THE HAGUE: Polls opened in the Netherlands on Thursday to kick off four days of voting in European Union parliamentary elections across the 27 member states that are expected to deliver gains for the hard right.
Estonians can cast their ballots across six days that started Monday, but the Netherlands is the only EU country to start its single-day vote so early, followed by Ireland on Friday and the rest of the EU nations over the weekend. Europe-wide results will be announced Sunday night after all member states have completed voting.
The Dutch voting comes six months after Geert Wilders’ far-right Party for Freedom sent shockwaves around Europe by becoming the biggest party in the Dutch national parliament. Polling suggests Wilders will build on that popularity and set the tone for much of the bloc.
Since the last EU elections five years ago, populist, far-right and extremist parties are leading governments in three EU nations, are part of governing coalitions in several others, and appear to have surging public support across the continent.
The EU elections are the world’s second-biggest exercise in democracy behind the election in India, and the stakes are high.
Almost 400 million voters will be electing 720 members of the European Parliament from beyond the Arctic circle to the edges of Africa and Asia. They will have an impact on issues ranging from global climate policies and defense to migration and geopolitical relations with China and the United States.
Since the last European elections in 2019, war has broken out on the fringe of the bloc following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a country that desperately wants to join the EU.
A founding member, the Netherlands was long unwavering in its support of EU policies. Research from the Clingendael think tank, though, suggests dissatisfaction with the EU among Dutch people, and that while most believe that the Netherlands should remain in the bloc, many also believe it should be more self-sufficient.
While many voters are predicted to lurch to the right, the Christian Democrat-dominated European People’s Party led by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, is currently the EU legislature’s biggest bloc and is bound to be the coalition kingmaker when the dust settles on the election results.
In the Netherlands, Wilders’ PVV could build on its domestic success and surge, possibly overtaking the combined Labour Party and Green Left. Labor topped the Dutch EU Parliament election in 2019 with 19 percent of the vote for six seats while the Greens took 11 percent and three seats. Wilders’ party at the time only managed 3.5 percent and no seats.
Wilders and one of his likely coalition partners, the Farmer Citizen Movement, are popular among farmers in the Netherlands who have staged regular protests to call for an easing of EU legislation they say is crippling their livelihoods.
Wilders has in the past called for the Netherlands to leave the EU as Britain did, but his party’s manifesto for the election starting Thursday makes no mention of a so-called Nexit. Instead, it urges voters to back the PVV so it can change the EU from within, similar to plans of many other hard right parties across the bloc.
The number of members elected in each country depends on the size of the population. It ranges from six for Malta, Luxembourg and Cyprus to 96 for Germany. In 2019, Europeans elected 751 lawmakers. Following the United Kingdom’s departure from the EU in 2020, the number of MEPs fell to 705. Some of the 73 seats previously held by British MEPs had been redistributed to other member states.
The lawmakers, known as Members of the European Parliament of MEPs, can vote on a wide range of legislation laws relating to climate, banking rules, agriculture, fisheries, security and justice. They also vote on the EU budget, which is crucial to the implementation of European policies, including, for instance, the aid delivered to Ukraine.
After the election, MEPs will elect their president at the first plenary session, from July 16-19. Then, most likely in September, they will nominate the president of the European Commission, following a proposal made by the member states. In 2019, von der Leyen narrowly won a vote to become the first woman to head the institution.
Netherlands kicks off 4 days of European Union elections across 27 nations
Netherlands kicks off 4 days of European Union elections across 27 nations
- Europe-wide results will be announced Sunday night after all member states have completed voting.
Pro Palestine protesters scale roof of Australia’s Parliament
CANBERRA: Pro Palestine protesters climbed the roof of Australia’s Parliament House in Canberra on Thursday and unfurled banners, one saying Palestine will be free, and accused Israel of war crimes, TV footage showed.
Footage showed four people dressed in dark clothes on the roof of the building, unfurling black banners including one reading “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” a common refrain of Pro Palestine protesters.
One of the protesters began a speech using a megaphone accusing the Israeli government of war crimes, an accusation it rejects.
“We will not forget, we will not forgive and we will continue to resist,” the protester said.
A handful of police and security advised people not to walk directly under the protest at the main entrance to the building, but there appeared to be no immediate attempt to remove the protesters, a Reuters witness said.
“This is a serious breach of the Parliament’s security,” opposition Home Affairs spokesperson James Paterson said in a post on social media platform X.
“The building was modified at great expense to prevent incursions like this. An investigation is required.”
The war in Gaza began when Hamas gunmen burst into southern Israel on Oct. 7, killed 1,200 people and took around 250 hostages back into Gaza, Israel says.
