Biden ends faltering reelection campaign, backs Harris as replacement

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Updated 22 July 2024
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Biden ends faltering reelection campaign, backs Harris as replacement

  • Will remain in his role as president and commander-in-chief until his term ends in January 2025
  • Biden campaign on the ropes since disastrous June 27 debate against former President Trump

WASHINGTON DC: US President Joe Biden dropped his faltering reelection bid on Sunday, amid intensifying opposition within his own Democratic Party, and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him as the party’s candidate against Republican Donald Trump.
Biden, 81, in a post on X, said he will remain in his role as president and commander-in-chief until his term ends in January 2025 and will address the nation this week.
“It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President. And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” Biden wrote.

His initial statement had not included an endorsement of Harris, but he followed up a few minutes later with an expression of support.
Biden’s campaign had been on the ropes since a disastrous June 27 debate against former President Trump, 78, in which the incumbent at times struggled to finish his thoughts.
Opposition from within Biden’s party gained steam over the past week with 36 congressional Democrats — more than one in eight members of the caucus — publicly calling on him to end his campaign.
Lawmakers said they feared he could cost them not only the White House but also the chance to control either chamber of Congress in the Nov. 5 election, leaving Democrats with no meaningful grasp on power.
That stood in sharp contrast to what played out in the Republican Party last week, when members united around Trump and his running mate US Senator J.D. Vance, 39.

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Harris, 59, would become the first Black woman to run at the top of a major-party ticket in the country’s history.
Trump told CNN on Sunday that he believed Harris would be easier to defeat.
Biden had a last-minute change of heart, said a source familiar with the matter. The president told allies that as of Saturday night he planned to stay in the race before changing his mind on Sunday afternoon.
“Last night the message was proceed with everything, full speed ahead,” the source told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity. “At around 1:45 p.m. today: the president told his senior team that he had changed his mind.”
Biden announced his decision on social media within minutes.
It was unclear whether other senior Democrats would challenge Harris for the party’s nomination — she was widely seen as the pick for many party officials — or whether the party itself would choose to open the field for nominations.
Congressional Republicans argued that Biden should resign the office immediately, which would turn the White House over to Harris and put House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, next in line in succession.
“If he’s incapable of running for president, how is he capable of governing right now? I mean, there is five months left in this administration. It’s a real concern, and it’s a danger to the country,” Johnson told CNN on Sunday before Biden’s announcement.

GAVE IT MY ALL
Biden’s announcement follows a wave of public and private pressure from Democratic lawmakers and party officials to quit the race after his shockingly poor debate.
His troubles took the public spotlight away from Trump’s performance, in which he made a string of false statements, and trained it instead on questions surrounding Biden’s fitness for another 4-year term.
Days later he raised fresh concerns in an interview, shrugging off Democrats’ worries and a widening gap in opinion polls, and saying he would be fine losing to Trump if he knew he’d “gave it my all.”
His gaffes at a NATO summit — invoking Russian President Vladimir Putin’s name when he meant Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and calling Harris “Vice President Trump” -further stoked anxieties.
Only four days before Sunday’s announcement, Biden was diagnosed with COVID-19, forcing him to cut short a campaign trip to Las Vegas. More than one in 10 congressional Democrats had called publicly for him to quit the race.
Biden’s historic move — the first sitting president to give up his party’s nomination for reelection since President Lyndon Johnson during the Vietnam War in March 1968 — leaves his replacement with less than four months to wage a campaign.

If Harris emerges as the nominee, the move would represent an unprecedented gamble by the Democratic Party: its first Black and Asian American woman to run for the White House in a country that has elected one Black president and never a woman president in more than two centuries.
Biden was the oldest US president ever elected when he beat Trump in 2020. During that campaign, Biden described himself as a bridge to the next generation of Democratic leaders. Some interpreted that to mean he would serve one term, a transitional figure who beat Trump and brought his party back to power.
But he set his sights on a second term in the belief that he was the only Democrat who could beat Trump again amid questions about Harris’s experience and popularity. In recent times, though, his advanced age began to show through more. His gait became stilted and his childhood stutter occasionally returned.
His team had hoped a strong performance at the June 27 debate would ease concerns over his age. It did the opposite: a Reuters/Ipsos poll after the debate showed that about 40 percent of Democrats thought he should quit the race.
Donors began to revolt and supporters of Harris began to coalesce around her. Top Democrats, including former House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a longtime ally, told Biden he cannot win the election.
Biden initially resisted pressure to step aside. He held damage-control calls and meetings with lawmakers and state governors, and sat for rare television interviews. But it was not enough. Polls showed Trump’s lead in key battleground states widening, and Democrats began to fear a wipeout in the House and Senate. On July 17, California’s Rep. Adam Schiff called on him to exit the race.
Biden’s departure sets up a stark new contrast, between the Democrats’ presumptive new nominee, Harris, a former prosecutor, and Trump who is two decades her senior and faces two outstanding criminal prosecutions related to his attempts to overturn the 2020 election result. He is due to be sentenced in New York in September on a conviction for trying to cover up a hush-money payment to a porn star.

