World News

Israel’s pledge to eliminate Hamas raises fears of what lies ahead on October 11, 2023 at 4:27 pm

Published

3 years ago

October 11, 2023

In the aftermath of Hamas’s surprise and brutal assault over the weekend, Israeli and U.S. officials are saying the terrorist group must not be allowed to survive.

“Just as the forces of civilization united to defeat ISIS, the forces of civilization must support Israel in defeating Hamas,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in an address to the nation this week.

But it’s a goal that has no clear timeline or roadmap, and one that will be difficult to carry out.

Israeli officials and regional experts are warning of, at least, a months-long Israeli military campaign in the Gaza Strip. And there are immediate fears that the conflict could spill out across the region and beyond.

While Hamas’s main base of military operations are in Gaza – a narrow strip of sandy land sandwiched between Israel, Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea – its leadership lives across the world.

And its funding and military materials are largely provided by Iran, whose militant network extends to Hezbollah in Lebanon, militias in Iraq and the Houthis in Yemen.

“We understand that you cannot kill ideas, but you absolutely can demolish the regime or the leadership,” said Neumi Neumann, former director of research for Israel’s internal security agency, the Shin Bet, now a visiting fellow with the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

She said a narrow campaign could avoid a larger conflict, focused on targeting Hamas’s two top leaders, Yahya Sinwar, the group’s leader based in Gaza, and Saleh Al-Arouri, deputy head of Hamas’s political bureau, who lives in Lebanon.

“They both are trying to incite Palestinians in the West Bank, they incite Israeli Arabs inside east Jerusalem. They are trying to do a multi-front campaign against Israel.”

Both Democrats and Republicans have come out to say that Hamas cannot survive.

The group needs to be “taken off the battlefield, that could mean kill or capture, whatever the Israelis need to do,” Rep. Jason Crow (D-Col.) said to reporters Tuesday evening after a classified briefing on Israel.

“It’s clear that Hamas needs to be fully neutralized here, and there’s bipartisan consensus around that issue.”

Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), speaking to Fox News from Jerusalem after leading a congressional delegation across the Middle East, said Israel will not be safe until Hamas is gone.

“It is extremely important that Israel proceed and make sure that they are absolutely destroying Hamas,” she said.

“This organization I would equate to ISIS. They are barbarians, and yes there will be some horrible tragedies along the way, but Israel is warning the people of the Gaza Strip, please move away from those Hamas targets. But Israel will not be safe, the people will not be safe until Hamas is gone.”

Both the European Union and United Nations have already warned that Israel is committing war crimes in its response to Hamas, pointing to Jerusalem’s announcement of a sweeping siege on Gaza.

Biden has avoided similar public statements, giving Israel space to target Hamas in what is likely to be a brutal military operation on the densely populated Gaza Strip, where the terrorist group has blended its infrastructure among the civilian population.

Israel is reportedly preparing to launch a ground assault on Hamas-controlled territory, which would begin a bloody new phase in the war.

“The calls in Israel to topple Hamas now are loud. I do not know if they will win the day, but I would not rule it out,” Natan Sachs, director of the Center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institution, said on a panel Tuesday.

“It is possible that Israel will try to go all the way in or find itself going all the way in [to Gaza]. And what would be the day after? I don’t know. And more importantly, the Israeli leadership doesn’t know. It would be an extremely difficult, possibly terrible scenario afterwards.”

Shibley Telhami, a nonresident senior fellow at Brookings and a former senior advisor to the State Department, said in the panel discussion that the U.S. has a critical role as a level-headed advisor to Israel.

“I also think that one cannot be confident that the policies that are being made right now – whether it’s by Hamas or by Israel, anybody else – is sound policy,” Telhami said.

“It’s on the fly. This came as a shocker. The urge to respond is not necessarily going to lead to wise decisions. And I think the United States has a critical role in counseling.”

Israeli hearts are hardened amid the trauma of Hamas’s assault, a barrage of missile attacks alongside more than 1,000 of its fighter’s infiltrating nearly a dozen communities in the south and attacking a music festival. Hamas massacred people in their homes and kidnapped others, with estimates putting the dead in Israel at more than 1,000 and at least 150 hostages taken into Gaza.

And now Palestinians in Gaza are suffering under punishing Israeli air strikes against Hamas targets and caught behind a hermetically sealed blockade.

Gaza’s Ministry of Health, which operates under Hamas’s control of the strip, said that more than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed since Saturday – when Hamas launched its assault on Israel – and more than 5,000 injured, with 60 percent of those women and children. Nearly 200,000 Gazans are believed displaced amid punishing Israeli air strikes.

U.S. officials are so far silencing calls for a ceasefire and holding back criticism of Israel’s decision to cut off electricity, water and supplies to Gaza, and sending extra military support for Israel’s Defense Forces.

“Israel has a right to conduct an aggressive response to respond to the terrorism that’s been committed against its citizens,” State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters on Tuesday when asked about whether cutting off supplies to Gaza constituted a war crime.

“We expect them to follow international law, we believe that they will, and we will remain in close contact with them about it.”

