Category World News

Nearly 60 lawmakers in the United Kingdom have written to Foreign Secretary David Lammy this week, calling out Israel’s plans for the “ethnic cleansing” of Gaza and demanding the country immediately recognise Palestine as a state.

The 59 lawmakers, all from the governing Labour Party, criticised Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz’s plans to force Gaza’s 2.1 million Palestinians into a so-called “humanitarian city” – likened by some analysts to a concentration camp – built on the ruins of Rafah.

The letter, sent to Lammy on Thursday and made public on Saturday, cited Israeli human rights lawyer Michael Sfard as saying Palestinians were being pushed to the southern tip of Gaza “in preparation for deportation outside the strip”, slamming the move as “ethnic cleansing”.

They urged the foreign secretary to stop Israel’s “operational plan for crimes against humanity”. It also called on London to follow the lead of French President Emmanuel Macron, who recently announced an intent to recognise a Palestinian state, so as not to undermine its own policy in support of a two-state solution.

Dozens of Labour MPs have signed letter calling on @FCDOGovUK Secretary David Lammy to take concrete action on #Gaza including immediate recognition of #Palestine

Here it is in full, though more MPs signing up by the minute

Thanks @LFPME for coordinating, government must heed pic.twitter.com/fOxiylKKVi

Reporting from London, Al Jazeera’s Sonia Gallego said Macron had given calls to formally recognise Palestine as a state “extra heft” during his three-day state visit to the UK this week.

In an address on Tuesday to the UK’s Parliament, he had said the move was a matter of “absolute urgency” and the “only path to peace”, calling on the country to help create the “political momentum” for a two-state solution.

Gallego pointed out that Lammy had on Tuesday criticised the controversial US-backed GHF sites at Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee.

“It’s not doing a good job. Too many people are close to starvation. Too many people have lost their lives,” Lammy had said.

Three out of the enclave’s four GHF sites, which have sidelined Gaza’s vast UN-led aid delivery network, are located in southern Gaza, effectively forcing starving Palestinians towards Israel’s new “humanitarian city” in Rafah.

On Friday, the spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that 819 Palestinians have been killed while waiting for food – 634 in the vicinity of GHF sites, which have been operational since late May. On Saturday, 34 more were killed near a GHF site in Rafah.

Lammy had also said that the UK could take further action against Israel if a ceasefire deal to end the war in the Palestinian territory does not materialise. But he stressed that London wants to recognise Palestine as part of a concrete move towards the two-state solution, not just as a symbolic gesture.

The lawmakers welcomed the Labour government’s calls for a ceasefire, its suspension of arms licenses to Israel, and its sanctioning of hardline Israeli ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, but said the “desperation and seriousness” of the situation in Gaza required more action.

“We cannot leave actions in our back pocket while the situation facing Palestinian civilians reaches critical and existential levels,” said the letter, which was organised by Labour Friends of Palestine and the Middle East, co-chaired by lawmakers Sarah Owen and Andrew Pakes.

“By not recognising [Palestine] as a state, we … set an expectation that the status quo can continue and see the effective erasure and annexation of Palestinian territory,” it added.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino triumphantly declared the Club World Cup to be “the most successful club competition in the world” on Saturday before this weekend’s final between Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea.

The first 32-team edition of the tournament faced criticism in the build-up for stretching demands on elite players and has been played out in baking temperatures in the United States that have raised concerns for the health of those involved.

There were also doubts about the level of interest the competition would generate among fans, but Infantino said he was satisfied with the attendance at matches, despite many games being far from sold out, and claimed it had been a major success financially.

“The golden age of club football has started. We can definitely say this FIFA Club World Cup has been a huge success,” Infantino told reporters at Trump Tower on New York City’s Fifth Avenue, where FIFA has just opened an office.

“We heard that financially it would not work, that nobody is interested, but I can say we generated almost $2.1bn in revenues, for 63 matches,” he said.

“That makes an average of $33m per match – no other club competition in the world comes close.

“It is already the most successful club competition in the world.”

Former Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp has been one of the leading voices against the tournament, calling it “the worst idea ever implemented in football” in a recent interview.

But the head of world football’s governing body dismissed suggestions that Klopp might be speaking for most observers in Europe.

