CAYCE, United States: Two Amtrak employees were killed and more than 100 others injured Sunday when a passenger train carrying 147 people hit a freight train in the US state of South Carolina, authorities said.
Amtrak train 91 — traveling between New York and Miami — derailed in Cayce, outside the state capital Columbia, when it collided with the CSX freight train at around 2:30 am (0730 GMT).
It was the third deadly incident involving an Amtrak train since December, raising questions about the safety of the national railway service.
Amtrak said in a statement that the lead engine derailed along with some passenger cars. Eight crew members and 139 passengers were on board.
A total of 116 people were taken to area hospitals for treatment, many with “minor injuries,” Governor Henry McMaster told reporters. US media reported injuries ranged from cuts and bruises to broken bones.
He identified the dead as Amtrak personnel and said the freight train, which was stationary, appeared to be empty.
“It appears the Amtrak train was on the wrong track,” the governor said.
“We need a conversation around the country” about rail safety, he added, after visiting passengers at a shelter set up by the local Red Cross in a school.
“As you and your loved ones gather at church and other houses of worship today, we ask that you pray for those affected and the families of those who have passed away,” he said on Twitter.
US President Donald Trump, who was in Florida for the weekend, was briefed and was receiving updates, a White House spokeswoman said.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone that has been affected by this incident,” deputy press secretary Lindsay Walters said.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said it was investigating the incident. CSX said its personnel were on site to assist law enforcement.
The Lexington County Sheriff’s Department confirmed all passengers had been evacuated.
Officials added that although 5,000 gallons of fuel spilled following the crash, the leak was contained and there was no danger to the public.
“The incident is very near the state farmers’ market and other residential areas but right now, everyone is safe,” said Derrec Becker, public information officer at the South Carolina Emergency Management Division.
Passenger Derek Pettaway told CNN he was traveling south from Philadelphia to Orlando in a sleeper cabin when he was awoken by the impact of the crash.
“Nobody was panicking,” he said. “I’m pretty sure everybody was asleep and I think people were in shock.”
Pettaway added Amtrak staff had evacuated passengers in a “really calm fashion.”
The Lexington County Sheriff later said four buses had been made available to take Amtrak passengers to their final destinations.
“My prayers are with the families of those killed in the train crash in Lexington County this morning, and hoping for the best for all those injured. South Carolina is with you all!” tweeted Tim Scott, one of the state’s two US senators.
Congressman Joe Wilson called the incident “heartbreaking.”
It comes just days after an Amtrak train carrying several dozen Republican lawmakers including House Speaker Paul Ryan hit a garbage truck in Virginia, killing one person and causing six others, including a congressman, to need hospital treatment.
In December, three people were killed when an Amtrak passenger train derailed in Washington state near the city of Tacoma, sending cars flying off a bridge and onto a busy interstate highway.
Preliminary information obtained from an event data recorder in the rear locomotive showed that train, which was traveling on a new route for the first time, was speeding at 80 miles (128 kilometers) per hour in a 30 mph zone.
Two dead, more than 100 hurt in South Carolina train collision
Two dead, more than 100 hurt in South Carolina train collision
Some Arab Americans who voted for Trump are concerned about his picks for key positions
- Two Trump advisers who led his outreach to Arab Americans have not secured positions in the administration yet
- Albert Abbas: ‘We all need to take a deep breath, take a step back and let him do the work that he needs to do to to achieve this peace’
Meanwhile, the two Trump advisers who led his outreach to Arab Americans have not secured positions in the administration yet.
The selections have prompted mixed reactions among Arab Americans and Muslims in Michigan, which went for Trump along with all six other battleground states. Some noted Trump’s longstanding support for Israel and said their vote against Vice President Kamala Harris was not necessarily an endorsement of him. Others who openly supported him say he will be the final decisionmaker on policy and hope he will keep his promise of achieving an end to the conflicts in the Middle East.
Albert Abbas, a Lebanese American leader whose brother owns the Dearborn, Michigan, restaurant Trump visited in the campaign’s final days, stood beside the former president during that visit and spoke in support of him.
Now, Abbas says it’s “too early” to judge Trump and that “we all need to take a deep breath, take a step back and let him do the work that he needs to do to to achieve this peace.”
“I just want you to think about what the alternative was,” said Abbas, referring to the current administration’s handling of Israel’s war in Gaza and its invasion of Lebanon. He added, “What did you expect from myself or many members of the community to do?”
Beyond promising peace in the Middle East, Trump has offered few concrete details on how he plans to achieve it. His transition team did not respond to a request for comment.
Throughout the campaign, his surrogates often focused more on criticizing Harris than outlining his agenda. And visuals of the conflict — with tens of thousands of deaths collectively in Gaza and Lebanon — stirred anger among many in Arab and Muslim communities about President Joe Biden and Harris’ backing of Israel.
