JERUSALEM: Israel’s Supreme Court on Sunday rejected petitions that would have held up a landmark US-brokered deal setting a maritime border with Lebanon, which Washington predicted could be finalized on Thursday.
Four groups, including an Israeli opposition lawmaker, had asked the court to force the government — which is looking to fast-track the deal ahead of a Nov. 1 election — to instead hold a full vote in parliament.
The court’s decision eliminates one of the last hurdles in Israel that could disrupt the deal.
While limited in scope, the maritime deal marks a significant compromise between neighbors with a history of war and hostility, opening the way for offshore energy exploration and easing a source of recent tensions.
“I think this is really great development, a historic agreement between two enemy countries,” the US mediator, Amos Hochstein, told CBS’s “Face the Nation.”
“We are going to have a deal — hopefully sign it — this Thursday, and I hope this continues our commitment to stability and prosperity in the region for both countries.”
Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid would convene a special cabinet session on Thursday, his office said, without elaborating.
There has been some opposition in Israel to how the government has handled the deal. Lapid said his government’s approval was sufficient, while the opposition said it must be ratified by parliament, especially during an election run-up.
The agreement sets a border between Lebanese and Israeli waters for the first time and also establishes a mechanism for both countries to get royalties from TotalEnergies’ exploration of an offshore gas field that straddles the boundary.
Israeli court gives green light to Lebanon maritime deal, signing seen on Thursday
https://arab.news/2h8ws
Israeli court gives green light to Lebanon maritime deal, signing seen on Thursday
- Four groups had asked the court to force the government — which is looking to fast-track the deal ahead of a Nov. 1 election — to instead hold a full vote in parliament
- The court’s decision eliminates one of the last hurdles in Israel that could disrupt the deal
Riyadh Season to host Crawford-Madrimov world title clash in Los Angeles
RIYADH: Riyadh Season will hold the first boxing event outside Saudi Arabia as Terence Crawford challenges Israil Madrimov for the WBA and WBO interim World Super-Welterweight title.
The event will take place at Los Angeles’ BMO Stadium on Aug. 3, 2024, the Kingdom’s entertainment authority said on Wednesday.
Turki Alalshikh, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the General Entertainment Authority, announced that Visit Saudi, MDL Beast and Red Sea Global will be the sponsors of the event.
Promotion will be handled by Riyadh Season Card, Sela, League 1 and Matchroom Boxing in association with World Of Boxing, TGB Promotions, Golden Boy, Goldstar, Queensberry, Salita Promotions and Warriors Boxing Promotions.
“We are delighted for Riyadh Season to host its first overseas event in Los Angeles and this fight in the United States is a special one to mark this moment,” Alalshikh said.
“We want to give people around the world the opportunity to enjoy their own Riyadh Season experience and this is exactly what we hope to achieve by staging this and also future events around the world.”
Crawford (40-0 31 KOs) is gunning to become a Four-Weight World champion as he moves up to 154lbs after conquering the Welterweight division with a stunning KO win over Errol Spence to be crowned the undisputed champion at 147lbs in Las Vegas in July.
The Omaha star has already ruled the roost at Super-Lightweight and Lightweight, and now the pound-for-pound great is arrowing in on cementing greatness by claiming honors at a fourth weight.
Madrimov (10-0-1 7 KOs) is the man that stands in Crawford’s way, and the Uzbek champion makes his first defense of his title against the toughest opposition possible after winning the belt in spectacular fashion in his last outing in Saudi Arabia.
The 29 year old took on Magomed Kurbanov for the vacant title in Riyadh in March, and stopped the Russian in five rounds with a dominant performance to continue his impressive unbeaten run in the paid ranks, following a glittering amateur career.
British boxing promotor Eddie Hearn said: “This is a fantastic fight between a pound-for-pound great and one of the best World champions in the sport.”
“Terence is a pound-for-pound great and continues to strive to be the very best, but in Israil, he meets a hungry champion that has no intention of relinquishing his title in his first defense - this promises to be one of the fights of the year.”
