’s been a chair at the America First Policy Institute, a think tank set up by former Trump administration staffers.
“For too long, the partisan Department of Justice has been weaponized against me and other Republicans — Not anymore,” Trump said in a social media post. “Pam will refocus the DOJ to its intended purpose of fighting Crime, and Making America Safe Again.”
Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr. told Fox Business on Sunday that the transition team had backups in mind for his controversial nominees should they fail to get confirmed. The swift selection of Bondi came about six hours after Gaetz withdrew.
Gaetz stepped aside amid continued fallout over a federal sex trafficking investigation that cast doubt on his ability to be confirmed as the nation’s chief federal law enforcement officer.
That announcement capped a turbulent eight-day period in which Trump sought to capitalize on his decisive election win to force Senate Republicans to accept provocative selections like Gaetz, who had been investigated by the Justice Department before being tapped last week to lead it. The decision could heighten scrutiny on other controversial Trump nominees, including Pentagon pick Pete Hegseth, who faces sexual assault allegations that he denies.
“While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition,” Gaetz, a Florida Republican who one day earlier met with senators in an effort to win their support, said in a statement.
“There is no time to waste on a needlessly protracted Washington scuffle, thus I’ll be withdrawing my name from consideration to serve as Attorney General. Trump’s DOJ must be in place and ready on Day 1,” he added. Hours later, Gaetz posted on social media that he looks “forward to continuing the fight to save our country,” adding, “Just maybe from a different post.”
Trump, in a social media post, said: “I greatly appreciate the recent efforts of Matt Gaetz in seeking approval to be Attorney General. He was doing very well but, at the same time, did not want to be a distraction for the Administration, for which he has much respect. Matt has a wonderful future, and I look forward to watching all of the great things he will do!”
Last week, Trump named personal lawyers Todd Blanche, Emil Bove and D. John Sauer to senior roles in the department. Another possible attorney general contender, Matt Whitaker, was announced Wednesday as the US ambassador to NATO.
Bondi, too, is a longtime loyalist. She has been a vocal critic of the criminal cases against Trump as well as Jack Smith, the special counsel who charged Trump in two federal cases. In one radio appearance, she blasted Smith and other prosecutors who have charged Trump as “horrible” people she said were trying to make names for themselves by “going after Donald Trump and weaponizing our legal system.”
If confirmed by the Republican-led Senate, Bondi would instantly become one of the most closely watched members of Trump’s Cabinet given the Republican’s threat to pursue retribution against perceived adversaries and concern among Democrats that he will look to bend the Justice Department to his will. A recent Supreme Court opinion not only conferred broad immunity on former presidents but also affirmed a president’s exclusive authority over the Justice Department’s investigative functions.
Bondi would inherit a Justice Department expected to pivot sharply on civil rights, corporate enforcement and the prosecutions of hundreds of Trump supporters charged in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the US Capitol — defendants whom Trump has pledged to pardon.
It’s unlikely that Bondi would be confirmed in time to overlap with Smith, who brought two federal indictments against Trump that are both expected to wind down before the incoming president takes office. Special counsels are expected to produce reports on their work that historically are made public, but it remains unclear when such a document might be released.
In 2013, while serving as Florida attorney general, Bondi publicly apologized for asking that the execution of a man convicted of murder be delayed because it conflicted with a campaign fundraiser.
Bondi said she was wrong and sorry for requesting then-Gov. Rick Scott push back the execution of Marshall Lee Gore by three weeks.
Before she ran for state attorney general in 2010, Bondi worked for the Hillsborough County state attorney.
