Alaska fishermen will be allowed to harvest lucrative red king crab in the Bering Sea

The Canadian Press
Fri, October 6, 2023 



ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Alaska fishermen will be able to harvest red king crab for the first time in two years, offering a slight reprieve to the beleaguered fishery beset by low numbers likely exacerbated by climate change.

There was no such rebound for snow crab, however, and that fishery will remain closed for a second straight year, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced Friday.

“The Bristol Bay red king crab fishery for the prior two seasons were closed based on low abundance and particularly low abundance of mature-sized female crabs,” said Mark Stichert, the state department’s ground fish and shellfish management coordinator,

“Based on survey results from this year, those numbers have improved, some signs of modest optimism in terms of improving abundance in Bristol Bay red king crab overall and that has allowed for a small but still conservative fishery for 2023 as the total population size is still quite low,” he said.

The reopening of the red king crab fishery was welcome news for fishers.

“We're really happy they're opening up the king crab season, it'll bring some much needed relief,” said Gabriel Prout, a third-generation fisher and president of the Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers, a nonprofit trade association.

But Prout expects fewer boats to participate in this season's crab fishery. Difficulty in finding crew members and having enough money to maintain boats may limit the number of vessels participating this season, he added.

The estimates of spawning crab and the number of mature female red king crab were above thresholds required to open the fishery in Bristol Bay, according to analysis of surveys by both the state and the National Marine Fisheries Service.

Fishermen will be allowed to catch 2.1 million pounds (952,500 kilograms) of red king crab for three months beginning Oct. 15, the state announced.

More than 2.65 million pounds (1.2 million kilograms) were caught in 2020. The fishery saw nearly 130 million pounds (59 million kilograms) caught in 1980 before declining for the next three decades.

While the red king crab have been off limits for two years, the snow crab season was also canceled last year.

State fishery officials also decided to close the snow crab season for a second year, siding on conservation of the stock.

The Tanner crab fishery will open as normal after the number of adult mature male Tanner crabs exceeded the threshold, one species that has signs of optimism in the coming years for fisheries managers.

The total allowable catch for Tanner crab in the western Bering Sea was set at 1.3 million pounds (589,700 kilograms), while the eastern Bering Sea fishery was capped at 760,000 pounds (344,700 kilograms). The fishery also opens Oct. 15 and runs through March 31.

The decisions come after a first-ever closure for the snow crab fishery last year and a second-straight year of closure for the red king crab fishery in the Bering Sea after an annual survey in 2021 found all-time lows in the crab populations. Scientists think that population decline was a result of two years of low sea ice cover and abnormally warm ocean temperatures due to climate change may have altered the ecosystem in a way that snow crab couldn’t survive.

In 2020, snow crab fishers caught about 45 million pounds (20.4 million kilograms) of snow crab worth almost $106 million, according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. The following season, that fishery shrank to about a tenth of the previous season - 5.5 million pounds (2.5 million kilograms) were harvested at a value of just over $24 million.

The closure of the snow crab fishery in 2022 squeezed commercial fishers in Kodiak, Alaska, with some losing much of their income. Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Commerce allocated almost $192 million to assist fishers affected by the closures of the red king crab and snow crab fisheries in 2021 and 2022, but some fishers expressed doubt that they could stay in business until that money arrives.

___

Bickel reported from Cincinnati.

___

Associated Press climate and environmental coverage receives support from several private foundations. See more about AP’s climate initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Mark Thiessen And Joshua A. Bickel, The Associated Press

WORKERS CAPITAL

CPP Investments appoints former Sun Life CEO to chair's role


Reuters
Fri, October 6, 2023

(Reuters) - Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) said on Friday former Sun Life Financial CEO Dean Connor will succeed chairperson Heather Munroe-Blum, who is retiring after nine years at the role.

Connor is taking the chair at a time when CPP is locked in a dispute with the Alberta government over the money that would be due to the province should it exit the pension fund.

A veteran with more than four decades of experience in the financial services and executive consulting industry, Connor has been on CPP's board since 2021.

He was at the helm of Sun Life, one of Canada's biggest life insurers, for nearly a decade.

