International
Trump says that the US will control Gaza and Hamas responds that it will not allow it
US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that the United States “will take control” of the Gaza Strip in the long term and rebuild it, turning it into the new “Middle East River”, after permanently resettling the Palestinians in other countries.
“I don’t want to be funny or smart, but the Middle East Riviera… This could be so magnificent,” Trump said at a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
After this announcement, the former Israeli Minister of National Security, the settler and anti-Arab Itamar Ben Gvir, urged Netanyahu to announce “the adoption of the plan as soon as possible” to expel the Palestinians from Gaza.
Hamas, for its part, has said that it will not allow the plans announced by Trump to be fulfilled and described his proposal as “racist.”
“The (Palestinian) people who have stood firm for 15 months (of war) against the most powerful military machine and the most criminal Army, and who thwarted the attempt to displace it, will remain attached to their land and will not accept that plan no matter the cost,” Hamas spokesman Abdul Latif al Qanou said in a statement.
“The American racist position is consistent with the position of the Israeli extreme right to displace our people and liquidate their cause,” continued Qanou, who called on the international community to reject Trump’s statements and support the Palestinians’ right to self-determination in the face of Israeli occupation.
China has expressed its opposition to the position of the US president and has reiterated the need to seek a path towards a “two-state solution” while the Kremlin has preferred to stay on the sidelines.
“We oppose the forced displacement of the residents of the Gaza Strip. China hopes that all parties will accept the ceasefire and that a two-state political solution will be returned,” Foreign Affairs spokesman Lin Jian said at a press conference.
The Chinese spokesman added in the daily appearance, the first after a week suspended by the Lunar New Year holidays, that the parties involved must “push the Palestinian issue back towards the right path.”
“That involves an arrangement based on the ‘two-state solution’ that aims at lasting peace in the Middle East,” he warned.
On the other hand, Russia, with which the United States maintains a tense relationship, refrained from criticizing the proposal of the US president, although he clarified that they “have heard” it and that they have also followed the statements in this regard from Egypt or Jordan, countries that also oppose the intentions of the tycoon.
For his part, the president of the Palestinian National Authority (ANP), Mahmud Abbas, rejected the proposal and recalled that the enclave is an “integral part” of the Palestinian State.
“We will not allow the rights of our people, for which we have been fighting for decades and for whom we have made great sacrifices, to be violated,” Abbas said in a message collected by the official Palestinian news agency, Wafa.
In his message, Abbas said that the rights of the Palestinians are not negotiable, and that no one can make decisions about the future of the Palestinians except themselves.
The president, who also chairs the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), also thanked Saudi Arabia for its rejection of the forced expulsion of Gazans, and asked the UN to take “urgent” measures to protect international resolutions, which recognize the right to return of Palestinians displaced by Israel.
Huséin al Sheij, the general secretary of the PLO and Abbas’s right-hand man, also expressed his rejection of Trump’s plan and said that the two-state solution, one Israeli and one Palestinian, is the only guarantee of peace in the Middle East.
“Here we were born, here we live and here we will die,” the official said in a message.
Trump did not rule out deploying US troops to support the reconstruction of Gaza and assured that the US will do “whatever it takes” to complete that project.
This is the first time that Trump, who campaigned with the promise of taking the US out of the wars in the Middle East, speaks of a direct long-term involvement in Gaza and also the first time he suggests that the Palestinians should be permanently resettled in other countries.
Specifically, at the press conference, a journalist asked him what this US occupation would consist of and if it would be prolonged, to which Trump responded in the affirmative and said that he contemplates a “long-term ownership position” on the Gaza Strip.
The Palestinians claim the Gaza Strip as part of a future state along with the West Bank and East Jerusalem, so the displacement of the two million people living in the enclave and their real estate development by the US would put an end to the concept of the Palestinian State as it has been conceived so far.
Asked about it, Trump avoided expressing support for the “two-state solution”, which has been the traditional US policy on the conflict for decades, and reiterated his idea that the people of Gaza be resettled in other countries.
Since his return to power on January 20, Trump has reiterated this proposal on several occasions and insisted that Jordan and Egypt should accept more Palestinian refugees from Gaza, an idea flatly rejected by those two countries, as well as by the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the Palestinian Authority and the Arab League.
For the first time, in statements to the press at the beginning of his meeting with Netanyahu in the Oval Office, Trump suggested that this resettlement should be “permanent” and tried to frame it as a humanitarian measure, stating that it was impossible to believe that someone would want to remain in a territory devastated by war, which he described as a “demolition zone”.
During the meeting, in addition to the future of Gaza, both leaders talked about the fragile ceasefire with Hamas, the normalization of relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia and the growing tension with Iran.
The visit was an international endorsement for Netanyahu, who left Israel for the first time since the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant against him in November, a decision that Washington has strongly condemned and whose jurisdiction it does not recognize.
Netanyahu took from Trump not only comments that satisfy the Israeli far-right, but also concrete actions in support of Israel.
Before meeting with Netanyahu, Trump signed an executive order to continue suspending funds to the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) and end US participation in the United Nations Human Rights Council, which Netanyahu accuses of being partial against Israel.
International
FBI Says It Disrupted Alleged Plot Targeting White House During UFC Event
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) announced Tuesday that it had disrupted an alleged plot to attack the White House during a major Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) event held in Washington over the weekend.