Elon Musk blasts Australia’s planned ban on social media for children
Updated 42 min 21 sec ago
Reuters
SYDNEY, Nov 22 : US billionaire Elon Musk, owner of social media platform X, has criticized Australia’s proposed law to ban social media for children under 16 and fine social media platforms of up to A$49.5 million ($32 million) for companies for systemic breaches. Australia’s center-left government on Thursday introduced the bill in parliament. It plans to try an age-verification system to enforce a social media age cut-off, some of the toughest controls imposed by any country to date. “Seems like a backdoor way to control access to the Internet by all Australians,” Musk, who views himself as a champion of free speech, said in a reply late on Thursday to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s post on X about the bill. Several countries have already vowed to curb social media use by children through legislation, but Australia’s policy could become one of the most stringent with no exemption for parental consent and pre-existing accounts. France last year proposed a ban on social media for those under 15 but allowed parental consent, while the US has for decades required technology companies to seek parental consent to access the data of children under 13. Musk has previously clashed with Australia’s center-left Labor government over its social media policies and had called it “fascists” over its misinformation law. In April, X went to an Australian court to challenge a cyber regulator’s order for the removal of some posts about the stabbing of a bishop in Sydney, prompting Albanese to call Musk an “arrogant billionaire.” ($1 = 1.5359 Australian dollars) (Reporting by Renju Jose in Sydney; Editing by David Gregorio)
Philippines cleans up after sixth major storm in weeks
There have been no other reports so far of deaths or injuries
Power outages across the island province of Catanduanes could last for months
Updated 22 November 2024
AFP
Manila: Filipinos cleared fallen trees and repaired damaged houses on Monday after the sixth major storm to batter the Philippines in a month smashed flimsy buildings, knocked out power and claimed at least one life. The national weather service had warned of a “potentially catastrophic” impact from Man-yi, which was a super typhoon when it hit over the weekend, but President Ferdinand Marcos said Monday it “wasn’t as bad as we feared.” Packing maximum sustained wind speeds of 185 kilometers an hour, Man-yi slammed into Catanduanes island late Saturday, and the main island of Luzon on Sunday afternoon. It uprooted trees, brought down power lines, crushed wooden houses and triggered landslides, but did not cause serious flooding. “Though Pepito was strong, the impact wasn’t as bad as we feared,” Marcos said, according to an official transcript of his remarks to media, using the local name for Man-yi. One person was killed in Camarines Norte province, which Marcos said was “one casualty too many.” Police said the victim, a 79-year-old man, died after his motorbike was caught in a power line. There have been no other reports so far of deaths or injuries. “We will now carry on with the rescue of those (in) isolated areas and the continuing relief for those who are, who have been displaced and have no means to prepare their own meals and have no water supplies,” Marcos said. Power outages across the island province of Catanduanes could last for months after Man-yi toppled electricity poles, provincial information officer Camille Gianan told AFP. “Catanduanes has been heavily damaged by that typhoon — we need food packs, hygiene kits and construction materials,” Gianan said. “Most houses with light materials were flattened while some houses made of concrete had their roofs, doors and windows destroyed.” In the coastal town of Baler in Aurora province, clean-up operations were underway to remove felled trees and debris blocking roads and waterways. “Most of the houses here are made of light materials so even now, before the inspection, we are expecting heavy damage on many houses in town,” disaster officer Neil Rojo told AFP. “We’ve also received reports of roofs that went flying with the wind last night... it was the fierce wind that got us scared, not exactly the heavy rains.” Storm weakens Man-yi weakened significantly as it traversed the mountains of Luzon and was downgraded to a severe tropical storm as it swept over the South China Sea toward Vietnam on Monday. More than a million people in the Philippines fled their homes ahead of the storm, which followed an unusual streak of violent weather. Climate change is increasing the intensity of storms, leading to heavier rains, flash floods and stronger gusts. At least 163 people in the Philippines died in the past month’s storms, which left thousands homeless and wiped out crops and livestock. About 20 big storms and typhoons hit the Southeast Asian nation or its surrounding waters each year, killing scores of people, but it is rare for multiple such weather events to take place in a small window. Man-yi also hit the Philippines late in the typhoon season — most cyclones develop between July and October. This month, four storms were clustered simultaneously in the Pacific basin, which the Japan Meteorological Agency told AFP was the first time such an occurrence had been observed in November since its records began in 1951.
Texas offers Trump land on US-Mexico border for potential mass deportations
Updated 22 November 2024
AP
McALLEN, Texas: Texas is offering a parcel of rural ranchland along the US-Mexico border to use as a staging area for potential mass deportations under President-elect Donald Trump.
