International News Briefs for Wednesday, February 5, 2025
HAVANA TIMES – Here are some of the top international news stories compiled by Democracy Now on Wednesday, February 5, 2025.
Trump Calls for Ethnic Cleansing of Entire Gaza Strip and for U.S. to “Take Over”
Feb 05, 2025
President Trump has called for the ethnic cleansing of the Gaza Strip’s more than 2 million Palestinian inhabitants and their permanent displacement to Jordan, Egypt or other countries, and for the United States to take ownership of Gaza. Trump’s extraordinary comments came as he welcomed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the White House to discuss plans for Gaza following Israel’s 15-month war on the territory, which international law experts have said amounts to genocide.
President Donald Trump: “The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it, too. We’ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site, level the site and get rid of the destroyed buildings, level it out, create an economic development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs and housing for the people of the area.”
Trump said he had lifted a pause on the supply of U.S.-made 2,000-pound bombs to Israel imposed under the Biden administration. And Trump refused to rule out sending U.S. troops to Gaza.
President Donald Trump: “I don’t want to be cute. I don’t want to be a wise guy. But the Riviera of the Middle East, this could be something that could be so — this could be so magnificent.”
U.S. Ignores ICC Arrest Warrant Seeking Netanyahu’s Arrest for Crimes Against Humanity
Feb 05, 2025
Ahead of his White House meeting, Prime Minister Netanyahu met with U.S. evangelical leaders, including former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, Trump’s nominee for U.S. ambassador to Israel. At least one Democratic senator, Pennsylvania’s John Fetterman, said Tuesday he would support a potential U.S. occupation of the Gaza Strip. Meanwhile, human rights groups have condemned the U.S. for failing to serve an arrest warrant for Prime Minister Netanyahu issued by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
“A Serious Violation of International Law”: Palestinians Reject Trump’s Gaza Takeover Bid
Feb 05, 2025
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has rejected President Trump’s proposal to take over the Gaza Strip, calling it a “serious violation of international law, and peace and stability in the region.” Hamas condemned Trump’s ideas as a “recipe for creating chaos and tension.” The leaders of Egypt and Jordan flatly rejected the idea, as did Saudi Arabia, which said it would not establish ties to Israel without the creation of a Palestinian state. The vast majority of Gaza’s residents have also rejected the plan. This is Rafida Aql, a displaced Palestinian in Khan Younis.
Rafida Aql: “We completely refuse to be displaced from Palestine. Palestine is our land, our country, the land of our ancestors and the land of our children, God willing. We reject this idea. I call on any Arab or foreign country to receive any Palestinian citizen. This is our land, and we are staying here, and we will remain here, God willing.”
Palestinian Poet Refaat Alareer, Killed in 2023 Israeli Strike, Finally Laid to Rest in Gaza City
Feb 05, 2025
Image Credit: via Social Media (photo right)
In more news from Gaza, the beloved poet, academic and activist Refaat Alareer has finally been laid to rest, more than one year after he was killed in an Israeli strike along with his sister, brother and four nephews. His family recovered their remains after a neighbor buried them in a yard at the site of the Israeli attack. Alareer was buried in a cemetery in Gaza City’s Shuja’iyya neighborhood, where Alareer was born.
Trump Places 10,000 USAID Workers on Leave and Orders Them to Return to U.S.
Feb 05, 2025
President Trump has ordered nearly the entire staff of the U.S. Agency for International Development to be placed on administrative leave beginning on Friday, and ordered thousands of personnel working overseas to return to the U.S. The order impacts some 10,000 USAID workers around the world. Democratic lawmakers have called it an illegal move to shutter an aid agency that was created through an act of Congress.
Trump Orders U.S. Withdrawal from U.N. Human Rights Council and U.N. Agency for Palestinian Refugees
Feb 05, 2025
An executive order signed by President Trump Tuesday orders the U.S. to withdraw from the United Nations Human Rights Council and end U.S. support for UNRWA, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees. Trump also ordered a review of the U.N.’s cultural agency, UNESCO. This follows Trump’s January 24 decision to halt billions of dollars of U.N. funding pending a 90-day review. Among the many casualties is the sexual reproductive health agency, the U.N. Population Fund. Pio Smith is the agency’s Asia-Pacific director.
Pio Smith: “I am deeply concerned that millions of women and girls now face life-threatening risks due to the lack of access to UNFPA’s crucial services across Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan. … Take the example of Afghanistan: Between 2025 and 2028, we estimate that the absence of U.S. support will result in 1,200 additional maternal deaths and 109,000 additional unintended pregnancies.”
Federal Workers Sue DOGE, Alleging Musk Illegally Compromised Personal Information
Feb 05, 2025
The CIA has offered its employees eight months of salary and benefits in exchange for their early retirement, becoming the first U.S. intelligence agency to offer buyouts to its entire workforce. This comes after the White House said at least 20,000 civilian U.S. government workers — or about 1% of the federal workforce — have accepted a buyout offer advanced by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.
On Monday, unions representing civilian government employees sued the U.S. Treasury and Secretary Scott Bessent, alleging the department illegally granted Elon Musk and his DOGE associates access to the personal information of millions of people across the U.S., including Social Security numbers, tax returns, home addresses, phone numbers, bank account information and more.
Separately, Wired magazine reported federal workers are seeking a temporary restraining order as part of a class-action lawsuit accusing a group of Elon Musk’s associates of operating an illegally connected server from the fifth floor of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. The motion contends Musk’s moves not only violate federal law but are potentially exposing vast amounts of government workers’ personal information to hostile foreign adversaries through unencrypted email.
