Ceasefire ‘victory’ looks bleak as Hezbollah bodies exhumed from makeshift mass graves

Published

3 months ago

December 3, 2024

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In scrubland on the outskirts of Tyre, southern Lebanon, they started digging out the bodies – 186 of them.

One family of women, mothers and daughters all dressed in black, fell on the coffin of their brother, their son, stroking it, sweeping the dust off, wailing.

His name was Hussein Fakih and he was a Hezbollah militant.

This was not an ordinary graveyard.

A makeshift mass grave, the corpses were mainly those of Hezbollah fighters. A temporary solution while the war was at its raging peak.

Get them in the ground quick. Bury them later.

Framed against a bright blue sky, a yellow digger scraped the topsoil off. People wore masks to protect against the overpowering stench.

Others went to the exposed coffins, wiping the dirt off the nameplates to see who the coffins contained.

We spoke to one 15-year-old boy, waiting for them to find his father Moeen Ezzedine, a senior Hezbollah commander who had been in charge of its forces in Tyre, Lebanon’s second city.

He was killed in an airstrike in early November.

“As martyr Ezzedine says, martyrdom is sweeter to us than honey: that’s how much we love martyrdom,” Mohammad said of his father.

“I am so proud of him and will stay on his path because he was martyred for the Palestinian cause.

“Hopefully I am on his path and hopefully I will meet him.”

There is no shortage of sons willing to take their fathers’ place, even if it means joining them in the ground.

A cry went up when they found Ezzedine. His sister collapsed, crying “Oh God, oh God.”

Blood and rotted matter seeped from a corner of the coffin as they turned it.

Mohammad helped carry the coffin into the ambulance and stood there watching, silent, as the doors closed.

Hezbollah’s stated aim is to destroy Israel and it is designated as a terrorist organisation by the US, UK, Israel and other governments.

The group fired missiles into Israel on 8 October 2023 in support of Gaza, sparking the most recent round of violence between the two sworn enemies.

This exhumation is only possible because of the ceasefire agreed by Israel and Hezbollah. And as the diggers went about their work, UN troops drove past.

They were moving south, to take up the positions formerly held by these Hezbollah fighters, as part of the ceasefire agreement.

That agreement means people have been able to return to Tyre, an ancient city – and they have found fresh ruins.

Block after block has been levelled – the Israeli air force was hitting right up until the truce came into force at 4am on Wednesday.

Imad Hijazi thought his mobile phone repair shop had survived more than a year of war. But he came back to find it a wreck.

“This shop, the last day before they stopped firing, the last day, it’s damaged,” he said. “An hour before [the ceasefire].”

“I’m feeling bad, very, very bad. I’ve worked here for almost 15 years. I don’t know what to do now.”

It will probably take years for this city to recover fully.

At the grave site, people kept telling us that death – “martyrdom” as they put it – was victory.

Victory looks bleak.

World

Donald Trump says EU was ‘formed to screw the United States’ and threatens 25% tariffs

Published

4 hours ago

February 26, 2025

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Donald Trump says EU was 'formed to screw the United States' and threatens 25% tariffs

Donald Trump has said he will impose 25% tariffs on the EU “very soon” and claimed the bloc was “formed in order to screw the United States”.

The US president made the remarks while holding his first cabinet meeting at the White House since his inauguration in January.

The world’s richest man Elon Musk, who leads the US Department of Government Efficiency but is not a cabinet member, was among those present.

During his second term as president, Mr Trump has sparked fears of a global trade war by either imposing, or threatening to impose, high tariffs on both America’s allies and geopolitical rivals.

Earlier this month the US government imposed 25% tariffs on goods imported from Canada and Mexico and a 10% tariff on imports from China.

Beijing retaliated by imposing 10% duties on many US imports and 15% tariffs on coal and liquefied natural gas.

Meanwhile, the 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada were paused after agreements were reached on border security.