“I cannot wait to get back in the ring in my fourth weight class and remind the world why I’m the best pound for pound fighter in the world,” said Terence Crawford. “Israil Madrimov is a tremendous and entertaining fighter, but on August 3, he will be my next victim. This is the Terence Crawford era.”
“Terence Crawford is one of my favorite boxers and one of the best boxers in the world,” said Israil Madrimov. “I am very excited to get this opportunity to make a statement, and I will Inshallah.”
The main event is complemented by an undercard that is set to captivate fight fans.
Recently crowned WBA Super-Lightweight champion Isaac Cruz defends his title for the first time against United States southpaw Jose Valenzuela.
Two of the United States’ most fearsome boxing Heavyweights will do battle with former unified Heavyweight champion Andy Ruiz returning to the ring for the first time since a unanimous decision win against Luis Ortiz in September 2022, to face Jarrell Miller, who will be going all out to produce a winning outcome after losing his undefeated record in Riyadh in December last year.
Former Super-Welterweight world champion Tim Tszyu awaits Vergil Ortiz Jr, subject to the outcome of his fight against Thomas Dulorme this weekend, while David Morrell of Cuba will seek to preserve his unbeaten record in a Light Heavyweight contest against US fighter Radivoje Kalajdzic.
Andy Cruz, the Olympic Lightweight gold medalist, continues his Lightweight campaign when he takes on Mexico’s Antonio Moran.
Saudi Arabia’s Joud Bukhari wins bronze at Asian 9Ball Ladies & Girls Tournament
RIYADH: Saudi billiards national team player Joud Bukhari won the bronze medal at the Asian Confederation of Billiard Sports 9Ball Ladies and Girls Tournament 2024 currently held in the Saudi capital Riyadh.
As Saudi Arabia marks its first official participation in the tournament, Bukhari became the first Arab, gulf, and Saudi woman to win a medal during the championship.
Separately, eight Saudi male and female officials completed a course held on the sidelines of the Asian tournament, enabling them to officiate international billiards and snooker matches.
State Department official reaffirms US commitment to humanitarian aid for Gazans
- Efforts also continue in Washington to prevent regional expansion of conflict by Iran and its proxies, says Assistant Secretary for Near East Affairs Barbara A. Leaf
- The Biden administration is also looking into the circumstances surrounding the discovery this week of mass graves in Gaza, she adds
CHICAGO: The US is working to speed up the delivery of humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza, all of whom are at risk of malnutrition or famine, a leading official from State Department said on Wednesday.
Assistant Secretary for Near East Affairs Barbara A. Leaf also said that efforts continue in Washington to deter Iran and its proxies from attempting to provoke any regional expansion of the conflict, amid concerns about escalations in violence in Iraq, Lebanon, Europe and Yemen.
President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken remain committed to securing peace between Israel and the Palestinians through direct negotiations, Leaf said, and to using all available means to provide the population of Gaza with aid, including the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees.
The Biden administration is also examining the circumstances surrounding the discovery this week of mass graves in Gaza, she added. Officials are “making inquiries and trying to learn, ourselves” but she had no additional information to share at this time.
Regarding the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, Leaf said: “One hundred percent of the population in Gaza is at risk of famine and malnutrition. Deconfliction (a military term for efforts to reduce the risk of friendly fire or the targeting of noncombatants) coordination remains a major issue for humanitarian workers and exports.
“We are pushing to accelerate the delivery of assistance on all fronts by air, land and sea. We urge Israel, and continue to urge Israel, to improve deconfliction and take tangible steps to allow the entry of more aid, and distribution of that aid, throughout Gaza. We also believe the UN, including UNRWA, is indispensable for that effort.
“We are committed to advancing enduring peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians alike, including through practical time-bound and irreversible steps to work toward establishing a Palestinian state existing side-by-side with Israel.”
Leaf declined to comment on how funding would be directed to help address the “extreme” humanitarian needs in Gaza but acknowledged that the US Congress and several other major donor countries had suspended funding for UNRWA following allegations in January by the Israeli government that 12 of the agency’s workers participated in the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas on Israel.
A report published this week following an independent inquiry into UNRWA’s mechanisms for ensuring the neutrality of its workers stated that Israeli authorities have not provided any evidence to back up their claims. Some countries have resumed their funding of the agency but the US has not.
