International
Pedro Sánchez will visit a Palestinian refugee camp on his tour of the Middle East
The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, will visit a Palestinian refugee camp on his tour of the Middle East to learn first-hand about their situation and symbolize Spain’s full support for the United Nations Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA).
Sánchez begins this Tuesday a trip that will take him to Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Qatar to address with the leaders of those countries the conflict between Israel and Hamas and the need for a ceasefire to alleviate the humanitarian catastrophe that Gaza is experiencing.
The objective of the trip, according to the Government, is to transfer Spain’s willingness to serve as a bridge between the EU and the Arab countries to advance in the search for definitive solutions that Sánchez considers can only go through the coexistence of two states, Israel and Palestine.
The tour will also have an economic component, especially in Saudi Arabia and Qatar, to probe new investments from those countries in Spain and the opportunities they offer to Spanish companies.
In that economic context, the announcement of the Saudi company STC to take over 9.9% of Telefónica is framed, an issue that, according to government sources, Sánchez does not plan to raise in Saudi Arabia on his own initiative but could be addressed if the Saudi side does.
Nor is it planned to discuss with the Saudi authorities on this trip respect for human rights, which the cited sources emphasize is constantly done by Spain in the appropriate forums.
Sánchez will arrive in Amman on Monday night, but his agenda in Jordan will not begin until Tuesday and he will do so with that visit to the Palestinian refugee camp of Jabal el Hussein.
It is one of the four camps established after 1948 to accommodate refugees from Palestine who left as a result of the war between Arabs and Israelis.
The camp was established in 1952 for 8,000 refugees in an area of 421,000 square meters northwest of Amman, but currently, according to official figures from the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA), the population is almost 30,000 people.
In that camp, Sánchez plans to have a chat with a group of Palestinian children and then meet with refugees living in this camp.
The visit, emphasizes the Executive, aims to give visibility to the work carried out by UNRWA, which it considers irreplaceable in the region in support of Palestinian refugees, as well as Spain’s support for this UN body.
The president of the Government will then visit the Citadel of Amman, rebuilt with funds from Spanish cooperation, and will then meet with the king of Jordan, Abdalah II.
Sánchez will move on Tuesday to Yeddah, the city of Saudi Arabia where he will develop his agenda in this country, where he will first see a group of Spanish businessmen and then he will be received by the crown prince and strong man of the country, Mohamed bin Salman.
The trip will conclude in Doha on Wednesday with a meeting with the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, who will invite Sánchez to the ‘iftar’ of that day, the moment when the fast is broken in the period of Ramadan.
The Government emphasizes precisely the fact that the three countries have shown their willingness to visit Sánchez in the middle of Ramadan.
In Doha there will also be a meeting of Sánchez with Spanish businessmen, a meeting with women from Qatar who stand out in various areas of society and an interview with the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani.
International
Study finds COVID-19 vaccines prevented 2.5 million deaths worldwide
COVID-19 vaccines prevented an estimated 2,533,000 deaths worldwide between 2020 and 2024, according to an international study led by Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Italy and Stanford University in the United States, published in the journal JAMA Health Forum. Researchers calculated that one death was prevented for every 5,400 doses administered.
The analysis also found that the vaccines saved 14.8 million years of life, equivalent to one year of life gained for every 900 doses given.
The study, coordinated by Professor Stefania Boccia, revealed that 82% of the lives saved were people vaccinated before becoming infected with the virus, and 57% of deaths avoided occurred during the Omicron wave. In addition, 90% of the beneficiaries were adults over 60 years old.
“This is the most comprehensive analysis to date, based on global data and fewer assumptions about the evolution of the pandemic,” explained Boccia and researcher Angelo Maria Pezzullo.
International
Trump administration blasts judge’s ruling reinstating TPS for Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua
The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump criticized a federal judge’s ruling on Friday that reinstated Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua, stressing that the immigration program was never intended to serve as a “de facto asylum system.”
On Thursday, Judge Trina Thompson extended protections for about 7,000 Nepalese immigrants, whose TPS was set to expire on August 5. The ruling also impacts roughly 51,000 Hondurans and nearly 3,000 Nicaraguans, whose TPS protections were scheduled to end on September 8.
Immigrants covered by TPS had sued the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), alleging that the program’s termination was driven by “racial animus” and stripped them of protection from deportation.
DHS Deputy Undersecretary Tricia McLaughlin issued a statement saying the decision to end TPS was part of a mandate to “restore the integrity” of the immigration system and return the program to its original purpose.
“TPS was never conceived as a de facto asylum system; however, that is how previous administrations have used it for decades,” McLaughlin emphasized.
She also criticized Judge Thompson, calling the ruling “another example” of judges “stirring up claims of racism to distract from the facts.”
McLaughlin added that DHS would appeal the decision and take the legal battle to higher courts.
The Trump administration has also terminated TPS protections for approximately 160,000 Ukrainians, 350,000 Venezuelans, and at least half a million Haitians, among other immigrant groups.
International
Trump to build $200M ballroom at the White House by 2028
The U.S. government under President Donald Trump announced on Thursday that it will begin construction in September on a new 8,000-square-meter ballroom at the White House.
The announcement was made by Karoline Leavitt, the administration’s press secretary, during a briefing in which she explained that the expansion responds to the need for a larger venue to host “major events.”
“Other presidents have long wished for a space capable of accommodating large gatherings within the White House complex… President Trump has committed to solving this issue,” Leavitt told reporters.
The project is estimated to cost $200 million, fully funded through donations from Trump himself and other “patriots,” according to a government statement. Construction is scheduled to begin in September and is expected to be completed before Trump’s term ends in 2028.
The Clark Construction Group, a Virginia-based company known for projects such as the Capital One Arena and L’Enfant Plaza in Washington, D.C., has been selected to lead the project.
The new ballroom will be built on the East Wing of the White House, expanding the iconic residence with a space designed for state dinners, official ceremonies, and large-scale events.
Study finds COVID-19 vaccines prevented 2.5 million deaths worldwide
Trump administration blasts judge’s ruling reinstating TPS for Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua
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