(Reporting by Niket Nishant in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)

Walmart Unit Abused Market Power, Mexico Investigators Say

Michael O'Boyle
Fri, October 6, 2023 


(Bloomberg) -- Walmart Inc. will face an antitrust panel in Mexico after a three-year probe concluded the retailer’s local unit abused its market power, a charge that could result in billions of dollars in fines.

The company, Mexico’s biggest retailer, is reviewing the allegations and will get its first opportunity to defend itself in an administrative process before the board of antitrust regulator Cofece, according to a Walmart de Mexico statement Friday. Under Mexican law, Cofece’s board reviews findings from agency investigators and the company’s defense before deciding how to resolve the case.

“Walmex is confident that it has always acted in accordance with applicable law to guarantee the best prices, quality and assortment to its customers and will exercise all rights and remedies available under applicable law,” the company said.

Cofece launched the probe three years ago into alleged abuse of Walmex’s market position in the wholesale supply and distribution markets, as well as retail operations and related services. At the time, the agency cited its own recently concluded study that found small businesses were disadvantaged by large retail chains that imposed tough conditions, such as delaying payments or requiring vendors to carry the risk of unsold products. Small companies in the US have also described Walmart as a demanding customer that can make or break their businesses.

Walmart, based in Bentonville, Arkansas, didn’t provide information about the specific allegations it’s facing. It has 45 days to present its defense.

The antitrust regulator can fine companies in such cases for up to 8% of their Mexico unit’s revenue. Walmart had sales of $33.8 billion last year in Mexico. The company’s local operations are run by Wal-Mart de Mexico SAB, a publicly traded company controlled by the US parent. Shares of Walmex have dropped 6.7% this year, compared with a 2.5% gain for Mexico’s benchmark index and a 10% increase in Walmart shares.

Cofece is independent of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador’s administration, whose tax authorities used potential criminal fraud charges to push Walmex to pay an 8.1 billion peso tax settlement back in 2020 that heralded an aggressive charge by the government to collect more from big companies.

Walmart's Mexico unit to face anti-trust panel after three-year investigation


By Daina Beth Solomon

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -Walmart's Mexico unit said on Friday it will face an anti-trust panel for alleged relative monopolistic practices related to the supply, wholesale distribution and marketing of consumer goods.

The allegations follow a three-year investigation by Mexico's antitrust regulator, Cofece, and the company now has 45 days to provide arguments and evidence in its defense.

Walmart de Mexico, known as Walmex, was first told in 2020 that it was under review for possible antitrust behavior.

"Walmex is confident that it has always acted in accordance with applicable law to ensure the best prices, quality and assortment to its clients," the company said in a statement, adding it could not yet predict any impact to its finances and operations.

Cofece declined to comment.

Specifics of the allegations were not immediately clear. In 2020, Cofece flagged concern about large retail chains imposing terms on their suppliers, saying such practices created risk for the smaller companies and could hit their finances.

The agency's commissioners will oversee a trial-like process, weighing the findings of its investigative unit against Walmex's defense.

If it determines Walmex has violated competition law, Cofece can impose a fine of up to 8% of the company's annual income in Mexico.

The retailer last year posted revenue of more than 819 billion pesos ($45 billion) from its operations in Mexico and Central America. It is due to report third-quarter results on Oct. 25.

Walmex is the biggest supermarket chain in Mexico with 2,890 locations and regularly outperforms local rivals.

The company is also in fierce competition with Amazon.com as both retail giants scale up e-commerce operations in the country.

The research division of Mexican bank Banorte said Walmex shares could see some short-term volatility following the announcement due to uncertainty over the potential impact on its operations.

($1 = 18.1638 Mexican pesos)

(Reporting by Valentine Hilaire and Daina Beth Solomon; editing by Stephen Eisenhammer, Sandra Maler and Edwina Gibbs)

Las Vegas hospitality unions see 'no real movement' in talks with casinos

Reuters
Fri, October 6, 2023 


(Reuters) - The unions representing 53,000 hospitality workers in Las Vegas said on Friday they have seen "no real movement" this week in contract negotiations with casino-resort operators MGM Resorts International and Caesars Entertainment.

