WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump provoked a fresh political crisis Friday, threating to veto an already approved budget and shut down the federal government.
The US leader was to address the media at the White House after he appeared to reverse his support for the $1.3 trillion spending bill, amid unfavorable television coverage.
Trump’s administration had categorically said he supported the deal brokered by the Republican controlled Congress and passed in a dead-of-night vote, claiming it as victory before the 71-year-old’s change of heart.
Many lawmakers have already left Washington for two weeks recess, so a renegotiation is unlikely.
“I am considering a VETO of the Omnibus Spending Bill,” Trump tweeted, suggesting the deal did not do enough to help 800,000 immigrants holding a de facto amnesty, which he rescinded.
Trump has repeatedly tried to blame the looming end of the “DACA” program on Democrats. The Obama-era plan protects migrants brought illegally to America as children from deportation.
The president also vented that the spending bill did not fully fund his signature campaign promise to build “the BORDER WALL, which” he said “is desperately needed for our National Defense.”
If the president does not sign the budget before midnight Friday, hundreds of thousands of civil servants will be put on forced leave, national parks from the Grand Canyon to Yellowstone will close and non-essential services will stop.
Trump’s threat came hours after a host on conservative channel Fox News pilloried the deal as a Washington “swamp budget.”
The tweet caps yet another week of high drama at a White House that seems to lurch from crisis to crisis.
This week the former reality TV star replaced his national security adviser, launched a new trade fight with China, and needled investigators probing Russia election meddling.
At the same time Trump faces an almost unprecedented number of scandals from a defamation lawsuit, to allegations of two extramarital affairs.
The spending package provided $1.6 billion for border security and construction or repair of nearly 100 miles (160 kilometers) of border fencing, but that was far less than Trump had been seeking.
It also set aside the issue of the so-called “Dreamers,” who are in legal limbo following the Trump administration’s repeal of DACA.
The program expired on March 5, but the issue is being fought in the courts. Attempts at a legislative fix collapsed in a previous round of negotiations to avert a government shutdown.
In a Congress riven by partisan feuding, passage early Friday of the massive bill to fund the US government through September was considered a rare achievement.
The centerpiece was a big increase in US defense spending to $700 billion dollars, up $61 billion, and a 10 percent hike in domestic spending, which would rise to $591 billion.
“This bill is so important on many fronts, from school safety and troop funding, to opioids and veterans care,” press secretary Sarah Sanders said Thursday.
Trump’s budget director Mick Mulvaney went one step further: “Let’s cut right to the chase. Is the president going to sign the bill? The answer is yes. Why? Because it funds his priorities.”
Five times since October, lawmakers have had to pass stopgap funding legislation to keep the government’s lights on. Twice this year the government was allowed to slip into shutdown.
A third lapse would be deeply embarrassing for a Republican-controlled Congress facing midterm elections in November.
Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal said Trump “needs to drop his wildly reckless veto threats” and sign the bill now.
“Americans deserve leadership from the White House, not more self-inflicted chaos.”
Some conservative Republicans welcomed the move, saying the process was flawed from the start.
Trump tweets threat to shut down US government
Trump tweets threat to shut down US government
Islamabad plans digital remittance solutions for Pakistanis in Gulf via PayPak scheme
- The initiative aims to facilitate secure and structured remittance flows from non-resident Pakistani workers who are based abroad
- Pakistan received over $38.3 billion remittances in last fiscal year, with Pakistanis residing in Gulf contributing a major share
KARACHI: The Pakistani government is planning to facilitate overseas Pakistanis, particularly those in Gulf countries, by providing a technological solution that would enable them to send remittances through a domestic payment scheme, PayPak, the 1Link payment gateway system said on Monday, citing the Prime Minister Youth Programme (PMYP) chief said on Monday.
PMYP Chairman Rana Mashhood Ahmad Khan said this in a recent meeting with stakeholders, including 1Link CEO Najeeb Agrawalla and Pakistan Freelancers Association (PAFLA) Chairman Ibrahim Amin, in the country’s commercial capital of Karachi.
Pakistan received over $38.3 billion in remittances from different countries in the financial year ending in June, with Pakistanis residing in Gulf countries contributing a major share to this amount.
Khan said the government was working extensively to serve Pakistanis in the country and overseas by addressing their core issues through innovative, technological and affordable means.
“The government is keen to explore strategic collaboration on empowering overseas Pakistani youth through digital remittance services and expanding PayPak’s reach under the Prime Minister’s Youth Programme,” he was quoted as saying by 1Link.
Khan said Pakistanis living abroad were playing commendable role in contributing to the economy and the PM Digital Youth Hub was exploring various options to honor their services with dedicated facilities and offerings.