Amin Hashmi, a Pakistani American in Michigan who voted for Trump, urged him to stay true to his campaign commitments to bring peace.
“I am disappointed but not surprised,” said Hashmi, who urged Trump to “keep the promise you made to the people of Arab descent in Michigan.”
Trump picks what pro-Israel conservatives call a ‘dream team’
Those in the community with concerns have specifically pointed to former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, nominated as Trump’s ambassador to Israel. Huckabee has consistently rejected the idea of a Palestinian state in territories seized by Israel, strongly supported Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and opposed a two-state solution, claiming “there really isn’t such a thing” as Palestinians in referring to the descendants of people who lived in Palestine before the establishment of Israel.
While Huckabee has sparked the most concern among community members, other Trump Cabinet picks have strongly spoken in Israel’s favor as it targets Hamas following the militant group’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack in which it killed 1,200 Israelis and took hundreds more as hostage.
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, nominated for secretary of state, has opposed a ceasefire in the war, stating that he wants Israel to “destroy every element of Hamas they can get their hands on.”
Trump’s pick to be his ambassador to the United Nations, New York Rep. Elize Stefanik, led the questioning of university presidents over antisemitism on campuses. She has also opposed funding for the UN Relief and Works Agency, which oversees aid to Gaza.
The Republican Jewish Coalition, which organized for Trump in Michigan, has been outspoken in its support for many of Trump’s Cabinet picks. Sam Markstein, the group’s political director, described the proposed lineup as a “pro-Israel dream team,” adding that “folks are giddy about the picks.” He praised Trump’s pro-Israel record as “second to nobody.”
“The days of this mealymouthed, trying to have support in both camps of this issue are over,” Markstein said. “The way to secure the region is peace through strength, and that means no daylight between Israel and the United States.”
No roles yet for key figures in Trump’s Arab American outreach
Among the reasons some Arab American voters supported Trump was that they believed his prominent supporters would be key in the next administration.
Massad Boulos, a Lebanese businessman and father-in-law of Trump’s daughter Tiffany, led efforts to engage the Arab American community, organizing dozens of meetings across Michigan and other areas with large Arab populations. Some sessions also featured Richard Grenell, former acting director of national intelligence, who was well-regarded by those who met with him.
Neither Boulos nor Grenell has been tapped yet for the coming administration, though Grenell was once considered a potential secretary of state before Rubio was selected. Boulos declined to comment and Grenell did not respond to a request for comment.
“Some people expected Trump to be different and thought Massad would play a significant role,” said Osama Siblani, publisher of the Dearborn-based Arab American News, which declined to endorse a candidate in the presidential race.
Siblani himself turned down a suggested meeting with Trump after the non-endorsement announcement.
“But now people are coming to us and saying, ‘Look what you’ve done,’” Siblani said. “We had a choice between someone actively shooting and killing you and someone threatening to do so. We had to punish the person who was shooting and killing us at the time.”
Australian writers send Middle East reading list to MPs to boost understanding of region
- Initiative, named Summer Reading for MPs campaign, aims to encourage wider and more nuanced reading on Middle East conflicts
LONDON: More than 90 Australian authors and literary figures have sent a list of books to every federal parliamentarian in a bid to foster a deeper understanding of the Middle East among political leaders, it was revealed on Monday.
The initiative, named the Summer Reading for MPs campaign, aims to encourage wider and more nuanced reading on the history and complexities of the region’s conflicts.
Each of Australia’s 227 MPs and senators will receive the same set of five books, encompassing nonfiction, fiction, and reference works, The Guardian reported.
Notable writers such as Tim Winton, Charlotte Wood, Michelle de Kretser, and JM Coetzee are among the campaign’s supporters. The book selection has also received endorsements from the Jewish Council of Australia and the Australian Palestine Advocacy Network.
The five chosen books are: “Balcony over Jerusalem” by journalist John Lyons; “A Very Short History of the Israel-Palestine Conflic by Jewish historian and political scientist Ilan Pappe; “The Hundred Years’ War” by Palestinian-American historian Rashid Khalidi; “Palestine A-Z,” an alphabetized reference by Irish author Kate Thompson; and “The Sunbird,” a novella by Lebanese-Australian writer Sara Haddad.
In an accompanying letter to MPs, the group underscored the importance of these “authoritative, highly readable books” in addressing what they see as a deficit in the public’s and politicians’ understanding of the conflict.
“The political debate in Australia and internationally rarely touches on the issues, events, and historical analyzes that these books reveal — despite their direct relevance to what is happening today,” the letter highlighted.
The writers stressed that the campaign was not about shifting opinions but broadening perspectives.
