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Thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters march in Chicago on opening day of Democratic National Convention

Thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters march in Chicago on opening day of Democratic National Convention
A person holds a flag in support of Palestinians in Gaza as demonstrators rally on the sidelines of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, US on August 19, 2024. (REUTERS)
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Updated 20 August 2024
Reuters
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Thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters march in Chicago on opening day of Democratic National Convention

Thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters march in Chicago on opening day of Democratic National Convention
  • Dozens of Muslim delegates and their allies are seeking changes in Democratic platform and plan to press for an arms embargo
  • Pro-Palestinian groups have for months protested Biden administration’s military and financial support for Israel in war in Gaza
Updated 20 August 2024
Reuters
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CHICAGO: Thousands of mostly peaceful pro-Palestinian protesters marched in Chicago on the opening day of the Democratic National Convention on Monday, in a show of anger against the Biden administration’s support for Israel in the Gaza war.
After hours of peaceful demonstrations, dozens of protesters broke through part of the perimeter security fence, drawing riot police to the site, a Reuters witness said.
The DNC’s security team confirmed that protesters breached a portion of the fencing on the outer perimeter near the convention arena but said law enforcement personnel acted quickly and there was no threat to attendees.
Reuters witnesses saw four people detained and placed in handcuffs. Chicago police confirmed at a press conference that arrests were made but did not say how many.
Chanting intensified ahead of the fence breach, as protesters reached a neighborhood park on Chicago’s West Side and paused to amplify their calls for a ceasefire. Amid the noise, the crowd turned its frustration toward Vice President Kamala Harris, referring to the Democratic candidate as “Killer Kamala.”
Chicago police formed a perimeter around the park on foot to contain protesters, with some police members on bikes.
Still, the umbrella group “March on the DNC” drew fewer supporters than expected to a park outside the convention arena, hours before President Joe Biden was to address the gathering.
They started a one-mile march near where Democratic delegates will nominate Harris as their candidate to face Republican Donald Trump in November’s presidential election.
Organizers had expected tens of thousands of protesters — enough to fill the park and the march route — Hatem Abudayyeh, a spokesman for March on the DNC, said early Monday. By afternoon though, several thousand protesters had gathered for speeches and the park was only half full.
The coalition of more than 200 groups includes those advocating for a variety of causes from reproductive rights to racial justice. Many people were coming from Palestinian and Arab communities in Illinois and neighboring states, organizers said last week.
Dozens of Muslim delegates and their allies, angry at US support for Israel’s offensive in Gaza, are seeking changes in the Democratic platform and plan to press for an arms embargo, putting the party on guard for disruptions to high-profile speeches at the convention.
Roman Fritz, at 19 one of the youngest Wisconsin delegates, wore a scarf imprinted with the traditional Palestinian keffiyeh pattern. He said he supported Harris as the party nominee to beat Trump.
Some protesters were doubtful that the party will change its platform.
“It’ll never happen,” said Mwalimu Sundiata Keita, who traveled from Cincinnati, Ohio, to join the protest. “It’s the policy of the party to support Israel, and until that policy changes, that’s the way it’s going to be.”
Another large protest was scheduled for Thursday, when Harris is due to formally accept the nomination.
Pro-Palestinian groups have for months protested the Biden administration’s military and financial support for Israel in its war against Hamas, which has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza, according to Gaza health officials.
Israel launched the offensive after it was attacked on Oct. 7 by Hamas fighters who killed 1,200 people and abducted about 250 hostages, according to Israel tallies.
Protests swelled on US college campuses in the spring, with police clearing student encampments, at times after confrontations between protesters and counter protesters.
“The Democrats are the ones in power,” Abudayyeh said on Monday. “It’s their war. They’re responsible for it, they’re complicit, and they can stop it.”

