International News Briefs for Thursday, August 14, 2025
HAVANA TIMES – We bring you some of the top international news stories compiled by Democracy Now on Thursday, August 14, 2025.
Israel Kills Over 100 Palestinians in a Day and Presses South Sudan to Resettle Gaza’s Population
Aug 14, 2025
The Israeli military has destroyed more than 300 homes in Gaza City and killed over 100 more Palestinians over the past day as Israel moves to fully seize the largest city in the Gaza Strip and forcibly remove its entire population. This comes as the Associated Press reports Israel has held discussions with South Sudan about possibly resettling Palestinians from Gaza to the war-torn country in East Africa. Health officials in Gaza say 12 more Palestinians have starved to death over the past two days, bringing the total to 239 — including 106 children. On Wednesday, a group of U.N. experts accused Israel of carrying out “medicide” by destroying Gaza’s healthcare system while targeting health workers. This comes as Al Jazeera reports at least 37 people seeking food and aid were killed on Wednesday, including 16 at an aid point north of Rafah. Across the border in Rafah, Egypt, truck drivers say Israel is continuing to block most deliveries from entering Gaza.
Essam Shaaban: “We came here to bring this aid to enter Palestine, for our oppressed brothers inside. Unfortunately, this is the third time we have entered, and we could not pass. Thousands of trucks, as you can see, hundreds and thousands of trucks, enter the Israeli side here from the Egyptian side. The crossing here in Egypt is open 24 hours, as you can see. It does not close, but the obstruction is from the Israeli side.”
Protests Worldwide Decry Israel’s Assassination of Journalists
Aug 14, 2025
Protests were held in multiple cities across the globe on Wednesday to condemn Israel’s targeting of Palestinian journalists in Gaza, after Israel killed six journalists in a targeted strike on a media tent outside Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. The dead included five journalists with Al Jazeera, including its prominent correspondent Anas Al-Sharif. This is Mariam Elsayeh of the National Union of Journalists at a vigil in London.
Mariam Elsayeh Ibrahim: “Anas al-Sharif would always have a slogan that the coverage will continue. And this is questionable now, after the killing of journalists is getting more and more. We now are losing a whole generation of journalists. Journalists are killed, are aged 23. Where is the journalists are age 40? They are all killed.”
New Zealand Parliament Ejects MP Who Called Out Colleagues’ “Spineless” Inaction on Gaza
Aug 14, 2025
In New Zealand, a lawmaker with the Green Party has been ejected twice from New Zealand’s Parliament in recent days for criticizing other lawmakers for not supporting sanctions on Israel. This is part of Chlöe Swarbrick’s speech that led to her being ejected.
Chlöe Swarbrick: “We can and we must uphold the Genocide Convention, which means doing everything that we can to prevent a genocide before it occurs. So, Mr. Speaker, I will reiterate my call for the government to pick up our unlawful occupation of Palestine sanctions bill and to sanction Israel for its war crimes. If we find six of six of 68 government MPs with a spine, we can stand on the right side of history.”
“Bury the Idea of a Palestinian State”: Israeli Minister Announces Plan for New Settlements
Aug 14, 2025
Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has announced plans to approve the building of more than 3,000 settlement homes, in a move that would effectively cut off the West Bank from occupied East Jerusalem. Smotrich praised the E1 settlement project, saying, “The plan will bury the idea of a Palestinian state.” Smotrich went on to say, “This is Zionism at its best — building, settling and strengthening our sovereignty in the Land of Israel.” Palestinian officials condemned the plan as an “extension of the crimes of genocide, displacement, and annexation.” This comes as several Arab countries have denounced Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for saying he is very attached to the vision of a “Greater Israel” — a term used to express support for Israel seizing more land in the Occupied Territories, Syria’s Golan Heights, as well as parts of Jordan and Egypt.
U.N. Secretary-General Warns Israel over Sexual Violence Committed by Its Armed Forces
Aug 14, 2025
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has warned Israel it may be listed in an upcoming report about sexual abuse committed by armed forces. In a letter to Israeli officials, Guterres criticized Israel’s treatment of Palestinian prisoners. Guterres wrote, “Cases documented by the United Nations indicate patterns of sexual violence such as genital violence, prolonged forced nudity and repeated strip searches conducted in an abusive and degrading manner.”
Trump Warns Russia of “Severe Consequences” Unless Putin Agrees to Ukraine Ceasefire
Aug 14, 2025
President Trump warned Wednesday that Russia would face “very severe consequences” if President Vladimir Putin doesn’t agree to a ceasefire deal at a bilateral summit with Trump in Alaska on Friday. Trump’s warning came after he held a virtual meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European leaders. Zelensky has rejected proposals for Ukraine to give areas in the Donbas region as part of a ceasefire. Zelensky spoke in Berlin on Wednesday.
President Volodymyr Zelensky: “We talked about the meeting in Alaska. We hope that the central topic of the meeting will be a ceasefire, an immediate ceasefire. The U.S. president has repeatedly said this. He suggested to me that after the meeting in Alaska, we will have contact, and we will discuss all the results, if there are any, and we will determine the next mutual steps.”
Trump Plans “Long-Term” Takeover of Washington, D.C., Police Department
Aug 14, 2025
As the National Guard expands its presence in Washington, D.C., President Trump says he will seek a long-term federal takeover of the D.C. police force.
President Donald Trump: “We’re going to need a crime bill that we’re going to be putting in, and it’s going to pertain initially to D.C. It’s almost — we’re going to use it as a very positive example. And we’re going to be asking for extensions on that, long-term extensions, because you can’t have 30 days. Thirty days is — that’s — by the time you do it — we’re going to have this in good shape.”
