BRUSSELS: The EU’s top Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier warned Britain Thursday there were no grounds for walking away without a deal, a scenario that would only harm the UK’s interests.
“No deal would make a lose-lose situation even worse... in my mind, there is no reasonable justification for a no-deal,” Barnier said, referring to recent suggestions by British ministers that London could go its own way if the talks fail.
“A fair deal is far better than no deal,” he told a EU panel on Brexit, repeating the phrase twice in English.
Britain and the EU began the formal Brexit talks last month based on Barnier’s timetable of dealing first with the rights of more than three million EU citizens in Britain, and more than one million Britons living in Europe.
Then follows the thorny issues of Britain’s estimated €100-billion ($112 billion) exit bill and future of the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, which remains in the EU.
Only once “sufficient” progress has been made on these issues, will the EU consider London’s demand for talks on its future relationship with Brussels, including all important trade arrangements.
Barnier told the panel the EU would make no compromises on this agenda, insisting repeatedly that Britain could not expect to cherry-pick its ties with the bloc as many British politicians say it should.
“There can be no sector-by-sector participation in the Single Market. You cannot be half in and half out,” he said.
Barnier said the EU has been very clear on these issues but “I am not sure they have been fully understood across the Channel.”
“The decision to leave the EU has consequences and we have to explain... these consequences,” he said, citing the example of British firms exporting to the EU facing increased customs checks, which could take days rather than hours, as is the case now.
Prime Minister Theresa May’s spokesman said that it “wasn’t new that some on the EU side have strong feelings” about Brexit, but that both parties would benefit from a trade deal.
“We’re just at the beginning of the negotiations, but I would say that the most frictionless possible trade between the UK and the EU is clearly in the interests of both sides,” he said.
“We want a comprehensive free trade agreement and a new customs agreement.”
Barnier has previously warned that the negotiations must be wrapped up by October 2018 to allow time for all parties to ratify a final accord by March 2019.
‘No deal’ not an option for Brexit: EU’s Barnier
‘No deal’ not an option for Brexit: EU’s Barnier
US House starts reprimand of Democrat Al Green for disrupting Trump speech
- Green is facing a House censure resolution for yelling at the president, waiving his black cane and refusing to sit down during Trump’s Tuesday night speech
- Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley from Oregon unfurled a blue-and-yellow Ukrainian flag as Trump spoke about the country’s war with Russia
Representative Green, a Texas Democrat who has been in Congress for 20 years and has repeatedly called to impeach Trump, is facing a House censure resolution for yelling at the president, waiving his black cane and refusing to sit down during Trump’s Tuesday night speech.
Green’s message was drowned out by boos from Republicans, but he told reporters on Tuesday that he was saying Trump had no electoral mandate to slash funding for Medicaid, the government health care program that helps cover costs for people with limited income.
Green was eventually escorted out by chamber staff who maintain the decorum and security of the floor.
Representative Dan Newhouse, a moderate Republican from Washington, introduced the resolution to censure Green for a “breach of proper conduct.”
A vote by the full House chamber on the censure resolution is expected in coming days, and Green will be required to be on the floor at that time. Censure is a symbolic reprimand that carries no fines or other penalties.
The censure process was once a rarity, but four House lawmakers have been publicly reprimanded by their colleagues in the last four years for inappropriate social media posts, actions that a majority of the House found problematic, and disrupting a vote.
In 2009, Republican Representative Joe Wilson from South Carolina faced a resolution of disapproval — a lesser form of punishment — after he shouted “You lie!” at Democratic President Barack Obama during an address to a joint session of Congress.
Wilson’s outburst at the time drew gasps from other lawmakers, but on Tuesday that type of behavior was happening almost every minute inside the chamber. Republicans cheered Trump’s speech and taunted Democrats, while other House Democratic lawmakers held signs to fact-check the president and repeatedly yelled from their seats in opposition.
Green’s outburst — and moves by some of his colleagues who walked out during the speech — marked a sharp contrast with Democratic leaders who had urged decorum and tapped a moderate senator from Michigan to deliver their rebuttal speech.
Democratic Senator Jeff Merkley from Oregon unfurled a blue-and-yellow Ukrainian flag as Trump spoke about the country’s war with Russia.
