Syria’s president: from Al-Qaeda to White House guest

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Original article by Aseel Saleh republished form peoples dispatch under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 (CC BY-SA) license.

Syrian interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa meets US President Donald Trump at the White House Nov. 10. Photo: Syrian presidency

The visit of Syria’s interim president to Washington has once again showcased the ambivalence of US counter-terrorism policy, which changes according to temporal interests.

Syrian interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa arrived in Washington on Monday, November 10, to discuss various issues of mutual interest with US President Donald Trump.

The occurrence, which marks Al-Sharaa’s first visit to the United States has stirred controversy, and invited the mockery of critics, as it came a mere two days after Al-Sharaa was removed from the US Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) sanctions list.

This in turn has exposed the ambivalence of US counter-terrorism policy, which apparently designates or revokes persons and organizations from terrorism lists based on US interests at any given moment.

One day before being revoked from the SDGT sanctions list, the United Nations Security Council had also adopted a US resolution to remove Al-Sharaa and his Interior Minister, Anas Khattab, from sanctions targeting members and supporters of terrorist groups, including ISIS and Al-Qaeda.

Furthermore, Al-Sharaa’s visit followed the onset of a large-scale military campaign by Syria’s government forces on Saturday, November 8, against “terrorist cells” affiliated with ISIS in different governorates, according to the Syrian Ministry of Interior.

Read More: Sectarian violence on the rise in Syria as interim government clashes with Druze in the south

Trump hails Al-Sharaa, vows to support Syria

In what was interpreted as paving the way for Al-Sharaa to remain in office after Syria’s transitional period ends, Trump praised the former Al-Qaeda militant, saying:

“He’s a very strong leader, he comes from a very tough place. He’s a tough guy. I like him. I get along with the president, the new president of Syria, and we’ll do everything we can to make Syria successful because that’s part of the Middle East.”

Al-Sharaa says the visit marks new beginning for strategic relations with the US

For his part, Al-Sharaa considered his visit a new beginning for strategic relations between his country and the United States. During an interview with Fox News following his meeting with Trump on Monday, Syria’s new ruler said:

“For the past sixty years, Syria has been isolated from the rest of the world, and the relations were cut off between the United States and Syria. This is the first time a Syrian president has visited the White House since the establishment of Syria in the 40s of the last century.”

“After the fall of the former regime, Syria has entered into a new era and this will build on a new strategy specially with the United States,” Al-Sharaa added. 

Syria joins US-led international coalition against ISIS

When he was asked whether he committed to having his country join the US-led international coalition to fight ISIS in the West Asia region, Al-Sharaa answered:

“We have fought many battles against ISIS over the past ten years and endured great suffering, losing a significant number of men. While there are reasons for the US military presence in Syria, this presence must now be coordinated with the Syrian government. We need to discuss these issues and reach an agreement regarding ISIS.”

On Tuesday, November 11, Syria’s information minister, Hamza al-Mustafa, and a US official announced that Syria signed a “political declaration” with the coalition, confirming that it will have a role in “combating terrorism and supporting regional stability”.

However, Al-Mustafa clarified that “the agreement is political and until now contains no military components.”

Al-Sharaa offers extraction of Syria’s gas to become US ally

Al-Sharaa also told Fox News that he discussed with Trump future investment opportunities in Syria, particularly the extraction of gas by the United States.

“We talked about the investment opportunities in the future in Syria, so that Syria is no longer looked at as a security threat. It is now looked at as a geopolitical ally. And it’s a place where the United States can have great investments, especially extracting gas,” he noted.

Regarding Syria’s future relation with Israel, Al-Sharaa ruled out the possibility of joining the “Abraham Accords”, but he expressed his hope that the Trump administration will help his country to reach a security agreement with Israel to end its occupation of the Golan Heights.

“I believe that the situation in Syria is different from the situation of the countries that signed on to the Abraham Accords. Syria has borders with Israel, and Israel has occupied the Golan Heights since 1967. We are not going to enter into negotiations directly right now. Maybe the United States administration with President Trump will help us reach this kind of negotiation.”

Read More: Israel escalates attacks on Syria as Al-Sharaa reports progress on a Syria-Israel security deal

Nevertheless, Al-Sharaa provided contradictory statements regarding the involvement of his government in negotiations with Israel during an interview with The Washington Post on the same day of being interviewed by Fox News.

The American newspaper cited Syria’s transitional leader saying:

“We are engaged in direct negotiations with Israel, and we have gone a good distance on the way to reach an agreement. But to reach a final agreement, Israel should withdraw to their pre-Dec. 8 borders.” 

US declares partial suspension of sanctions on Syria following Al-Sharaa-Trump meeting

Syria’s interim president affirmed that lifting the sanctions imposed by the United States on the Arab country was among the most important topics, which he discussed with his US counterpart.

