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Trump Taking Palestinian Right Of Return ‘Off The Table,’ Report Claims

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Trump Taking Palestinian Right Of Return 'Off The Table,' Report Claims

Continuing his pro-Israeli hard-line policy forward, US President Donald Trump administration is set to announce that it will no longer recognize millions of  Palestinian refugees’ “right of return”  to the territories occupied by the present day Israel.

According to Jerusalem Post, Israel’s Channel 2 television report claimed on Saturday that the White House will announce its stance on the refugee matter – one of the core sticking points in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict – sometime in the next few days, ahead of the start of the UN General Assembly in New York.

The move will not recognize the refugees’ decedents’ right to return their homeland. Washington will contradict UN statistics which classify five million Palestinians as refugees.

This would be another major shift in US foreign policy in public domain after Trump recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and moving its embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city.

Read More: US withdraws from UN Human Rights Council, Supports Israel

Trump Taking Palestinian Right Of Return 'Off The Table,' Report Claims

Jerusalem Post’s Washington based journalist Micheal Wilner say that US administration officials did not respond to requests for comment on the veracity of the report.

The report referred by Channel 2 claims that US administration will state fewer than one million Palestinians should classify as refugees. It is considered to be a dramatic divergence from United Nations Relief and Works Agency statistics which claims more than five million Palestinians qualify for refugee status.

Earlier this month, the American magazine Foreign Policy published emails written by Jared Kushner, Trump’s senior advisor and son-in-law to senior administration officials in which he pressured Jordan to move the refugee status of millions of Palestinians in a bid to disrupt UN work.

Gaza based Palestinians have been holding huge protests in support of their “right to return” since March this year. So far dozens of Palestinians have been killed and hundreds others injured in Israeli security forces tough retaliation.

Read More: Supporting Israel: US more isolated on Palestine at UNSC

Right to return of Palestinian refugees was one of the basic elements in what proved later as non-credible peace talks mediated by US for decades under different US administrations.

Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) President Yasser Arafat, who was one of the signatories of Camp David agreement recognising Israel as a country, was instrumental in participating in the peace talks.

The Ramallah based Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, now headed by Mahmoud Abbas alias Abu Mazen, till Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel capital, was toeing the US and also Israel’s plan while participating the peace talks which has never resulted in retrieving even an inch of Palestinian land. Instead Israel continued building its new residential units in the occupied territories.

Read More: OIC Summit: Erdogan call Muslim leaders to confront Israel

After US President Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital Mahmoud Abbas and his co-horts have lost their credibility among Palestinians. He was vocal in criticising Trump administration saying that US has lost the position of being an honest mediator for resolving the Middle East crisis.

Israel Katz, member of Israel’s parliament known as Knesset has commended President Trump upon hearing the television report saying, “I congratulate Donald Trump on his decision to retract his recognition of UNRWA and ipso facto cancel the recognition in the Palestinian right of return. This measure joins the historic decision to transfer the US embassy to Jerusalem and as such annuls two UN resolutions. This is a great victory for the State of Israel.”

Read More: US, Saudi Arabia ask Palestinians to talk to Israel

US President Donald Trump’s peace team has repeatedly questioned United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine (UNRWA)’s mandate, and accuses the world body of perpetuating the conflict by treating the descendants of refugees as refugees themselves.

The Palestinian Authority officials have recently warned that US President Donald Trump seeks to end the refugee issue while Israel has long held that the Palestinians seek two Arab states – an Arab state of Israel and an Arab state of Palestine – by flooding the Jewish state with the descendants of refugees under claims of a “right of return.”

Read More: Hezbollah leader: US offered money to relinquish anti-Israel fight

Washington’s longstanding position has been to support “two states for two peoples” – one Jewish state, and one Arab state. The Trump administration during last 20-month could not take a position on the two-state solution, which was advocated by earlier US governments.

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Amid India-Canada diplomatic tensions, Justin Trudeau shares video of his Diwali celebrations

This comes a day after India expressed its concern over the reports of cancelled Diwali celebrations in Canada.

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Amid the ongoing diplomatic tensions between Canada and India over the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Sunday shared a video of his Diwali celebration on social media platform X.

Sharing a 44-second video of his Diwali celebrations on social media, the Canadian Prime Minister wrote, “Happy Diwali! So many special moments shared celebrating with the community this week.”

This comes a day after India expressed its concern over the reports of cancelled Diwali celebrations in Canada.

The Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on Saturday, while addressing the media over Canada’s serious allegation against Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s involvement in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Nijjar, said it was unfortunate that the prevailing atmosphere in Canada has reached high levels of intolerance and extremism.

In the video, Prime Minister Trudeau showed off some colorful religious threads on his wrists, explaining that he received them during visits to three Hindu temples in Canada recently. He called them symbols of “good luck” and “protection,” adding with a smile, “I’m not taking them off until they fall off”.

Trudeau was also seen interacting warmly with the community, celebrating the festival, and enjoying delicious Indian sweets like jalebis, which he jokingly said he would “save for the team.”

On November 1, Trudeau posted on X, “Happy Diwali! Today, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, and Jain families will celebrate the triumph of light over darkness with festivities, candles, diyas, and fireworks. Wishing you all joy and prosperity during this special time.”

