US government demands overhaul of Israeli conduct in West Bank after killing of US citizen

US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin (L) and Israel's Defence Minister Yoav Gallant give a joint press conference in Tel Aviv on December 18, 2013. (AFP)
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Updated 11 September 2024
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US government demands overhaul of Israeli conduct in West Bank after killing of US citizen

  • A surge in violent settler assaults on Palestinians in the West Bank has stirred anger among Western allies of Israel, including the United States, which has imposed sanctions on some Israelis involved in the hard-line settler movement

LONDON/JERUSALEM: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Tuesday demanded an overhaul of Israeli military conduct in the occupied West Bank as they decried the fatal shooting of an American protester against settlement expansion, which Israel said was accidental.
Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, 26, who is also a Turkish national, was shot dead last Friday at a protest march in Beita, a village near Nablus where Palestinians have been repeatedly attacked by far-right Jewish settlers.




Turkish-American woman Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, a graduate of the University of Washington, poses wearing her mortarboard and keffiyeh in a family photograph taken at the University of Washington's 2024 commencement ceremony, in Seattle, Washington, U.S,  June 8, 2024. (REUTERS)

Israel’s military said on Tuesday that its initial inquiry found it was highly likely its troops had fired the shot that killed her but that her death was unintentional, and it voiced deep regret.
President Joe Biden later told reporters “it ricocheted off the ground” and a US official said that was the conclusion of the Israeli investigation, the results of which were presented to the United States on Tuesday.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Eygi's family demands independent US investigation

• Blinken and Austin call Eygi's killing unprovoked and unjustified

• Israeli military says gunfire aimed at another individual

Palestinian officials say that Eygi was struck in the head.
Eygi’s family called Israel’s preliminary inquiry “wholly inadequate” and demanded an independent US investigation.
Hamid Ali, Eygi’s partner, in response to Biden’s comments, said her death “was no accident and her killers must be held accountable.”
“The White House has not spoken with us. For four days, we have waited for President Biden to pick up the phone and do the right thing,” Ali said.
Blinken and Austin, in their strongest comments to date criticizing the security forces of Washington’s closest Middle East ally, described Eygi’s killing as “unprovoked and unjustified.” They separately said said Washington would insist to the Israeli government that it makes changes to how its forces operated in the West Bank.


SPOTLIGHT

Killing of US-Turkish citizen shows high price of expressing solidarity with Palestinians in occupied West Bank


“No one should be shot and killed for attending a protest. No one should have to put their life at risk just for freely expressing their views,” Blinken told reporters in London.

“In our judgment, Israeli security forces need to make some fundamental changes in the way that they operate in the West Bank, including changes to their rules of engagement.
“Now we have the second American citizen killed at the hands of Israeli security forces. It’s not acceptable,” Blinken said.
An Israeli government spokesperson declined to comment on Blinken’s remarks.
Austin spoke to Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, the Pentagon said late on Tuesday, adding he expressed “grave concern for the IDF’s responsibility for the unprovoked and unjustified death” of Eygi. He also urged Gallant “to reexamine the IDF’s rules of engagement while operating in the West Bank,” according to the Pentagon.

Opinion

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The Israeli military earlier said an investigation by the Military Police Criminal Investigation Division was under way and its findings would be submitted for higher-level review once completed.
“We’re going to be watching that very, very closely,” White House national security spokesperson John Kirby told reporters, saying a criminal probe was an unusual step by Israel’s military.
“We’re going to want to see where it goes now in terms of the criminal investigation and what they find, and if and how anyone is held accountable,” Kirby added.

PRELIMINARY INQUIRY
In a statement, the Israeli military said its commanders had conducted an initial investigation into the incident and found that the gunfire was not aimed at her but another individual it called “the key instigator of the riot.”
“The incident took place during a violent riot in which dozens of Palestinian suspects burned tires and hurled rocks toward security forces at the Beita Junction,” it said.
Israel has sent a request to Palestinian authorities to carry out an autopsy, it said.
“We are deeply offended by the suggestion that her killing by a trained sniper was in any way unintentional,” Eygi’s family said in a statement. A surge in violent settler assaults on Palestinians in the West Bank has stirred anger among Western allies of Israel, including the United States, which has imposed sanctions on some Israelis involved in the hard-line settler movement. Tensions have been heightened amid Israel’s war against Hamas militants in Gaza.
Palestinians have held weekly protests in Beita since 2020 over the expansion of nearby Evyatar, a settler outpost. Ultra-nationalist members of Israel’s ruling coalition have acted to legalize previously unauthorized outposts like Evyatar, a move Washington says threatens the stability of the West Bank and undercuts efforts toward a two-state solution to the conflict.
Since the 1967 Middle East war, Israel has occupied the West Bank of the Jordan River, an area Palestinians want as the core of a future independent state.
Israel has built a thickening array of settlements there that most countries deem illegal. Israel disputes that assertion, citing historical and biblical ties to the territory.