The Culinary Workers and Bartenders unions are demanding higher wages, stronger protections against new technology that may threaten jobs, a reduction in steep housekeeping quotas and improved safety for workers.

"We met with MGM on Tuesday and Caesars on Wednesday and unfortunately, no real movement from these companies," said Culinary Union Secretary-Treasurer Ted Pappageorge.

About 95% of the members of the unions voted at the end of September to authorize a citywide strike that would impact at least 18 properties.

The unions are negotiating a new five-year contract at over 40 properties where the agreement has expired or is under extension. They are also in all-day negotiations with Wynn Resorts.

Pappageorge told Reuters a strike could happen any time after Oct. 6.

(Reporting by Doyinsola Oladipo in New York and Shivansh Tiwary in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)

Walgreens pharmacy employees plan walkout at US stores, CNN reports

Reuters
Fri, October 6, 2023 


Signage is seen outside of a Walgreens, owned by the Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc., in Manhattan, New York City


(Reuters) - Pharmacy employees at some U.S. Walgreens stores, including pharmacists, technicians and support staff, plan a walkout between Monday and Wednesday, CNN reported on Friday, citing an organizer.

Some employees plan to walk out for one day, while others expect to close their pharmacies for all three, the network said, citing employees in three states.

The walkout is in response to what pharmacy employees call burdensome prescription and vaccination expectations placed on pharmacists, the report said.

Reuters could not immediately reach employees involved in the reported action for comment.

Walgreens said in an emailed response it was engaged and listening to concerns raised by some of its team members. "We are making significant investments in pharmacist wages and hiring bonuses to attract/retain talent in harder to staff locations," the company said.

In the biggest ever U.S. healthcare sector strike, Kaiser Permanente nurses, medical technicians and support staff walked off the job at hospitals and clinics for 72 hours this week.

The strike by 75,000 workers ended on Friday as the two sides agreed to resume stalled contract talks, although union officials warned of possible further walkouts.

(Reporting by Dimpal Gulwani in Bengaluru; Additional Reporting by Devika Nair and Rishabh Jaiswal; Editing by Sandra Maler, Rosalba O'Brien and William Mallard)

Israel protest leader vows govt won't 'take democracy away'
Jay Deshmukh
Thu, October 5, 2023 

Israeli activist Shikma Bressler delivers a speech during a protest against the Israeli government's judicial overhaul bill, in Tel Aviv on September 9, 2023 

(AHMAD GHARABLI)

An Israeli physicist who has become the face of a wave of anti-government protests warns that her country risks falling under "tyranny" as the hardline government pushes through its contentious judicial overhaul.

Shikma Bressler, 43, has led passionate weekly street rallies that have become Israel's biggest protest movement in years, ever since the divisive legal reform agenda was unveiled in January.

"Israel is taking the track of becoming a tyranny," the mother of five told AFP amid the movement's battle with the hard-right coalition government of veteran Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"It means there is someone who is interested in being a tyrant."

In an interview in Jerusalem, she argued that "if Israel follows this track, we will no longer be Israel in the way you and I and the people may think about Israel".

Netanyahu's administration, a coalition of his Likud party and extreme-right and ultra-Orthodox Jewish allies, insists the sweeping legal changes are needed to rebalance powers between elected politicians and the judiciary.

The proposed reforms have deeply split Israel's Jewish majority, with opponents arguing they are in a fight to defend the country's liberal and democratic identity.

As tens of thousands have taken to the streets in Tel Aviv and cities across Israel, some coalition members have called in recent months to shelve several proposals or soften the reforms.

In July, lawmakers approved the first major element of the overhaul, limiting a clause that had previously allowed judges to rule on the "reasonableness" of government decisions.

Bressler spearheaded a multi-day march ahead of the parliament vote, a defining moment for the protest movement.

- 'Fragile democracy' -

Critics argue the "reasonableness" amendment restricts judicial oversight of executive power and could pave the way for more authoritarian rule in a country that has no constitution or upper house of parliament.

Bressler said that, in the long term, the government "can go against our will, as they did in July".