Democratic Lawmakers Protest Elon Musk’s “Hostile Takeover” of U.S. Government
Feb 05, 2025
On Tuesday, Democratic lawmakers joined hundreds of protesters outside the Treasury Department to denounce Elon Musk’s “hostile takeover” of the federal civilian bureaucracy. The lawmakers were barred from entering the Treasury building. This is Massachusetts Congressmember Ayanna Pressley.
Rep. Ayanna Pressley: “There’s a sign back there that says ‘DOGE actually means dangerous oligarchs grab everything.’ Well, ain’t that the truth? I am so tired of these billionaire boys and their grubby little hands grabbing at everything. Hands off our bodies! Hands off our data! Hands off our tax refunds! Hands off our Social Security checks! Hands off our Constitution! Hands off our democracy! Hands off!”
Ukraine’s Zelensky Accepts Trump’s Bid to Trade U.S. Arms for Rare Earth Minerals
Feb 05, 2025
In Ukraine, a Russian strike on the town of Izium Tuesday killed five civilians, including a pregnant teenager. At least 55 others were wounded in the attack, which partially destroyed Izium’s city council building. Elsewhere, Russian shelling killed two civilians in southern Ukraine, and a Ukrainian drone attack set a Russian oil depot near the Black Sea on fire. On Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he’s open to having U.S. companies “invest” in Ukraine’s rare earth metals industry, after President Trump said military aid should be tied to securing the rights of minerals needed for U.S. high-tech and weapons industries. Trump made the remarks Monday.
President Donald Trump: “We’re telling Ukraine they have very valuable rare earth. We want what we put up to go in terms of a guarantee. We want a guarantee. We want — we’re handing them money hand over fist.”
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz sharply criticized Trump’s proposed quid pro quo with Zelensky as “very selfish, very self-centered.”
Senate Confirms Trump Loyalist Pam Bondi as Attorney General
Feb 05, 2025
The Senate has approved Pam Bondi to become U.S. attorney general, handing control of the Justice Department to a Trump loyalist who has refused to say whether Trump definitively lost the 2020 election. Democrats fear Bondi will weaponize the Justice Department to seek vengeance against Trump’s political foes.
Bondi’s confirmation comes after Trump purged dozens of career prosecutors and FBI agents who worked on two criminal cases against Trump: the mishandling of classified documents by Trump and his associates at Mar-a-Lago, and the January 6 Capitol insurrection. On Tuesday, two separate groups of FBI agents filed lawsuits seeking to block the public release of the names of thousands of Justice Department employees who worked on those criminal investigations.
Proud Boys Lose Trademark Rights to Historic Black Church It Attacked in 2020
Feb 05, 2025
A historic Black church in Washington, D.C., that was vandalized in December 2020 by members of the Proud Boys has been granted control over the far-right group’s trademarked name. The landmark ruling means the Black AME Church is entitled to proceeds from sales of the Proud Boys’ merchandise and membership dues. The group would also have to get permission from the church and federal court to sell anything with its name and insignia. The victory comes after the Proud Boys failed to pay nearly $3 million in punitive damages to the church for burning its Black Lives Matter sign after attending a Trump rally.
ACLU Sues to Block Trump’s Ban on Gender-Affirming Care for Transgender Youth
Feb 05, 2025
Image Credit: NYC-DSA
The ACLU has filed a lawsuit challenging Trump’s executive order banning medical care for transgender people under the age of 19. The order directs federal agencies to withhold funds from medical providers and institutions that offer lifesaving gender-affirming medical treatments. Several hospitals nationwide have already suspended the care. We’ll have more on this story after headlines with the ACLU’s Chase Strangio and a New York doctor who says he is willing to go to jail to continue providing healthcare to transgender youth.
Senators Advance Nominations of RFK Jr. for Health Secretary, Tulsi Gabbard for Intelligence Chief
Feb 05, 2025
The Senate Finance Committee has advanced Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, a sprawling federal bureaucracy with 80,000 workers and a $1.6 trillion budget. Senators voted 14 to 13 along party lines to recommend RFK Jr.’s confirmation in the full Senate, despite his long history of promoting public health conspiracy theories and anti-vaccine disinformation. Among Republicans voting “yes” was Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy, a medical doctor who spent decades promoting vaccinations for children.
The Senate Intelligence Committee has advanced the nomination of Tulsi Gabbard for director of national intelligence on a party-line vote of 9 to 8, with all the committee’s Republicans in support.
Hundreds of Women Raped and Burned to Death as M23 Rebels Seize Eastern DRC’s Goma
Feb 05, 2025
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, U.N. officials report hundreds of women were raped and burned to death as the M23 seized Goma, triggering chaos in the eastern city. The gruesome attacks occurred during a jailbreak in which thousands of men were able to escape the prison while the women’s wing was set on fire. Restrictions imposed by M23 forces have blocked U.N. peacekeepers from reaching the prison to investigate.
Philippine Congress Impeaches Vice President Sara Duterte over Corruption, Assassination Threats
Feb 05, 2025
In the Philippines, Vice President Sara Duterte has been impeached by House lawmakers and could be removed from office later this year. Duterte has been accused of corruption and misusing millions in public funds and faced widespread backlash after she threatened to have Filipino President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., his wife and the Filipino House speaker assassinated. The Philippine Senate will hold its impeachment trial against Sara Duterte when Congress reconvenes in June.