Clashes break out in Greece after rally outside parliament over deadly 2023 train crash
- The violence erupted after thousands of people peacefully rallied outside parliament
ATHENS: Clashes broke out in Athens on Wednesday between Greek police and demonstrators protesting over a 2023 train crash that killed 57 people, most of them students, in the country’s worst rail disaster.
The violence erupted after thousands of people peacefully rallied outside parliament where lawmakers debated a censure motion submitted by opposition parties against the center-right government.
Earlier, demonstrators released lanterns into the air and held a moment of silence to honor the victims. Candles shaped the number “57” on the ground.
Muslim World League’s Ramadan iftars sanctuary for communities in London
- Muslim World League hosts iftars during Ramadan and provides hot meals for nearly 230 people daily
- It hosted an iftar for asylum-seekers in the Borough of Camden
- Its mission is to ‘show the best of Muslims in the UK’
LONDON: Tucked in the corner of Goodge Street and Charlotte Street in London, the Muslim World League has been providing sanctuary for communities and bridging gaps between faiths for over four decades.
The league operates out of a five-story building with a mosque, offices, and community space. It hosts iftars during Ramadan and provides hot meals for nearly 230 people daily.
Historically the shopping quarter of London, both before and after its destruction by the Nazi blitz in World War II, Goodge Street remains bustling with cafes, boutiques, and restaurants.
This week, workers from the area gathered at the MWL’s mosque to pray the Maghreb, marking the fasting day’s end. You could tell who was working where from the company brand on their clothes or those who worked in the kitchens, as the smell of dishwashing soap is hard to miss.
The league hosted an “Iftar with Your Neighbour” event on Tuesday evening focusing on asylum-seekers in the Borough of Camden, which has been designated as the “Borough of Sanctuary” due to its work with Ukrainian and Afghan refugees since 2021. Other themed iftars hosted by the MWL in Ramadan include events for interfaith dialogue and welcoming new worshippers.
We want to show the best of Muslims in the UK and how we contribute to the global peace
Muath Alamri, director of MWL's London office
Mohammad Zarzour, an imam who leads Friday’s sermons at the league’s mosque, told Arab News that asylum-seekers feel a deep estrangement the moment they leave their countries. Zarzour is from Syria, a country whose population has endured a brutal civil war that displaced millions across Europe and Arab countries and has just emerged from decades of Assad dictatorship.
For him, such iftars are not just about providing food and drink to asylum-seekers. Their importance lies in showing empathy, affection, and a sense of community and family. Refugees face numerous difficulties, he said, some of which may sound trivial, such as describing their pain to the doctor or dealing with officials’ letters and applications.
“Learning a new language is not easy for someone with a family and children who find themselves in a foreign country they are not accustomed to. Balancing work, learning, and caring for their children can be quite challenging,” Zarzour said.
Camden has seen a significant increase in the number of asylum-seekers from Ukraine and Afghanistan following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and the fall of Kabul to the Taliban in August 2021.
The borough has a history of welcoming refugees, seeing waves of migration throughout the 20th century, as it is home to St Pancras International, a port of entry to London, and one of the UK’s busiest railway stations, which connects it to various European cities.
Camden allocates nearly £50 ($64.31) per asylum seeker weekly for housing and financial assistance from the Home Office budget of £2 billion for asylum support in 2024-25, reduced from £4.3 billion in 2023-24.
The spending required to accommodate the increasing number of refugees arriving by boat through the English Channel has become a contentious topic of debate in the UK. Last summer, the country experienced its worst riots in 13 years when far-right protesters attacked hotels housing asylum-seekers in various towns.
Some refugees, including Ukrainians and Afghans, fled from war-torn countries. In the case of the Afghans, many were airlifted from Kabul by the UK Ministry of Defence following the Taliban’s takeover of the city.
Food sharing is a great connector across different communities, backgrounds, faiths, and skin color
Guy Arnold, Camden Council
Guy Arnold, the strategic lead for refugee communities at Camden Council, said that in just one week in May 2022, over 400 Ukrainian refugees arrived at St Pancras International.
“Many refugees arriving were traumatized; they had young children, they hadn’t eaten properly, and they needed water. Above all else, they needed a place of safety and security to sit down and gather their thoughts about the next great steps they need to take,” he said.