The offensive launched by Israel in retaliation has killed nearly 38,000 people, according to the Gaza health ministry, and has left the heavily built-up coastal enclave in ruins.
Both Israel and Hamas committed war crimes in the early stages of the Gaza war, a UN inquiry found last month, saying that Israel’s actions also constituted crimes against humanity because of the immense civilian losses.
Democratic governors say they are standing behind Biden amid questions about his shaky debate
WASHINGTON: A group of Democratic governors say they are standing behind President Joe Biden amid increasing calls from some in their party for him to leave the presidential race.
Biden met for more than an hour at the White House in person and virtually with more than 20 governors from his party. The governors told reporters afterward that the conversation was “candid” and said they expressed concerns about Biden’s debate performance last week.
But they did not join other Democrats in urging him to leave the race.
“The president is our nominee. The president is our party leader,” said Gov. Wes Moore of Maryland. He added that, in the meeting, Biden “was very clear that he’s in this to win it.”
A defiant Biden vowed Wednesday to keep running for reelection, rejecting growing pressure from Democrats to withdraw after a disastrous debate performance raised questions about his readiness to keep campaigning, much less win in November.
But increasingly ominous signs were mounting for the president. Two Democratic lawmakers have called on Biden to exit the race while a leading ally publicly suggested how the party might choose someone else. And senior aides said they believed he might only have a matter of days to show he was up to the challenge before anxiety in the party boils over.
“Let me say this as clearly as I possibly can as simply and straightforward as I can: I am running … no one’s pushing me out,” Biden said on a call with staffers from his reelection campaign. “I’m not leaving. I’m in this race to the end and we’re going to win.”
Still, despite his efforts to pull multiple levers — whether it was his impromptu appearance with campaign aides, private conversations with senior lawmakers, a weekend blitz of travel and a network television interview — to salvage his faltering reelection, Biden was confronting serious and mounting indications that support for him was rapidly eroding on Capitol Hill and among other allies.
Rep. Raúl Grijalva, D-Arizona, told The New York Times that though he backs Biden as long as he is a candidate, this “is an opportunity to look elsewhere” and what Biden “needs to do is shoulder the responsibility for keeping that seat — and part of that responsibility is to get out of this race.”
Senior aides said they believe the 81-year-old Biden has just a matter of days to mount a convincing display of his fitness for office before his party’s panic over his debate performance and anger about his response boils over, according to two people with knowledge who insisted on anonymity to more freely discuss The president accepts the urgency of the task — having reviewed the polling and mountains of media coverage — but he is convinced he can do that in the coming days and insistent that he will not step out of the race, the aides said.
Meanwhile, a major Democratic donor, Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings, also called on the president to exit the race, saying, “Biden needs to step aside to allow a vigorous Democratic leader to beat Trump and keep us safe and prosperous.” The statement was first reported by The New York Times.
And all that followed Rep. Jim Clyburn, a longtime Biden friend and confidant, saying he’d back a “mini-primary” in the run-up to the Democratic National Convention next month if Biden were to leave the race. The South Carolina Democrat floated an idea that appeared to be laying the groundwork for alternative choices by delegates during the Democrats’ planned virtual roll call that is scheduled before the more formal party convention set to begin Aug. 19 in Chicago.
On CNN, Clyburn said Vice President Kamala Harris, governors and others could join the competition: “It would be fair to everybody.”
Clyburn, a senior lawmaker who is a former member of his party’s House leadership team, said he has not personally seen the president act as he did on the debate stage last week and called it “concerning.”
And even as other Democratic allies have remained quiet since Thursday’s debate, there is a growing private frustration about the Biden campaign’s response to his disastrous debate performance at a crucial moment in the campaign — particularly in Biden waiting several days to do direct damage control with senior members of his own party.
One Democratic aide said the lacking response has been worse than the debate performance itself, saying lawmakers who support Biden want to see him directly combatting the concerns about his stamina in front of reporters and voters. The aide was granted anonymity to candidly discuss interparty dynamics.
Most Democratic lawmakers are taking a wait-and-see approach with Biden, though, holding out for a better idea of how the situation plays out through new polling and Biden’s scheduled ABC News interview, according to Democratic lawmakers who requested anonymity to speak bluntly about the president.
When Texas Rep. Lloyd Doggett, who called on Biden to leave the race this week, shopped around his move for support from other Democratic lawmakers, he had no takers and eventually issued a statement on his own, according to a person familiar with the effort granted anonymity to discuss it.
Russia claims control of part of Chasiv Yar, Ukraine reports heavy fighting
- Russian forces have been slowly pushing their way across parts of eastern Ukraine since February
MOSCOW: Russia’s Defense Ministry said on Wednesday that its forces had taken control of a district in the key Ukrainian town of Chasiv Yar, while Ukraine said the area was engulfed by intense fighting.