"But they are doomed to collapse because you cannot force decisions on the vast majority of your people who are against it, unless you decide to use violence against them."

The government argues the proposed reforms are inherently democratic as the coalition was elected by Israeli voters. But Bressler argued that the ballot box mandate "doesn't give it the right to take democracy away".

"In Israel, we have no checks and balances... like others," she said, "so our democracy is very, very fragile."

Nearly 225 pieces of legislation have been proposed in parliament to steer Israel away from its core democratic identity, Bressler argued. "What we see here is a structured process.

"It takes advantage of Israel's internal conflicts and problems," she said, drawing parallels with democratic backsliding in other countries including Poland, Hungary and Turkey.

She insisted the protest movement now has wider support than the coalition, a claim backed by recent polls that show falling support for the Israeli government.

Opponents accuse Netanyahu, who is on trial on corruption charges which he denies, of trying to use the legal overhaul to quash possible judgements against him. He rejects the accusation.

- 'We cannot go back' -

Bressler, a professor who runs a lab at the prestigious Weizmann Institute of Science, said she had little to do with politics until 2020, and that her first passion remains particle physics.

On a personal level, Bressler said she wants to be able to return to a normal life with her family, but also stressed that "we have no other country to go to".

"We must win so that we have a normal home to get back to, nothing beyond this. But apparently it is not guaranteed at all."

Her activism started during the Covid pandemic, when Netanyahu ordered courts to shut amid a nationwide lockdown -- a move critics saw as an attempt to delay his corruption trial.

Along with her brothers, Bressler drove in a convoy to Jerusalem, urging Israelis to join, a campaign that swiftly turned viral on social media.

"Back then I was shouting 'Democratia!' (democracy) like the way you hear now on the streets," said Bressler.

The current situation is far tougher, she said: "We cannot go back. We can only move forward from this point."

Israel has a choice, she stressed: "Either a dark road that ends up in tyranny ... or to create a much stronger system that will ensure our liberal democratic values for generations to come."

sa-jd/ami/fz 

Human rights groups make varied responses to new violence in Israel

Adam Schrader
Sat, October 7, 2023 

The Red Crescent Society in Palestine is seen responding to Israeli violence on Saturday. Photo courtesy of Red Crescent Society/Facebook

Oct. 7 (UPI) -- Human rights groups are making varied responses to new Palestine-Israel violence, ranging from full-on support of Israel to warnings for both sides to respect human life.

The Anti-Defamation League, which bills itself as the "global leader in combatting antisemitism," fully backed Israel. The organization referred to Hamas as "terrorists" and noted its connections to Iran while stating that Israel has the "indisputable right to defend itself."

"The missiles aimed at Israeli towns and the terrorists infiltrating villages are no less than war crimes as they target civilians," the ADL said. "We call on responsible members of the international community to take concrete actions both in support of Israel and against those who support the Palestinian terrorists."

Amnesty International, the global non-governmental organization focused on human rights, was one of the groups that took a more measured response -- though noted Hamas' responsibility for escalating recent tensions with Saturday's rocket attack.

"We are deeply alarmed by the mounting civilian death tolls in Gaza, Israel and the occupied West Bank and urgently call on all parties to the conflict to abide by international law and make every effort to avoid further civilian bloodshed. Under international humanitarian law all sides in a conflict have a clear obligation to protect the lives of civilians caught up in the hostilities," said Agnès Callamard Amnesty International's Secretary General.

"Deliberately targeting civilians, carrying out disproportionate attacks, and indiscriminate attacks which kill or injure civilians are war crimes. Israel has a horrific track record of committing war crimes with impunity in previous wars on Gaza. Palestinian armed groups from Gaza, must refrain from targeting civilians and using indiscriminate weapons, as they have done in the past, and most intensively in this event, acts amounting to war crimes."

Doctors Without Borders also took a more balanced response but singled out Israeli forces for striking two hospitals in Gaza in retaliation against Palestine.

"Healthcare facilities cannot become targets. We ask all parties to respect health infrastructures, which must remain a sanctuary for people seeking treatment," Doctors Without Borders said in the statement."The scale of this new round of hostilities must not be underestimated, with Palestinian and Israeli authorities reporting massive casualties all over Israel and Gaza."