“We’re not asking anyone to change their personal opinions or public positions. We just ask that politicians consider reading one or more of these books in the hope that they might inform and illuminate discussion on the ghastly situation we have been watching unfold across the Middle East,” they said.
Melbourne architect Marcus O’Reilly, one of the campaign’s initiators, said frustration over the quality of political discourse and media reporting on Middle Eastern issues spurred the project.
“It just occurred to me that if people were reading some of these books, people’s responses might be amped up a bit more,” O’Reilly said. “They’re not pushing a particular direction and that was the whole idea.”
Aviva Tuffield, a publisher and fellow originator, highlighted the role reading plays in fostering empathy and understanding.
“The summer is for reading. There’s well-known summer reading lists like Obama’s, and the Grattan Institute’s. It might be good for politicians who aren’t engaged (on this issue) and only get the talking points to do some reading (of their own),” she said.
In recent weeks, campaign organizers have met with a cross-section of MPs and senators from all parties, delivering the books in person where possible.
Many MPs expressed a degree of caution when addressing the Middle East conflict publicly, with one regional MP noting it was the issue that drew the most constituent correspondence. Despite this, the initiative has been welcomed.
“All, so far, had been receptive to receiving history books and literature as a measured way to learn more about the issues,” Tuffield confirmed.
The campaign has also garnered support from a wide range of Australian authors, including Kim Scott, Anna Funder, Nam Le, Chloe Hooper, Anita Heiss, and Trent Dalton.
New Senegalese president to face key challenges
- Former president Macky Sall, who headed an opposition coalition, on Monday congratulated Pastef on its win
DAKAR: A likely absolute majority for President Bassirou Diomaye Faye’s Pastef party in Senegal’s legislative election would empower him to pursue his ambitious 25-year agenda, though his first challenge will be coming up with a budget amid a fiscal crisis.
Faye sought a clear parliamentary majority in Sunday’s vote to implement the reform agenda that helped sweep him to power in a landslide election victory in March.
But analysts say creating a budget catering both to his voters’ needs and to the International Monetary Fund, with which his government is currently in talks, will be challenging.
Former president Macky Sall, who headed an opposition coalition, on Monday congratulated Pastef on its win. Former Prime Minister Amadou Ba, who ran against Faye in the presidential election, also conceded defeat, as did other opposition leaders.
SPEEDREAD
President Bassirou Diomaye Faye sought a clear parliamentary majority in Sunday’s vote to implement the reform agenda that helped sweep him to power in a landslide election victory in March.
Senegal’s sovereign debt rose in price on Monday, Tradeweb data showed, while most other African nations’ bonds lost ground. The yield on its 2033 dollar bond was down about 10 basis points at 9.28 percent.
“If confirmed by the electoral bodies, Pastef’s victory could give a free hand in passing budgets and implementing its programmatic reforms,” said Wendyam Lankoande, a consultant at Africa Practice.
But, he noted, voters are “looking for quick solutions to unemployment, rising cost of living, and limited reach of public services in remote rural areas in the hinterland.” In September, a government audit revealed that Senegal’s debt and budget deficit were much wider than the previous administration had reported. A $1.9 billion IMF program agreed in June 2023 has been on hold since. Negotiations with the IMF to restart disbursements could last until mid-2025.
“We see Pastef’s majority as a positive development as it clears the path for President Faye and (Prime Minister Ousmane) Sonko to begin work on a budget for 2025 that aligns broadly with IMF requirements,” said Leeuwner Esterhuysen, senior economist at Oxford Economics Africa.
“That said, some of these requirements won’t necessarily go down well with Senegalese citizens.”
He said the Fund was likely to show some leniency, as it appears to have good relations with the new administration.
“We think the government may be able to delay the implementation of harsh measures such as removing VAT exemptions on farming inputs or increasing household electricity prices, while energy subsidies will be phased out gradually to limit the impact on consumers,” Esterhuysen said.
British artist loses architecture award over Israeli cultural boycott
- Athens-based James Bridle was awarded the €10,000 Schelling Architecture Foundation’s theory prize in June
- It was withdrawn with the foundation citing a new German resolution on antisemitism after Bridle signed open letter supporting a boycott in October
LONDON: A British artist has lost an award from a German foundation after signing an open letter pledging to boycott Israeli cultural institutions.
James Bridle, who is based in Athens, Greece, was told in June he would receive the Schelling Architecture Foundation’s theory prize for “outstanding contributions to architectural theory.”
However, he learned on Sunday he would no longer receive the award and the €10,000 ($10,561) prize that goes with it because he had signed the letter, along with thousands of other people. Published on LitHub at the end of October, it stated: “We will not work with Israeli cultural institutions that are complicit or have remained silent observers of the overwhelming oppression of Palestinians.”
The foundation said: “We respect the right to express political views, especially since the foundation does not accuse James Bridle of antisemitism.