Chasiv Yar stands on high ground 20 km (12 miles) to the west of Bakhmut, a town Russian forces seized a year ago. It had been levelled by months of fierce battles.
Both sides see Chasiv Yar as a strategic site which Russia could use as a potential staging point to move westward through Donetsk region toward the cities of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk.
“Units of the South group of troops, as a result of dynamic actions, have taken full control of the “Novyi” district of the settlement of Chasiv Yar ... and improved their positions in forward sectors,” the Russian Defense Ministry said.
The Novyi district lies to the west of Siverskyi Donets-Donbas canal which lies on the east side of the town.
On Wednesday, Ivan Petrechak, press officer for Ukraihe’s 24th brigade defending the town, told Suspilne public television the situation was “critically difficult,” with fighting around the canal.
“We see no letup in the amount of shelling. The enemy is using artillery, multiple rocket systems,” Petrechak said. “The situation remains tense. But the 24th brigade is holding its positions.”
Russian forces, he said, were sticking to known tactics — moving infantry into forested areas and then dispersing to attack Ukrainian positions in small groups. Advancing soldiers were covered by shelling and attack drones.”
The popular Ukrainian war blog DeepState reported earlier in the day that Russian forces had “completely erased” Novyi district. A Ukrainian military official said last week that Russian troops had been pushed out of an area by the canal.
Russian forces have been slowly pushing their way across parts of eastern Ukraine since the capture of the key city of Avdiivka in February.
Ukrainian forces are now receiving Western weaponry and ammunition after assistance from Washington was halted for months by disputes in the US Congress.
The United States announced its latest $2.3 billion military aid package for Ukraine this week, including artillery rounds, interceptor missiles and anti-tank weapons.
President Volodymyr Zelensky, writing on X, thanked the United States for the package on Wednesday and said it included funds to buy Patriot and NASAMS missile systems “which will strengthen our soldiers and boost our battlefield capacities.”
Pro-Palestinian protesters clear out Canadian campus encampment
- University of Toronto President Meric Gertler said in a statement Wednesday he was pleased the encampment had ended peacefully
TORONTO: Hundreds of pro-Palestinian protesters cleared out tents and tarps on Wednesday from a fenced-off grassy area on the campus of Canada’s largest university, where for two months they had held an encampment, ahead of an evening deadline.
In a ruling on Tuesday, an Ontario judge ordered the protesters to leave by 6 p.m. on Wednesday (2200 GMT), granting an injunction requested by the University of Toronto. The judge said in this case free expression was no defense to trespass.
“We are leaving on our terms to protect our community,” said Mohammad Yassin, a recent University of Toronto graduate, a Palestinian and a spokesman for the protesters, to a crowd of supporters and reporters outside the former encampment site.
He added the occupation through the school’s convocation period was “a massive victory.”
The protesters had been calling on the University of Toronto to disclose its investments, divest from investments associated with the Israeli occupation and cut ties with some Israeli-affiliated institutions.
“Negotiations have been frozen for a little while now,” Yassin said.
University of Toronto President Meric Gertler said in a statement Wednesday he was pleased the encampment had ended peacefully.
“Members of our community continue to be free to exercise their right to free speech and lawful protest,” he said.
Erdogan offers to help end Russia-Ukraine war; Kremlin rules him out as intermediary
- Meeting with Putin on the sidelines of the SCO summit in Kazakhstan, Erdogan said he believed a fair peace suiting both sides was possible
ANKARA: Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan told Russia’s Vladimir Putin on Wednesday that Ankara could help end the Ukraine-Russia war, but Putin’s spokesman said Erdogan could not play the role of an intermediary in the 28-month-old conflict.
Erdogan, speaking to Putin on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Kazakhstan, said he believed a fair peace suiting both sides was possible, the Turkish presidency said.
But Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, ruled out any role as a go-between for the Turkish leader.
“No, it’s not possible,” said Peskov, when asked by a Russian television interviewer whether Erdogan could assume such a role, according to the Russian Tass news agency. The news agency’s account did not explain why the Kremlin was opposed to Erdogan’s participation.
The Turkish presidency said the two leaders also discussed the war in Gaza and ways to end the conflict in Syria.
Turkiye is a member of NATO, the US-led Western military alliance.
Unlike other NATO leaders, who have imposed sanctions on Putin’s government, Erdogan has tried to maintain good relations with both Russia and Ukraine throughout the conflict.
Turkiye played a key role in putting in place a deal to ensure grain could be shipped safely from Ukraine’s Black Sea ports. The accord remained in effect for a year.
