German chancellor speaks with Israeli PM Lapid following Abbas Holocaust remark in Berlin

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid on Thursday, addressing remarks about the Holocaust made by Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas during a recent visit to Berlin.

Scholz had tweeted on Wednesday that Abbas's claim that Israel has committed "50 Holocausts" against Palestinians was "intolerable and unacceptable." He then wanted to address it directly with Lapid, who is the son of Holocaust survivors.

"At the start of their conversation, the German Chancellor emphasized that he rejects and condemns Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’s remarks, and that it was important for him to clarify this personally to the Prime Minister, as well as publicly," Lapid's office said in a press release about their conversation.

"I thanked him for this condemnation as Israel’s Prime Minister and the son of a Holocaust survivor," Lapid said in a tweet acknowledging the conversation. The two leaders then addressed a current existential threat to the Jewish State: Iran. The Islamic nation's leadership has often vowed to wipe Israel off the map, and recent negotiations for a new international agreement regarding its nuclear program have yet to bear fruit.

In their conversation, Lapid stressed Israel's opposition to returning to the original deal, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which Israel had viewed as not going far enough to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon. Lapid stressed to Scholz that Europe cannot make concessions to Iran, nor should they allow Iran to delay the negotiating process. The Israeli prime minister reiterated this on Twitter. "Iran cannot be allowed to endlessly buy time in Vienna," he said.

Comments

Government to take greater control of Liverpool city council

Intervention expanded to include financial decisions and governance after report calls for urgent reform. The government’s intervention in the running of Liverpool city council is to be expanded to include governance and financial decision-making. It comes after the publication of another critical report on the local authority by four commissioners appointed last year to work with the council staff in key areas after an inspection. The report, published on Friday and addressed to the communities secretary, Greg Clark, said certain services were “failing” and in need of “urgent reform”. It warns that poor performance in procurement, finance and auditing are limiting the “council’s ability to operate at a crucial time” and called for an added role of “finance commissioner”. It comes after a report in June revealed that Liverpool city council’s failure to renew contracts across a number of services could cost it millions. Clark, in a letter to the commissioners, rai...

Australian government launches offshore petroleum exploration permits for 47,000 sq km of ocean

Resources minister says exploration ‘central to alleviating future domestic gas shortfalls’ but Greens slam ‘mockery’ of climate target The Albanese government has launched its first offshore petroleum exploration permits, opening up nearly 47,000 sq km of Australian waters to oil and gas exploration. Ten areas stretching from the Ashmore and Cartier Islands in the Indian Ocean to Victoria’s Gippsland basin have been opened for exploration, in what the resources minister, Madeleine King, said would “play an important role in securing future energy supplies”. “At the same time as we strive to reduce emissions, it must be emphasised that continued exploration for oil and gas in commonwealth waters is central to alleviating future domestic gas shortfalls,” she said. “Australia’s energy sector also continues to support international energy security, particularly during the global turbulence caused largely by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.”. But the move will further alarm enviro...

Elon Musk subpoenas former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey in takeover dispute

Elon Musk has subpoenaed his friend and former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey as part of an effort to back out of his $44bn agreement to acquire the social media platform. The subpoena was revealed in a court document on Monday. Musk and Twitter are embroiled in a legal battle after the billionaire businessman offered to buy the company – then tried to back out, claiming that Twitter had failed to provide adequate information about the number of fake, or “spam bot”, accounts on the platform. Twitter argues that Musk’s reasons for backing out are just a cover for buyer’s remorse. Twitter and Musk are headed for a 17 October trial in Delaware that should determine whether or not the company can force him to go through with the acquisition. In recent weeks, Twitter has subpoenaed a host of tech investors and entrepreneurs connected to Musk, including the prominent venture capitalist Marc Andreessen and David Sacks, the founding chief operating officer of PayPal. Bot and sp...

24-7newsallround

Search This Blog