BIDEN STRUGGLED BEFORE DEBATE
Earlier this year, facing little opposition, Biden easily won the Democratic primary race to pick its presidential candidate, despite voter concerns about his age and health.
His staunch support for Israel’s military campaign in Gaza eroded support among some in his own party, particularly young, progressive Democrats and voters of color, who make up an essential part of the Democratic base.
Many Black voters say Biden has not done enough for them, and enthusiasm among Democrats overall for a second Biden term had been low. Even before the debate with Trump, Biden was trailing the Republican in some national polls and in the battleground states he would have needed to win to prevail on Nov. 5.
Harris was tasked with reaching out to those voters in recent months.
During the primary race, Biden accumulated more than 3,600 delegates to the Democratic National Convention to be held in Chicago in August. That was almost double the 1,976 needed to win the party’s nomination.
Unless the Democratic Party changes the rules, delegates pledged to Biden would enter the convention “uncommitted,” leaving them to vote on his successor.
Democrats also have a system of “superdelegates,” unpledged senior party officials and elected leaders whose support is limited on the first ballot but who could play a decisive role in subsequent rounds.
Biden beat Trump in 2020 by winning in the key battleground states, including tight races in Pennsylvania and Georgia. At a national level, he bested Trump by more than 7 million votes, capturing 51.3 percent of the popular vote to Trump’s 46.8 percent.


Prosecutors seek up to 14-year terms for French rape trial defendants

Updated 32 min 46 sec ago
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Prosecutors seek up to 14-year terms for French rape trial defendants

  • The case has sparked horror, protests and a debate about male violence in France
  • Until Wednesday, or latest Thursday morning, prosecutors are outlining their sentencing demands for all the defendants

AVIGNON, France: French prosecutors on Tuesday demanded sentences of up to 14 years for some of the remaining co-defendants of a man charged with enlisting dozens of strangers to rape his wife while she was drugged and unconscious.
On Monday, prosecutors requested a maximum 20-year jail term for Dominique Pelicot, who has been on trial in the southern city of Avignon since September with 49 other men for organizing the rapes and sexual abuse of Gisele Pelicot, now his former wife.
One man is being tried in absentia.
The case has sparked horror, protests and a debate about male violence in France, with tens of thousands of protesters staging demonstrations across the country on Saturday against violence targeting women.
The decade-long abuse of Gisele Pelicot by Dominque Pelicot was only uncovered when he was arrested for a separate upskirting offense, leading investigators to discover his meticulously-kept records of the visitors to the family home in the town Mazan.
Until Wednesday, or latest Thursday morning, prosecutors are outlining their sentencing demands for all the defendants, most of whom come from ordinary professions ranging from the fire brigade to the media.
On Tuesday, public prosecutor Laure Chabaud asked for a 14-year sentence for Karim S., 38, who was one of the few defendants whose messaging with Dominique Pelicot was discovered by investigators.
For Florian R., 32, who did not admit “intent” and Gregory S., 31, who was “aware of Gisele Pelicot’s altered state,” Chabaud demanded thirteen years in prison.
Some defense lawyers have described the sentencing demands as “staggering” and “out of proportion,” alleging the public prosecutor’s office was under pressure from “public opinion.”
“I fear what will happen next,” said Louis-Alain Lemaire, a lawyer for four defendants.
But public prosecutors say the trial should herald a fundamental change in society.
“In 2024, we can no longer say ‘she didn’t say anything, she agreed,’ that’s from another era,” Chabaud said on Monday.
Prosecutors asked for a 12-year sentence for nine of the remaining defendants, including Boris M., 37, who claimed during the hearings that he, too, was a victim.
“He says he was a victim of Dominique Pelicot, like Gisele Pelicot,” prosecutor Jean-Francois Mayet said.
But “at no time did he seek or obtain Gisele Pelicot’s consent,” he said, adding, “in reality, he was pleased with the situation presented to him” by the main defendant.
Prosecutors sought a 12-year sentence for Mahdi D., 36, who also claimed to be a victim of Dominique Pelicot’s actions.
Chabaud also asked for 12-years for Lionel R., 44, who said he was taking “part in a couple’s fantasy.”
Many of the accused argued in court that they believed Pelicot’s claim that they were participating in a libertine fantasy, in which his wife had consented to sexual contact and was only pretending to be asleep.
Among them, 33 have also claimed they were not in their right minds when they abused or raped Gisele Pelicot, a defense not backed by any of the psychological reports compiled by court-appointed experts.
Prosecutors also sought a 12-year jail term for Cyril B., 47, who “was well aware Gisele Pelicot should not be woken up,” and for Thierry P., 54, who said Dominique Pelicot was “solely responsible,” the public prosecutor said.
Mayet demanded the same prison sentence for Omar D., 36, who argued “the husband’s consent and presence seemed to be sufficient,” and Ahmed T., 54, who “denies any responsibility.”
Two other defendants, Redouane A., 40, who said he came to Mazan to “please the couple” and Jean T., 52, who claimed without evidence he was also drugged by the main defendant, are also facing a 12-year jail-term.
On Monday, prosecutors requested a 17-year prison sentence for one defendant, Jean-Pierre M., 63, who applied Pelicot’s practices against his own wife to rape her a dozen times, sometimes in Pelicot’s presence.
The trial has made Gisele Pelicot, who insisted the hearings be held in public, a feminist icon in the fight of women against sexual abuse.
Prosecutor Mayet praised her “courage” and “dignity,” thanking her for allowing the hearings to be held in public.
The verdicts and sentencing are expected by December 20.