Launched in 2016 by 1Link, PayPak is Pakistan’s first and the only domestic payment scheme (DPS), making Pakistan the 28th country in the world to have its own domestic payment system. It aims to spur financial inclusion and digitization across the country.
“We aim to take initiatives to facilitate secure and structured remittance flows from non-resident Pakistani workers, especially those based in Saudi Arabia, UAE and other Gulf countries, while also promoting the use of PayPak for Hajj, Umrah, and other cross-border transactions including 1Bill service for non-resident Pakistanis,” 1Link CEO Agrawalla said.
As a major payment service provider, he said, 1Link proposed extending its technological expertise and platform capabilities to support the development and implementation of both initiatives.
PAFLA Chairman Amin said there were over 4 million Pakistanis residing in Gulf countries who had been contributing to the economy through their hard-earned income, adding that many of them lacked access to reliable, user-friendly technological payment solutions.
“PAFLA, in collaboration with Pakistani diplomatic missions, Pakistan’s banks, and different agencies, will do its best efforts to approach freelancers, blue- and white-collar Pakistani workers through outreach and engagement efforts across Gulf countries,” he said.
Opinion: Tackling childhood obesity starts at home
DHAHRAN: Here, Dr. Hanan Al-Shaikh discusses child obesity in a mini opinion piece for Arab News. Al-Shaikh is chair of the Women and Children’s Health Department at Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare in Saudi Arabia.
The received wisdom about the causes of obesity is that genetics has the strongest influence. This seems to provide comfort to parents of large children: It’s not my fault; it’s written in their DNA.
This is nonsense. Children are not born obese; obesity is induced by their environment. Yes, a child’s genetics can make them more susceptible to overeating, but are they the ones buying the food and cooking the meals?
Sorry, parents, but it is time to take responsibility for your children’s waistlines. You and you alone have the strongest influence on whether your children become overweight or obese. You choose what they eat and determine how much they exercise. Your own choices around diet and physical exertion set the example they will follow.
A recent forecast published in leading medical journal The Lancet suggests that Saudi Arabia will have one of the highest child obesity rates in the world by 2050. Separate research suggests that obesity costs the country almost $227 billion a year.
It is human nature to seek excuses for big problems by focusing on factors outside of one’s control. Yes, genetics plays a role in obesity. No, we cannot stop our children from seeing billboards advertising fried chicken buckets. Yes, the heat makes it harder to exercise outdoors for many months of the year.
It is also human nature to confer responsibility for big problems on others, particularly the state. The government needs to crack down on fast food advertising, encourage schools to raise physical activity levels, and so on.
These things may be true. But most of us retain the absolute power to choose what we eat and how much we exercise – even if we pretend we do not – and many factors are well within our control.
One of these is the role that parents have in teaching their children how to eat and exercise in their earliest years. Nothing influences a young child more than the actions of their parents, and roughly speaking, the first seven years of a child’s life are crucial for instilling lifelong habits for healthy eating and exercise.
Once a child becomes overweight or obese, it is incredibly hard for them to shed the weight. Some obese children may need surgery; most will need months, if not years, of treatment. The burden on the child, the parents, and the healthcare system is huge. Prevention rather than intervention is key.
Sadly, some kids who visit the paediatric wellness clinic at our hospital tell us they get as many as eight hours of screen time per day, eat chocolate and popcorn for lunch, and drink more than a can of soda daily. These are terrible habits that will almost certainly cross over into their adult lives.
It is time for parents to stop blaming influences outside their control and, instead, play a leading role in the fight against child obesity.
OIC chief, Palestinian envoy discuss crisis in Gaza, West Bank
Jeddah: The secretary-general of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Hissein Brahim Taha, met Palestine’s permanent representative to the OIC, ambassador Hadi Shibli, at its headquarters in Jeddah.
The envoy updated Taha on the escalating situation in Palestine, detailing the deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza and ongoing violations and crimes by Israeli forces in the West Bank, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Monday.
The two sides also discussed the provocative rhetoric and incitement by Israeli ministers and officials, plans for annexing the West Bank and claims of Israeli sovereignty over the territory.
Taha reaffirmed the OIC’s commitment to advocating for an immediate, lasting ceasefire, facilitating humanitarian aid to Gaza, ensuring international protection for Palestinians and supporting a two-state solution in line with UN resolutions.
Gaza ‘humanitarian city’ would be ‘concentration camp’: Ex-Israeli PM
- Ehud Olmert slams proposal by defense minister, saying it amounts to ethnic cleansing
- He condemns settler crimes in West Bank, calling extremist Israeli ministers ‘enemies from within’
London: Plans to build a “humanitarian city” for displaced Palestinians in Gaza would amount to creating a concentration camp, former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said.
The plan, outlined by Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz last week and backed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, proposes to relocate around 600,000 Palestinians — and eventually Gaza’s entire population of over 2 million — to the site in Rafah. Once there, they would only be allowed to leave if traveling abroad.
