President Donald Trump listens people speak in support of Republican tax policy reform, during an event in the Grand Foyer of the White House, Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2017, in Washington.

U.S. President Donald Trump said the United States may withhold future payments to the Palestinians because they are "no longer willing to talk peace" with Israel, and that Israel would have "had to pay more" in future negotiations in return for his recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital in December.

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Trump made the comments on Twitter on Tuesday, saying: "It's not only Pakistan that we pay billions of dollars to for nothing, but also many other countries, and others. As an example, we pay the Palestinians HUNDRED OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS a year and get no appreciation or respect. They don’t even want to negotiate a long overdue peace treaty with Israel."

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...peace treaty with Israel. We have taken Jerusalem, the toughest part of the negotiation, off the table, but Israel, for that, would have had to pay more. But with the Palestinians no longer willing to talk peace, why should we make any of these massive future payments to them? — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 2, 2018

>>FACT CHECK: How much funding does the U.S. give the Palestinians - and what would happen if Trump cuts it

Trump went on to write: "We have taken Jerusalem, the toughest part of the negotiation, off the table, but Israel, for that, would have had to pay more. But with the Palestinians no longer willing to talk peace, why should we make any of these massive future payments to them?"

Trump's tweet implied that he intended to extract possible future concessions from Israel for his recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, and that in light of the subsequent Palestinian decision to stop all engagements with the Trump administration, he plans to significantly decrease American funding to the Palestinian Authority.

In response to the Trump's tweets, Dr. Hanan Ashrawi, a senior member of the PLO Executive Committee, said that Trump had "not only violated international law," but had "singlehandedly destroyed the very foundations of peace."

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Ashwari accused Trump of sabotaging the Palestinians' "search for peace, freedom and justice," charging that the U.S president was now blaming the Palestinians "for the consequences of his own irresponsible actions!"

Trump's comments came hours after U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, said during a press conference in New York that the Trump administration would cut funding to UNRWA, the UN's agency for aiding Palestinian refugees, unless the Palestinian Authority went back to the negotiating table.

It was not immediately clear from Haley's comments if she was referring only to UNRWA's funding, or to general U.S. funding related to the Palestinian Authority, but either way, her statement will be perceived as a threat and an attempt to coerce the Palestinians into peace talks under the guidance of the Trump administration.

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When @nikkihaley says the #US will stop funding @UNRWA - how big is the threat? Here is the agency’s 2016 top-20 donors list. The #US is the largest bilateral donor. Read more: https://t.co/BhWw2VTf9S pic.twitter.com/6KGqRpWKSN — Noa Landau (@noa_landau) January 2, 2018

"He doesn't want to give any additional funding until the Palestinians agree to come back to the negotiation table, and what we saw with the resolution was not helpful to the situation," Haley said. "We're trying to move for a peace process, but if that doesn't happen, the president is not going to continue to fund that situation."

Haley added that "I stood proudly, even if I was the only hand in the Security Council, to fight for the will of the people of the United States. They wanted to see the embassy moved to Jerusalem and we followed through with that. We very much still want to have a peace process, nothing changes with that. The Palestinians now have to show the world they want to come to the table. As of now, they're not coming to the table, but they ask for aid. We're not giving the aid, we're going to make sure they come to the table and we want to move forward with the peace process."

Thus far, UNRWA has not been informed of any changes in U.S. funding to the agency, organization spokesman Christopher Gunness said.</s>President Donald Trump said that "with the Palestinians no longer willing to talk peace, why should we make any of these massive future payments to them?” | Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images Trump floats cutting payments to Palestinians

President Donald Trump suggested on Tuesday that the U.S. should consider cutting payments to the Palestinians, saying their officials “don’t even want to negotiate a long overdue peace treaty with Israel.”

"[W]e pay the Palestinians HUNDRED OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS a year and get no appreciation or respect,” the president posted on Twitter. “They don’t even want to negotiate a long overdue peace treaty with Israel. We have taken Jerusalem, the toughest part of the negotiation, off the table, but Israel, for that, would have had to pay more.”

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He added: “But with the Palestinians no longer willing to talk peace, why should we make any of these massive future payments to them?”

It was unclear which payments to the Palestinian Authority the president was questioning. But the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, said earlier Tuesday that Trump planned to withhold money for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, the entity tasked with aiding Palestinian refugees, if their leaders did not fully engage in the U.S.-led peace process with Israel.