 


Jimmy Carter briefly unites US as presidents attend funeral

Updated 2 sec ago
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Jimmy Carter briefly unites US as presidents attend funeral

WASHINGTON: Jimmy Carter brought a fleeting moment of national unity to a divided America Thursday as all five living US presidents gathered for their predecessor’s moving state funeral in Washington’s National Cathedral.
At the rare gathering just days before Donald Trump’s return to the White House, sitting President Joe Biden gave a eulogy describing “character” as fellow Democrat Carter’s main attribute.
Trump shook hands with former president Barack Obama on the country’s day of mourning, while Bill Clinton and George W. Bush were also there to pay their respects.
But Biden, 82, also appeared to deliver a veiled swipe at Trump, the Republican whose racially charged rhetoric and efforts to overturn the 2020 election he has often criticized as threats to democracy.
“We have an obligation to give hate no safe harbor,” said Biden, also stressing the importance standing up against “the greatest sin of all, the abuse of power.”
After the speech Biden briefly tapped the flag-draped coffin of Carter, America’s 39th commander-in-chief, who died on December 29 at the age of 100 in his native Georgia.
Carter was widely perceived as naive and weak during his single term from 1977 to 1981, but a more nuanced view has emerged as the years passed, focusing on his decency and foreign policy achievements.


The presidential funeral was the first since George H.W. Bush died in 2018 — and provided a series of unique and sometimes awkward moments as former leaders met.
Obama shook hands, laughed and chatted with his successor Trump, despite the fact that the billionaire built his political movement on questioning whether Obama is really a US citizen.
In the row in front of Trump sat Vice President Kamala Harris, his defeated rival in the 2024 election.
There was also a brief moment of reconciliation for Trump and his former vice president Mike Pence.
The pair met and shook hands for what is believed to be the first time since the 2021 US Capitol riots when Pence refused to back Trump’s false claims to have won the 2020 election.
During the service, family members and former political adversaries alike paid emotional tributes to Carter, the oldest ever former US president and the only one to make it to three figures.
One of his grandsons, Jason Carter, described his love of nature, saying the devout Baptist and former peanut farmer “celebrated the majesty of every living thing.”
“He led this nation with love and respect,” Jason Carter said.
There was even a tribute from Carter’s Republican predecessor Gerald Ford. Ford died in 2006 but left a eulogy for his political rival-turned-friend that was read out by his son Steven.
A second posthumous tribute, from Carter’s vice president Walter Mondale, was delivered by his son Ted.


Carter’s coffin was earlier transported by an honor guard from the US Capitol, where thousands of mourners had paid their respects as the former president lay in state.
Thursday has been designated a national day of mourning in the United States with federal offices closed.
His carefully choreographed six-day farewell began on Saturday with US flags flying at half-staff around the country and a black hearse bearing his remains from his hometown of Plains, Georgia.
It was to Georgia that Carter’s remains returned on Thursday for burial, making their final journey home on the US presidential jet that is normally reserved for the sitting commander-in-chief.
Carter’s funeral was a brief respite from an already tumultuous run-up to Trump’s inauguration on January 20, and a reminder of a very different style of president.
Carter, who served a single term before a crushing election loss to Ronald Reagan in 1980, suffered in the dog-eat-dog world of Washington politics and a hostage crisis involving Americans held in Tehran after Iran’s Islamic revolution finally sealed his fate.
But history has led to a reassessment, focusing on his brokering of a peace deal between Israel and Egypt. He also received high praise for his post-presidential humanitarian efforts, and a Nobel Peace Prize in 2002.
Carter had been in hospice care since February 2023 in Plains, where he died. He will be buried next to his late wife Rosalynn, who died in November 2023.

UK Jewish charity given official warning over Israeli soldier fundraising

Updated 22 min 12 sec ago
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UK Jewish charity given official warning over Israeli soldier fundraising

  • Chabad Lubavitch Centres raised nearly £2,300 for IDF member based in northern Israel
  • Charity Commission says it is illegal for charities to raise money for foreign militaries

LONDON: A Jewish charity in London has been given an official warning after it campaigned to raise money for an Israeli soldier.

