Thursday, January 16, 2025
Wednesday, January 15, 2025
#Newsflash: Biden calls for immediate Gaza ceasefire in call with Netanyahu
WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden spoke on Sunday (Jan 12) with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the White House said, as US officials race to reach a Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal before Biden leaves office on Jan 20.
Biden and Netanyahu discussed efforts underway to reach a deal to halt the fighting in the Palestinian enclave and free the remaining hostages there, the White House said in a statement after the two leaders spoke by telephone.
Biden "stressed the immediate need for a ceasefire in Gaza and return of the hostages with a surge in humanitarian aid enabled by a stoppage in the fighting under the deal", it said.
Netanyahu updated Biden on progress in the talks and on the mandate he has given his top-level security delegation now in Doha in order to advance a hostage deal, Netanyahu said in a statement.
The two leaders also discussed "the fundamentally changed regional circumstances following the ceasefire deal in Lebanon, the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, and the weakening of Iran’s power in the region", the White House said.
Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan told CNN's State of the Union programme earlier on Sunday that the parties were "very, very close" to reaching a deal, but still had to get it across the finish line.
He said Biden was getting daily updates on the talks in Doha, where Israeli and Palestinian officials have said since Thursday that some progress has been made in the indirect talks between Israel and the militant group Hamas.
"We are still determined to use every day we have in office to get this done," Sullivan said, "and we are not, by any stretch of imagination, setting this aside".
He said there was still a chance to reach an agreement before Biden leaves office, but that it was also possible "Hamas, in particular, remains intransigent".
During their call, Netanyahu also thanked Biden for his lifelong support of Israel and "the extraordinary support from the United States for Israel’s security and national defence", the White House said.
Israel launched its assault in Gaza after Hamas fighters stormed across its borders in October 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
Since then, more than 46,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to Palestinian health officials, with much of the enclave laid to waste and gripped by a humanitarian crisis, and most of its population displaced.
Vice President-elect JD Vance told the Fox News Sunday programme in an interview taped on Saturday that he expects a deal for the release of US hostages in the Middle East to be announced in the final days of the Biden administration, maybe in the last day or two.
President-elect Donald Trump, a staunch supporter of Israel, has strongly backed Netanyahu's goal of destroying Hamas. He has promised to bring peace to the Middle East but has not said how he would accomplish that.
Source Channel News Asia
#Newsflash: ROM, ROMM to relocate to Esplanade Mall from April 14 to facilitate redevelopment
SINGAPORE – The Registry of Marriages (ROM) and Registry of Muslim Marriages (ROMM) will be temporarily relocating to an interim site at Esplanade Mall while its existing site undergoes redevelopment.
The current site in Canning Rise will cease operations after April 11 and resume services at Level 3 of the mall on April 14, taking over part of the space formerly occupied by library@esplanade.
The Canning Rise site will undergo redevelopment from 2025 to 2028 to better meet the needs of couples as a solemnisation venue and to prepare them for their marriage journey, said the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) and the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) in a joint statement on Jan 14.
To facilitate the move, in-person appointments and solemnisations at the current site will not be available during the weekend of April 12 to 13.
Solemnisations held at external venues, including video-linked solemnisations, will not be affected, the two ministries said.
All existing ROM and ROMM appointments and solemnisations scheduled from April 14 onwards will be automatically transferred to the Esplanade Mall interim site. Couples who have already made such bookings will be notified of the change.
ROM and ROMM has been at its current location in Canning Rise since 1983.
The redeveloped building will have key features including the re-creation of the original site’s iconic pitched roof, larger and more modern solemnisation venues like a rooftop solemnisation space, and green spaces within the building.
Sustainability is also a key focus, with features such as energy-efficient building management systems and sustainable materials factored into the building.
More details of the new ROM and ROMM building will be shared at a later date, MSF and MCCY said.
During the transition period, couples are advised to check the Our Marriage Journey portal for the latest information.
The public can also call the ROM hotline on 6338-7808 and the ROMM hotline on 6337-0207 for queries regarding the shift to the Esplanade Mall.
Source The Straits Times
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)