Topics: War on Gaza

Global operation seizes 1,400 tons of drugs, unearths new Pacific trafficking route

Global operation seizes 1,400 tons of drugs, unearths new Pacific trafficking route
Updated 6 sec ago
AFP
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Global operation seizes 1,400 tons of drugs, unearths new Pacific trafficking route

Global operation seizes 1,400 tons of drugs, unearths new Pacific trafficking route
  • More than 1,400 tons of drugs seized, over 400 criminals arrested in global operation in October and November
  • Operation “Orion” involved the US, Brazil, Spain, Netherlands and other nations, as well as multiple international organizations
  • The seizure deprived drug cartels of more than $8.4 billion dollars, according to the Colombian Navy
Updated 6 sec ago
AFP

BOGOTA: Authorities from dozens of countries seized 225 metric tons of cocaine in a six-week mega-operation where they unearthed a new Pacific trafficking route from South America to Australia, the Colombian Navy said Wednesday.
The latest phase of global naval operation “Orion” resulted in the seizure of more than 1,400 tons of drugs, including 225 tons of cocaine and 128 tons of marijuana, navy official Orlando Enrique Grisales told reporters.
More than 400 people were arrested in the operation targeting oceans, coasts, rivers and ports around the globe in October and November.
The massive bust involved the security agencies of the United States, Brazil, Spain, the Netherlands and several other nations, as well as multiple international organizations.
The seizure deprived drug cartels of more than $8.4 billion dollars, according to a Navy statement.
Grisales said officials also seized a semisubmersible wood-and-fiber glass vessel on its way to Australia with five tons of Colombian cocaine.
This was the third such vessel discovered in this area, revealing a “new route” of trafficking with sophisticated boats that can cover the distance of some 10,000 miles without needing to refuel.
A kilogram of cocaine is sold for up to $240,000 in Australia, said Grisales — about six times more than the price in the United States.
“It is a route that is becoming increasingly profitable because prices are much higher in Australia,” a security source told AFP.
“Initially, these boats were used mainly to take the drugs out of the country and move them off the coast of Colombia and then transfer them to ships,” added the source.
“It has been found that these semisubmersibles, sometimes even submersibles, are now increasingly sophisticated, with very fine engineering.”
The operation also uncovered previously-unknown alliances between cartels from Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru with groups from Europe and Oceania.
“It is not just a pyramid structure as the cartels once were. Today they are organized crime networks joined together,” said Grisales.
Colombia is the world’s biggest cocaine producer and exporter, mainly to the United States and Europe.
Last year, the South American country set a new record for cocaine production and cultivation of the coca leaf it is made from.

Topics: Colombia drug trafficking Colombian Navy

Under tariff threat, US wholesaler warns: ‘People will pay’

Under tariff threat, US wholesaler warns: ‘People will pay’
Updated 53 min 51 sec ago
Reuters
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Under tariff threat, US wholesaler warns: ‘People will pay’

Under tariff threat, US wholesaler warns: ‘People will pay’
  • No matter what happens in January, retailer Melquiades Flores says he has no option but to keep importing produce from Mexico
  • The tomato-growing season in California lasts four months. The rest of the year, he gets the produce from Mexico
Updated 53 min 51 sec ago
Reuters