The Charity Commission, which regulates charities in England and Wales, said the Chabad Lubavitch Centres North East London and Essex acted “outside of its purposes” by fundraising for a member of the Israel Defense Forces.

The commission said it was illegal for charities to provide aid or military supplies to any foreign armed force.

The charity raised nearly £2,300 after it set up a fundraising webpage in October 2023 for a soldier stationed in northern Israel.

More than £900 of the money was sent directly to the soldier but trustees were unable to say how that money had been spent.

The remaining funds were spent on “non-lethal military equipment” purchased by the charity and sent to the soldier.

The commission received 180 complaints about the campaign and opened a regulatory compliance case into the charity in December 2023. The campaign page was taken down in January last year.

“The fundraising activity was outside the charity’s purposes — and not capable of being charitable,” the commission said on Thursday announcing the outcome of the case.

The commission said the trustees had failed to act in the best interests of the charity and its reputation. 

“This was misconduct and/or mismanagement in the administration of charity, as well as a breach of trust,” it added.

The charity’s stated purpose is to advance the orthodox Jewish religion, advance orthodox Jewish education and to relieve poverty and sickness.

It is part of a network of 2,500 Chabad Lubavitch centers around the world aimed at fostering Jewish family life, according to its website.

The official warning imposes a number of requirements on the charity’s trustees to correct the misconduct.

“It is not lawful, or acceptable, for a charity to raise funds to support a soldier of a foreign military,” Helen Earner, director for regulatory services at the Charity Commission, said.

“Our official warning requires the charity to set things right and is a clear message to other charities to stay true to their established purposes.”

In a statement published by Jewish News, the charity’s trustees said they accepted the commission’s findings.

The statement said that in the aftermath of Hamas-led attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, there was concern among the community served by the charity that there was not enough winter clothing and protective gear for the number of IDF reservists being called up.

“We acknowledge that in facilitating a campaign to provide warm clothing and the like, however briefly and however modest its results, the charity exceeded its purposes and we are grateful for the guidance provided by the Charity Commission to ensure that this won’t happen again,” the statement said.

The Charity Commission has seen a surge in complaints about organizations since the war in Gaza started.

The watchdog’s chairperson Orlando Fraser said in November that the commission had opened 200 regulatory cases related to the conflict and referred 40 cases to the police.

Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has killed more than 46,000 Palestinians and wounded at least 100,000. Hamas and other militants killed at least 1,200 people and seized about 250 hostages in the Oct. 7 attack.


Singapore says 3 men detained since October for seeking to join Mideast conflict against Israel

Updated 09 January 2025
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Singapore says 3 men detained since October for seeking to join Mideast conflict against Israel

SINGAPORE: Singapore said on Thursday it had detained three men since October last year who were preparing to travel to the Middle East to fight against Israel.
The Home Affairs Ministry said in a statement the three Singaporean men were not linked to one other and had been “radicalized” online, but there was no indication others had been recruited.
It was not immediately clear why the ministry announced the detention on Thursday.
Following their arrest in October, they were detained under Singapore’s Internal Security Act, which allows suspects to be held for lengthy periods without trial.
The three were a director of a digital marketing company, a lift mechanic, and a security guard, aged 41, 21, and 44, respectively.

BACKGROUND

The three men were a director of a digital marketing company, a lift mechanic, and a security guard, aged 41, 21, and 44, respectively.

One of the men had visited a shooting range in Thailand to learn to operate firearms, while two planned to visit shooting ranges in Indonesia, it said.
The ministry said restrictions were placed on two other Singaporeans in June and July last year under the security law, related to the conflict in Gaza.
More than 46,000 people have been killed in the Gaza war, according to Palestinian health officials.
Much of the enclave has been laid waste, and most of the territory’s 2.1 million people have been displaced multiple times and face acute shortages of food and medicine, humanitarian agencies say.