As both nations are looking forward to bolstering mutual security and economic interests, Al-Sharaa told The Washington Post that lifting the sanctions is essential for maintaining stability, which is, in turn, linked to economic development.

It is worth noting that shortly after the meeting, the United States Treasury Department announced that the Trump administration suspended key provisions of the Caesar Act sanctions on Syria for 180 days.

Read More: Syria after al-Assad

This partial suspension replaces a previous sanctions relief, which was granted by the US to Syria in May with the same 180-day duration.

Original article by Aseel Saleh republished form peoples dispatch under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 (CC BY-SA) license.

dizzy: Makes you wonder if Al-Qaeda was just a sham / pretence serving Western interests like ISIS.

Continue ReadingSyria’s president: from Al-Qaeda to White House guest

UN Special Rapporteurs condemn Palestine Action ban

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https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/un-special-rapporteurs-condemn-palestine-action-ban

 A woman is detained by police officers as supporters of Palestine Action take part in a mass action in Parliament Square, Westminster, central London, August 9, 2025

FOUR UN special rapporteurs and an independent expert have sent a letter to the British government warning that the ban on Palestine Action is “not justified” and violates human rights.

The letter was originally sent on September 12, but its publication has been delayed for two months — the usual period given to allow the government time to respond.

Palestine Action, a direct action group which targeted Israeli arms firms, has been banned and designated a terrorist organisation since July 5.

The letter condemns the proscription as giving rise to “disproportionate restrictions” on the right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, and warns that “mere property damage is not sufficient to constitute terrorism according to international standards.”

The UN special rapporteurs highlight that designating groups as terrorist when they are not genuinely so is more common in states that are “authoritarian and lack legal and political cultures of respect for human rights.”

They also raised concerns over mass arrests under the Terrorism Act for supporting Palestine Action.

continues at https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/un-special-rapporteurs-condemn-palestine-action-ban

Palestine Action joke that appeared in the UK satirical magazine 'Private Eye'.
Palestine Action joke that appeared in the UK satirical magazine ‘Private Eye’.
Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza's hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
Orcas discuss Genocide-supporting and complicit Zionists. Donald Trump, Keith Starmer, David Lammy, Rachel Reeves, Angela Rayner and Wes Streeting are acknowledged as evil genocide-complicit and supporting cnuts.
Orcas discuss Genocide-supporting and complicit Zionists. Donald Trump, Keith Starmer, David Lammy, Rachel Reeves, Angela Rayner and Wes Streeting are acknowledged as evil genocide-complicit and supporting cnuts.
Continue ReadingUN Special Rapporteurs condemn Palestine Action ban

Israeli data: Unprecedented rise in settler attacks in 2025

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This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Illegal settlers, covering their faces with masks, attack Palestinian farmers, journalists and foreign activists with sticks and stones in Beita town of Nablus, West Bank on November 08, 2025. [Nedal Eshtayah – Anadolu Agency]

The West Bank has witnessed an unprecedented increase in violent attacks carried out by Israeli settlers against Palestinians, amid what observers describe as widespread leniency from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government and its security agencies. Several Israeli sources have referred to these incidents as expanding “nationalist crimes”, fuelled by settler impunity and political protection from government ministers.

Official figures show that 2025 has recorded a sharp rise in settler assaults, with dozens of attacks reported in recent weeks alone. Data from Israel’s Ministry of Defence indicate a significant escalation in settler violence over the past three weeks, coinciding with the start of the olive harvest season, during which more than 68 terrorist attacks were documented.

According to official statistics, 2025 has so far been marked by a continued rise in such “nationalist crimes” against Palestinians across the West Bank. Since mid-October, around 50 assaults have been carried out by extremist settlers. Meanwhile, United Nations data, which cover a wider range of incidents, show that the total number of attacks in October alone reached 264 — the highest monthly figure recorded in a year.

READ: Israeli settlers launch coordinated attacks across West Bank under army protection

Orcas discuss Genocide-supporting and complicit Zionists. Donald Trump, Keith Starmer, David Lammy, Rachel Reeves, Angela Rayner and Wes Streeting are acknowledged as evil genocide-complicit and supporting cnuts.
Orcas discuss Genocide-supporting and complicit Zionists. Donald Trump, Keith Starmer, David Lammy, Rachel Reeves, Angela Rayner and Wes Streeting are acknowledged as evil genocide-complicit and supporting cnuts.
Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza's hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
Experiencing issues with this image not appearing. I suspect because it's so critical of Zionist Keir Starmer's support of and complicity in Israel's genocides.
Genocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpA
Continue ReadingIsraeli data: Unprecedented rise in settler attacks in 2025

‘Little to No Measurable Progress’ on Climate as World on Track for 2.6°C: Report

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Original article by Olivia Rosane republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). 