Earlier this week, Trump declared a crime emergency in D.C. and federalized the police force, even though violent crime in the city is at a 30-year low. Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser has denounced Trump’s police takeover as an “authoritarian push.”
Meanwhile, a 37-year-old man in Washington, D.C., has been charged with assaulting a federal officer after he threw a sandwich from a Subway shop at a Customs and Border Protection officer. Video has gone viral of the man, who can be heard screaming “fascists” and “shame” at the federal officers.
The New Yorker: Trump Family Has Made $3.4 Billion from Presidency
Aug 14, 2025
A new analysis by The New Yorker magazine estimates that the Trump family has raked in at least $3.4 billion through various schemes to profit from the presidency dating back to 2017. Two-thirds of that fortune comes from the Trumps’ various cryptocurrency ventures. New Yorker reporter David Kirkpatrick wrote, “I was struck by the frantic, almost desperate pace of the Trump family’s efforts, as though they’re afraid to miss any opportunity.”
U.N. Security Council Rejects RSF’s Declaration of Rival Government in Sudan
Aug 14, 2025
The United Nations Security Council has repudiated a Sudanese paramilitary group’s declaration of an independent state in parts of Sudan that it controls. On Wednesday, council members rejected the rival government proposed by the Rapid Support Forces as a threat to Sudan’s territorial integrity, as well as regional stability. The council also called on the RSF to lift its siege of El Fasher, capital of Sudan’s North Darfur state, where hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced by fighting amid a growing hunger crisis and the spread of diseases including cholera.
Peru’s President Grants Blanket Amnesty to Police and Soldiers Accused of Human Rights Abuses
Aug 14, 2025
Peru’s right-wing President Dina Boluarte has signed a law granting blanket amnesty for all military and police officers accused of human rights crimes committed during Peru’s internal conflict from 1980 to 2000. Human rights groups condemned the move, saying it undermines decades of efforts to ensure accountability for atrocities committed by the government and its allies. This is Peruvian human rights activist Gisela Ortiz, Peru’s former culture minister.
bq. Gisela Ortiz: “We are truly outraged by what we are experiencing in our country, deeply ashamed to acknowledge that we are facing an authoritarian regime that has no respect for human rights, that does not value not only the lives of its citizens, but also the rights that we have. So we are here, in a way, reacting to this decision to release human rights violators and the murderers of our relatives.”
Trump Administration Revokes Visas of Doctors Tied to Cuban Charity
Aug 14, 2025
Image Credit: Twitter: @EugenioMtnez
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has announced the U.S. is revoking the visas of a group of Brazilian, African and Caribbean officials over their connection to a Cuban program to send doctors overseas to provide healthcare in the Global South. Cuba has criticized Rubio’s targeting of the program. Cuba’s deputy director of U.S. affairs, Johana Tablada, wrote on X, “His priorities speak volumes: financing Israel genocide on Palestine, torturing Cuba, going after health care services for those who need them most.”
27 Dead, Dozens Missing as Ships Carrying Asylum Seekers Sink Off Italian Coast
Aug 14, 2025
Italy’s Coast Guard says at least 27 people have drowned and dozens remain missing after a pair of ships carrying asylum seekers from Libya capsized off the Italian island of Lampedusa on Wednesday. About 60 survivors were rescued from the sea. According to the Missing Migrants Project, more than 32,000 people have died since 2014 attempting to cross the Mediterranean to seek asylum in Europe — with over 700 deaths or disappearances so far this year alone.
Spain Asks for Help Battling Raging Wildfires
Aug 14, 2025
Image Credit: 43 Grupo del Ejercito del Aire
Spain’s government has formally asked its European neighbors to help fight dozens of raging wildfires that have burned homes, farms and factories, forcing thousands to evacuate. The request for firefighting resources comes amid a searing summer heat wave that’s led to “extreme” or “very extreme” fire danger forecasts across much of southern Europe.
400 Die Amid Arizona Heat Wave; Melting Glacier Brings Floodwaters to Alaska’s Capital
Aug 14, 2025
In Arizona, public health officials warn extreme heat in Maricopa County has led to the suspected deaths of over 400 people so far this summer. August is on track to be Phoenix’s hottest on record, with temperatures reaching at least 110 degrees Fahrenheit every day this month except one.
In Alaska, a lake of rainwater and melted snow burst a glacial dam north of Juneau on Wednesday, causing the Mendenhall River to swell to a record height, flooding homes and streets in Alaska’s capital city. Mountain glaciers worldwide are shrinking at a record pace as global temperatures continue to rise due to greenhouse gas emissions.
5 Chicago Officers Involved in Fatal Shooting of Dexter Reed Won’t Face Charges
Aug 14, 2025
In Illinois, Cook County prosecutors said Wednesday they would not bring criminal charges against five Chicago police officers who fatally shot 26-year-old African American Dexter Reed last year in a hail of bullets. Bodycam video of the killing shows officers from a CPD tactical unit in plain clothes firing 96 shots at Reed in just 41 seconds, following a traffic stop. Officers initially said Reed was pulled over for a seatbelt violation, but he was driving in a car with tinted windows. In April, Chicago city councilors voted down a proposed $1.25 million wrongful death settlement agreement with Reed’s family.
Nations Struggle to Forge Plastic Pollution Treaty Amid Opposition by Chemical Industry and U.S.
Aug 14, 2025
In Geneva, efforts to secure an international treaty to curb plastic pollution are in doubt on the final day of negotiations. Nearly 100 of the 184 countries gathered at the United Nations talks rejected the latest draft agreement as “unambitious” and “inadequate.” The proposed text puts no limits on plastic production and makes no mention of the chemicals used in plastic products. The plastics industry has been lobbying heavily in opposition to production limits, as have several powerful oil and gas-producing nations, including Saudi Arabia and the United States.