Human Rights Watch, another of the world's largest groups dedicated to such causes, did not appear to make any formal comment by press time. The HRW has previously blasted Israel for "apartheid and persecution."

Meanwhile, Israeli and Palestine-supporting Muslim groups in the United States volleyed with flurries of press releases in support of the respective nations.

Palestine is recognized by most nations around the world as a sovereign nation and has observer status with the U.N. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken earlier this year also reaffirmed Washington's commitment to a two-state solution to the conflict.

Still, Israel and the United States remain firm allies -- largely because of the Israeli lobby in the U.S.

"The United States Council of Muslim Organizations (USCMO), the nation's largest American Muslim civil society umbrella organization, reaffirms its unwavering support for the Palestinian people and their right to freedom from the Israeli occupation," the organization said in its news release.

"The recent unprovoked and continuous attacks by Israel on Palestinian towns, cities, and refugee camps have resulted in tragic loss of Palestinian lives. We condemn Israel's targeted and indiscriminate killing of civilians, including innocent children, women, and the elderly."

The organization also urged Arab and Muslim countries that have normalized relations with Israel to "reconsider their approach in pursuit of peace and stability in the region."

"Normalizing relations should never come at the expense of the Palestinian people's rights to their lands. There can be no true peace that disregards the sanctity and Muslim rights of the Aqsa Mosque and Al-Quds Alshareef."

Hamas violently forces detour from Saudi-Israel momentum
Shaun Tandon with Robbie Corey-Boulet in Riyadh
Sat, October 7, 2023 

Israeli rescue teams evacuate a wounded person near the southern city of Sderot after a Hamas attack (Menahem KAHANA)

With its surprise attack against Israel, Hamas has violently shifted the world's eyes back to the Palestinians and dealt a severe blow to momentum to secure a landmark US-brokered deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia.

The Iranian-backed Islamist militants who run the impoverished, blockaded Gaza Strip on Saturday fired thousands of rockets and infiltrated forces into Israel, 50 years after Arab states' assault on Israel during the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel was at war. Just weeks earlier he had brushed aside the Palestinian issue during a speech at the United Nations and said normalization in 2020 with three other Arab nations in the so-called Abraham Accords had "heralded a new age of peace."

Netanyahu also said Israel was on the cusp of a bigger prize -- recognition by Saudi Arabia, guardian of Islam's two holiest sites.

President Joe Biden, eager before next year's US election for a major diplomatic win, has pushed for a deal, and more talks were expected in coming weeks -- despite skepticism from some of Biden's fellow Democrats about the proposed security guarantees to the conservative kingdom, whose rights record has long been under scrutiny.

"It was always a tough hill to climb, and that hill just got a lot steeper," said Brian Katulis, vice president of policy at the Middle East Institute in Washington.

The violence throws a spotlight on disputes between Israel and the Palestinians and "makes it harder to sweep those complicated issues under the rug the way the 2020 Abraham Accords did," he said.

Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has spoken recently of progress with Israel but also insisted on movement on the Palestinian cause, seen as a priority for the aging King Salman.

Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry returned to familiar language Saturday, saying in a statement that the kingdom had been warning of an "explosive situation as a result of the continued occupation and deprivation of the Palestinian people's legitimate rights."

Aziz Alghashian, a Saudi expert on Saudi-Israeli relations, said the statement was intended to dispel any notion that the kingdom would prioritize normalization at the expense of supporting the Palestinians.

"This kind of situation has made Saudi Arabia go back to its traditional role," he said.

"Netanyahu put another obstacle to these normalization talks because he said this is now a war. I don't anticipate normalization is going to take place against the backdrop of war," Alghashian said.

A US official said it was "premature" to discuss the violence's effect on normalization, as Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed the conflict with his Saudi counterpart by telephone.

- Public opposition -

Netanyahu has cast diplomacy with the Palestinians as antiquated and described a future of friendship with Gulf Arabs, who share Israel's hostility toward Iran's clerical rulers.