“But the foundation can neither support nor be associated with a call for cultural isolation of Israel.”
The decision to rescind the award came after the Bundestag, the German parliament, this month passed a controversial resolution on antisemitism. Titled “Never Again is Now: Protecting, Preserving and Strengthening Jewish Life in Germany,” it was proposed following the Hamas-led terror attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
It states that “the Bundestag reaffirms its decision to ensure that no organizations or projects that spread antisemitism, question Israel’s right to exist, call for a boycott of Israel or actively support the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement receive financial support.”
Human rights organizations such as Amnesty International have criticized the resolution for limiting freedom of expression in Germany.
The Schelling Architecture Foundation is named for its founder, Erich Schelling, who according to the foundation’s website was a member of the Nazi party between 1937 and 1945.
Bridle told the Guardian newspaper: “Although they are clearly not prepared to state it outright, the foundation’s decision is an accusation of antisemitism, which is abhorrent. It is particularly so given the organization’s own history.”
He added that it was ironic that the foundation’s jury had praised his 2022 book “Ways of Being,” which discussed Israel’s “apartheid wall” in the occupied West Bank, and “the relationship between genocide and ecocide.”
A spokesperson for the foundation said other awards nominees had been informed of the decision. The awards ceremony is due to take place on Wednesday.
“We have to be prepared for there to be further reactions,” the spokesperson added.
G20 leaders gather for deadlocked talks on climate, Middle East, Ukraine wars
- Wars which have bitterly divided G20 members are set to feature prominently in discussions in Brazil
- Biden will attend his last summit of world’s leading economies with China’s XI as the most influential leader
Rio de Janeiro: G20 leaders began arriving for a summit in Brazil on Monday to try reignite deadlocked climate talks and overcome their differences on the Middle East and Ukraine wars ahead of Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
US President Joe Biden will attend his last summit of the world’s leading economies, but as a lame duck leader eclipsed by Chinese President Xi Jinping, the most influential leader at this year’s meeting.
Brazil’s left-wing President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is using his hosting duties to promote issues close to his heart, including fighting hunger and climate change and taxing the super-rich.
But the wars which have bitterly divided G20 members are also set to feature prominently in the discussions.
A Brazilian foreign ministry source said Monday that some countries wanted to renegotiate a draft summit communique.
“For Brazil and other countries the text is already finalized, but some countries want to open up some points on wars and climate,” he told AFP.
Biden’s decision Sunday to allow Ukraine to use long-range US missiles to strike targets inside Russia — a major policy shift — could prompt European allies to also review their stance.
G20 leaders are also under pressure to try rescue UN climate talks in Azerbaijan, which have stalled on the issue of greater climate finance for developing countries.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for G20 members, who account for 80 percent of global emissions, to show “leadership” to facilitate a deal.
Security is tight for the gathering, which comes days after a failed bomb attack on Brazil’s Supreme Court in Brasilia by a suspected far-right extremist, who killed himself in the process.
The get-together will cap a farewell diplomatic tour by Biden which took him to Lima for a meeting of Asia-Pacific trading partners, and then to the Amazon in the first such visit for a sitting US president.
Biden, who has looked to burnish his legacy as time runs down on his presidency, insisted in the Amazon that his climate record would survive another Trump mandate.
All eyes at the stalled COP29 climate conference in Azerbaijan are on Rio to break an impasse over how to raise $1 trillion a year for developing countries to cope with global warming.
Rich countries want fast-developing economies like China and Gulf states to also put their hands in their pockets.
The meeting comes in a year marked by another grim litany of extreme weather events, including Brazil’s worst wildfire season in over a decade, fueled by a record drought blamed at least partly on climate change.
At the last G20 in India, leaders called for a tripling of renewable energy sources by the end of the decade, but without explicitly calling for an end to the use of fossil fuels.
Conspicuously absent from the summit is Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose arrest is sought by the International Criminal Court over the Ukraine war.
Lula, 79, told Brazil’s GloboNews channel on Sunday that he did not want the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East to take the focus off global poverty.
“Because if not, we will not discuss other things which are more important for people that are not at war, who are poor people and invisible to the world,” he said.
The summit opens on Monday with Lula, a former steelworker who grew up in poverty, launching a “Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty.”
Brazil is also pushing for higher taxes on billionaires.
Lula had faced resistance to parts of his agenda from Argentinian President Javier Milei, a libertarian Trump uber-fan who met the Republican last week at his Mar-a-Lago resort.
The head of the Argentine delegation, Federico Pinedo, told AFP that Buenos Aires has raised some objections and would not “necessarily” sign the text, however. He did not elaborate.
But the Brazilian foreign ministry source on Monday downplayed the likelihood of Argentina blocking a consensus.