‘They’ve taken advantage of us’

Asked whether he had made a decision about imposing tariffs on the European Union, Mr Trump said: “We have made a decision, we’ll be announcing it very soon and it will be 25% generally speaking and that will be on cars and all other things.

“The European Union is a different case than Canada, a different kind of case, they’ve really taken advantage of us in a different way.

“They don’t accept our cars, they don’t accept essentially our farm products. They use all sorts of reasons why not, and we accept everything from them, and we have about a $300bn (£237bn) deficit with the European Union.”

He added: “The European Union, it was formed in order to screw the United States.

“Let’s be honest – the European Union was formed in order to screw the United States, that’s the purpose of it, and they’ve done a good job of it, but now I’m president.”

Asked what he will do if the EU retaliates, Mr Trump said: “They can’t, I mean, they can try, but they can’t.”

He added: “They can retaliate, but it cannot be a successful retaliation, because we just go cold turkey, we don’t buy anymore.

“If that happens, we win.”

The threat of tariffs comes at a time of fragile relations between the US and Europe as the Trump administration appears to favour Moscow over Kyiv as it tries to bring about peace in Ukraine.

Mr Trump shocked European leaders last week by calling Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a “dictator with no elections”.

Mr Zelenskyy accused the US president of living in a Russian-made “disinformation space”.

Ukraine to sign ‘very big’ deal

Asked at the cabinet meeting about security guarantees the US might be willing to offer Ukraine as part of peace negotiations, Mr Trump said: “I’m not going to make security guarantees beyond very much.

“We’re going to have Europe do that, because we’re talking about Europe as the next-door neighbour.”

Mr Trump also said Mr Zelenskyy will visit the US on Friday to sign a “very big” minerals deal.

The US president views the transaction with Ukraine as a fair way to recoup the billions of dollars that America has given Kyiv – via weapons and financial support – to help in their fight against Russia.

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Mr Trump went on to describe Russian President Vladimir Putin as a “very smart” and “very cunning person” during the cabinet meeting.

He said: “I think he wanted the whole (of Ukraine) when I got elected, (then) we spoke, and I think we’re going to have a deal.”

Ukraine NATO membership ruled out

Mr Trump also said he believes Mr Putin would never have invaded Ukraine if he was US president at the time.

Asked whether Ukraine could gain NATO membership, the US president said: “You can forget about it. That’s probably the reason the whole thing started.”

Mr Trump declined to comment when asked about whether he would ever allow China to take control of Taiwan by force.

“I never comment on that,” said. “I don’t want to ever put myself in that position.”

Mr Musk spoke briefly at the start of the meeting to explain why he believes the controversial cost-cutting measures his department has been carrying out have been necessary.

Cabinet members were then asked by reporters if they were happy with Mr Musk and how he has been carrying out his role.

Mr Musk started to answer the question, but Mr Trump interjected and said he might want to let cabinet members answer, before joking that if anyone disagreed, he might “throw them out”.

World

Trump shares AI video of Gaza vision featuring golden statues, bearded belly dancers and Netanyahu on a sunbed

Published

10 hours ago

February 26, 2025

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Trump shares AI video of Gaza vision featuring golden statues, bearded belly dancers and Netanyahu on a sunbed

Donald Trump has shared a bizarre AI-generated video on his Truth Social platform showcasing what appears to be a vision of Gaza under his proposed plan.

The footage, which the 78-year-old shared without comment, shows the war-ravaged territory before a caption appears: “Gaza 2025… What’s Next?”

It then goes on to show the area transformed into a Middle Eastern paradise with exotic beaches, Dubai-style skyscrapers, luxury yachts and people partying.

It includes a “Trump Gaza” tower and a gigantic, golden statue of the US president – with miniature versions on sale in a souvenir gift shop.

A child is also shown walking in a street, holding a huge, golden balloon of the president’s head.

