Indonesia pledges to triple UNRWA contributions, strengthen global solidarity with Palestine

Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi speaks at an event marking 75 years of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Geneva on Dec. 11, 2023. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
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Updated 12 December 2023
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Indonesia pledges to triple UNRWA contributions, strengthen global solidarity with Palestine

  • More than 18,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli bombardment since Oct. 7
  • Indonesia must work with other countries to drive reforms at UN, expert says

JAKARTA: Indonesia has pledged to triple its contributions to the UN relief agency for Palestine and strengthen global solidarity with the Palestinians, the foreign ministry said on Tuesday.  

The Southeast Asian nation has been a staunch supporter of Palestine for decades, with its people and government seeing Palestinian statehood as mandated by its own constitution, which calls for the abolition of colonialism. 

Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi reiterated that support at an event marking 75 years of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Geneva on Tuesday, the foreign ministry said in a statement. 

“Indonesia reaffirms its support to strengthen political solidarity and humanitarian support for Palestine, including by increasing (our) contribution to UNRWA threefold,” Marsudi said. 

Marsudi will also speak on the issue of Palestine at a UN high-level event on human rights on Tuesday, the foreign ministry said. 

Indonesia was among the 102 countries that co-sponsored a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza. The resolution was vetoed by the US at a meeting in New York City last week. 

“The global community cannot continue to be at the mercy of a few countries and watch helplessly the atrocities and killings of women and children in Gaza,” Marsudi said in a statement issued after the UN vote. 

More than 18,000 Palestinians, including over 7,700 children, have been killed since Israel began its deadly onslaught on Gaza in retaliation for an Oct. 7 attack by the militant group Hamas based in the enclave. 

The proportion of the civilian death toll in Gaza, at around 61 percent in the first three weeks of Tel Aviv’s onslaught, is significantly higher compared to the average in all conflicts around the world during the 20th century, according to a study published last week by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. 

The ongoing and widespread violence in Gaza and the UN’s inability to stop it so far have revealed an urgency to reform the intergovernmental organization, said Teuku Rezasyah, an international relations expert from Padjajaran University in West Java. He added that as part of its support for Palestine, Indonesia should work toward achieving such a goal. 

“The issue of Palestine is part of our constitutional mandate, that independence is the right of all nations and we must abolish colonialism. These are the keywords we have always used, and Indonesia has proven its stance. Next, Indonesia must build a coalition with like-minded countries,” Rezasyah told Arab News. 

Indonesia, which has been working closely with seven member countries under the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Arab League to rally international support for an immediate end to Israel’s war on Gaza, can use this grouping to drive reforms at the UN, he said. The countries include Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Qatar, Turkey, Nigeria and Palestine. 

“These eight countries under the OIC must be united, and increase their synergies and coverage to highlight Palestine,” he said. 

“The UN is no longer able to function as a driving force for world peace and security … The US, as the only country that vetoed the resolution calling for a ceasefire, has made itself part of the problem, not part of the solution. So, Indonesia must have the courage to make a move.” 


US military judge reinstates 9/11 mastermind plea deal — official

Updated 5 sec ago
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US military judge reinstates 9/11 mastermind plea deal — official

  • Prosecution can appeal decision but it was not immediately clear if they would do so
  • Agreements triggered anger among some relatives of victims of the 2001 attacks

WASHINGTON: A US military judge has reinstated plea agreements for 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and two other defendants, an official said Thursday, three months after the deals were scrapped by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
The agreements — which are understood to take the death penalty off the table — had triggered anger among some relatives of victims of the 2001 attacks, and Austin said that both they and the American public deserved to see the defendants stand trial.
“I can confirm that the military judge has ruled that the pretrial agreements for the three accused are valid and enforceable,” the US official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
The prosecution has the opportunity to appeal the decision, but it was not immediately clear if they would do so.
The plea deals with Mohammed and two alleged accomplices were announced in late July in a step that appeared to have moved their long-running cases toward resolution after years of being bogged down in pre-trial maneuverings while the defendants remained held at the Guantanamo Bay military base in Cuba.
But Austin withdrew the agreements two days after they were announced, saying the decision should rest with him given its significance.
He subsequently told journalists that “the families of the victims, our service members and the American public deserve the opportunity to see military commission trials carried out in this case.”
Much of the legal jousting surrounding the men’s cases has focused on whether they could be tried fairly after having undergone methodical torture at the hands of the CIA in the years after 9/11 — a thorny issue that the plea agreements would have avoided.