“We shouldn’t say that the opinion of Europe on this is very bad because it is not true,” said Infantino, who was appearing on a stage alongside numerous footballing greats, including the Brazilian Ronaldo.

“All the teams who have come here have been happy – some teams who didn’t come here because they didn’t qualify were calling us to see how they could qualify.

“Of course, I would have liked to have Liverpool here, Arsenal, Manchester United, Barcelona, Tottenham, AC Milan, Napoli … but you have to qualify and there are different criteria.”

The next Club World Cup is due to take place in 2029, with Infantino refusing to commit when asked whether the tournament could be played every two years or be expanded to feature more teams.

United States President Donald Trump has said he might revoke talk-show host Rosie O’Donnell’s US citizenship after she criticised his administration’s handling of weather forecasting agencies in the wake of the deadly Texas floods.

Trump’s threats are the latest salvo in a years-long feud the two have waged over social media.

“Because of the fact that Rosie O’Donnell is not in the best interests of our Great Country, I am giving serious consideration to taking away her Citizenship,” the US president wrote on his Truth Social platform.

Trump has long called for the mass deportation of undocumented immigrants, but in recent weeks, he has suggested that he would remove US citizens that he disagrees with from the country.

“She is a Threat to Humanity, and should remain in the wonderful Country of Ireland, if they want her. GOD BLESS AMERICA!” Trump wrote.

Under the law, a president cannot revoke the citizenship of an American born in the US. O’Donnell was born in New York state.

Trump’s latest jab at O’Donnell seemed to be in response to a TikTok video she posted this month, mourning the 119 deaths in the July 4 floods in Texas and blaming Trump’s widespread cuts to environmental and science agencies involved in forecasting major natural disasters.

“What a horror story in Texas,” O’Donnell said in the video. “And you know, when the president guts all the early warning systems and the weathering forecast abilities of the government, these are the results that we’re gonna start to see on a daily basis.”

The Trump administration, as well as local and state officials, have faced mounting questions about whether more could have been done to protect and warn residents in advance of the Texas flooding, which killed at least 120 people earlier this month.

Trump, on Friday, visited Texas and defended the government’s response to the disaster, saying his agencies “did an incredible job under the circumstances.”

O’Donnell responded to Trump’s threat in two posts on her Instagram account, saying: “the president of the usa has always hated the fact that i see him for who he is – a criminal con man sexual abusing liar out to harm our nation to serve himself.”

She added that he opposes her because she “stands in direct opposition with all he represents”.

O’Donnell has been a longtime target of Trump’s insults and jabs.

In 2014, when she opened up about her weight loss journey, Trump said on X that “she felt ‘shame’ at being fat-not politically correct! She killed Star Jones for weight loss surgery, just had it!”

During Trump’s first presidency, O’Donnell told W magazine that she feared whether she would be able to “live through” his presidency.

Following Trump’s inauguration for his second presidential term in January this year, she moved to Ireland earlier this year with her 12-year-old son.

In a March TikTok video, she said that she would return to the US “when it is safe for all citizens to have equal rights there in America”.

Earlier this month, Trump said he may look at options to deport his former aide-turned-critic, Elon Musk, a naturalised US citizen.

KL Rahul scored a century while Ravindra Jadeja and Rishabh Pant pitched in with crucial fifties as India posted 387, equalling England’s first innings, on a heated third day on and off the field at Lord’s

An injury to Shoaib Bashir blunted England’s pace-spin attack strategy when India looked vulnerable with five wickets down after losing Pant and Rahul in quick succession, before Jadeja steadied their innings with his third fifty-plus knock in a row.

England openers Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett, who played a single over from Jasprit Bumrah before stumps, remained unbeaten at 2-0 as the five-match series remains tied as both sides look to go 2-1 up with a win in the third Test.

With two overs scheduled to be bowled before stumps, tempers started to flare when Crawley pulled out of his stance four times – and later in the over called for the physio in what would be the only over of England’s second innings.

The tourists were irate with Mohammed Siraj displaying a thunderous look, before Bumrah slow handclapped and India skipper Shubman Gill confronted Crawley, pointing a finger in the opener’s face.

India started well from an overnight score of 145-3 as left-handed batter Pant, who scored twin centuries in the first test, battled through an injured finger on his left hand as he hooked England captain Stokes for six to bring up his fifty.