“It is a concentration camp. I am sorry,” Olmert told The Guardian. “If they (Palestinians) will be deported into the new ‘humanitarian city,’ then you can say that this is part of an ethnic cleansing.”
He added: “When they build a camp where they (say they plan to) ‘clean’ more than half of Gaza, then the inevitable understanding of the strategy of this (is that) it is not to save (Palestinians).
“It is to deport them, to push them and to throw them away. There is no other understanding that I have, at least.”
Israeli legal experts and journalists wrote to Katz last week warning that “under certain conditions it could amount to the crime of genocide.”
Olmert also condemned the uptick in violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, criticizing complicity by Israeli authorities and calling the deaths of two men recently, including a US citizen, war crimes.
“(It is) unforgivable. Unacceptable. There are continuous operations organised, orchestrated in the most brutal, criminal manner by a large group,” he said.
“There is no way that they can operate in such a consistent, massive and widespread manner without a framework of support and protection which is provided by the (Israeli) authorities in the (Occupied) Territories.”
Discussing extreme right-wing Israeli Cabinet ministers pushing the violence in the West Bank and using language such as “cleanse” in relation to Gaza, Olmert called them “the enemy from within,” warning that their rhetoric and actions would fuel anti-Israel sentiment.
“In the US there is more and more and more expanding expressions of hatred to Israel,” he said. “We make a discount to ourselves saying: ‘They are antisemites.’ I don’t think that they are only antisemites, I think many of them are anti-Israel because of what they watch on television, what they watch on social networks.
“This is a painful but normal reaction of people who say: ‘Hey, you guys have crossed every possible line.’”
Olmert said that although he backed the initial invasion of Gaza after the October 2023 Hamas attack, he is “ashamed and heartbroken” at how Israel’s government has prosecuted the war and abandoned peace negotiations.
“What can I do to change the attitude, except for number one, recognising these evils, and number two, to criticise them and to make sure the international public opinion knows there are (other) voices, many voices in Israel?” he asked.
Saying he believes the Israeli military’s actions have caused “the killing of a large number of non-involved people,” he added: “I cannot refrain from accusing this government of being responsible for war crimes committed.”
However, he voiced hope that peace and a two-state solution are still possible, telling The Guardian that he is working with former Palestinian Foreign Minister Nasser Al-Qidwa to lobby the international community to help make it happen.
Italian firm Webuild secures $600m contract as Diriyah project gains pace
JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia’s Diriyah Square project has awarded a $600 million contract to Italian construction firm Webuild, marking a major step forward for the Kingdom’s heritage-driven development.
The contract, awarded to a subsidiary of the Italian group — Salini Saudi Arabia — covers the construction of 70 buildings and public spaces within the mixed-use development, which forms part of the broader Diriyah master plan.
With this latest award, Webuild’s total involvement in the sit, known as the City of Earth, now stands at roughly $2 billion, the company said in a statement.
Diriyah Square is a central component of Diriyah Co.’s strategy to transform the historic district into a commercial, residential, and cultural hub.
The project is one of five giga-projects backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, aimed at reshaping the Kingdom’s economy and tourism offering under the Vision 2030 plan.
Diriyah will contribute approximately SR70 billion ($18.6 billion) directly to the Kingdom’s gross domestic product, create nearly 180,000 jobs and will be home to an estimated 100,000 people.
Diriyah Co.’s group CEO Jerry Inzerillo said: “Diriyah Square is one of our most exciting, anticipated and prestigious districts, and we are extremely pleased to have signed with Salini to deliver it, bringing their immense global experience to the table.”
He added that this marks another important milestone in their development journey, paving the way for Diriyah Square’s retail spaces to welcome a diverse range of visitors — from nearby residential communities and surrounding office hubs to the millions who visit each year.
The contract covers Package 3 Finishing and mechanical, electrical, and plumbing, delivering a pedestrian-friendly environment in traditional Najdi style across 365,000 sq. meters. Webuild is also working on the 10,500-space underground parking facility, awarded in 2022 and currently 55 percent complete, alongside structural packages 3, 6, and 7.
According to Diriyah Co., the project aims to create a retail district showcasing 400 brands across retail, leisure, and dining.
In a statement released by Webuild, CEO Pietro Salini said: “We are proud to be able to contribute to a project of such symbolic and strategic value for Saudi Arabia. Our presence in the Kingdom will be further strengthened by work that will have a positive impact on the area as well as the local community.”
He added that the company has operated in Saudi Arabia since 1966 and has completed more than 90 projects.
“We continue to support the country to develop some of the most challenging infrastructure projects in the world, especially in sectors such as civil buildings, sustainable mobility, and desalination,” Salini said.