Arnold added that Camden has successfully resettled 100 Afghan families in the borough, part of 1,800 refugees across London. Unlike their Ukrainian counterparts, who are granted temporary residency status, the Afghan families receive indefinite leave to remain, which equates to permanent residency in the country.
He commended such an iftar event for aiding the council with community work. “Food sharing is a great connector across different communities, backgrounds, faiths, and skin color,” he said.
Samiullah, an Afghan who attended the iftar with his family, said he enjoyed meeting and connecting with other Muslim families. His English, however, was rusty, and his young son Hilal translated the questions. Hilal attended the Qur’anic lessons with Zubeda Welcome, a charity supporting refugee children in the UK to retain their Muslim identity.
It is the second year Yunis, from Kabul, has come to an iftar organized at MWL. He said he wanted his children to meet other kids and learn about Ramadan, as they do not have family members in Camden.
Muath Alamri, the director of the MWL's office in London, told Arab News that since its inception as a charity in 1982, the organization has supported vulnerable people in the UK while combating hate speech and engaging in social work.
In recent years, the league has collected donations to assist people in Gaza, Burma, and Pakistan, and it has partnered with Islamic Relief, Al-Khair Foundation, and various interfaith organizations.
“We want to show the best of Muslims in the UK and how we contribute to the global peace,” Alamri said of the league’s mission.
Zelensky hails ‘positive movement’ in relations with US
- “Today our Ukrainian and US teams began working on a meeting,” Zelensky said
- “There is positive movement. We hope for the first results next week“
KYIV: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Wednesday there had been “positive movement” in cooperation with the United States that could lead to another meeting between the two sides soon.
Kyiv is eager to repair ties with its top military supporter against Russia’s invasion after Zelensky publicly clashed with US President Donald Trump in the White House last week over how to end the war in Ukraine.
“Today our Ukrainian and US teams began working on a meeting. Andriy Yermak and Mike Waltz spoke,” Zelensky said in his evening address, referring to his chief of staff and the US national security adviser.
“There is positive movement. We hope for the first results next week.”
Yermak said on X he had “exchanged views on security issues and the alignment of positions” with Waltz, and that they had scheduled a meeting of Ukrainian and US officials “in the near future to continue this important work.”
Both statements came just hours after CIA Director John Ratcliffe said the US had
paused intelligence-sharing with Ukraine.
Non-consensual possession of images of Muslim women without hijabs could become offense in UK
- MPs recommend that having ‘non-consensual intimate images’ should be a criminal act amid plans to also outlaw their creation
- New report says cultural, religious sensitivities should be taken into account when deciding what constitutes ‘intimate’
LONDON: MPs in the UK have proposed making it a criminal offense to possess images of Muslim women not wearing hijabs without their consent.
The suggestion was made in a report by the House of Commons’ women and equalities committee, which said such photos should constitute “non-consensual intimate images.”
The MPs said under current legal definitions, such images include people being partially or fully nude, or engaging in behavior such as sexual activity or using the bathroom.
The report said: “Abuse can also include material that is considered ‘culturally intimate’ for the victim, such as a Muslim woman being pictured without her hijab.”
It added: “Non-consensual intimate image abuse is not always limited to sexually explicit content. For example, in some cultures, countries, or religions, sharing a photograph of someone without their religious clothing — or with their arm around another person — can be disastrous for the victim.”
Creating intimate images without consent, “in circumstances in which an ordinary reasonable person would reasonably expect to be afforded privacy,” is set to be made a criminal offense later this year, but possession will remain legal.
The report concluded that the government “should bring forward amendments to the Crime and Policing Bill to make possession of non-consensual intimate images an offence.”
In November, Parliamentary Undersecretary of State for Victims Alex Davies-Jones told the committee that the Law Commission had decided it would be “impossible to craft a definition that suits everyone.”
The committee’s chair, Sarah Owen, said: “Non-consensual intimate image abuse is a deeply personal crime which can have life-changing and life-threatening consequences.
“We welcome the Government’s proposals to make creating non-consensual intimate images an offence, but a legal gap remains.
“The Government should bring forward amendments to the Crime and Policing Bill to make possession as well as the creation … an offence.
“This ensures non-consensual intimate images receives the same legal treatment as child sexual abuse material.”