“He doesn’t want to give any additional funding until the Palestinians agree to come back to the negotiation table, and what we saw with the resolution was not helpful to the situation,” Haley told reporters at the U.N. headquarters in New York. “We’re trying to move for a peace process, but if that doesn’t happen, the president is not going to continue to fund that situation.”

Last month, Trump announced that the U.S. was recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and planned to move its embassy there from Tel Aviv. After an outcry from Palestinian officials, Yemen and Turkey drafted a U.N. resolution to demand that the U.S. reverse its decision. Trump floated the idea of cutting aid to U.N. nations that voted for the resolution, but the General Assembly overwhelmingly approved it, 128 to 9, with 35 nations abstaining.

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The president of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, said the Trump White House had “disqualified” itself from participating in the peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians after the U.S. failed to muster sufficient international support for its declaration on Jerusalem.

At the same time, the move by the White House has seemingly emboldened right-wing Israeli leaders.

The Likud Central Committee, the guiding group behind Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ruling party, voted unanimously over the weekend to approve a resolution calling for leaders to apply Israeli law to settlements in the West Bank. The resolution, which proposes unlimited construction in the West Bank, prompted a backlash from Palestinian authorities.

Early Tuesday, the Israeli Parliament voted to make it more difficult for both sides to negotiate Jerusalem in any peace negotiations. Both Israel and the Palestinians claim parts of Jerusalem as their capital, with the issue a linchpin in efforts to arrive at a two-state solution.

</s>The Rohingya exodus in Myanmar, and allies severing ties with Qatar, North Korea conducting its largest nuclear test and the end of autonomy in Spain's Catlonian region made headlines in 2017. 



The Harvey Weinstein scandal brought to light decades of sexual harassment inflicted by the Hollywood mogul, as over 40 victims confessed to have been harassed by him at some point of time in their lives. 



