Trump’s Justice Department ends Biden-era task force aimed at seizing assets of Russian oligarchs

CHICAGO: The chairman of Arab Americans for Trump told Arab News on Thursday that Donald Trump’s statements about taking over Gaza are “political rhetoric,” and that the US president is committed to a peaceful settlement between Israelis and Palestinians.

Dr. Bishara Bahbah said AAFT has changed its name to Arab Americans for Peace to lobby the Trump administration to bring about “lasting peace” based on the two-state solution.

He added that the group opposes any proposal to relocate Palestinians to neighboring countries or to convert Gaza into a regional resort. 

“We appreciate the president’s offer to clean and rebuild Gaza. However, the purpose should be to make Gaza habitable for Palestinians and no one else,” Bahbah said.

“The Palestine that we envision is one that would be on lands occupied by Israel in 1967: the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem as its capital.”

Bahbah brushed aside Trump’s Gaza comments as a style of American politics in which politicians toss out ideas to kick-start public debate.

“Trump promised specifically to us as a community to bring an end to the wars and an end to the killings of civilians,” he said.

“Secondly, Trump promised to bring about a lasting peace in the Middle East that’s satisfactory to all parties.

“He delivered on the ceasefire and sent back (special envoy to the Middle East) Steve Witkoff in order to ensure that the second phase of the ceasefire goes into effect.”

Bahbah, who met with Trump and several advisers during his election campaign, added: “The ceasefire was a major win for us because we were pleading as a community with the Biden administration to push the Israelis to accept a ceasefire, but clearly President (Joe) Biden and his top lieutenants weren’t pushing the Israelis hard enough.

“President Trump knew how to do it, and from our perspective, that was a big thank you to our community for our vote in supporting the president’s election.”

Regarding Trump’s suggestions that Egypt and Jordan take in Gazans, Bahbah said: “One has to be realistic. Why would Jordan and Egypt bear the brunt of Palestinian refugees when the Israelis were the cause of the Palestinians in Gaza becoming refugees and they caused the destruction of Gaza?”

Bahbah noted that Israel’s actions in Gaza were “funded and supported” by the Biden administration.

“Yes, the Israelis could retaliate for what Hamas did on Oct. 7 (2023), but not in a manner that demolishes 90 percent of the Gaza Strip.

“That’s way over the top. The Israelis have been brought to the International Court of Justice over this particular issue.”

MOSCOW: Russia said Thursday that Ukraine’s army had launched a fresh offensive in the Russian Kursk border region, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hailed Kyiv troops fighting on Russian soil.
Thursday marks six months since Kyiv stormed across the Russian border in a shock ground assault, capturing dozens of Russian border settlements and swathes of territory.
Russia has since been clawing back ground, but Ukraine sees its continued hold on parts of the area as a key bargaining chip in any future peace talks between the two sides.
Russia’s defense ministry said Thursday its troops had “foiled an attempted counter-offensive by the Ukrainian armed forces.”
It said the new fighting was around the villages of Ulanok and Cherkasskaya Konopelka, southeast of the regional hub of Sudzha, which is under Ukrainian control.
The area is about 10 kilometers (six miles) from the Ukrainian border.
Russia said Ukraine had deployed two mechanized battalions, tanks and armored vehicles in the attempted attack.
There has been no comment on the fresh offensive from officials in Kyiv.
But Zelensky on Thursday praised his troops fighting in the Kursk region and issued several units with state awards.
“The occupier can and should be beaten on its territory,” he said in a social media post.
“The Kursk operation clearly explains the meaning of the principle of ‘peace through strength’,” he said, referring to a message he has been promoting to secure ongoing military support from Ukraine’s western partners.

Russian soldiers captured
The Ukrainian military said earlier it had captured 909 Russian soldiers during the six-month offensive there.
“We have significantly replenished our exchange fund — hundreds and hundreds of Russian soldiers whom we are exchanging to bring Ukrainians back from captivity,” Zelensky said in an evening video address.
On Wednesday, each side released 150 captured soldiers in the latest prisoner-of-war exchange.
Russian authorities have faced simmering discontent from Kursk locals, who have seen family members trapped on the opposite side of the front line.
In a meeting with the region’s governor on Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged the situation there was “very difficult.”
Ukraine’s shock incursion — the first onto Russian territory by a foreign army since World War II — was an embarrassing setback for the Kremlin, almost three years into its full-scale offensive.
The Ukrainian military spokesperson for its forces in Kursk, Oleksiy Dmytrashkivsky, told AFP via phone on Thursday that “a little more than 1,500 people” were still living in part of the region now under its control.
Kyiv says the ground it holds in Kursk will be an important bargaining chip in any future peace negotiations with Russia, whose forces have been making steady gains across the front line in eastern Ukraine.