Zelensky meets Meloni for talks in Rome

Updated 09 January 2025
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Zelensky meets Meloni for talks in Rome

  • Meloni “reiterated the all-round support that Italy ensures and will continue to provide to the legitimate defense of Ukraine... ,” her office said
  • She also “expressed solidarity for the victims of the recent Russian bombings“

ROME: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky held talks in Rome Thursday with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, after meeting other allies in Germany.
Meloni “reiterated the all-round support that Italy ensures and will continue to provide to the legitimate defense of Ukraine... to put Kyiv in the best possible condition to build a just and lasting peace,” her office said.
She also “expressed solidarity for the victims of the recent Russian bombings,” it said in a statement, as the grinding war nears the three-year mark.
Zelensky had earlier Thursday joined a meeting of about 50 allies at the US air base Ramstein in Germany — the last such gathering before Trump takes office on January 20.
The US president-elect has criticized the large amount of US aid for Kyiv and vowed to bring the war to a swift end, without making any concrete proposals for a ceasefire or peace agreement.
In Germany, Zelensky said Trump’s return to the White House would open a “new chapter” and reiterated a call for Western allies to send troops to help “force Russia to peace.”
In a post on X, Zelensky thanked Italy for its “unwavering support,” saying: “Together, we can bring a just peace closer and strengthen our collective positions.”
He and Meloni discussed “strengthening security, addressing global developments, and preparing for this year’s Ukraine Recovery Conference to be held in Rome,” he said.
Meloni, who has led NATO and EU member Italy since October 2022, has strongly supported Ukraine in its fight against Russia, but is also politically close to Trump.
At a press conference in Rome earlier, Meloni — who visited Trump at his Florida home last weekend — said she did not believe the president-elect would abandon Kyiv.
“Frankly I don’t foresee a disengagement,” she said, adding that Trump had previously “said precisely because we want peace, we will not abandon Ukraine.”
She added that she would support options for peace that Ukraine would support.
NATO and EU member Italy has sent arms and aid to Ukraine to help fight off Russia’s invading forces, but has refused to allow Kyiv to use its weapons inside Russian territory.
Zelensky’s spokesman Sergiy Nykyforov said the Ukrainian president would meet Friday with Italian President Sergio Mattarella, the country’s largely ceremonial head of state.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was also in the Italian capital on Thursday for separate talks with European counterparts on Syria. It was not clear if he planned to meet Zelensky during his trip.
US President Joe Biden had also been due to visit Rome in what was expected to be his final overseas trip in office, but canceled to focus on the federal response to wildfires raging across Los Angeles.


Scotland leader refuses to be drawn on Lockerbie bombing inquiry

Updated 09 January 2025
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Scotland leader refuses to be drawn on Lockerbie bombing inquiry

  • John Swinney would not speculate on backing public inquiry into 1988 attack while criminal case against suspected bomb maker underway in US
  • Bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over UK that killed 270 people blamed on Libyan intelligence officials

LONDON: Scotland’s first minister has refused to be drawn on whether he supports a public inquiry into the 1988 bombing of a passenger plane blamed on Libyan intelligence officials.

The downing of Pan Am Flight 103 over the Scottish town of Lockerbie killed 270 people and remains by far the most deadly terror attack on British soil.

Libyan intelligence officer Abdel Baset Ali Al-Megrahi was jailed in 2001 for his role in the plot to place the bomb on board the flight. Al-Megrahi, who died in 2012, always insisted he was innocent and doubts have been raised about his conviction.

A television series released last week in the UK, which tells the story of the investigation by one of the victim’s fathers, has renewed interest in the case, as has an upcoming court case in the US of the alleged bomb maker, the Libyan Abu Agila Masud.

A member of the Scottish Parliament, Christine Grahame, asked First Minister John Swinney on Thursday if he supported a UK inquiry into the bombing given the “remaining concerns for some, including myself, about the credibility of the conviction” of Al-Megrahi.

She also highlighted what she described as the resistance of the UK Government to releasing relevant documents in relation to the bombing, the Daily Record reported.

Swinney said that while there was a criminal case underway in the US, “I would prefer not to speculate on possible inquiries.”

Al-Megrahi is the only person to have been convicted for the attack and there has been no public inquiry in the UK.

His trial by a Scottish court sitting in the Netherlands took place more than 11 years after the bombing and followed long negotiations with the then Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi to hand him over along with another suspect.

The recent TV series “Lockerbie: A Search for Truth” stars British actor Colin Firth as Jim Swire, whose daughter was killed on the flight as it flew from London Heathrow to New York City four days before Christmas.

Swire believes that Al-Megrahi, who died in 2012 three years after being released on compassionate grounds, was innocent.

Two-thirds of the victims of the bombing were American and 11 residents in the town of Lockerbie were killed when sections of the aircraft fell on residential areas.