The fall of Zimbabwe's veteran President Robert Mugabe, and the US President, Donald Trump, leaving the 2015 Paris climate deal, were among other issues that made across the globe.Following is the diary of international events:Jan 1: Islamabad: today said India's bid at the UN to ban Masood Azhar was "politically motivated" and "replete with frivolous information", two days after its close ally blocked the proposal to get the JeM chief and Pathankot attack mastermind listed as a global terrorist.Jan 2: Rio De Janeiro: At least 60 inmates died during a prison riot in the northern state of Amazonas, including several who were beheaded or dismembered, Brazilian state authorities said today.Jan 4: Washington: US President-elect Donald Trump today appointed young Indian-American Raj Shah, who played a leading role in the Republican party's anti-Clinton campaign during polls, to a key White House position.Jan 5: Istanbul: A Turkish court today sentenced two army officers to life in jail over their roles in the failed July coup, the first verdicts to be handed out in the biggest legal process in the country's history.Jan 6: Houston: At least five people were killed and eight others njured today when a gunman opened fire at US' Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Florida, the latest mass shooting incident to rock the country.Jan 7: Beirut: A massive tanker truck bomb ripped through a market by a courthouse in the rebel-held Syrian town of Azaz, killing 48 people and wounding dozens near the Turkish border.Jan 8: Kathmandu: In a historic verdict, Nepal's apex court ordered the removal of the country's anti-corruption head from his post, saying that he did not meet qualifications required to hold the powerful post.Jan 9: Islamabad: successfully test-fired its first Submarine-Launched Cruise Missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead up to 450 kms, with the military saying the strategic weapon has given the country a "credible" second-strike capability and augmenting deterrence amidst tensions withJan 10: Washington: US President-elect Donald Trump appointed his 35-year-old son-in-law Jared Kushner as his senior advisor that would make him one of the most powerful individuals in the incoming White House team, prompting Democrats to immediately call for a review of the move, citing nepotism laws and potential conflicts.Jan 11: New York: US President-elect Donald Trump said that pending negotiations with the Mexican government, his administration would immediately move ahead with its plan to construct a wall along the southern border to keep out illegal migrants and Mexico would reimburse it.Jan 12: London: Amid a visa clampdown on foreign students by the UK, there has been a sharp drop in the number of Indians coming to study in the country's higher education institutions over the previous year, according to new data released.Jan 13: London: The UK has launched a new placement scheme to bring in doctors from to plug shortages in the emergency departments of its state-funded National Health Service.Jan 14: Dhaka: Bangladesh police today said they have arrested a top Islamist militant accused of being one of the "masterminds" of the country's worst terror attack at a popular Dhaka cafe and plotting murders of religious minorities including two Hindu priests.Jan 15: Karachi: has handed over two ships to the Navy to safeguard the strategic Gwadar port and trade routes under the USD 46 billion China- Economic Corridor, a move likely to raise alarm inJan 16: Seoul: In a departure from the leniency typically given to South Korean big businesses, prosecutors today requested the arrest of the de facto head of Samsung Electronics, the country's most valuable company, in an influence-peddling scandal that has toppled the country's president.Jan 17: Rome: Four people died and nearly 180 are missing, presumed dead, after Saturday's migrant ship capsize in the Mediterranean, officials said today after interviewing a handful of survivors.Jan 18: Washington: Describing the US' ties with as "extraordinarily complicated", the Obama administration today hoped that the incoming Trump government would deepen its security and counter-terrorism cooperation with to make America a safer place.Jan 19: Islamabad: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif today raked up the Kashmir issue in his first meeting with the new UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres but got no positive response to his request for the world body's intervention in the issue.Jan 20: London/Colombo: Protests demanding lifting of the ban on bull-taming sport 'jallikattu' have spread to outside with the Tamil diaspora in Sri Lanka, Britain and Australia holding demonstrations against the ban.Jan 21: Washington: After spending his first night at the White House, the US President Donald Trump today kicked off the first full day of his presidency with a national prayer breakfast that also included Hindu and Sikh prayer services among others.Jan 22: Paris: Partial results suggest that Manuel Valls, a center-leaning former prime minister who rallied France together after extremist attacks, will confront stalwart Socialist Benoit Hamon in the country's left-wing presidential primary runoff.Jan 23: Washington: The White House today warned that the United States will defend "international interests" in the South Sea and that trade must be a "two-way street."Jan 24: Washington: US President Donald Trump has asked FBI director James Comey to stay in his post, despite criticism for his actions during the presidential election which many Democrats say damaged Hillary Clinton's candidacy, media reports said today.Jan 25: Washington: US President Donald Trump took a first step toward fulfilling his pledge to "build a wall" on the Mexican border today, signing two immigration-related decrees.Jan 26: Washington: US President Donald Trump today defended his plan to limit the