Addressing a press conference in Delhi, Jaiswal said India condemns the recent allegations made by the Canadian government against Shah that he was purportedly involved in the killing of Nijjar and called it “absurd and baseless”.

Jaiswal also said that India had summoned the Canadian High Commissioner on Friday to protest in the strongest terms for the references made to the Union Home Minister of India before the Committee by Canada’s Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister David Morrison.

On Tuesday, Morrison claimed that Shah orchestrated a campaign of violence, intimidation, and intelligence-gathering aimed at Sikh separatists on Canadian soil. He informed members of Canada’s national security committee in Parliament that he had confirmed Shah’s name to The Washington Post, which was the first to report the allegations. However, Morrison did not provide details on how Canada became aware of Shah’s alleged involvement.

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India, China complete disengagement in Depsang, Demchok at LAC after 4 years standoff

The Indian Army said that coordinated patrolling will start soon by both sides, and the ground commanders will continue to hold talks.

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India, China complete disengagement in Depsang, Demchok at LAC after 4 years standoff

In a significant development, India and China have completed the disengagement exercise in the Depsang and Demchok friction points at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh. The troops of both the countries are now verifying the vacation of positions and removal of infrastructure.

Reportedly, the Indian Army said that coordinated patrolling will start soon by both sides, and the ground commanders will continue to hold talks. The two sides will exchange sweets for Diwali tomorrow.

Earlier, Foreign secretary Vikram Misri announced that New Delhi and Beijing reached an agreement to disengage in the remaining friction points at LAC in eastern Ladakh. After the agreement, the two countries began troops disengagement at the two friction points at Demchok and Depsang plains on October 23.

India-China relations worsened because of the Chinese troops’ aggression along the Line of Actual Control, the de facto border, in April 2020. It further deteriorated on June 15, 2020, after 20 Indian soldiers died in the line of duty thwarting the Chinese offensive in the Galwan Valley. New Delhi had said India’s bilateral relations with China will normalise only after the situation at the LAC returns to what it was before May 2020.

Reports said that the Indian Army and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) have pulled back their forward-deployed troops and equipment from the two flashpoints, and have also dismantled temporary structures that had been built during the four-year-long standoff.

The Indian soldiers will resume their patrolling in areas that had been cut off because of the PLA’s presence. Nonetheless, the disengagement in Depsang and Demchok will not lead to the creation of buffer zones.

Both the countries had disengaged from Galwan Valley, Pangong Tso, Gogra (PP-17A) and Hot Springs (PP-15) areas and created buffer zones. Speaking to a newspaper publication, Lieutenant General Vinod Bhatia (retd), a former director general of military operations said that the disengagement at Depsang and Demchok will facilitate patrolling by both sides in a coordinated manner, and in the agreed upon frequency and strength of the patrolling parties.

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Iran says 2 soldiers killed in Israeli air strikes

Emphasising Iran’s right to self-defense under the UN Charter, the Iranian Foreign Ministry highlighted its obligation to counter foreign aggression.

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The Iranian Army said on Saturday that two of its soldiers were killed in Israeli air strikes that targeted military bases.

Iran stated that its air defenses effectively countered the attack, resulting in the unfortunate deaths of two soldiers and some areas suffering limited damage.

The Israeli military conducted strikes on Iranian military sites after 2 am on Saturday, responding to what they cited as ongoing attacks by Iran and its allies in the region.

Following the strikes, the Israeli military announced they had successfully completed the mission and achieved their objectives.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed the precise targeting of military sites in Iran to neutralize immediate threats to Israel.

“I can now confirm that we have concluded the Israeli response to Iran’s attacks against Israel. We conducted targeted and precise strikes on military targets in Iran — thwarting immediate threats to the State of Israel,” the Israel Defence Force posted on X.

Iran’s air defense headquarters acknowledged the hits on bases in Ilam, Khuzestan, and Tehran but asserted that these attacks were effectively repelled, with investigations ongoing to assess damages. Moreover, Iran indicated its readiness to retaliate against any Israeli aggression, stating that Israel would face proportional consequences for its actions.

Iran expressed its intentions to respond to the Israeli attacks on its military bases, condemning the actions as a violation of international law and the UN Charter’s principles on the use of force.

Emphasising Iran’s right to self-defense under the UN Charter, the Iranian Foreign Ministry highlighted its obligation to counter foreign aggression.

Pakistan strongly condemned Israel’s strikes on Iran, attributing the escalation to Israel and urging the UN Security Council to intervene for peace and security.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer emphasised that Iran should refrain from retaliating against Israel, advocating for restraint on all sides to prevent further escalation.

“I am clear that Israel has the right to defend itself against Iranian aggression. I’m equally clear that we must avoid further regional escalation and urge all sides to restrain. Iran should not respond,” the PM said at a Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.

The United States advised Iran to halt its attacks on Israel to cease the ongoing violence and break the cycle of conflict, underlining the importance of de-escalation.

“We urge Iran to cease its attacks on Israel so that this cycle of fighting can end without further escalation,” U.S. National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett told reporters.

President Joe Biden was briefed on the Israeli operation throughout its development and execution by his National Security Adviser, Jake Sullivan.

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