LOS ANGELES: While most of Los Angeles sleeps, 58-year-old Melquiades Flores starts his day at 1 a.m., supervising the unloading of produce at M&M Tomatoes and Chile Company, the wholesaler he started in 2019.
But the business that Flores hopes to pass to his children one day is bracing for a disruption.
US President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to impose a 25 percent tariff on all imports from Mexico and Canada when he takes office on Jan. 20, plus an additional 10 percent tariff on Chinese goods.
“Produce of Mexico” is stamped on almost all the boxes of tomatoes and chilies that arrive at Flores’ downtown warehouse, destined for homes, hotels and restaurant kitchens across the city.
“People will have to pay a higher price. Whatever they charge us, we will pass on to the consumer,” Flores said from his section of the larger complex, the Los Angeles Wholesale Produce Market.
No matter what happens in January, Flores says he has no option but to keep importing produce from Mexico. The tomato-growing season in California lasts four months, from August to November, he says. The rest of the year, he gets the produce from the Mexican states of Sinaloa, Baja California and Sonora.
His team stacks boxes upon boxes of tomatoes in every size and shade of red, plus some shiny green ones for making zesty tomatillo sauce.
“Any tariff is an added tax that impacts all of us, including those who buy a pound, two pounds, or a thousand or 10,000 pounds,” said Flores, who has lived in Los Angeles for 40 years and is originally from the Mexican state of Morelos.
Trump has pronounced his love of tariffs, presumably for raising revenue and protecting US industries against imports, but he avoids speaking about the inflationary effect or the impact of potential retaliation from the United States’ top three trading partners.
Officials from Mexico, Canada and China and major industry groups have warned that the tariffs Trump proposes would harm the economies of all involved, cause inflation to spike and damage job markets.
“The president should have first seen how much this will impact everyone before speaking,” Flores said.

Topics: Trump's tariff plan Mexico-US trade

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Biden readies $725 million arms aid package for Ukraine, sources say

Biden readies $725 million arms aid package for Ukraine, sources say
Updated 28 November 2024
Reuters
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Biden readies $725 million arms aid package for Ukraine, sources say

Biden readies $725 million arms aid package for Ukraine, sources say
Updated 28 November 2024
Reuters

WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden’s administration is preparing a $725 million weapons package for Ukraine, two US officials said on Wednesday, as the outgoing president seeks to bolster the government in Kyiv before leaving office in January.
According to an official familiar with the plan, the Biden administration plans to provide a variety of anti-tank weapons from US stocks to blunt Russia’s advancing troops, including land mines, drones, Stinger missiles, ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS).
The package is also expected to include cluster munitions, which are typically found in Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) rockets fired by HIMARS launchers, according to the notification, seen by Reuters.
The formal notification to Congress of the weapons package could come as soon as Monday, one official said.
The contents and size of the package could change in the coming days ahead of Biden’s expected signature.
It marks a steep uptick in size from Biden’s recent use of so-called Presidential Drawdown Authority (PDA), which allows the US to draw from current weapons stocks to help allies in an emergency.
Recent PDA announcements have typically ranged from $125 million to $250 million. Biden has an estimated $4 billion to $5 billion in PDA already authorized by Congress that he is expected to use before Republican President-elect Donald Trump takes office on Jan. 20.
The United States has not exported land mines in decades, and their use is controversial because of the potential harm to civilians. Although more than 160 countries have signed a treaty banning their use, Kyiv has been asking for them since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in early 2022 and Russian forces have used them on the front lines.
Russian forces currently are making gains in Ukraine at the fastest rate since the early days of the 2022 invasion, taking an area half the size of London over the past month, analysts and war bloggers said this week.
The United States expects Ukraine to use the mines in its own territory, though it has committed not to use them in areas populated with its own civilians.
Trump on Wednesday tapped Keith Kellogg, a retired lieutenant general who presented him with a plan to end the war in Ukraine, to serve as special envoy for the conflict. Quickly winding down the Ukraine war was one of Trump’s central campaign promises, though he has avoided discussing how he would do so. 

Topics: Russia-Ukraine Conflict US

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Tariff plan would hurt both the US and Mexico, Sheinbaum tells Trump

Tariff plan would hurt both the US and Mexico, Sheinbaum tells Trump
Updated 28 November 2024
AFP
Reuters
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Tariff plan would hurt both the US and Mexico, Sheinbaum tells Trump

Tariff plan would hurt both the US and Mexico, Sheinbaum tells Trump
  • Mexico says Trump tariffs would kill 400,000 US jobs and drive up prices for US consumers
  • Sheinbaum also warned that Mexico would retaliate if Trump makes good his tariff plan
Updated 28 November 2024
AFP Reuters

MEXICO CITY: Mexico’s president discussed migration and drug trafficking with US President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday — two issues he had raised as justification for raising import tariffs on America’s southern neighbor.
Claudia Sheinbaum said she had had “an excellent conversation” with Trump, just hours after her economy minister warned that the cost to US companies of Trump’s tariffs would be “huge.”
“We discussed Mexico’s strategy regarding the phenomenon of migration,” Sheinbaum said on X, adding she had told Trump that caravans of migrants “are not arriving at the northern border because they are being attended to in Mexico.”

