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Matthew Kendrick
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators wave Palestinian flags outside Union Station, on the day of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's address to a joint meeting of Congress on Capitol Hill, in Washington, U.S., July 24, 2024.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed a joint session of Congress Wednesday afternoon amid protests both inside and outside the US Capitol. He framed the war with Hamas as part of a larger conflict between the United States and Iran, and proposed an alliance of anti-Iran nations to be called “The Abraham Alliance.”
In doing so, Netanyahu cast Israeli troops as fighting on the frontlines for American interests, echoing similar sentiments about Ukrainians fighting on behalf of Western democracy. That said, he thanked President Joe Biden multiple times for his support and also lavished praise on former President Donald Trump. He’ll meet with both men this week before going home.
“It was a curious speech. On the one hand, Netanyahu went out of his way to thank Biden and note Israel’s debt to the US, and then followed it up immediately by listing Trump’s achievements,” noted Eurasia Group expert Greg Brew. “But overall, it struck the expected tone, emphasizing that Israel’s confrontation with Iran was really about protecting America.”
Netanyahu’s speech met with mostly warm reception in the halls of Congress, though a few boos were occasionally audible amid the applause. However, over 100 Congressional staffers called in sick in a coordinated protest action, and Vice President and presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris declined to attend due to a scheduling conflict.
On the streets around Capitol Hill, more than 5,000 people — whom Netanyahu called “Iran’s useful idiots” — marched in protest. They chanted “From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free,” and accused Netanyahu of genocide, while also directing considerable invective at riot gear-clad police lining the route. Around 1:40 p.m., GZERO witnessed police on Constitution Avenue detonate a tear gas canister, which caused a mild panic in the crowd and forced at least six protesters to seek care from on-site medics.
Speakers at a rally held before the march praised pro-Palestinian activists for their efforts in the US. “The reason Joe Biden is not at the top of the nomination for the Democratic Party today is because of you, my friends,” said activist Linda Sarsour, addressing the crowd. “The reason why Kamala Harris is not presiding over the war criminal Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech is because of you.”
But few at the rally expressed hope for much change from a potential Harris administration — though Gabriel, 68, a retired driver from Maryland, said he thought Harris might “see Palestinians with more empathy.”
We’re watching how Harris talks about Israel on the campaign trail, as well as whether the young people who showed up in Washington will reignite protests on college campuses this fall.
A Philippine flag flutters from BRP Sierra Madre, a dilapidated Philippine Navy ship that has been aground since 1999 and became a Philippine military detachment on the disputed Second Thomas Shoal, part of the Spratly Islands, in the South China Sea March 29, 2014.
Manila announced Sunday it had reached a “provisional agreement” with Beijing aimed at establishing an arrangement in the South China Sea that both sides can live with — without renouncing territorial claims. The text of the deal has not yet been released.
The agreement builds off last week’s announcement of the establishment of presidential hotlines and signals a desire for de-escalation by both countries – following a serious clash on June 17. But the key word in this agreement is “provisional” as both Beijing and Manila are already showing irreconcilable differences in their positions.
China had previously told Manila it could not bring construction materials to the wreck of the Sierra Madre, a decrepit hulk deliberately beached on the South Thomas Shoal by Manila to give it de facto control. Without repairs, the ship will likely break apart soon. But Beijing claims Manila agreed to give China advanced notice and allowed inspections of shipments sent to the marines it keeps stationed there carrying food and supplies. A senior Filipino official told the Associated Press that the final deal did not require the Philippines to pre-notify the Chinese of shipments.
What to watch? A deal to cool temperatures in the South China Sea would be welcome news for all parties, including the US. “The next big test,” says Eurasia Group senior China analyst Jeremy Chan, “will be how both Manila and Beijing behave on future resupply missions, and whether either side can cede any ground.”
A demonstrator gestures as protesters clash with Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and the police outside the state-owned Bangladesh Television as violence erupts across the country after anti-quota protests by students, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, July 19, 2024.
Bangladesh’s Supreme Court on Sunday scrapped most government job quotas after two weeks of nationwide student-led protests left 139 people dead and more than 400 injured.
The back story:For decades, a quota system reserved 56% of government jobs for special groups. Thirty percent went to descendants of those who fought for independence against Pakistan in 1971. The rest were for women, minorities, and poor districts.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina ended that in 2018 in response to protests, but in June the High Court reinstated the fighters’ relatives quota, provoking fresh unrest and a police crackdown. Government jobs are coveted in a country of high youth unemployment, stagnant private-sector employment, and stinging inflation.
The court’s new ruling caps the job quota at 7%.
Hasina has held a tight grip on power since 2009. In January, she won an election that was boycotted by the opposition over concerns that she was rigging it.
Observers say the protests are about more than quotas. “They’re protesting against the repressive nature of the state,” said Mubashar Hasan, a Bangladesh expert at the University of Oslo. “The students are in fact calling [Hasina] a dictator.”
Will the protesters now look to press further against Hasina? Student leaders have already said they’ll stay in the streets until the government releases jailed students and restores internet service.
FILE PHOTO: U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris campaigns at Westover High School in Fayetteville, North Carolina, U.S., July 18, 2024.
38: A FiveThirtyEight analysis of nationwide polls earlier this month found Kamala Harris had a 38% chance of winning the electoral college in November, slightly higher than Joe Biden’s 35%. In either scenario, Trump is still the heavy favorite, but there is a lot of campaigning to do before November.