The property, which Texas originally purchased last month, is located in rural Starr County in the Rio Grande Valley. Republican Dawn Buckingham, the Texas Land Commissioner, sent a letter Nov. 14 to Trump extending the offer.
“We do hear through back channels that they are taking a look at it and considering it. But we just want them to know we’re a good partner. We’re here. We want to be helpful,” Buckingham told The Associated Press in an interview on Wednesday.
The property has no paved roads and sits in a county with one public hospital and limited local resources. But Buckingham stressed its location.
“We feel like this is actually very well-located. The land is very flat there. It’s adjacent to major airports. It’s also adjacent to a bridge over the river,” Buckingham said. “So if it’s helpful, then I would love to partner up with the federal government. And if it’s not, then we’ll continue to look to ways to be helpful to them.”
The land offer is the latest illustration of a sharp divide between states and local governments on whether to support or resist Trump’s plans for mass deportations of migrants living in the US illegally. On Tuesday, the Los Angeles City Council voted to become a “sanctuary” jurisdiction, limiting cooperation with federal immigration authorities to carry out deportations.
Texas leaders have long backed aggressive measures on the border to curb crossings, including installing razor-wire barriers and passing a law last year that would allow law enforcement to arrest migrants who cross the border illegally.
“By offering this newly-acquired 1400-acre property to the incoming Trump Administration for the construction of a facility for the processing, detention, and coordination of what will be the largest deportation of violent criminals in our nation’s history, I stand united with President Donald Trump to ensure American families are protected,” Buckingham said in an earlier statement.
Trump has said he plans to begin his deportation efforts on the first day of his presidency. He frequently attacked illegal immigration during his campaign, linking a record spike in unauthorized border crossings to issues ranging from drug trafficking to high housing prices.
There are an estimated 11 million people in the country illegally. Questions remain about how people would be identified and where they would be detained.
The president-elect’s transition team did not say whether they would accept Texas’ offer but sent a statement.
“On day one, President Trump will marshal every lever of power to secure the border, protect their communities, and launch the largest mass deportation operation of illegal immigrant criminals in history,” Karoline Leavitt, the transition spokeswoman for Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance, said Wednesday.
The Texas General Land Office did not disclose the amount paid for the land, but Buckingham stated the previous owner resisted the creation of a border wall.
A 1.5-mile (2.4 kilometer) stretch of border wall was built under Republican Gov. Greg Abbott in 2021 on that land. Buckingham said with the recent purchase, the state has created another easement for more border wall construction.
Haiti blasts Macron’s criticism of transition council as ‘unfriendly and inappropriate’
Updated 22 November 2024
Reuters
PORT-AU-PRINCE: Haiti’s foreign minister met with the French ambassador to the nation on Thursday over what the ministry branded as “unfriendly and inappropriate” comments from French President Emmanuel Macron as he left the G20 summit in Brazil.
Macron had on Wednesday called the decision of the Caribbean country’s transitional presidential council to oust the prime minister earlier this month amid an escalation in gang warfare as “completely dumb.”
“Honestly, it is Haitians who killed Haiti by letting in drug trafficking,” Macron was filmed saying in Brazil, before hailing ex-Prime Minister Garry Conille, who was ousted amid divisions with the council, as a great leader.
“They are completely dumb, they should never have fired him,” he said.
His remarks sparked outrage in Haiti, a former French colony. After Haiti freed itself from slavery and declared independence in 1804, it paid France a “debt” for lost property — including slaves — over more than a century that some activists say amounted to over $100 billion.
Activists are seeking French reparations for the debt, which many blame for Haiti’s economic and political turmoil.
Speaking in Chile on Thursday, Macron vowed that “France will never turn its face from a crisis... There will never be a double standard in face of tragedy, be it in Haiti, Venezuela, or at the gates of Europe.”
France has pledged 4 million euros ($4.2 million) to a UN fund financing a deeply under-resourced security mission mandated to help restore security in Haiti, as well as funding for French and Creole classes for its troops.
Haiti’s foreign ministry said that in the meeting French Ambassador Antoine Michon promised France would stay by Haiti’s side to help restore security and carry out elections.