Earlier on Wednesday, Sheinbaum said  Mexico would retaliate if US President-elect Donald Trump followed through with his proposed 25 percent across-the-board tariff, a move her government warned could kill 400,000 US jobs and drive up prices for US consumers.
“If there are US tariffs, Mexico would also raise tariffs,” Sheinbaum said during a press conference, in her clearest statement yet that the country was preparing possible retaliatory trade measures against its top trade partner.

Mexican Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard, speaking alongside Sheinbaum, called for more regional cooperation and integration instead of a war of retaliatory import taxes.
“It’s a shot in the foot,” Ebrard said of Trump’s proposed tariffs, which appear to violate the USMCA trade deal between Mexico, Canada and the US.

Discussion with Trump

In her talks with Trump later, she said they discussed “strengthening collaboration on security issues” as well as “the campaign we are conducting in the country to prevent the consumption of fentanyl.”
Trump on Monday said he would impose tariffs of 25 percent on Mexican and Canadian imports and 10 percent on goods from China.
“This Tariff will remain in effect until such time as Drugs, in particular Fentanyl, and all Illegal Aliens stop this Invasion of our Country!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social page.
The Republican, who won an election in which illegal migration was a top issue, has vowed to declare a national emergency on border security and use the US military to carry out a mass deportation of undocumented migrants.
Mexican Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard said Wednesday some “400,000 jobs will be lost” in the United States if Trump followed through on his threat. He cited a study based on figures from US carmakers that manufacture in Mexico.

Tariff impact

Ebrard said the tariffs would also hit US consumers hard, citing the US market for pickup trucks — most of which are manufactured in Mexico. The tariffs, the minister said, would add $3,000 to the cost of a new vehicle.
“The impact of this measure will chiefly be felt by consumers in the United States... That is why we say that it would be a shot in the foot,” Ebrard told reporters, speaking alongside Sheinbaum at her regular morning conference.

The proposed tariffs would hit the automotive sector’s top cross-border exporters especially hard, Ebrard added, namely Ford, General Motors and Stellantis.
Ebrard noted that 88 percent of pickup trucks sold in the US are made in Mexico and would see a price increase. These vehicles are popular in rural areas that overwhelmingly voted for Trump.
Mexico and China have been particularly vociferous in their opposition to Trump’s threats of a trade war from day one of his second presidential term, which begins on January 20.
Sheinbaum has declared the threats “unacceptable” and pointed out that Mexico’s drug cartels exist mainly to serve drug use in the United States.
China has warned that “no one will win a trade war.”
During his first term as president, Trump launched full-blown trade hostilities with Beijing, imposing significant tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars of Chinese goods.
China responded with retaliatory tariffs on American products, particularly affecting US farmers.
The United States, Mexico and Canada are tied to a three-decade-old largely duty-free trade agreement, called the USMCA, that was renegotiated under Trump after he complained that US businesses, especially automakers, were losing out.

Many analysts regard Trump’s tariff threats as more of a negotiating tactic than trade policy.
“The lack of a clear link between this threat and questions related to trade suggests the new president plans to use tariffs as a negotiating strategy to achieve goals largely unrelated to trade,” said David Kohl, chief economist at Julius Baer.