FBI Director Kash Patel said the threat was identified on June 10 through a joint investigation involving multiple law enforcement agencies. According to Patel, swift action by authorities led to the arrest of several suspects before the alleged plan could be carried out.
“On June 10, the FBI and our law enforcement partners became aware of a potential threat targeting UFC America 250 in Washington. Thanks to the rapid response of the FBI and our partners, multiple individuals are now in custody, and the alleged attack plans were stopped before they could be executed,” Patel said.
He emphasized that the operation demonstrated the ability of security agencies to detect and prevent potential threats at large public gatherings. Patel added that the investigation remains ongoing and that additional details will be released as court proceedings move forward.
According to reports from U.S. media outlets, five individuals have been arrested so far. The suspects were identified as Tycen Proper of Ohio, Daniel Eskridge of Missouri, Abraham Hermosillo Álvarez of Nebraska, and Bryan Omar Roa and Michael Alan Thomas, both from California. Authorities are also investigating the possible involvement of 18 additional individuals.
Investigators allege that the plot involved the use of drones equipped with explosives to target buildings near the sporting event. The plan reportedly sought to trigger a mass evacuation and direct attendees toward areas where snipers were allegedly positioned. Authorities further claim that a second phase of the operation included an attempted assault on the White House.
The U.S. Secret Service confirmed that it worked closely with the FBI throughout the operation. Secret Service Director Sean Curran stated that security teams conducted extensive efforts to identify those involved and eliminate any threat to attendees and protected facilities.
The investigation reportedly uncovered communications conducted through the messaging application Signal, where several suspects allegedly discussed details related to the planned attack. A forensic analysis of one of the seized mobile phones revealed at least 23 users participating in conversations connected to the alleged planning activities.
Court documents also indicate that some of the suspects allegedly intended to target U.S. political figures. Among the reported targets were members of Congress who had received contributions from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). Investigators further stated that one of the primary suspects had posted antisemitic messages and expressions of support for Adolf Hitler on social media, evidence that is now part of the ongoing judicial investigation.
International
Brazil helicopter crash in Rio de Janeiro kills six, including pilots and international figures
The Rio de Janeiro Civil Police confirmed on Monday the identities of three of the six victims killed in a helicopter collision that occurred the previous morning in the Recreio dos Bandeirantes neighborhood.
All three identified victims are Brazilian nationals: the pilots of the aircraft, Charles Marsillac and Alexandre Souza, and music producer Lucas Brito.
The identities of the three foreign victims have not yet been officially confirmed. They include U.S. singer Oliver Tree, Argentine YouTuber Gaspar Prim—known online as “Gaspi”—and Argentine producer Lucas Vignale, all of whom were listed on the flight manifest.
According to police, forensic experts from the Legal Medical Institute have already collected DNA samples in order to identify the foreign victims, whose bodies were severely burned.
One of the helicopters crashed into a private parking lot, triggering a fire that destroyed around twenty electric vehicles. That aircraft was carrying the pilot and four passengers, including the three foreign nationals.
The second helicopter, which had only the pilot on board, crashed approximately 100 meters away from the first impact site.
Rio de Janeiro’s deputy mayor, Eduardo Cavaliere, stated that both helicopters were operating transport flights toward Angra dos Reis on the Rio coastline and toward the mountainous region of the state.
Oliver Tree, 32, was in Brazil as part of an international tour. The artist, known for songs such as “Life Goes On” and “Miss You,” had performed to a large audience in São Paulo a week earlier and was scheduled to continue his tour in Europe.
Argentine content creator Gaspar Prim, 23, had built a following of more than two million on social media platforms, gaining popularity for humorous and often controversial video productions that had occasionally been removed by hosting platforms.
International
Mexico and U.S. Launch New Bilateral Security Group to Combat Fentanyl and Organized Crime
The governments of Mexico and the United States officially launched the Bilateral Implementation Group (BIG) on Friday, a new initiative aimed at strengthening cooperation on security issues and enhancing joint efforts against transnational crime.
In a statement, U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ronald Johnson announced that he and Deputy Foreign Minister Roberto Velasco addressed officials from both countries who will lead what he described as a “new phase of bilateral cooperation.” The initiative seeks to curb the flow of fentanyl and other illicit drugs, illegal firearms, and human trafficking across the shared border.
Earlier this week, Mexico’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs had confirmed that senior security officials from both nations would meet in Mexico City on June 12 to review and advance existing cooperation agreements.
Through social media, Ambassador Johnson explained that the new bilateral group is designed to improve coordination between the two governments by placing greater emphasis on implementation, accountability, and measurable results. The effort will also focus on combating transnational criminal organizations operating across North America.
“The participation of 15 U.S. government agencies, working alongside their Mexican counterparts, reflects the seriousness of this effort and our shared commitment to delivering measurable results,” Johnson said.
The ambassador also highlighted several achievements that he attributed to ongoing bilateral cooperation. According to Johnson, maritime drug trafficking into the United States has declined by more than 95 percent, while overdose deaths have fallen by 35 percent.
He further noted that Mexican authorities have seized more than 400 metric tons of illegal drugs and dismantled over 2,300 clandestine laboratories as part of their efforts to combat organized crime and narcotics production.
The launch of the Bilateral Implementation Group marks the latest step in the security partnership between Mexico and the United States, as both countries seek to address shared challenges related to drug trafficking, arms smuggling, human trafficking, and the activities of criminal networks operating across the region.
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Central America4 days agoNicaraguan media publishes photos of detained Indigenous leader amid calls for proof of life
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