Biden is also challenged with avoiding a larger outbreak of war in the region, sending the U.S.’s most advanced carrier strike group to deter Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon from trying to open up separate fronts against Israel.

“Let me say again — to any country, any organization, anyone thinking of taking advantage of this situation, I have one word: Don’t. Don’t,” the president said in remarks at the White House on Tuesday.

Both U.S. and Israeli officials say there’s no evidence that Iran had a direct hand in the Hamas attack, even as they acknowledge Tehran’s longtime military backing of the terrorist group.

It’s a delicate distinction. A more direct Iranian role in the attack could push the U.S and Israel into a direct confrontation with Tehran – particularly with at least 14 Americans believed to have been killed in Hamas’s assault and at least 20 Americans taken hostage.

National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said the U.S. acknowledges that Iran is “complicit” in Hamas’s assault, but said there’s no confirmation that Iran knew about the attack “in advance or helped plan or direct this attack”.

Even as Republicans are irate at the Biden administration’s policy towards Iran, their calls for action have largely centered around freezing $6 billion of Iranian funds that the U.S. had freed up in exchange for releasing American prisoners, along with calls for imposing more sanctions.

There’s near unanimous support in Congress to fulfill what is likely to be a White House request for more aid to Israel. However, the request may also inflame ongoing debates of US support for Israel, and how it should be balanced with America’s other military commitments, like aid for Ukraine.

The House is largely paralyzed until Republicans can elect a new Speaker after ousting Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) earlier this month. However, interim Speaker Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) has suggested Congress might act to support Israel without a permanent speaker if necessary.

Meanwhile, the White House has dispatched Secretary of State Antony Blinken to Israel in a signal of solidarity.

“In the days ahead, we will continue to stand with our Israeli partners,” Blinken said in a statement ahead of his departure Wednesday.

“As I head to Israel, I will be working to ensure they are equipped to defend themselves and making sure any hostile parties know they must not seek to take advantage of the situation.”

In the aftermath of Hamas’s surprise and brutal assault over the weekend, Israeli and U.S. officials are saying the terrorist group must not be allowed to survive. “Just as the forces of civilization united to defeat ISIS, the forces of civilization must support Israel in defeating Hamas,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in an…

Business

GLOBAL SUSTAINABILITY SUMMIT RETURNS FOR ITS 5TH EDITION AT THE BRITISH PARLIAMENT – HOUSE OF LORDS, PALACE OF WESTMINSTER

Published

1 month ago

May 16, 2026

Bolanle Media Staff

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Theme: “People, Planet, and Profit in the Age of AI and Innovation”

London, United Kingdom — The Global Sustainability Summit (GSS) is officially back for its landmark 5th Edition, continuing its legacy as one of the leading international platforms driving sustainable development, climate action, ethical investment, innovation, and global collaboration.

Convened annually at the prestigious British Parliament, House of Lords, Palace of Westminster, by Ambassador Canon Chinenem Otto, the Summit has, over the last four years, successfully fostered international dialogue and partnerships that have contributed to the advancement of global sustainability goals, the establishment of sustainability-focused ministries, departments and policy structures across national and subnational governments, and the attraction of major investors into sustainable development projects, corporations and emerging economies.

This year’s summit, themed “People, Planet, and Profit in the Age of AI and Innovation,” will explore how emerging technologies, responsible leadership, sustainable finance, innovation, and global partnerships can shape a more inclusive, resilient and environmentally conscious future.

The 5th Edition promises to be the most impactful yet, bringing together world leaders, policymakers, diplomats, investors, academics, innovators, climate experts and youth leaders from across the globe to discuss actionable solutions toward achieving a sustainable and equitable future.

Among the distinguished speakers, delegates and honorees already lined up for the Summit are:

• His Excellency Mallam AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq — Executive Governor of Kwara State, Nigeria and Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum

• His Excellency Senator Prince Bassey Otu — Executive Governor of Cross River State, Nigeria

• Ambassador Patricia Espinosa Cantellano — Former Executive Secretary of UN Climate Change (UNFCCC) and Former Foreign Minister of Mexico

• Lord Marvin Rees, Baron Rees of Easton OBE — Member of the House of Lords, United Kingdom

• Hon. Neema K. Lugangira — Secretary-General of Women Political Leaders (WPL), Brussels and Former Member of Parliament

• Her Excellency Dr. Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah — President of the Republic of Namibia

• His Excellency Nangolo Mbumba — Former President of Namibia

• Former President of Tanzania

• Her Excellency Ambassador Professor Olufolake AbdulRazaq — First Lady of Kwara State, Nigeria and Chairperson of Nigeria Governors’ Spouses Forum

• Your Excellency Dr. Dikko Umar Radda, PhD, CON — Executive Governor of Katsina State and Chairman of the Northwest Governors Forum, Nigeria

• Hon. Sam Shafiishuna Nujoma — Governor of Khomas Region, Namibia

• H.E. Mr. Veiccoh Nghiwete — High Commissioner of the Republic of Namibia to the United Kingdom

• Her Excellency Ms. Macenje “Che Che” Mazoka — High Commissioner of Zambia to the United Kingdom