The video also features the world leader dancing with a scantily clad belly dancer in a bar – and sunbathing and sipping cocktails by a hotel resort pool with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Elon Musk appears in the footage several times – sitting on a beach eating humous with flatbreads as bearded belly dancers perform on the sand.

The billionaire boss of X, Tesla and SpaceX – who also leads the US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) which has been tasked with cutting government spending – is also shown throwing dollar bills in the air for people.

A song written for the video also plays in the background.

The lyrics go: “Donald’s coming to set you free, bringing the light for all to see, no more tunnels, no more fear: Trump Gaza’s finally here.

“Trump Gaza’s shining bright, golden future, a brand new life.

“Feast and dance the deal is done, Trump Gaza number one.”

Sky News has established the video was first shared online in early February by accounts with no apparent connection to the White House.

Mr Trump announced his plan – for when the war between Israel and Hamas ends – earlier this year.

It includes relocating two million Gazans to neighbouring Arab countries and developing the territory into the “Riviera of the Middle East“.

He described Gaza as a “demolition site” where “virtually every building is down”.

Laying out his idea of what would happen beyond an Israel-Hamas ceasefire, he proposed: “The US will take over the Gaza Strip and we will do a job with it too.”

He said America would be “responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site”, before it would “get rid of the destroyed buildings”, and “level it out”.

“Everybody I’ve spoken to loves the idea of the United States owning that piece of land, developing and creating thousands of jobs,” he added.

The White House described the proposal as “out-of-the-box” and “visionary” – but it was condemned as the effective “ethnic cleansing” of Palestinians from Gaza.

Hamas described the proposals as “ridiculous and absurd” in a statement from one of its officials.

Egypt, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia, which as fellow Arab nations support the Palestinian cause, also rejected Mr Trump’s plan.

There was a mixed reaction to the video in the comments section below.

One person wrote: “I don’t think that’s funny or cool. Sorry. Am I missing something??? I hope it’s a joke a bad joke..”

“I hate this. I love our president, but this is horrible,” said another.

One Truth Social user wrote: “Mr President while I appreciate what you do, is not about you. To God be the glory and the honor, for without Him, you couldn’t have accomplished anything. The statue is a symbol of the antichrist, please humble yourself to God. Jesus is king and only Him.”

“You’re doing great Mr President. But don’t let it get to your head. God put you in that position for His Glory, not yours,” said another.

“Can we transform our US cities to look like this 2025 vision first? Our cities are dumps with ugly buildings and homeless people,” wrote one user.

“Everything looks good, just stay away from these guys,” said another, reposting a screengrab of the bearded belly dancers.

World

Trump posts AI video of Gaza vision featuring golden statues, bearded belly dancers and Netanyahu on a sunbed

Published

15 hours ago

February 26, 2025

admin

Trump posts AI video of Gaza vision featuring golden statues, bearded belly dancers and Netanyahu on a sunbed

Donald Trump has shared a bizarre AI-generated video on his Truth Social social media platform showcasing what appears to be his vision of Gaza under his proposed plan.

The footage, which the 78-year-old posted without comment, shows the war-ravaged territory before a caption appears: “Gaza 2025… What’s Next?”

It then goes on to show the area transformed into a Middle Eastern paradise with exotic beaches, Dubai-style skyscrapers, luxury yachts and people partying.

It includes a “Trump Gaza” tower and a gigantic, golden statue of the US president – with miniature versions on sale in a souvenir gift shop.

A child is also shown walking in a street, holding a huge, golden balloon of the president’s head.

Elon Musk appears in the footage several times – sitting on a beach eating humous with flatbreads as bearded belly dancers perform on the sand.

A song written for the video also plays in the background.

The lyrics go: “Donald’s coming to set you free, bringing the light for all to see, no more tunnels, no more fear: Trump Gaza’s finally here.

“Trump Gaza’s shining bright, golden future, a brand new life.

“Feast and dance the deal is done, Trump Gaza number one.”

Sky News has established that the video was first shared online in early February by accounts with no apparent connection to the White House.