entry of people from several Muslim countries, saying it was necessary as the world is "a total mess", even as he was non-committal on whether nations like Pakistan, Afghanistan and would be on the list of the proposed visa ban.Jan 27: Washington: US President Donald Trump today played down speculation that he may lift sanctions on Russia, even as British Prime Minister Theresa May urged him to continue with them until Moscow implements the international agreement on Ukraine.Jan 28: Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin and his new US counterpart Donald Trump agree to develop relations "as equals" and to establish "real coordination" against the Islamic State group in Syria, the Kremlin says.Jan 29: Khartoum: Sudan summons US charge d'affaires Steven Koutsis to protest President Donald Trump's visa ban which has already prevented some of its citizens from flying to the United States.Jan 30: Washington: Former US president Barack Obama expresses his objections to any faith-based discrimination, in an apparent dig at his successor Donald Trump's ban on nationals of seven Muslim-majority countries entering the country.Jan 31: Baghdad: President Donald Trump's travel ban that prevents Iraqis from entering the United States punishes people who are "fighting terrorism," Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi says.Feb 1: Washington: The US Senate confirms former ExxonMobil chief Rex Tillerson as the next secretary of state, handing a major boost to President Donald Trump as he builds his cabinet.Feb 2: Washington: Hammered by political opponents for his alleged "Muslim ban" policy, US President Donald Trump says his administration will do everything in its power to defend and protect religious liberty of America, which will remain a tolerant society where all faiths are respected.Feb 3: Paris: A French soldier patrolling at the Louvre museum shoots and seriously injures a machete-wielding attacker, thrusting security and the terror threat back into the limelight three months before elections.Feb 4: Washington/Los Angeles: An American judge imposes a temporary, nationwide hold on Donald Trump's ban on travellers and immigrants from seven Muslim-majority nations, in a major blow to the US President's controversial order.Feb 5: Islamabad: Upping the ante, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said Kashmir is the "core dispute" between and and the dream of peace and prosperity of the people of the region will remain elusive without resolving the issue.Feb 6: San Francisco: Silicon Valley's top firms, including Microsoft, Apple and Google, are among 97 technology giants that have files a motion in a US court against President Donald Trump's controversial immigration order calling it "violation" of the laws and the Constitution.Feb 7: Islamabad: decides to build at least 50 bunkers for civilians along the Working Boundary with in the Punjab province to provide protection during cross- border firing incidents.Feb 8: Washington: Two top US senators proposed a legislation to cut the number of legal immigrants to the US by half within a decade, a move that could adversely hit those aspiring to get a green card or permanent residency in the US including a large number of Indians.Feb 9: London: British Parliament overwhelmingly supports a bill empowering Prime Minister Theresa May to start crucial negotiations by March 31 on leaving the European Union, bringing Brexit a step closer.Feb 10: Beijing: Reacting guardedly to India's diplomatic protests over its move to block US resolution to list Pakistan-based JeM leader Masood Azhar as a terrorist, today hoped all members of the UN Security Council who are part of the anti-terrorism committee will follow rules.Feb 11: Beijing: A Chinese soldier, who was stuck in for over 50 years after crossing the border following the 1962 war, today returned to with his Indian family members to a rousing reception and an emotional reunion with his kin.Feb 12: Washington: US President Donald Trump today defended the ongoing crackdown on illegal criminals, saying he is merely fulfilling his election promise and only removing gang members and drug dealers.Feb 13: Washington: Describing North Korea as a "big problem", US President Donald Trump today vowed to deal with it "very strongly", after the reclusive country carried out yet another ballistic missile.Feb 14: Washington: Expressing bipartisian support for the Indo-US relationship, top American Congressmen today pledged to work together to strengthen the bilateral relationship under Trump Administration, terming it "very important" for the stability of the international community.Feb 15: Washington: US President Donald Trump today expressed his openness to a one-state solution to the decades -old Israeli-Palestinian conflict, even as he asked visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for a temporary hold on Jewish settlements in lands claimed by the Palestinians.Feb 16: Washington: President Donald Trump has said he is considering signing a "brand new" executive order by next week to temporarily bar citizens of seven Muslim-majority nations from entering America, a day after a US court refused to reinstate his controversial travel ban.Feb 17: Munich: European leaders today fired a salvo of warnings against Washington, cautioning it against hurting EU cohesion, abandoning shared values and seeking a rapprochement with Russia behind the backs of its allies.Feb 25: Washington: The Trump administration dismisses as "absurd" any correlation between US President Donald Trump's controversial remarks on immigrants and the Kansas shooting incident that resulted in the "tragic" death of an Indian engineer.Feb 26: Islamabad: The court employees in Pakistan- occupied Kashmir (PoK) will have to offer daily prayers punctually - both in and outside the court- as their annual raises would now hinge on their offering prayers regularly and on the