Netanyahu's government, the most right-wing in Israeli history, has continued to pursue settlements, although the prime minister backtracked in 2020 on annexation in the West Bank as he sought to woo the United Arab Emirates, the lead country in the Abraham Accords.

Joost Hiltermann, Middle East director of the International Crisis Group, which looks to resolve conflicts, said Hamas may have acted in part due to fear of a "looming further marginalization of the Palestinian cause in Palestinian eyes" if Saudi Arabia recognizes Israel.

With Israel expected to respond forcefully to Saturday's attacks, Arab states will likely feel obliged to take a harder stance in line with public sentiment, he said.

"If that all happens, then I would foresee a scenario where, just like we have a cold peace between Israel and Jordan, between Israel and Egypt, we end up with a cooling of the relationship between Israel and the Emirates and probably a delay, at least, of any sort of deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia," he said.

Steven Cook, a senior fellow on the Council on Foreign Relations, pointed to a survey that showed just two percent of Saudis backed normalizing ties with Israel.

"It wasn't that long ago," he noted, "that there were telethons happening in Saudi Arabia in support of Hamas suicide bombers."

- Iran opposes normalization -

The Biden administration has largely sought to lessen US involvement in the Middle East, also by easing tensions with Iran.

Iran's clerical leadership, which since last year has suppressed major protests led by women, supports Hamas and Lebanon's Hezbollah and hailed the offensive.

"This is about Iran's priorities in the Middle East," said Danielle Pletka of the conservative American Enterprise Institute.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said that the attack appeared "designed to stop peace efforts between Saudi Arabia and Israel."

"A peace agreement between those two nations would be a nightmare for Iran and Hamas," he said.

sct-rcb/acb

Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Iran say Israel has only itself to blame for Hamas attacks

Nick Robertson

THE HILL
Sat, October 7, 2023 


The governments of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Iran appeared to blame Israel for its escalating conflict with Hamas on Saturday.

The Palestinian militant group launched a mass attack on Israeli forces and settlements, killing at least 250 people in Israel and 232 in Gaza early Saturday, according to Israeli local media and the Palestinian government.

While leaders in the U.S. and Europe quickly denounced the attack and gave support for Israel, the three Middle Eastern nations criticized the country over its treatment of Palestinians.

“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is closely following the developments of the unprecedented situation between a number of Palestinian factions and the Israeli occupation forces, which has resulted in a high level of violence on several fronts there,” the country’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.


“The Kingdom recalls its repeated warnings of the dangers of the explosion of the situation as a result of the continued occupation, and deprivation of the Palestinian people of their legitimate rights, and the repetition of systematic provocations against its sanctities,” the statement continues.

The condemnation comes as both the Israeli and Saudi governments have attempted to normalize relations in recent years, at the encouragement of the U.S.

A senior Iranian government advisor explicitly endorsed Hamas in the conflict, the most direct support for the militant group from any government official globally.

“We congratulate the Palestinian fighters,” advisor Yahya Rahim Safavi said, according to state media via Reuters. “We will stand by the Palestinian fighters until the liberation of Palestine and Jerusalem.”

Iran state media showed video of parliament members chanting in support of Hamas on Saturday, saying “Death to Israel” and “Palestine is victorious, Israel will be destroyed”.

Iran has funded and supplied Hamas for years as part of its decades-long conflict with Israel.

The Qatari Foreign Ministry also blamed Israel for the violence.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs holds Israel alone responsible for the current escalation due to this ongoing violations of the rights of the Palestinian people, the latest of which is the repeated raids on the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque under of the protection of Israeli police,” the ministry said in a statement.

Violence erupted at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem in April, a holy place for the Muslim faith. In multiple days of fighting, Israeli police raided the mosque and arrested dozens of worshipers.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the conflict a “war” in a public address early Saturday.

The U.S. has vowed to support Israel, with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin saying the government will ensure the country “has what it needs to defend itself.”

African nations divided on support for Israel, Palestine but call for peace

Adam Schrader
Sat, October 7, 2023 

 Photo by Ismael Mohamad/UPI

Oct. 7 (UPI) -- African leaders were divided Saturday after war broke out between Israel and Palestine when the Palestinian group Hamas, considered by Israel to be terrorists, sought to assert its right to Palestinian land and push back against a history of Israeli aggression.