“The Congress has ruled out the US providing assistance directly to UNRWA,” said Leaf. “There are many other avenues, channels and organizations by which we can assist the Palestinian people.
“We do recognize that the functions that UNRWA carries out are indispensable and that there is no ready replacement for UNRWA in carrying out those responsibilities, or for the staff that puts their lives at risk every day to carry out those functions. We are certainly encouraging all of our donor partners to look to these needs in a coordinated way.”
Leaf defended the decision of the Biden administration last week to veto a Security Council resolution calling for recognition of Palestine as full member state of the UN, on the grounds that the resolution “makes no sense” because Palestine does not have identifiable borders. She added that Biden “stands firmly behind the very legitimate quest of the Palestinians for a state of their own” but “peace must come through direct negotiations with Israel.”
The goal of the Biden administration is to “reunify” the West Bank and Gaza Strip under the leadership of a reformed Palestinian Authority, Leaf said, paving the way for a two-state solution through negotiations between Palestinians and Israelis.
“The West Bank and Gaza must be reunified under the Palestinian Authority,” she added. “A revitalized PA is essential to delivering results for the Palestinian people in both the West Bank and Gaza, and establishing the conditions for stability.”
Commenting of the wider regional situation, Leaf condemned the escalation of violent attacks by Iran and its proxies, including Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen.
She described Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea over the past few months as “outrageous” and said they represent “recklessness and inhumanity on the part of the Houthis in targeting commercial vessels, some military vessels, but commercial vessels that have absolutely nothing to do with the conflict in Gaza. It really moots the notion that these attacks are in some way going to support the Palestinian cause. They do not. What they do is put innocent civilians in harm’s way.”
Leaf also condemned the Iranian missile strikes that targeted Israel last week but did not mention the Israeli missile strikes that killed 12 people at an Iranian consulate building beside the nation’s main embassy in the Syrian capital, Damascus, the week before.
Wars in Gaza and Sudan ‘drive hunger crisis affecting 280 million worldwide’
- New report on global food insecurity says outlook for 2024 is ‘bleak’
JEDDAH: More than 280 million people worldwide suffered from acute hunger last year in a food security crisis driven by conflicts in Gaza and Sudan, UN agencies and development groups said on Wednesday.
Economic shocks also added to the number of victims, which grew by 24 million compared with 2022, according to a report by the Food Security Information Network.
The report, which called the global outlook for this year “bleak,” is produced for an international alliance of UN agencies, the EU and governmental and non-governmental bodies.
Food insecurity is defined as when populations face food deprivation that threatens lives or livelihoods, regardless of the causes or length of time. More geographical areas experienced “new or intensified shocks” and there was a “marked deterioration in key food crisis contexts such as Sudan and the Gaza Strip,” said Fleur Wouterse, a senior official at the UN’s Food and Agricultue Organization.
Since the first report by the Global Food Crisis Network covering 2016, the number of food-insecure people has risen from 108 million to 282 million, Wouterse said. The share of the population affected within the areas concerned had doubled from 11 percent to 22 percent, she said.
Protracted major food crises are ongoing in Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Syria and Yemen. “In a world of plenty, children are starving to death,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said.
“War, climate chaos and a cost-of-living crisis, combined with inadequate action, mean that almost 300 million people faced acute food crisis in 2023. Funding is not keeping pace with need.”
According to the report, situations of conflict or insecurity have become the main cause of acute hunger. For 2024, progress would depend on the end of hostilities, said Wouterse, who said aid could rapidly alleviate the crisis in Gaza or Sudan, for example, once humanitarian access to the areas was possible.
Xavi to remain Barcelona coach: club to AFP
- The 44-year-old decided on his dramatic change of mind after a day of meetings
BARCELONA: Xavi will remain as coach of Barcelona, the Spanish giants told AFP on Wednesday, despite having announced in January that he planned to quit at the end of the season.
Spanish media reported that the 44-year-old, who had signed a contract extension until 2025 last autumn, decided on his dramatic change of mind after a day of meetings with club president Joan Laporta and sporting director Deco.