prescribed times, says a top Judge.Feb 27: Los Angeles: Barry Jenkins' coming-of-age drama "Moonlight" walks away with the top award at the Oscars but its thunder was stolen by a bizarre announcement mix-up that initially declared "La La Land" as the best picture winner.Feb 28: Washington: Defence Secretary Jim Mattis submits to the White House a preliminary trans-regional plan that suggests deployment of all elements of US national power to defeat the Islamic State terror group around the globe.Mar 1: New York: Anxiety among Indian immigrants in the US over the proposed tightening of work visa rules under the Trump administration has been compounded by fears in the wake of the fatal shooting of an Indian engineer in Kansas.Mar 2: London: Prime Minister Theresa May suffers her first parliamentary defeat over Brexit after the House of Lords voted in favour of an amendment to guarantee the rights of EU citizens in the UK after the country leaves the bloc.Mar 3: New York: An Indian-origin girl in the US has been allegedly racially abused by an African-American man who called her inappropriate names and yelled "get out of here" when she was travelling in a busy commuter train.Mar 11: Damascus: Twin bombs targeting Shiite pilgrims killed 59 people in Damascus, most of them Iraqis, a monitoring group said of one of the bloodiest attacks in the Syrian capital.Mar 12: Islamabad: is set to conduct its first national census in 19 years for which it will deploy nearly 200,000 troops.Mar 13: London: British MPs overwhelmingly approves a bill allowing Prime Minister Theresa May to trigger negotiations for the UK's exit from the European Union.Mar 14: Karachi: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif warns against the forced conversion and destruction of worship places of other religions, describing them as "crime in Islam" as he greeted the Hindu community which celebrates the Holi festival with traditional enthusiasm acrossMar 15: Washington: Two Russian intelligence agents and a duo of hackers were indicted over a data breach that compromised 500 million Yahoo accounts in one of the largest cyberattacks in history.Mar 16: Washington: Two American judges have halted Donald Trump's revised travel ban on citizens of six Muslim- majority nations, stating that his own comments suggests religious bias, in a blow to the US President who has vowed to take the legal battle all the way up to the Supreme Court.Mar 17: Lima: The number of people killed in Peru following intense rains and mudslides wreaking havoc around the Andean nation climbed to 67, with thousands more displaced from destroyed homes and others waiting on rooftopsfor rescue.Mar 18: Paris: Troops at Paris' Orly airport today shot dead a man who tried to grab a female soldier's weapon saying he was ready to die for Allah, triggering a major security alert that caused travel chaos.Mar 19: Lahore/New Delhi: A 10-member Indian delegation arrived here today to take part in the meeting of the Permanent Indus Commission (PIC) beginning tomorrow in the Pakistani capital.Mar 20: Juba: At least 37 people were injured when a passenger jet crash-landed in South Sudan's northwestern city of Wau today, government and airport officials said.Mar 21: Washington: President Donald Trump today signed a bill authorising USD 19.5 billion funding for NASA programmes and setting a new goal to send humans to Mars.Mar 22: Washington: Recognising that there are many pressing challenges in the Middle East, US Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson today said defeating the terrorist group is the "number one US goal in the region."Mar 23: Washington: A bill seeking to prevent US companies from outsourcing jobs overseas by "abusing" H1-B programme has been re-introduced in House of Representatives by two lawmakers.Mar 24: Washington: In a major setback to President Donald Trump, House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan today withdrew a healthcare bill aimed at repealing and replacing the Obamacare policy from vote as the Republican party failed to muster the votes needed to get the legislation passed.Mar 25: Washington: Two top Senators have urged the Trump administration to push for the sale of F-16 fighter jets to to build its capability to counter security threats and balance China's growing military power in the Pacific.Mar 26: Washington: Top al Qaeda leader Qari Yasin, who was involved in multiple deadly attacks in which claimed dozens of innocent lives, has been killed in a US drone strike in eastern Afghanistan, the Pentagon has said.Mar 27: Dhaka: Bangladesh army today said it has neutralised all four Islamist militants, including a woman, who were holed up in a building after four days of siege in the northeastern Sylhet city, even as the 'Operation Twilight' continued to secure the site.Mar 28: United Nations: is not participating in the first UN conference in more than 20 years on a global nuclear weapons ban which opened here amid objections from major nuclear powers.Mar 29: Washington: US President Donald Trump today signed an executive order to nullify his predecessor Barack Obama's climate change efforts, raising questions over America's leadership in the international campaign against global warming.Mar 30: Washington: A US federal judge in Hawaii has indefinitely extended its previous order blocking President Donald Trump's revised travel ban on people from six Muslim- majority countries.Mar 31: Washington: President Donald Trump has said that the next week's high-profile summit with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping will be a "very difficult" one as the US can no longer afford massive trade deficits and job losses.Apr 1: Dhaka: Three militants, including a woman, were found dead by Bangladesh security forces today when they stormed their hideout, ending a two-day stand off with Islamist militants in a northeastern city amid a massive nationwide clampdown