Politics
Trump to head to Middle East, says hostages to be freed early next week

- Trump hopes to travel to Israel, where he may address parliament.
- Hostages will be coming back Monday or Tuesday: US president
- He adds dead bodies of some of hostages would be “hard to find”.
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said he expected to travel to the Middle East on Sunday to celebrate the first phase of the Gaza peace deal and be there for the release of hostages by Hamas.
Speaking at the White House on Thursday, Trump said the agreement between Israel and the Palestinian group had “ended the war in Gaza.”
The US leader added that “nobody’s going to be forced to leave” the Palestinian territory under his 20-point peace plan, which formed the basis for indirect negotiations between Hamas and Israel in Egypt.
He said he hoped to travel to Israel, where he may address parliament, and maybe to Egypt.
“The hostages will be coming back Monday or Tuesday. I’ll probably be there, I hope to be there,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, referring to hostages taken by Hamas on October 7, 2023.
But Trump said that the bodies of some of the dead hostages would be “hard to find.”
Hamas took 251 people hostage into Gaza, where 47 remain, including 25 the Israeli military says are dead.
Israel’s campaign in Gaza has devastated the territory and killed tens of thousands of Palestinians.
‘Disarming, pullbacks’
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said earlier that he had invited his US counterpart to take part in a “celebration to be held in Egypt” for the agreement for the first phase of a ceasefire.
The Republicans gave few details about the second phase of the peace deal and the future of Gaza.
During an earlier meeting of his cabinet, Trump said “there will be disarming, there will be pullbacks,” in apparent reference to Israel’s demand that Hamas disarm and calls by the Palestinian group for Israel to withdraw its forces, but did not elaborate.
He added that Gaza would be “slowly redone” and indicated that Arab states with “tremendous wealth” would help it rebuild, as well as possibly taking part in peacekeeping efforts.
‘High degree of intensity’
Trump, who in February proposed that the US take over Gaza, also rejected speculation that Palestinians could be forced out of the devastated enclave.
“Nobody’s going to be forced to leave. No, it’s just the opposite. This is a great plan,” Trump said.
Trump, however, played down the question of whether he would achieve his long-held dream of winning the Nobel Peace Prize, whose laureate is announced on Friday.
“I don’t know what they’re going to do, really. But I know this, that nobody in history has solved eight wars in a period of nine months,” he said in response to a question by an AFP reporter.
His cabinet officials lined up to praise him, led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who had on Wednesday handed the US president a note during an event saying a deal was imminent.
“Frankly, I don’t know of any American president in the modern era that could have made this possible,” Rubio said during the cabinet meeting.
Rubio also hinted at the tough negotiations that led to the agreement, which saw Trump pressure Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and rally Arab and Muslim states to lean on Hamas.
“One day, perhaps the entire story will be told,” Rubio said.
“The president had some extraordinary phone calls and meetings that required a high degree of intensity and commitment and made this happen.”
Politics
French teen faces jail in Singapore for licking vending machine straw

A French teenager has been charged with mischief and public nuisance in Singapore for licking a straw and putting it back in an orange juice vending machine, court documents showed Monday.
Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien, 18, allegedly filmed himself “licking a straw and placing it back at the vending machine”, uploaded the video on Instagram knowing that it “would or would probably cause annoyance to the public”, according to the documents.
The teenager is studying in Singapore, according to court records.
The public nuisance offence carries a jail term of up to three months and a fine.
A second charge of committing mischief said Maximilien knew that he was “likely to cause wrongful loss or damage” to iJooz, the company operating the vending machine which had to replace all 500 straws in the dispenser.
The mischief offence carries a punishment of up to two years in jail on conviction and a fine, according to the charge sheet.
Both offences were allegedly committed on March 12.
The charges were lodged before a district court last Friday, and the next hearing will be on May 22.
The Straits Times newspaper said the video “quickly went viral, sparking shock and concern among netizens”.
Politics
Araghchi arrives in Russia for close consultations on regional, international issues

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has arrived in Russia to continue close consultations between Tehran and Moscow on regional and international issues, and to enhance bilateral relations.
Speaking upon arrival at Pulkovo International Airport in St. Petersburg on Monday, Araghchi noted that due to the recent US-Israeli aggression against the country, there had been a gap in meetings with Russian counterparts.
“We have tried to use the available opportunity, following our trips to Pakistan and Oman, to travel to Russia,” he said.
Araghchi added that Monday’s meeting would be a good opportunity to discuss developments in the war and review the latest situation, expressing confidence that consultations and coordination between the two countries would be of particular importance.
Constructive consultations held in Pakistan
Regarding his trips to Islamabad and Oman over the past three days, the foreign minister emphasized the bilateral nature of the visits.
Pointing to Pakistan’s role as a mediator in Iran-US negotiations, Araghchi said it was necessary to review the latest situation with Pakistani officials.
“Previous negotiations, despite some progress, did not achieve their goals due to American approaches, their excessive demands, and their wrong policies. Therefore, we needed to hold consultations with our friends in Pakistan to review the latest developments,” Araghchi explained.
He stressed that Iran’s position in the negotiations is very important.
“We must secure the rights of the Iranian people after 40 days of resistance and protect the country’s interests,” he added.
Iran-Oman expert-level consultations on Strait of Hormuz to continue
Referring to his meetings with senior Omani officials, Araghchi noted that Iran and Oman are both littoral states of the Strait of Hormuz, and it is necessary for them to consult each other, especially as safe passage through the strait has become a globally significant issue.
“It is natural that as two coastal countries of this strait, we must talk to each other to secure our common interests and coordinate any action taken in this regard, because the interests of Iran and Oman are directly involved in this matter,” Araghchi said.
He confirmed that there is a broad consensus between Iran and Oman, and it was agreed during the visit that consultations would continue at the expert level.
Iran closed the waterway to the enemies and their allies following the launch of the US-Israeli aggression against Iran on February 28, with the assassination of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, and several top military commanders.
On April 8, forty days into the war, a temporary Pakistan-brokered ceasefire took effect. Talks ensued in Islamabad but stopped short of an agreement amid the United States’ maximalist demands and insistence on unreasonable positions.
Iran announced the reopening of the chokehold to commercial traffic following the announcement of a ceasefire by US President Donald Trump on April 7.
The country, however, imposed a total closure on the waterway on April 18 after Trump said the US was continuing an unlawful blockade it had imposed on Iran in continuation of unlawful aggression towards the country.
Politics
India names Modi party colleague envoy to Bangladesh as ties thaw

India named veteran politician Dinesh Trivedi as its next high commissioner to Bangladesh on Monday, in a rare appointment of a non–foreign service officer as New Delhi seeks to reset ties with its eastern neighbour.
Ties between the countries soured after a popular uprising forced Bangladesh’s long‑serving Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to flee to New Delhi in 2024, where she remains. Trivedi’s appointment highlights India’s push to rebuild trust with Bangladesh as it faces stiff competition from China for influence and business.
Trivedi, 75, a former railways and health minister, joined Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party in 2021 from a regional party in West Bengal, a border state that plays a key role in India’s ties with Bangladesh and where Modi has been seeking to expand his party’s influence in ongoing local elections.
“He is expected to take up the assignment shortly,” India’s Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement about Trivedi.
Relations between the two countries began improving only after an election in February brought Tarique Rahman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party to power, replacing an interim government that had veered strongly towards China.
Bangladesh’s foreign minister visited Delhi this month seeking increased fuel and fertiliser supplies, closer energy cooperation and eased travel restrictions, but one of the biggest sticking points remains India’s refusal so far to extradite Hasina.
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