Russia vows response to latest Ukraine ATACMS strikes

Updated 26 November 2024
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Russia vows response to latest Ukraine ATACMS strikes

  • Ukraine firing the long-range missiles into Russia for the first time last week prompted a furious reaction from Moscow
  • Russia’s defense ministry on Tuesday said Ukraine had carried out fresh strikes — on November 23 and 25 — using ATACMS

MOSCOW: Moscow’s military on Tuesday pledged a response to fresh Ukrainian air attacks inside Russia using US-supplied ATACMS missiles.
Ukraine firing the long-range missiles into Russia for the first time last week prompted a furious reaction from Moscow.
Russia’s defense ministry on Tuesday said Ukraine had carried out fresh strikes — on November 23 and 25 — using ATACMS.
“Retaliatory actions are being prepared,” it said in a post on Telegram, without elaborating.
The United States gave Ukraine permission to use the weapons to hit Russian territory earlier this month after months of requests from Kyiv.
In a rare admission, Russia said the fresh strikes had caused damage to military hardware and wounded some of its personnel on the ground.
A strike on the Kursk Vostochny air base wounded two servicemen, the defense ministry said, while a strike on an air defense battery damaged a radar system and also caused “casualties.”
It said three of the five missiles fired in the first strike were shot down, while seven of the eight used in the second were destroyed.
Moscow rarely provides such specific details on Ukrainian aerial attacks and almost never admits missiles have reached their intended target.
The defense ministry also posted photos of what it said were the missile fragments, showing large casings with English-language inscriptions on the side.
AFP was unable to immediately verify the images.
The strikes come with tensions having ratched up dramatically in the near three-year conflict over the last few weeks.
Putin last week signed a decree lowering the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons, days before launching the nuclear-capable hypersonic Oreshnik missile at Ukraine.


US Air Force in UK says a small number of drones spotted flying over bases in eastern England

Updated 26 November 2024
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US Air Force in UK says a small number of drones spotted flying over bases in eastern England

  • The Air Force hasn’t identified who is believed to be behind the incursions
  • Unspecified mitigation measures are underway

LONDON: The US Air Force says a number of small drones have been detected near three bases in eastern England that are used by American forces.
Tuesday’s ongoing incident comes just days after drones were spotted near RAF Lakenheath, RAF Mildenhall and RAF Feltwell. They were actively monitored after they were seen in the vicinity of and over the three bases, US Air Forces Europe said in a statement on Sunday.
The Air Force hasn’t identified who is believed to be behind the incursions. Unspecified mitigation measures are underway.
Lakenheath is home to the 48th Fighter Wing, which the US Air Force describes as the foundation of its combat capability in Europe. Mildenhall hosts the 100th Air Refueling Wing, and Feltwell is a hub for housing, schools and other services.
Lakenheath, Mildenhall and Feltwell, located close to one another in the counties of Suffolk and Norfolk, are Royal Air Force bases used primarily by the US Air Force