US military ready to carry out lawful orders of next administration, Pentagon chief says

Updated 07 November 2024
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US military ready to carry out lawful orders of next administration, Pentagon chief says

  • “The US military will also continue to stand apart from the political arena;,” Austin wrote

WASHINGTON: US Défense Secretary Lloyd Austin told troops that the Pentagon was committed to an orderly transition to the incoming administration of Donald Trump, adding that the military would not get involved in politics and was ready to carry out “all lawful orders.”
“The US military will also continue to stand apart from the political arena; to stand guard over our republic with principle and professionalism; and to stand together with the valued allies and partners who deepen our security,” Austin wrote in a memo to troops that was sent out on Wednesday night.


Germany arrests a US citizen over accusations of spying for China

Updated 07 November 2024
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Germany arrests a US citizen over accusations of spying for China

  • The suspect, who was only identified as Martin D., was arrested in Frankfurt
  • His home was being searched

BERLIN: Germany’s federal prosecutor office said it arrested an American citizen on Thursday who allegedly spied for China.
The office said that the suspect, who was only identified as Martin D., was arrested in Frankfurt and that his home was being searched.
The accused, who until recently worked for the US Armed Forces in Germany, is strongly suspected of having agreed to act as an intelligence agent for a foreign secret service.
Earlier this year, he contacted Chinese government agencies and offered to transmit sensitive information from the US military to a Chinese intelligence service, according to an investigation by Germany’s domestic intelligence service.
He had obtained the information in question in the course of his work in the US army, the prosecutor’s statement said, without giving any further information.


Offering Putin Ukraine concessions ‘suicidal’ for Europe: Zelensky

Updated 07 November 2024
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Offering Putin Ukraine concessions ‘suicidal’ for Europe: Zelensky

  • Zelensky blasted those who were urging him to give in to some of President Vladimir Putin’s hard-line demands
  • “There has been much talk about the need to yield to Putin, to back down, to make some concessions ...” Zelensky said

KYIV: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday said it would be “suicidal” for Europe to offer the Kremlin concessions to halt its invasion of Ukraine.
Speaking to European leaders at a summit in Hungary, Zelensky blasted those who were urging him to give in to some of President Vladimir Putin’s hard-line demands, and urged Europe and the United States not to loosen ties following the election of Donald Trump.
“There has been much talk about the need to yield to Putin, to back down, to make some concessions ... It’s unacceptable for Ukraine and suicidal for all Europe,” Zelensky said, according to a copy of the address provided to AFP by the Ukrainian presidency.
He accused some European leaders, without specifying who, of “strongly” pushing Ukraine to make “concessions to Putin” — something Kyiv says would only embolden the Kremlin leader and encourage further aggression.
“We need sufficient weapons, not support in talks. Hugs with Putin won’t help. Some of you have been hugging him for 20 years, and things are only getting worse,” Zelensky said.
The summit was being hosted by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has repeatedly railed against the West’s multi-billion dollar support to Kyiv.
Zelensky also urged Europe and the US to preserve their strong ties following Trump’s election victory this week.
The Republican has repeatedly criticized American aid to Ukraine and said he could end the war within hours of taking office.
“We do hope that America will become stronger. This is the kind of America that Europe needs. And a strong Europe is what America needs. This is the connection between allies that must be valued and cannot be lost,” Zelensky said.
As he repeated a call for more Western arms for his struggling army, Zelensky said Europe had to realize that North Korea was effectively “waging war” on the continent.
“North Korea is now, in effect, waging war in Europe. North Korean soldiers are attempting to kill our people on European soil,” he said, referring to reports Pyongyang has deployed troops to Russia to support the invasion.


US military judge reinstates 9/11 mastermind plea deal: official

Updated 07 November 2024
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US military judge reinstates 9/11 mastermind plea deal: official

  • The prosecution has the opportunity to appeal the decision, but it was not immediately clear if they would do so

WASHINGTON: A US military judge has reinstated plea agreements for 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and two other defendants, an official said Thursday, three months after the deals were scrapped by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
The agreements — which are understood to take the death penalty off the table — had triggered anger among some relatives of victims of the 2001 attacks, and Austin said that both they and the American public deserved to see the defendants stand trial.
“I can confirm that the military judge has ruled that the pretrial agreements for the three accused are valid and enforceable,” the US official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
The prosecution has the opportunity to appeal the decision, but it was not immediately clear if they would do so.
The plea deals with Mohammed and two alleged accomplices were announced in late July in a step that appeared to have moved their long-running cases toward resolution after years of being bogged down in pre-trial maneuverings while the defendants remained held at the Guantanamo Bay military base in Cuba.
But Austin withdrew the agreements two days after they were announced, saying the decision should rest with him given its significance.
He subsequently told journalists that “the families of the victims, our service members and the American public deserve the opportunity to see military commission trials carried out in this case.”
Much of the legal jousting surrounding the men’s cases has focused on whether they could be tried fairly after having undergone methodical torture at the hands of the CIA in the years after 9/11 — a thorny issue that the plea agreements would have avoided.