Some African leaders have not yet remarked on the conflict but, of those who did, they seemed torn between sympathy for Palestinians facing Israeli occupation and criticism of Hamas "terrorism" for its surprise rocket attack on Saturday.

African countries have long been subject to Western occupation and conflict, which largely showed in their responses to the situation in the Middle East.

Algeria's Foreign Ministry in a statement did not reference the Hamas attack yet condemned "the brutal Israeli attack on Gaza" which claimed the lives of "innocent sons and daughters of the Palestinian people who fell as martyrs under the persistence of the Israeli occupation."

Algeria accused Israel of practices that "violate the most basic humanitarian rules" and called for an international intervention "to protect the Palestinian from the arrogance and crime that the Zionist occupation has made a feature of its occupation of the lands."

"Algeria also renews its conviction that the Zionist settler-occupation has created an enemy of conflict and that ending the misfortunes, scourges and tragedies resulting from this conflict undoubtedly lies in responding to the legitimate national rights of the Palestinian people and enabling it to establish its independent state on the 1967 borders with its capital, Al-Quds Al-Sharif (Jerusalem)."

The Tunisian Presidency said in a statement that it expressed "its full and unconditional stand with the Palestinian people."

"What some media describe as the Gaza enclave is Palestinian land that has been under Zionist occupation for decades, and it is the right of the Palestinians to take it back and to take back all Palestinian land," The Tunisian Presidency said. "Palestine also has the right to establish its independent state and its capital Al-Quds Al-Sharif (Jerusalem)."

The Tunisian Presidency drew attention to what it called massacres of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank and said the world should not forget the "hundreds of thousands" who have been forced to leave their homes and whose lands have been taken from them by Israelis.

"Tunisia also calls on the international community to bear its historical responsibilities to put an end to the gross occupation of all Palestine and to assist the Zionist occupation forces in violating the rights of the Palestinian people in complete defiance of all religious laws and human values," the statement reads.

On the other hand, Félix Tshisekedi, the president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, expressed "solidarity" with Israel said the countries remain "united to fight terrorism in all its forms."

William Ruto, the president of Kenya, similarly joined in "solidarity" for Israel in comments on Twitter.

"Kenya strongly maintains that there exists no justification whatsoever for terrorism, which constitutes a serious threat to international peace and security. All acts of terrorism and violent extremism are abhorrent, criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of the perpetrator, or their motivations," Ruto said.

"The international community must mobilize to bring the perpetrators, organizers, financiers, sponsors, supporters and enablers of these reprehensible criminal acts of terrorism to account and speedily bring them to justice."

Meanwhile, Moussa Faki Mahamat -- the chair of the Commission of the African Union -- took a more measured approach but did emphasize that the "main cause" of the conflict is the "denial of the fundamental rights of the Palestinian people, particularly that of an independent and sovereign State."

"The chairperson urgently appeals to both parties to put an end to military hostilities and to return, without conditions, to the negotiating table to implement the principle of two States living side by side, to safeguard the interests of the Palestinian people and the Israeli people," the statement reads.

"The chairperson further calls on the international community, and the major world powers in particular, to assume their responsibilities to impose peace and guarantee the rights of the two peoples."

Others that took a more neutral stance include Nigeria, which warned that the "cycle of violence and retaliation" will case "an unending cycle of pain" for the civilian populations of both parties.

Migrants in Europe celebrate Hamas assault on Israel

Tony Diver

TORY TELEGRAM
Sat, October 7, 2023 

A Palestinian boy wearing army-style fatigues holds a gun as others dance in celebration of the attacks - Bilal Hussein/AP

Migrants in Europe celebrated last night after Hamas launched an attack on Israel, killing more than 150 people.

Videos of a migrant camp in Greece showed Palestinians and other asylum seekers cheering in response to the attacks from Gaza.

The footage, published on TikTok, was reportedly taken on the eastern Aegean island of Samos, where the Greek government has set up a “closed” migrant camp surrounded by barbed wire.