Natural gas is flared off as oil is pumped in the Bakken shale formation in Watford City, North Dakota. (Photo by Jim West/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

“Without rapid, deep emissions cuts—over 50% by 2030—overshooting 1.5°C becomes ever more likely, with severe consequences for people and ecosystems,” one expert said.

Despite new national policies submitted ahead of the United Nations COP30 climate conference in Belém, Brazil, the world remains on track for a disastrous 2.6°C of fossil fuel-driven warming, according to an annual analysis released on Thursday.

Climate Action Tracker (CAT) said the 2025 report marked the fourth year in a row in which there had been “little to no measurable progress” in its warming predictions for 2100 based on the current policies and commitments of 40 countries.

“The world is running out of time to avoid a dangerous overshoot of the 1.5°C limit,” Climate Analytics CEO Bill Hare said in a statement. “Delayed action has already led to higher cumulative emissions, and new evidence suggests the climate system may be more sensitive than previously thought. Without rapid, deep emissions cuts—over 50% by 2030—overshooting 1.5°C becomes ever more likely, with severe consequences for people and ecosystems.”

Under the Paris Agreement, countries are required to submit nationally determined contributions (NDCs) every five years outlining their plans to slash greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to the impacts of the climate crisis. However, CAT found that nearly none of the 40 countries it analyzed had updated their 2030 NDCs or announced sufficiently ambitious 2035 NDCs ahead of COP30, which began on Monday. This means that the projected warming based on 2030 and 2035 targets remained at 2.6°C above preindustrial levels.

“We have said it before, and we will keep saying it: We are running out of time.”

“A world at 2.6°C means global disaster,” Hare told The Guardian, adding that it would likely trigger key tipping points such as the death of coral reefs, the transformation of the Amazon rainforest into grassland, the destabilizing of ice sheets, and the collapse of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation.

“That all means the end of agriculture in the UK and across Europe, drought and monsoon failure in Asia and Africa, lethal heat and humidity,” Hare explained. “This is not a good place to be. You want to stay away from that.”

CAT also made temperature projections based on existing policies and actions; pledges and targets, including binding long-term targets; and an optimistic scenario including net-zero targets. In 2025, the temperature projection for existing policies dropped from 2.7°C to 2.6°C, mostly due to a change in methodology, and the “optimistic scenario” remained the same at 1.9°C. However, the “pledges and targets” projection increased from 2.1°C to 2.2°C, predominately due to President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw the US from the Paris Agreement.

Other major carbon polluters China and the European Union did not update their plans with the ambition required to meet the Paris goals.

The analysis comes a week after the UN Environment Programme released its Emissions Gap Report, which found that NDCs put the world on track for 2.3-2.5°C of warming, while current policies put it on track for 2.8°C.

Overall, CAT blamed the lack of progress on the continued growth of fossil fuel production and use. It noted that several major countries had continued to expand fossil fuels, from India, China, and Indonesia building more coal plants to Japan and Saudi Arabia championing gas as a “bridge fuel.”

“Worst of all,” the report authors wrote, “the United States is actively shutting down offshore wind projects, rolling back renewable energy incentives, cutting curbs on carbon pollution, and actively expanding oil and gas production.”

However, despite their grim projections, CAT did see hope in the massive rollout of renewable energy, which generated more power than coal for the first time in 2025.

“While not at the pace needed, our analysis shows that the Paris Agreement works,” said Niklas Höhne, of CAT partner the NewClimate Institute, in a statement.

Höhne continued:

Back in 2015, our current policies scenario led to 3.6°C of warming by 2100. Today, 10 years later, our latest projections show that this has been reduced by roughly 1°C to around 2.6°C. The Paris Agreement has rewritten the rules of global climate action—sparking investment, innovation, and reforms that would simply not have happened without it.

But governments need to speed up the pace now. Although emissions have risen, the exponential pace of the renewable energy expansion allows us to now reduce emissions much faster than previously thought. Governments can strengthen or overachieve 2030 targets, implement robust policies, and ensure transparency and accountability to deliver on the Paris Agreement promise and safeguard a sustainable future.

The faster governments act, the faster they can close the “targets gap” between current emissions and how far they have to fall to keep the 1.5°C goal within reach. This gap is expected to grown by as many as 2 billion metric tons between 2030 and 2035 alone.

CAT said that current research indicates that implementing the most ambitious policies could limit peak warming to 1.7°C. This could be achieved by reaching net-zero carbon dioxide emissions before 2050, reaching net-zero greenhouse gas emissions in the 2060s, and removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Under this scenario, global temperatures would return to below 1.5°C by the end of the century.

