Israel to continue attacks on Iran while Trump takes time out
WASHINGTON, DC - In a bid to defuse speculation, U.S. President Donald Trump says he will make his decision on whether to have the U.S. go to war with Iran within two weeks.
The delay will also allow negotiations to take place, the president said late Thursday.
"Based on the fact that there's a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks," the president said in his statement, which was relayed to reporters by press secretary Karoline Leavitt at the White House briefing room on Thursday..
It is not known whether Itan will agree to such talks, or who the U.S. will negotiate with as Israel last Friday assassinated the lead negotiator in the U.S.-Iran negotiations, in its first wave of airstrikes.
Israel also assassinated the lead negotiator in the Gaza ceasefire talks, also brokered by the United States. In that event, the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, took place in Iran. Haniyeh was in Iran for the funeral of the former president who had died in a plane crash, described at the time as an accident. The events that have followed have thrown suspicion on that account.
Haniyeh, the head of the Hamas politicalm bureau, was even believed by Israel not to have known of the 7 October 2023 attacks in advance. Nonetheless, as he endeavoured to reach a ceasefire, Israel assassinated his two sons and 4 grandchildren, before deciding to take out the man himself.
When ceasefire negotiations with Lebanon's Hezbollah got underway, as they made progress Israel assassinated the the main decision-maker, Secretary-General of that group, Hssan Nasrallah, killing more than 200 others in a massive bombing in Beirut in the process.
Who will now take the lead in negotiations with the U.S. is not known, but it is likely he will need to put his oon affairs in order first.
Meantime the pressure on Donald Trump to enter the war with Iran, and the pressure not to has escalated. While many of Israel's backers such as Senators Lindsay Graham and Ted Cruz are on board, commentators such as Tucker Carlson and Steven Bannon are firmly opposed.
Many critics question the validity of Israel's claims that Iran is close to having nuclear weapons when the country denies even having any ambitions for one. The IAEA has found no evidence of Iran pursuing nuclear weapons, nor does U.S. intelligence. It is only Israel that puts forward the case.
Many in the U.S. fear Iran will be Trump's Iraq if he goes down tha track of attacking Iran, without there being any credible evidence that there are nuclear weapons, or even plans for them.
Much of the intelligence that was presented by the Bush-Cheney administration to justify the Iraq invasion came from Israel. Some say now it was flawed, but most people around the world know it was largely fabricated and manipulated.
Senator Bernie Sanders has warned the U.S, not to go down the same path and not to pay heed to the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who has been crying wolf on Iran's supposed nuclear weapons for more than 3 decades..
"In 2002, in testimony to Congress urging the United States to go to war in Iraq, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu stated: "There is no question whatsoever that Saddam is seeking… nuclear weapons…. If you take out Saddam's regime, I guarantee you that it will have enormous positive reverberations,"" Sanders said in s statement Thursday.
"Netanyahu was wrong. Very wrong. The war in Iraq resulted in 4,492 U.S. military deaths, over 32,000 wounded, and a cost of roughly three trillion dollars.Hundreds of thousands of Iraqis also died as a result of that tragic war. Netanyahu was wrong regarding the war in Iraq. He is wrong now. We must not get involved in Netanyahu's war against Iran," Sanders said.
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Canada News.Net
5 hours ago
- Canada News.Net
Israel to continue attacks on Iran while Trump takes time out
WASHINGTON, DC - In a bid to defuse speculation, U.S. President Donald Trump says he will make his decision on whether to have the U.S. go to war with Iran within two weeks. The delay will also allow negotiations to take place, the president said late Thursday. "Based on the fact that there's a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks," the president said in his statement, which was relayed to reporters by press secretary Karoline Leavitt at the White House briefing room on Thursday.. It is not known whether Itan will agree to such talks, or who the U.S. will negotiate with as Israel last Friday assassinated the lead negotiator in the U.S.-Iran negotiations, in its first wave of airstrikes. Israel also assassinated the lead negotiator in the Gaza ceasefire talks, also brokered by the United States. In that event, the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, took place in Iran. Haniyeh was in Iran for the funeral of the former president who had died in a plane crash, described at the time as an accident. The events that have followed have thrown suspicion on that account. Haniyeh, the head of the Hamas politicalm bureau, was even believed by Israel not to have known of the 7 October 2023 attacks in advance. Nonetheless, as he endeavoured to reach a ceasefire, Israel assassinated his two sons and 4 grandchildren, before deciding to take out the man himself. When ceasefire negotiations with Lebanon's Hezbollah got underway, as they made progress Israel assassinated the the main decision-maker, Secretary-General of that group, Hssan Nasrallah, killing more than 200 others in a massive bombing in Beirut in the process. Who will now take the lead in negotiations with the U.S. is not known, but it is likely he will need to put his oon affairs in order first. Meantime the pressure on Donald Trump to enter the war