on militants.Apr 2: Peshawar: Four missiles fired from Afghanistan lands in northwest Pakistan's restive tribal region bordering Afghanistan, triggering panic among the residents, says officials.Apr 3: Washington: President Donald Trump promises to support Egypt and vows to work with it to fight against Islamic militants, as he welcomes Egyptian President Abdel al-Sisi to the White House in a reversal of US policy.Apr 4: Washington: The US strongly condemns a suspected chemical attack in Syria that killed 58 people, describing it as "reprehensible" and "intolerable" attack.Apr 5: Washington: US President Donald Trump says the suspected "horrible" chemical attack in Syria that left over 70 people dead cannot be tolerated and it has crossed "many many lines".Apr 6: Washington: US Republican party takes a "nuclear option" of changing longstanding Senate rules to confirm President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee after Democrats blocked his nomination.Apr 7: United Nations: The US criticises Russia for standing with Syrian President Bashar Al Assad every time he crosses the "line of human decency" and asserts that it was "fully justified" for striking the Syrian airfield from which the chemical attacks were launched.Apr 8: Beirut: An air strike killed 18 civilians including five children in Syria's northwestern province of Idlib today, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor said.Apr 9: Cairo: At least 45 people were killed and nearly 120 others injured in powerful blasts triggered by ISIS in two churches packed with worshippers celebrating Palm Sunday in Egypt's Tanta and Alexandria cities, the deadliest attacks on the minority Coptic Christians in recent years.Apr 10: San Bernardino (US): An apparent murder- suicide inside an elementary school classroom in San Bernardino left a teacher and the shooter dead and two students critically wounded, police said.Apr 11: Dortmund: international Marc Bartra was injured in the explosion which hit the Borussia Dortmund team bus today and saw their Champions League game against Monaco called off, the club confirmed.Apr 12: Washington: US President Donald Trump told allies it was time to end Syria's "brutal" civil war today, as he branded the country's leader Bashar al-Assad a "butcher" and questioned Russia's role in a suspected chemical attack.Apr 13: Washington: The US military today dropped its largest non-nuclear bomb ever deployed in combat on an Islamic State tunnel complex in eastern Afghanistan, close to the Pakistani border.Apr 14: Islamabad: said today it would appeal against the death sentence to Kulbhushan Jadhav and demanded from a certified copy of the charge-sheet as well as the army court order in the case, besides seeking consular access to the retired Indian navy officer.Apr 15: Beirut: A stalled population transfer resumed after a deadly explosion killed at least 100, including children, government supporters and opposition fighters, at an evacuation point, adding new urgency to the widely criticised operation.Apr 16: Istanbul: Turkey's two main opposition parties says they would challenge the results putting the 'Yes' camp ahead in the referendum on expanding the powers of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after alleged violations.Apr 17: Islamabad: A 20-year-old medical student, who visited Syria in February to join the ISIS and receive weapons training, says that she was to be used as a suicide bomber to attack a church on Easter in Pakistan's Lahore city.Apr 22: Mazar-I-Sharif (Afghanistan): More than 100 Afghan soldiers were killed and wounded in a Taliban attack on an army base in northern Afghanistan, the defence ministry said today, the latest in a string of deadly assaults against Afghan military sites.Apr 23: Paris: Centrist Emmanuel Macron will face off against far-right Marine Le Pen in the second round of France's presidential election, projections showed today, making him clear favourite to emerge as the country's youngest leader in modern history.Apr 24: Washington: The US today imposed "sweeping sanctions" on Syrian government officials in response to the suspected sarin gas attack on civilians earlier this month.Apr 25: Dakar: Almost 30 people have died in two boat accidents in Senegal and The Gambia, neighbouring west African nations with poor maritime safety records.Apr 26: Washington: The Trump administration today announced what it claimed to be "one of the biggest tax cuts in American history", through drastically reducing tax rates both in the business and individual categories, fulfilling one of its major election promises.Apr 27: Islamabad: today said that it will decide "on merit" the request made by for consular access to its citizen Kulbhushan Jadhav who has been sentenced to death by a military court on spying charges.Apr 28: United Nations: Russia today warned at the United Nations that military options to address the threat from North Korea's nuclear and ballistic programs were "completely unacceptable" and would have "catastrophic consequences."Apr 29: Istanbul: Turkey has passed two new decrees, one that expelled more than 4,000 civil servants and another that banned television dating programmes.Apr 30: Kathmandu: Nepal's first woman Chief Justice Sushila Karki was suspended today after an impeachment motion against her was registered in Parliament by two major ruling parties that accused her of "interfering" with the executive and issuing "prejudiced" verdicts.May 1: Washington: US President Donald Trump today said he would not rule out meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, saying he would be "honoured to do it," despite weeks of tough talk against the regime.May 2: Beirut: A jihadist assault led by suicide bombers killed dozens today at a camp for the displaced near Syria's border with Iraq, as pressure grows on the Islamic State group in both countries.May 3: Tehran: Iranian agencies are