95.9 million: The $95.9 million war chest the Biden campaign pulled together before his dropping out will now be the center of attention as the unprecedented decision to leave the top of the ticket this late in the game puts the funds in question. Legally speaking, it will be easiest for Kamala Harris to take control of the pot, another measure in her favor.
60: Kamala Harris turns 60 in October, which would make her the average age of presidents should she win. Donald Trump, on the other hand, at 78 years and 8 months, would become the oldest president ever inaugurated.
106: There are exactly 106 days left before the US general election on Nov. 5, and Kamala Harris will need every second to rally the party around her and fight for her shot at the Oval Office. Stay tuned to GZERO for the whole ride.PYONGYANG, North Korea - A group of women visit a beach resort in Wonsan, North Korea, in September 2013. The women said they are coworkers at a clothes factory in the capital Pyongyang and their trip to Wonsan is a reward for an increase in output.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Unvisited the site of the country’s long-delayed Wonsan-Kalma resort zone for foreign tourists on Tuesday and discussed opening it by May 2025, state media reported on Thursday. There’s just one problem: Who wants to vacation in North Korea?
Well, historically, a pretty decent number of people, believe it or not. In 2019, about 300,000 foreign tourists took highly controlled vacations to the Hermit Kingdom. About 90% came from China, but a few thousand Westerners forked over exorbitant fees for visas and guided tours, ethical concerns notwithstanding. Wonsan-Kalma, with its well-groomed-if-somewhat-frigid beaches, luxury accommodations, and nearby ski facilities, was originally meant to service that market.
You might remember during that bizarre period of US-DPRK rapprochement in 2018-2019, GOP mega-donor Sheldon Adelson even floated the idea of building a casino in Wonsan. But tourists haven’t been allowed back since Pyongyang shut its borders during the COVID-19 pandemic. Kim would like that revenue back, and he probably prefers that his signature tourist project not end up like the extremely creepy and never-to-be-finished Ryugyong Hotel that has loomed over the capital’s skyline for nearly 40 years.
But before you rush to book a vacation, think about the true costs. The resort sits just miles from the site of Kyo-hwa-so No.88, where prisoners were forced to quarry stone in horrific conditions from at least 1985 to 2021 — and it remains unclear if the facility has been shuttered or just made smaller.
Members of the second contingent of Kenyan police greet each other after arriving in the Caribbean country as part of a peacekeeping mission, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti July 16, 2024.
Haiti’s Prime Minister Garry Conillecalled for gangs to surrender their weapons and recognize the state’s authority late Wednesday, as a Kenyan-led police mission there enjoys some early success.
Some 200 officers arrived in late June and are trying to take back the capital from gangs that launched a series of highly coordinated attacks in February, ousting former Prime Minister Ariel Henry and seizing about 80% of the capital. The mission received another 200 Kenyan officers on Tuesday, and, within the coming months, the multinational force is expected to see recruits from other countries, including Bangladesh. But oddly enough, both Nairobi and Dhaka are facing severe challenges to law and order at home.
Kenya is entering its second month of deadly protests calling for the resignation of President William Ruto. But Ruto has doubled down, banning protests in Nairobi mere hours before a demonstration was planned for Thursday. Protests are likely to continue and will be met by a violent police response.
Meanwhile, in Bangladesh, at least 32 people have been killed in police clashes during nationwide, student-led protests this week. The young activists are demonstrating over quotas that reserve 30% of government jobs for relatives of veterans of Bangladesh’s 1971 War of Independence. Protesters announced they will force a nationwide shutdown in response to the police brutality in one of the most severe challenges yet to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who has ruled for 20 years.
We’re watching for signs of whether the security mission’s main contributors feel they need to put their own houses in order before helping Haiti.
FILE PHOTO: A soldier stands at Trident Pier, a temporary pier to deliver aid, off the Gaza Strip, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, near the Gaza coast, June 25, 2024.
US military officials announced Wednesday they would dismantle the floating pier they had attempted to operate off the coast of Gaza, ending a difficult, expensive, monthslong mission to provide aid to civilians in the enclave.
Troubled from the start, the $230 million pier was announced in March but did not come online until May. It was only operational for about 20 days and has faced multiple challenges due to rough waters. It is currently anchored in the Israeli port of Ashdod.
When it was functional, it was used to deliver about 8,000 metric tons of aid — roughly equivalent to what humanitarian agencies say needs to enter Gaza every day.
The pier was pitched as a way to ensure Gazans on the verge of starvation could access food, medicine, and clean water while allowing Israel to continue its military campaign against Hamas. A UN-backed global hunger monitor reported last week that over 495,000 people are facing the most severe level of food insecurity, approximately 22% of the population, and hunger is widespread.
Members of the U.S. Secret Service Counter Sniper team stand guard near Air Force One at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S., July 15, 2024.
On Wednesday, the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general announced it was investigating the Secret Service’s handling of the assassination attempt on Donald Trump. The office did not say precisely when it opened the investigation, which will run parallel to the independent review ordered by President Joe Biden.
The probe will focus on how the Secret Service failed to prevent the gunman from climbing onto a nearby roof with a clear shot at the former president. While there is no known connection between Iran and the shooter — whose motive remains murky — Saturday’s attack occurred at a time when the White House, Secret Service, and Trump campaign were reportedly aware of an alleged Iranian plot to kill Trump.
The security failure has drawn intense scrutiny, particularly from Republicans. House Speaker Mike Johnsonurged Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle to resign, and the House Oversight Committee said it would subpoena her if she failed to appear voluntarily for a hearing next Monday. Meanwhile, just 20% of Americans polled say they are “very confident” the Service can do its most important job.