with Iran, and the pressure not to has escalated. While many of Israel's backers such as Senators Lindsay Graham and Ted Cruz are on board, commentators such as Tucker Carlson and Steven Bannon are firmly opposed. Many critics question the validity of Israel's claims that Iran is close to having nuclear weapons when the country denies even having any ambitions for one. The IAEA has found no evidence of Iran pursuing nuclear weapons, nor does U.S. intelligence. It is only Israel that puts forward the case. Many in the U.S. fear Iran will be Trump's Iraq if he goes down tha track of attacking Iran, without there being any credible evidence that there are nuclear weapons, or even plans for them. Much of the intelligence that was presented by the Bush-Cheney administration to justify the Iraq invasion came from Israel. Some say now it was flawed, but most people around the world know it was largely fabricated and manipulated. Senator Bernie Sanders has warned the U.S, not to go down the same path and not to pay heed to the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who has been crying wolf on Iran's supposed nuclear weapons for more than 3 decades.. "In 2002, in testimony to Congress urging the United States to go to war in Iraq, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu stated: "There is no question whatsoever that Saddam is seeking… nuclear weapons…. If you take out Saddam's regime, I guarantee you that it will have enormous positive reverberations,"" Sanders said in s statement Thursday. "Netanyahu was wrong. Very wrong. The war in Iraq resulted in 4,492 U.S. military deaths, over 32,000 wounded, and a cost of roughly three trillion of thousands of Iraqis also died as a result of that tragic war. Netanyahu was wrong regarding the war in Iraq. He is wrong now. We must not get involved in Netanyahu's war against Iran," Sanders said.
Winnipeg Free Press
5 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
UN: Violence against children in conflict reached ‘unprecedented levels' in 2024, with Gaza worst
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He reiterated his calls on Israel to abide by international law requiring special protections for children, protection for schools and hospitals, and compliance with the requirement that attacks distinguish between combatants and civilians and avoid excessive harm to civilians. The U.N. also kept Hamas, whose surprise Oct. 7, 2023, attack in southern Israel sparked the ongoing war in Gaza, and Palestinian Islamic Jihad on the blacklist. Israel's U.N. Mission did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In Congo, the U.N. reported 4,043 verified grave violations against 3,418 children last year. In Somalia, it reported 2,568 violations against 1,992 children. In Nigeria, 2,436 grave violations were reported against 1,037 children. And in Haiti, the U.N. reported 2,269 verified grave violations against 1,373 children. In the ongoing war following Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the United Nations kept the Russian armed forces and affiliated armed groups on its blacklist for a third year. The secretary-general expressed deep concern at 'the sharp increase in grave violations against children in Ukraine' — 1,914 against 673 children. He expressed alarm at the violations by Russian forces and their affiliates, singling out their verified killing of 94 Ukrainian children, injury to 577 others, and 559 attacks on schools and 303 on hospitals. In Haiti, the U.N. put a gang, the Viv Ansanm coalition, on the blacklist for the first time. Gangs have grown in power since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in July 2021. They are now estimated to control 85% of the capital and have moved into surrounding areas. In May, the U.S. designated the powerful coalition representing more than a dozen gangs, whose name means 'Living Together,' as a foreign terrorist organization. Secretary-General Guterres expressed deep 'alarm' at the surge in violations, especially incidents of gang recruitment and use, sexual violence, abduction and denial of humanitarian aid. The report said sexual violence jumped by 35% in 2024, including a dramatic increase in the number of gang rapes, but stressed that the numbers are vastly underreported. 'Girls were abducted for the purpose of recruitment and use, and for sexual slavery,' the U.N. chief said. In Haiti, the U.N. reported sexual violence against 566 children, 523 of them girls, and attributed 411 to the Viv Ansanm gang. In Congo, the U.N. reported 358 acts of sexual violence against girls — 311 by armed groups and 47 by Congo's armed forces. And in Somalia, 267 children were victims of sexual violence, 120 of them carried out by Al-Shabab extremists. According to the report, violations affected 22,495 children in 2024, with armed groups responsible for almost 50% and government forces the main perpetrator of the killing and maiming of children, school attacks and denial of humanitarian access. The report noted a sharp rise in the number of children subjected to multiple violations — from 2,684 in 2023 to 3,137 in 2024. 'The cries of 22,495 innocent children who should be learning to read or play ball — but instead have been forced to learn how to survive gunfire and bombings — should keep all of us awake at night,' said Virginia Gamba, the U.N. special representative for children and armed conflict. 'We are at the point of no return,' she said, calling on the international community to protect children and the parties in conflict 'to immediately end the war on children.'
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7 hours ago
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Mark Carney's government reviewing suggested changes to infrastructure bill
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