Profit wiped out
Mexico’s automotive industry is the country’s most important manufacturing sector, exporting predominantly to the United States. It represents nearly 25 percent of all North American vehicle production.
Analysts at Barclays said they estimate the proposed tariffs “could wipe out effectively all profits” from the Detroit Three automakers.
“While it’s generally understood that a blanket 25 percent tariff on any vehicles or content from Mexico or Canada could be disruptive, investors under-appreciate how disruptive this could be,” they wrote in a note on Tuesday.
Brian Hughes, a spokesperson for Trump’s transition team, said the tariffs would protect US manufacturers and workers from “unfair practices of foreign companies and foreign markets.”
Hughes said Trump would implement policies to make life affordable and more prosperous for his country.
GM and Stellantis declined to comment. Ford did not comment on how the threatened tariffs would affect its business but said it manufactures more vehicles in the United States than most major automakers.
Mexico’s automotive industry group AMIA said it would prepare for any possibility and wait to see what formal actions are taken.
The Institute of International Finance, a trade group for the global financial services industry, warned Mexico-US relations would be challenging going forward.
“The imposition of tariffs, eventually leading to increased protectionism, and other policies affecting exchange rates and commodity prices could have significant implications for the region,” it said in a note.
The USMCA is up for review in 2026.
Katia Goya, director of international economics at Grupo Financiero Banorte, said it was likely the three USMCA countries would seek wholesale renegotiation of the pact rather than just rubber-stamp it to continue in its current form.
“The effect of a trade-conflict situation is that it will mean lower economic growth in the United States, higher unemployment and higher inflation,” Goya said.
Ebrard said USMCA trade amounted to $1.78 trillion in the first nine months of this year.
“We can fragment and divide with tariffs,” Ebrard said. “Mexico does not want conflicts and divisions, but to build a stronger region.”

Topics: USMCA trade deal Mexico Claudia Sheinbaum Donald Trump

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British police launch new investigation into people linked to late Harrods boss Al-Fayed

British police launch new investigation into people linked to late Harrods boss Al-Fayed
Updated 28 November 2024
Reuters
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British police launch new investigation into people linked to late Harrods boss Al-Fayed

British police launch new investigation into people linked to late Harrods boss Al-Fayed
  • The BBC documentary said Harrods failed to intervene and helped cover up abuse allegations during his ownership
Updated 28 November 2024
Reuters

LONDON: British police said they had launched an investigation into whether people linked to the late Egyptian billionaire Mohamed Al-Fayed helped enable his alleged rape and other sexual abuse of female staff at his London department store Harrods and elsewhere.
A BBC documentary reported in September that Al-Fayed, who died last year aged 94, had sexually abused female staff, forced them to have medical screenings and threatened consequences if they tried to complain.
Al-Fayed always denied similar accusations before his death.
“This investigation is about giving survivors a voice, despite the fact that Mohamed Al-Fayed is no longer alive to face prosecution,” Commander Stephen Clayman from London’s Metropolitan Police Service said in a statement on Wednesday.
“However, we are now pursuing any individuals suspected to have been complicit in his offending, and we are committed to seeking justice.”
He did not say how many people were under investigation.
Lawyers representing victims have said the abuse took place not just at Harrods but also in other locations linked to Al-Fayed’s business empire, such as Fulham Football Club, the Ritz Paris hotel and his estate in Surrey, saying more than 400 people had come forward.
The BBC documentary said Harrods failed to intervene and helped cover up abuse allegations during his ownership.
Harrods has apologized and said it is “appalled” by the allegations. It has launched a process for any current or former Harrods employees who wished to claim compensation, although the plan has been criticized by victims’ lawyers.
The MPS said 90 victims had come forward over the last two months.
Earlier this month, the MPS referred itself to the police watchdog over its handling of two complaints against Al-Fayed in 2008 and 2013. The MPS said it would review all historical reports made against Al-Fayed.

Topics: Mohamed Al-Fayed Harrods British Police

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Latest updates

Global operation seizes 1,400 tons of drugs, unearths new Pacific trafficking route
Global operation seizes 1,400 tons of drugs, unearths new Pacific trafficking route
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Tariff plan would hurt both the US and Mexico, Sheinbaum tells Trump
Tariff plan would hurt both the US and Mexico, Sheinbaum tells Trump

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