LONDON: A pro-Palestinian activist slashed a painting of the early 20th-century British foreign minister Arthur Balfour at Cambridge University on Friday, saying his 1917 declaration was the reason the Palestinians had lost their homeland to Israel.
A video posted on social media by the Palestine Action protest group showed a woman spraying red paint over the life-size portrait before cutting it repeatedly with a knife — the latest in a flurry of protests prompted by the Israel-Hamas war.
Balfour’s declaration, made as Ottoman rule was crumbling in the Middle East and Britain a global power, said London would “view with favor the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people” and work toward it — albeit without prejudicing “the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities.”
It was the first time a major power had publicly expressed support for a Jewish homeland, gave a boost to the growing worldwide Zionist movement — and shaped what was to become interim British “mandate” rule of Palestine from 1918 onward.
Palestinians have long demanded that Britain apologize for the 67-word statement.
British oversight of Palestine ended traumatically in 1947-48 with war between Jews and Arabs, the declaration of the State of Israel and the exodus of some 750,000 Palestinians who were forced out or fled.
“Balfour’s declaration began the ethnic cleansing of Palestine by promising the land away — which the British never had the right to do,” Palestine Action said in a caption accompanying the clip.
Last week, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called for tougher policing of protests in light of an increase in hate speech.
His government has particularly alleged threatening behavior by some of those attending a wave of protests against the thousands of civilian deaths and the humanitarian crisis caused by Israel’s assault on the Gaza Strip.
Sunak said people had the right to protest, but could not use support for Gaza’s Palestinians to justify backing Hamas, the armed movement that rules Gaza, which Britain considers a terrorist group.
More than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israel’s military since Oct. 7, when Palestinian militants led by Hamas killed 1,200 people in southern Israel and abducted 253, by Israeli counts.
Cambridge’s Trinity College said it regretted the damage, and that support was available for college members.
Activist slashes painting of British author of Jewish homeland declaration
https://arab.news/2n4t9
Activist slashes painting of British author of Jewish homeland declaration
- A video posted on social media by the Palestine Action protest group showed a woman spraying red paint over the life-size portrait before cutting it repeatedly with a knife
- It was the first time a major power had publicly expressed support for a Jewish homeland
Trump cuts India tariffs as Modi ‘agrees’ to stop buying Russian oil
- US will impose an 18 percent tariff on Indian goods, down from the earlier 50 percent punitive levy
- Withdrawal from Russian oil may affect India’s relations with BRICS, expert says
NEW DELHI: The US and India have announced reaching a trade agreement after months of friction, with President Donald Trump saying that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had “agreed” to halt purchases of Russian oil.
In August, Trump accused India, which imports most of its crude oil, of funding Moscow’s war in Ukraine and subjected it to a combined tariff rate of about 50 percent on most of the exports.
Following a call with Modi on Monday, Trump took to social media to say that he would cut with immediate effect US levies on Indian goods to 18 percent after Modi “agreed to stop buying Russian Oil, and to buy much more from the United States and, potentially, Venezuela.”
At the same time, India, Trump wrote, would “reduce their Tariffs and Non Tariff Barriers against the United States, to ZERO,” committing to buy “over $500 BILLION DOLLARS of US Energy, Technology, Agricultural, Coal, and many other products.”
Modi confirmed the agreement on social media, saying: “Made in India products will now have a reduced tariff of 18 percent,” without commenting on Russian oil or duty-free imports of American goods.
When the US announced its punitive tariffs last year, India quickly moved forward with free trade negotiations with other countries — signing a deal with Oman and finalizing negotiations with New Zealand and the EU.
While the agreements were expected to partially offset the loss of exports to the US, economists did not expect they would immediately mitigate it, as shifting supply chains takes time.
The newly announced agreement with the US will therefore offer short-term relief for Indian exporters — especially of textiles, gems, jewelry and marine products — who were facing the threat of a market exit.
“In that case, the trade deal with the US is a welcome step. It provides short-term relief, allowing India to continue exporting to the US without being forced to exit the US market and diversify with a huge transition cost,” said Anisree Suresh, geoeconomics researcher at the Takshashila Institution.
“However, one shouldn’t look at it as a comprehensive long-term trade deal like the one India signed with the EU. The unpredictability of the Trump administration remains a major concern, regardless of whether there is a trade deal with the US ... India cannot treat this deal the same as other FTAs, as it is limited in scope and subject to reversal.”
When the US imposed its punitive tariffs on India, about 66 percent of total Indian exports were subject to that rate. Overall, India recorded a negative margin of 19.5 percent, meaning its exports were taxed more heavily than those of its competitors.
“From that point of view, Indian goods will have a larger market over there. However, there’s a problem when we talk about a 0 percent tariff on the US,” said Prof. Arun Kumar, a development economist.
“The US will be able to export a lot more to India, and therefore it will affect our production within the economy. And that will be a setback, so while exports may rise, the internal economy may actually suffer because of this decrease in tariffs on American goods. And especially if it affects agriculture.”
The sudden withdrawal from India’s partnership with Russia may not have a serious economic impact but politically could affect New Delhi’s relations, also with other countries, especially those from BRICS — a grouping that besides India and Russia includes also Brazil and China, and is the most powerful geopolitical forum outside of the Western world.
“You can always substitute Russian oil with some other oil, but I think it’s more of a strategic question, because India and Russia have had long-standing relationships, and if we bend to US pressure and reduce purchases from Russia, then it will affect in future also our relationship with Russia, because we will not be seen as a stable ally,” Kumar said.
“BRICS nations will not trust India very much in the future ... and that’s what Trump wants. He wants to disrupt BRICS. That’s what he has been doing right since the beginning to divide nations and deal with them individually.”