Refugees there, many of whom are from Syria and Iraq, reportedly chanted “Allah Akbar” – “God is great”.

Their celebrations were mirrored in many states across the Arab world, where Hamas and Hizbollah supporters gathered in support of the attack.

In Tehran, where the government publicly welcomed Hamas’s military operation, supporters waved Palestinian flags and set off fireworks.

Hizbollah supporters also held a rally in Dahiyeh, a suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, where some waved signs that read: “Oh Quds, we are coming.”

The phrase is used in support of Palestinian forces capturing Muslim holy sites. Others stood on an Israeli flag.

At the Bourj al-Barajneh Palestinian refugee camp in Beirut, one man handed out sweets to supporters, while others displayed two-fingered victory signs reminiscent of Winston Churchill’s wartime gesture.

A video posted on social media purportedly showed similar celebrations taking place in Baghdad, Iraq, where supporters waved flags and sounded their horns in a convoy.

The AFP news agency reported that some Palestinian supporters had taken to the streets in Berlin, prompting police fears of attacks on synagogues in Germany.

Nancy Faeser, Germany’s interior minister, said police presence “has been immediately stepped up” in response.

In Britain, some supported the attacks on social media.

Rivkah Brown, a journalist for the Left-wing news website Novara, tweeted: “Today should be a day of celebration for supporters of democracy and human rights worldwide, as Gazans break out of their open-air prison and Hamas fighters cross into their colonisers’ territory.

“The struggle for freedom is rarely bloodless and we shouldn’t apologise for it.”

Husam Zomlot, the head of the Palestinian Mission to the UK, said “statements about ‘Israel’s right to self-defence’ will only be interpreted by the most fanatical Israeli government as a green light to commit further massacres against the occupied people of Palestine”.

 

Rocket perfume, anyone? A Gaza vendor sells scents in bottles shaped like rockets fired at Israel

ISSAM ADWAN
Fri, October 6, 2023 





Belal Abu Saraya fills a perfume container representing rockets used against Israel in a perfume store against Israel in past conflicts at his shop in Gaza City on Thursday, Oct. 5, 2023. AP Photo/Fatima Shbair)

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — In Gaza, a perfume vendor has found an unusual way to show his defiance of the Israeli blockade of the coastal territory. Rocket-shaped vials line the fragrant shelves of his Hijaz perfume shop in the Al-Saha market of Gaza City.

Customers seeking a new fragrance can choose a “KN-103” scent, or perhaps spring for a “Buraq-100” — it depends which militant group’s rocket they’d like to display in their boudoir.

Shopkeeper Hamza Abu Saraya, the owner of the popular perfumery in the besieged Gaza Strip, said he first came up with idea to design perfume bottles shaped like militant rockets during the Israel-Gaza war in 2021 — the fourth since the militant group Hamas seized control of the area in 2007.

The war involved exchanges of airstrikes and rocket attacks between Israel and Palestinian militant groups in Gaza, leaving over 250 Palestinians dead. Thirteen people were killed in Israel. Militant groups in Gaza including Hamas and Islamic Jihad fired hundreds of rockets at Israel.

Israel and the EU consider both Hamas and Islamic Jihad — Iranian-backed organizations that oppose Israel's existence — terrorist groups. Human rights groups have accused both Israel and the militants of committing war crimes during the fighting.

Upon entering the store, clouds of incense give way to rich, floral scents coming from the miniature iron rockets, each labeled with the name of the projectile they represent.

Tiny models of the rockets from each group are represented in the shop for roughly $13 each. Within each vial, perfumes imported from outside Gaza have been locally mixed by workers in the strip. Gaza does not have any homegrown perfume brands.

For many buyers, the act of purchasing these perfumes is seen as a symbol of supporting Palestinian efforts to oppose the Israeli blockade of Gaza and the occupation of the West Bank. Israel says the blockade is to prevent militants from arming themselves, but the Palestinians say the restrictions on movement in and out of Gaza, which have stifled the local economy, amount to collective punishment.

“I love resistance. It’s an art piece in my house,” said customer Islam Abu Hamdallah.