The 27-year-old survived when an awkward hook on a short ball from Stokes almost got him caught near the fine leg boundary, but a diving Crawley could only lob the ball back inside to prevent a six.

But Pant was run out for 74 on the last ball before lunch as he tried to take a quick single after playing Bashir towards cover point, where Stokes made a quick turn to hit the stumps on the non-striker’s end with a swift, direct throw.

Opener Rahul was the next to fall, edging Bashir’s flighted ball to Harry Brook in the slip on his very next ball after reaching 100, leaving India on shaky ground at 254-5 under a warm London sun.

But Bashir had to leave the ground when he injured a finger on his non-bowling left hand while attempting a low catch from his own delivery as Jadeja shot down the wicket, with commentators saying the 21-year-old might need extra treatment in the evening.

Jadeja and Nitish Kumar Reddy, new to the crease, looked unsteady as England’s bowlers piled on the pressure. Mix-ups between the batters put Reddy at risk of getting run out on two occasions, but Ollie Pope’s direct throws missed the target both times.

However, as England returned to using two pacers soon after Bashir’s injury, the pair put together a 72-run partnership before Stokes claimed his second wicket of the match, getting Reddy to nick it to keeper Jamie Smith for 30.

Jadeja drove Joe Root down long off for four to complete his half-century, while Washington Sundar took a slow, cautious approach on the other end.

Their 50-run partnership for the eighth wicket got India within 11 runs of England’s total, before Chris Woakes dismissed Jadeja for 72 as the batter’s attempt to send the ball down fine leg only took a thin edge and landed in Smith’s gloves.

Akash Deep, in at number nine, was given out leg before wicket twice by umpire Sharfuddoula Saikat during the same over, but Hawk-Eye showed the ball was missing the stumps when the batter reviewed them, overturning both decisions.

But Deep fell soon after to Brydon Carse for seven, with Brook trapping him at third slip with a low dive.

Sundar brought the scores level with a flick to the mid-wicket, before Woakes dismissed Jaspreet Bumrah for a duck in the very next ball to bag his third wicket.

Jofra Archer got Sundar out for 23 to bring an end to India’s innings, leaving the match finely poised going into the final two days.

At least five children in southwestern Yemen have died after an explosive device detonated in a residential area where they were playing football, rights groups and witnesses said.

The circumstances surrounding the incident late on Friday in the al-Hashmah subdistrict of Taiz province remain unclear.

However, on Saturday, the Yemen Center for Human Rights and another rights group called Eye of Humanity, along with Houthi-controlled Al Masirah TV, said an artillery shell was fired by militias backed by the Islah party, which is allied to the internationally recognised government in south Yemen.

Two local residents who were witnesses, Ahmed al-Sharee and Khaled al-Areki, told The Associated Press news agency that the children were playing football when the explosion happened.

At least three people with minor to moderate injuries were also taken to the hospital, according to the witnesses. Meanwhile, Mahmoud al-Mansi, another witness, said the explosive was directed from an area where forces allied with the Islah party were present.

A spokesperson for the United Nations children’s agency, UNICEF, told The Associated Press that they are aware of reports about the incident but can’t verify the facts at the moment.

The Yemen Center for Human Rights condemned the incident in a report that included graphic photos of the children’s torn bodies. Citing healthcare sources at al-Rafai Hospital, where the victims arrived unresponsive, the group said they died from shrapnel injuries.

Two of the children were 12 years old, while two others were 14 years old, according to the group. The age of the fifth child is unknown.

Taiz city, the capital of the province of Taiz, has been a battleground, pitting the Houthis against other armed groups backed by the Islah party against each other and other factions in Yemen’s civil war.

The city was under Houthi blockade since 2016, restricting the freedom of movement and flow of essential goods to residents, but Houthis recently opened key roads.

Yemen’s ruinous civil war began in 2014 when the Houthis seized the capital, Sanaa, and much of northern Yemen, forcing the internationally recognised government into exile.

A coalition led by Saudi Arabia and including the United Arab Emirates intervened in 2015 to try to restore the government to power.

Years of UN-brokered peace talks have also failed to break the deadlock. But the conflict has been largely frozen since the sides reached a ceasefire in 2022.