quoting provincial officials as saying that 21 miners died in a coal mine explosion earlier in the day in the country's north.May 4: Washington: US President Donald Trump today promised to bring down health insurance premiums and deductible as he celebrated the defeat of Obamacare on the floor of the House of Representatives.May 5: London: In a major boost to British Prime Minister Theresa May, her Conservative Party today made huge gains in the local and mayoral polls which was being seen as a victory for her tough-talking Brexit stance and a vindication of her move to call a general election next month.May 6: Islamabad: has summoned the Indian envoy here over non-issuance of medical visas to Pakistani nationals seeking treatment in India, Pakistani media reports said today.May 7: Paris: Pro-European centrist Emmanuel Macron promised today to heal France's divisions after crushing far- right leader Marine Le Pen in a pivotal presidential election that has given him a large but fragile mandate for change.May 8: Bonn: Uncertainty over America's future in the climate-rescue Paris Agreement loomed large over UN talks in Bonn today to work out the nuts and bolts of implementing the hard-fought international deal.May 9: Washington: President Donald Trump delayed a decision to honor or walk away from the Paris climate accord until he returns from Europe late this month, leaving global partners in limbo today.May 10: Washington: Defending Donald Trump's decision to fire FBI chief James Comey, the White House said today that the US President had lost confidence in him and was looking to fire him from day one.May 11: Washington: President Donald Trump has said that he wants to stop illegal immigration into the US and called for a merit-based immigration system that could benefit high- tech professionals from countries likeMay 12: Colombo: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said the biggest challenge to sustainable world peace is from mindsets rooted in hate and violence, and not necessarily from conflict between the nation states.May 13: Paris: The unprecedented global cyberattack affected "more than 75,000 victims" in dozens of countries, French police said in a statement today, the day after the ransomware hit Russia's banks, British hospitals and European car factories among others.May 14: United Nations: The United States and Japan today called for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council on North Korea after Pyongyang carried out its latest missile test, diplomats said.May 15: Paris: New French President Emmanuel Macron named centre-right lawmaker Edouard Philippe as prime minister today in a further effort to splinter the country's traditional parties and redraw the political map.May 16: United Nations: The United States would consider talks with North Korea if it halts all nuclear and ballistic missile tests, Washington's envoy to the United Nations said today as the UN Security Council weighed new sanctions on Pyongyang.May 17: Dublin: Enda Kenny announced today he will step down as Ireland's prime minister after six years once his Fine Gael party elects a new leader.May 18: Islamabad: stands at a "crossroads" in its fight against extremism and must decide whether it wants to enjoy the benefits of its young demography or suffer at the hands of terrorism, Army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa said today.May 19: Tripoli: An attack on an airbase in south Libya has killed 141 people, mostly soldiers loyal to military strongman Khalifa Haftar, a spokesman for his forces said today.May 20: Tehran: Iran's moderate President Hassan Rouhani trounced a hard-line challenger to secure re-election today, saying his country seeks peace and friendship as it pursues a "path of coexistence and interaction with the world."May 21: Male/New Delhi: The Indian Navy has traced a Maldivian landing craft with six crew members, three days after it went missing while travelling between two islands in the Maldives.May 22: Beijing: today said there is no change in its stance on admission of non-NPT states into the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), marring Indias chances of entering the 48-member elite club at its crucial meeting next month.May 23: Manchester/London: A 22-year-old Libyan- origin suicide bomber set off a powerful homemade bomb at a concert of US pop star Ariana Grande in Manchester, killing at least 22 people and injuring 59 others, in the deadliest terror attack in Britain since the 2005 London bombings.May 24: Islamabad: Pakistani fighter jets flew near the Siachen Glacier today, according to a media report here, but Indian Air Force sources said there was no violation of India's air space.May 25: United Nations: The United Nations has dismissed Army's claim that its military observers came under attack from Indian troops near the Line of Control, saying there was "no evidence" of them being targeted.May 26: Washington: Amul Thapar, an Indian-American legal luminary and US President Donald Trump's first nominee to a powerful appeals court, has been confirmed by the US Senate to the key judicial position.May 27: Colombo: today rushed relief materials and deployed rescue personnel in Sri Lanka as the country faced its worst floods since 2003 that claimed the lives of 122 people and displaced half a million.May 28: London: British police today conducted fresh raids in Manchester and arrested a 19-year-old man in connection with the concert bombing, taking the total number of those in custody over the attack to 13.May 29: Berlin: Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he had a "very good interaction" when he met German Chancellor Angela Merkel today at her country retreat near Berlin for informal talks over a private dinner.May 30: Washington: Relations between the US and Germany veered further toward crisis today as President Donald Trump complained about the US trade deficit with