“We have said it before, and we will keep saying it: We are running out of time,” said report lead author Sofia Gonzales-Zuñiga.

“Every new fossil gas deal the EU makes, every new coal plant built in China, every fossil gas expansion project in Australia, every exported barrel from Norway, every tonne of LNG Japan pushes into neighboring Asian countries, costs billions to people elsewhere in the world as they deal with increasingly extreme weather events,” Gonzales-Zuñiga continued. “These are not abstract policy choices—they are physical realities with human consequences. The atmosphere does not negotiate, and it does not wait.”

Original article by Olivia Rosane republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). 

Orcas comment on killer apes destroying the planet by continuing to burn fossil fuels.
Orcas comment on killer apes destroying the planet by continuing to burn fossil fuels.
Donald Trump urges you to be a Climate Science denier like him. He says that he makes millions and millions for destroying the planet, Burn, Baby, Burn and Flood, Baby, Flood.
Donald Trump urges you to be a Climate Science denier like him. He says that he makes millions and millions for destroying the planet, Burn, Baby, Burn and Flood, Baby, Flood.
Nigel Farage urges you to ignore facts and reality and be a climate science denier like him and his Deputy Richard Tice. He says that Reform UK has received £Millions and £Millions from the fossil fuel industry to promote climate denial and destroy the planet.
Nigel Farage urges you to ignore facts and reality and be a climate science denier like him and his Deputy Richard Tice. He says that Reform UK has received £Millions and £Millions from the fossil fuel industry to promote climate denial and destroy the planet.
Continue Reading‘Little to No Measurable Progress’ on Climate as World on Track for 2.6°C: Report

Under Trump, Inflation Is Costing Average US Family $700 More Per Month

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Original article by Jake Johnson republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). 

A Doral, Florida resident checks out at a Walmart on October 10, 2025. (Photo by Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

“While President Trump claimed that he would bring down prices, the reality is that Americans have seen their costs soar even higher since he took office.”

Democrats on the congressional Joint Economic Committee released a report Thursday detailing how much more the average American family in every US state is having to spend monthly to cover the rising costs of food, shelter, energy, and other necessities under the leadership of President Donald Trump.

The panel released its report on the same day the Trump administration was supposed to publish the October Consumer Price Index (CPI) data. The closely watched CPI report was delayed by the shutdown, and the Trump White House said Wednesday that it’s likely the figures will never be released.

Deploying the same methodology that Republicans used to track cost increases under former President Joe Biden, JEC Democrats found that the average US family is spending roughly $700 more per month on basic items since Trump took office in January, pledging to bring prices “way down.”

“While President Trump claimed that he would bring down prices, the reality is that Americans have seen their costs soar even higher since he took office,” said Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-NH), the JEC’s ranking member. “As families across the country spend more to pay their bills and put food on the table, Democrats and Republicans should be working together to lower costs. Instead, President Trump is pushing ahead with reckless tariffs that continue to fuel inflation and drive prices up even higher.”

In some states—including Alaska, California, and Colorado—average families are spending over $1,000 more per month to maintain their living standards as costs continue to rise, in part due to Trump’s erratic tariff regime.

The report’s findings run directly counter to Trump’s triumphant rhetoric on inflation and the US economy more broadly.

CNN‘s Daniel Dale noted earlier this week that Trump has been on a “lying spree about inflation,” falsely claiming that “every price is down” and that “everybody knows that it’s far less expensive under Trump than it was under Sleepy Joe Biden.”

“None of that is true,” Dale wrote. “Prices are up during this administration. Average prices were 1.7% higher in September than they were in January, according to the most recent figures from the federal Consumer Price Index, and 3% higher than they were in September 2024. There has been inflation every month of the term, and far more products have gotten costlier than cheaper.”

“Inflation not only very much continues to exist but has been accelerating since the spring,” Dale added. “As of September, the year-over-year inflation rate had increased for five consecutive months.”

Original article by Jake Johnson republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). 

Orcas discuss Donald Trump and the killer apes' concept of democracy. Front Orca warns that Trump is crashing his country's economy and that everything he does he does for the fantastically wealthy.
Orcas discuss Donald Trump and the killer apes’ concept of democracy. Front Orca warns that Trump is crashing his country’s economy and that everything he does he does for the fantastically wealthy.
Orcas discuss how Trump was re-elected and him being an obviously insane, xenophobic Fascist.
Orcas discuss how Trump was re-elected and him being an obviously insane, xenophobic Fascist.


‘Trump Is Making Your Life More Expensive’: Tariff Chaos Engulfs US Economy ›

Continue ReadingUnder Trump, Inflation Is Costing Average US Family $700 More Per Month