• Ms. Danielle Newman — Partner Lead, ICT, World Economic Forum

• Leanne Elliott Young — Co-founder, Institute of Digital Fashion & CommuneEast

• Ms. Chloe Russell — Producer & Presenter, Art, Science and Nature

• Professor Marie-Claire Cordonier Segger — University of Cambridge & University of Waterloo

• Dr. Alexandra R. Harrington — IUCN World Commission on Environmental Law (WCEL)

• Professor Payam Akhavan — Massey College, University of Toronto

• Mr. Mallai C. E. Sathya — President, Dravida Vetri Kazhagam and International Movement for Tamil Culture Asia

The Summit will feature high-level panel discussions, strategic investment conversations, sustainability awards, policy dialogues, innovation showcases, youth engagement sessions and international networking opportunities focused on climate resilience, ethical financing, food-water-energy sustainability, circular economy, artificial intelligence, diplomacy and sustainable development.

Speaking ahead of the Summit, Convener Ambassador Canon Chinenem Otto noted:

“As the world rapidly evolves through artificial intelligence and technological innovation, we must ensure that sustainability remains people-centered, environmentally responsible and economically inclusive. The Global Sustainability Summit continues to serve as a bridge connecting governments, institutions, innovators and investors to accelerate practical sustainability solutions globally. Our fifth edition is not only a celebration of progress made over the years, but also a renewed call for global collaboration and actionable impact toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and Net Zero ambitions.”

The Global Sustainability Summit continues to position itself as a catalyst for transformative partnerships and sustainable global progress, reinforcing the urgent need for collective action toward a more resilient and sustainable future.

More announcements regarding additional speakers, partners and summit activities will be unveiled in the coming weeks.

News

US May Completely Cut Income Tax Due to Tariff Revenue

Published

7 months ago

November 30, 2025

Bolanle Media Staff

President Donald Trump says the United States might one day get rid of federal income tax because of money the government collects from tariffs on imported goods. Tariffs are extra taxes the U.S. puts on products that come from other countries.

What Trump Is Saying

Trump has said that tariff money could become so large that it might allow the government to cut income taxes “almost completely.” He has also talked about possibly phasing out income tax over the next few years if tariff money keeps going up.

How Taxes Work Now

Right now, the federal government gets much more money from income taxes than from tariffs. Income taxes bring in trillions of dollars each year, while tariffs bring in only a small part of that total. Because of this gap, experts say tariffs would need to grow by many times to replace income tax money.

Questions From Experts

Many economists and tax experts doubt that tariffs alone could pay for the whole federal budget. They warn that very high tariffs could make many imported goods more expensive for shoppers in the United States. This could hit lower- and middle‑income families hardest, because they spend a big share of their money on everyday items.

What Congress Must Do

The president can change some tariffs, but only Congress can change or end the federal income tax. That means any real plan to remove income tax would need new laws passed by both the House of Representatives and the Senate. So far, there is no detailed law or full budget plan on this idea.

What It Means Right Now

For now, Trump’s comments are a proposal, not a change in the law. People and businesses still have to pay federal income tax under the current rules. The debate over using tariffs instead of income taxes is likely to continue among lawmakers, experts, and voters.

News

Epstein Files to Be Declassified After Trump Order

Published

7 months ago

November 20, 2025

Bolanle Media Staff

Former President Donald Trump has signed an executive order directing federal agencies to declassify all government files related to Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier whose death in 2019 continues to fuel controversy and speculation.

The order, signed Wednesday at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, instructs the FBI, Department of Justice, and intelligence agencies to release documents detailing Epstein’s network, finances, and alleged connections to high-profile figures. Trump described the move as “a step toward transparency and public trust,” promising that no names would be shielded from scrutiny.

“This information belongs to the American people,” Trump said in a televised statement. “For too long, powerful interests have tried to bury the truth. That ends now.”

U.S. intelligence officials confirmed that preparations for the release are already underway. According to sources familiar with the process, the first batch of documents is expected to be made public within the next 30 days, with additional releases scheduled over several months.

Reactions poured in across the political spectrum. Supporters praised the decision as a bold act of accountability, while critics alleged it was politically motivated, timed to draw attention during a volatile election season. Civil rights advocates, meanwhile, emphasized caution, warning that some records could expose private victims or ongoing legal matters.

The Epstein case, which implicated figures in politics, business, and entertainment, remains one of the most talked-about scandals of the past decade. Epstein’s connections to influential individuals—including politicians, royals, and executives—have long sparked speculation about the extent of his operations and who may have been involved.

Former federal prosecutor Lauren Fields said the release could mark a turning point in public discourse surrounding government transparency. “Regardless of political stance, this declassification has the potential to reshape how Americans view power and accountability,” Fields noted.

Officials say redactions may still occur to protect sensitive intelligence or personal information, but the intent is a near-complete disclosure. For years, critics of the government’s handling of Epstein’s case have accused agencies of concealing evidence or shielding elites from exposure. Trump’s order promises to change that narrative.

As anticipation builds, journalists, legal analysts, and online commentators are preparing for what could be one of the most consequential information releases in recent history.