International

Trump and Harris campaign in the US Midwest 4 days before the elections

The former president of the United States Donald Trump (2017-2021) and Vice President Kamala Harris encouraged their voters in two key states in the Midwest, 4 days before a tight election that will define the country’s political future for the next four years.

Both candidates had several stops in the two states, Michigan and Wisconsin, and ended the day in Milwaukee, in campaign events just a few kilometers away from each other.

In addition, they emphasized their respective proposals for the country and what differentiates them from each other.

Campaigning all over the country

Harris focused on the importance of the young vote, whom he called the “promise” of the United States and insisted on his vision of unity and collaboration with the Republicans, while Trump emphasized his “love for the country” and assured that the Democrat “hates” the nation.

“He is not a good person (…) I think he hates them,” the former president told his followers and added that he believes that the former prosecutor is “incompetent” and that she has been “the worst vice president in history.”

Harris, for his part, insisted that he believes it is necessary to work with Trump’s party: “I promise to look for common points and find common sense solutions for the challenges we face.”

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Several artists participated in the Harris event, including rappers GloRila and Cardi B. The latter gave a speech in which she revealed that she made the decision to vote when the vice president replaced Joe Biden in the Democratic candidacy.

Trump appeals to Arab voters and Biden to the working class

Before visiting Milwaukee, Trump visited Dearborn (Michigan), considered the “Arab capital” of the United States, to fish votes between the Arab and Muslim community, very unhappy with the Democrats for supporting the Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip.

When visiting a restaurant of Arab owners, the New York tycoon assured that if he wins the elections there will be “peace in the Middle East,” although he did not detail any plan to achieve it.

Trump was questioned by the press about the controversy unleashed on Thursday by suggesting that former Republican Congressman Liz Cheney, facing the former president, should face a firing squad.

Far from rectifying, the Republican again lashed out at Cheney, assuring that he is “a war falcon” and a “unfortunate.”

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All for the middle class

“The middle class built this country and the unions built the middle class,” Biden said, repeating one of his best-known phrases and arousing the applause of those present.

Unions are a fundamental pillar in political support for Biden throughout his career, and now the president seeks to transfer that support from the working class to Harris in states with great labor electoral weight such as Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin.

Michigan and Wisconsin are part of the states known as the ‘blue wall’ traditionally democratic thanks to the urban African-American vote and the white working class, until in 2016 they leaned towards former President Donald Trump.

Biden recovered them in 2020 for the Democrats, but four years later they are at risk again: the polls predict a close contest, with Harris outperforeing Trump by a margin of only 1 percentage point, according to the survey aggregator portal FiveThirtyEight.

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International

Iran Reports 201 Dead, 747 Injured After U.S. and Israeli Strikes

The Iranian Red Crescent Society reported Sunday night (local time) that at least 201 people were killed and 747 injured following attacks carried out by Israel and the United States against the Islamic Republic.

A spokesperson for the humanitarian organization said more than 220 rescue teams have been deployed across affected areas and that relief operations are continuing without interruption. The official highlighted the difficulty of treating the large number of wounded and the urgent need for additional resources in impacted provinces.

Out of Iran’s 31 provinces, 24 have reported damage, according to a statement carried by the Isna news agency. This marks the first overall casualty toll released by Iranian state-affiliated media since the launch of the offensive.

Among the dead are 85 schoolgirls from a school in the southern city of Minab, according to the country’s judiciary. “The number of martyrs at the Minab girls’ school has risen to 85,” the local prosecutor’s office said, as quoted by the judiciary’s website, Mizan Online.

Iranian President Masud Pezeshkian described the attack as a “savagery” that “constitutes a new black page in the record of countless crimes committed by the aggressors.”

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Meanwhile, the international community continues to monitor the situation closely amid concerns about possible further reprisals and the broader impact on Middle East stability, energy markets, and global security.

AFP noted that it was unable to independently verify the casualty figures or the circumstances surrounding the events.

International

Pope Leo XIV Urges End to ‘Spiral of Violence’ in Middle East

Pope Leo XIV on Sunday called for an end to the “spiral of violence” in the Middle East, following military strikes by the United States and Israel against Iran and subsequent retaliatory bombardments in the region.

“Faced with the possibility of a tragedy of enormous proportions, I urge the parties involved to assume their moral responsibility and stop the spiral of violence before it becomes an irreparable abyss,” the pontiff told the crowd gathered in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican.

Speaking during the Angelus prayer, the U.S.-born pope said stability and peace cannot be achieved through threats or weapons. “Stability and peace are not built with reciprocal threats or with arms that sow destruction, suffering and death, but only through reasonable, sincere and responsible dialogue,” he declared.

The leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics also called for diplomacy to “regain its role” amid escalating tensions.

In addition, the pope urged Afghanistan and Pakistan to urgently resume dialogue after several days of clashes between the two countries.

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International

Security Council to Hold Emergency Meeting on Middle East Crisis

UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Saturday condemned the “military escalation in the Middle East” following attacks by the United States and Israel against Iran and Tehran’s retaliatory strikes, just hours before an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council.

“I call for the immediate cessation of hostilities and de-escalation,” Guterres said in a statement.

The Security Council is scheduled to meet on Saturday at 21:00 GMT (4:00 p.m. in New York) to address “the situation in the Middle East,” the United Nations announced.

The meeting, during which Guterres will deliver remarks, was convened at the request of France, Bahrain, Colombia, Russia and China, according to a diplomatic source.