Death toll from Hindu-Muslim clashes sparked by mosque survey rises to six in India

Updated 26 November 2024
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Death toll from Hindu-Muslim clashes sparked by mosque survey rises to six in India

  • Street battles broke out in a bid to block a team of surveyors from the government from entering the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal
  • Hindu activist groups have laid claim to several mosques they say were built over Hindu temples during Muslim Mughal rule 

Lucknow, India: The death toll from violent protests in India sparked by a survey into whether a centuries-old mosque was built on a Hindu temple has risen to six, an official said Tuesday.
Around 20 police officers were also wounded during the violence on Sunday in Sambhal in India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh, district magistrate Chirag Goyal told AFP.
Street battles broke out in a bid to block a team of surveyors from the government’s Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) from entering the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal.
The six Muslim men were killed by gunfire — with Goyal saying they were shot by fellow protesters.
“The six killed were caught in crossfire by rioters using homemade pistols,” he said. “The police only fired tear gas and rubber bullets.”
Two people were initially reported dead on Sunday, but more details emerged later, while others later died of their wounds.
Goyal said 25 people had been arrested following the violence.
Hindu activist groups have laid claim to several mosques they say were built over Hindu temples during the Muslim Mughal empire centuries ago.
The survey in Sambhal was ordered by a local court, after a petition from a Hindu priest this month claimed it was built on the site of a Hindu temple.
Within hours the court ordered a survey of the mosque, a decision protested by local Muslim residents.
The first survey was undertaken on November 19. A second survey four days later, which included taking photos and video of the mosque’s features, triggered the violence.
The hilltop Shahi Jama Masjid was built in 1526 during the rule of Mughal emperors Babur and Humayun, according to historians, with renovations during the 17th century.
Hindu nationalist activists were emboldened earlier this year when Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a grand new Hindu temple in the northern city of Ayodhya, built on grounds once home to the centuries-old Babri mosque.
That mosque was torn down in 1992 in a campaign spearheaded by members of Modi’s party, sparking sectarian riots that killed 2,000 people nationwide, most of them Muslims.
Some Hindu campaigners see an ideological patron in Modi.
Calls for India to more closely align the country’s officially secular political system with its majority Hindu faith have rapidly grown louder since Modi was swept to office in 2014.
It has made the country’s roughly 210-million-strong Muslim minority increasingly anxious about their future.


Philippines, UAE pledge stronger economic ties as Marcos marks first visit

Updated 26 November 2024
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Philippines, UAE pledge stronger economic ties as Marcos marks first visit

  • Marcos is the first Philippine president to visit Abu Dhabi in more than 15 years
  • UAE president says he looks forward to talks on a free trade deal with the Philippines

Manila: The Philippines and the UAE on Tuesday committed to boosting economic relations as Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. marked his first official trip to Abu Dhabi.

On his one-day trip, Marcos was received by UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed.

He is the first Philippine president to visit the UAE since Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in 2008.

During the meeting, the two leaders committed “to deepening cooperation in various areas, including economy, trade and sustainability,” Marcos’ office said in a statement.

“The two leaders emphasized their dedication to strengthening bilateral ties and delivering lasting benefits to their peoples, coinciding with the 50th anniversary of friendship and collaboration between their nations.”

The Philippines and the UAE celebrated 50 years of diplomatic relations on Aug. 19.

Emirati state news agency WAM cited Sheikh Mohammed as saying that he hoped the visit “would herald a new and significant chapter” in UAE-Philippine ties and that the UAE “looks forward to continuing discussions toward reaching a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement with the Philippines to elevate trade and investment relations to new heights of mutual economic growth.”

Negotiations on the free trade deal have been underway between Philippine and UAE officials since the beginning of this year.

The UAE is a key trading partner of the Philippines in the region and home to the second-largest Filipino diaspora after Saudi Arabia.

Some 700,000 overseas Filipino workers live and work in the UAE. Many are employed in the construction, healthcare and hospitality sectors.

Marcos was initially expected to meet representatives of the Filipino community, but his visit was shortened, with the Philippine Presidential Communications Office saying he would “immediately fly back to Manila to resume his personal supervision and inspection of the relief and reconstruction activities in communities devastated by six successive typhoons.”