Germany and said it must pay more for the NATO military alliance.May 31: Kabul: At least 90 people were killed and hundreds wounded today when a massive truck bomb ripped through Kabul's diplomatic quarter during rush hour, in the deadliest attack in the Afghan capital since 2001.Jun 1: Washington: President Donald Trump today withdrew the US from the landmark Paris climate accord which he said was not tough on and China, and alleged that the deal was negotiated "poorly" by the Obama administration and signed out of "desperation".Jun 2: St Petersburg: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today met UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres here on the the sidelines of an economic summit and stressed on multilateralism to address global challenges such as terrorism.Jun 3: Kabul: Explosions ripped through the funeral of an Afghan anti-government protester in Kabul today, killing at least seven people and wounding dozens in fresh carnage that spiked tensions in a city already on edge.Jun 4: London: Three knife-wielding attackers wearing fake suicide vests unleashed a terror rampage through central London, plowing a high-speed van into pedestrians on the iconic London Bridge before stabbing revellers in a nearby market, killing seven people and injuring 48.Jun 5: Riyadh: Arab nations including and Egypt today cut ties with Qatar, accusing it of supporting extremism, in the biggest diplomatic crisis to hit the region in years.Jun 6: Houston: Facebook and Google are among the top US tech giants who have joined an alliance to fight global warming by reducing carbon emissions to honour the Paris Agreement on climate change, days after President Donald Trump announced his decision to withdraw from the landmark deal.Jun 7: Washington: The Pentagon has said that tension continues to exist along the disputed portions of India- border even though the economic relationship between the two countries have increased in recent years.Jun 8: Seoul: North Korea launched a series of what appeared to be "surface-to-ship" cruise missiles today, South Korea's defence ministry said, in what would be the latest in a string of tests in defiance of UN sanctions.Jun 9: Doha: Qatar today dismissed as "baseless" a terrorism blacklist published by and its allies which linked individuals and organisations in Doha to support for Islamist militant groups.Jun 10: Tripoli: An armed group in Libya said on Facebook today it has freed Seif al-Islam, the son of dead dictator Moamer Kadhafi who has been in custody since November 2011. Jul 1: Washington: The US Congress is "broadly positive" towards Indo-US strategic and commercial partnership despite many areas of "serious discord", a Congressional report has said, underlining that the bilateral engagements are "unprecedented".Jul 2: Baghdad: A suicide bomber attacked a camp for displaced Iraqis in Anbar province today, killing 14 people, a police major and a doctor said.Jul 3: Versailles: President Emmanuel Macron today promised a "profound transformation" of French politics, proposing to slash by a third the number of MPs, and telling lawmakers he would call a referendum if they do not agree.Jul 4: Jerusalem: Prime Minister Narendra Modi tonight gifted his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu replicas of two sets of relics from Kerala, regarded as key artifacts of the long Jewish history inJul 5: United Nations: The US ambassador to the United Nations is warning it risks its massive trade with the United States if its trade with North Korea violates UN sanctions.Jul 6: Bangui: Local officials say that more than 78 people have been killed after a truck overturned in an accident in Central African Republic's city of Bambari.Jul 7: Hamburg: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today held bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Japan, Shinzo Abe, and Canada, Justin Trudeau, along with informal interactions with a number of world leaders on the sidelines of the G20 Summit here.Jul 8: Hamburg: Wrapping up his second European tour, President Donald Trump and Asian allies searched for consensus today on how to counter what the president called the "menace" of North Korea after its test-launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile.Jul 9: Mosul: Iraq declared victory against the Islamic State group in Mosul today after a gruelling months-long campaign, dealing the biggest defeat yet to the jihadist group.Jul 10: Washington: An Indian man in America has pleaded guilty to supporting terrorism by providing material support to a "key leader" of al-Qaeda for "violent jihad" against US soldiers and a judge, authorities said today.Jul 11: Washington: Donald Trump today defended his eldest son Don Jr -- who is under fire for his meeting with a Russian lawyer during last year's US presidential campaign - and hailed his "transparency" for releasing emails about the talks.Jul 12: Washington: US President Donald Trump said in an interview today that he had a good meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin last week and that the two have a good relationship.Jul 13: Paris: US President Donald Trump suggested today he could change his position on the Paris climate accord, in remarks after talks with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron.Jul 14: Washington: US forces killed the leader of the Islamic State group's Afghanistan branch in a raid earlier this week in the northeastern province of Kunar, the Pentagon said today.Jun 11: Paris: French President Emmanuel Macron's party is on course for an overwhelming parliamentary majority after today's first round of voting for the National Assembly that left traditional parties in disarray.Jun 12: Athens: A woman died and 10 people were hurt today when a 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck the Greek islands of Lesbos and Chios and the Aegean coast of western Turkey, officials said.Jun 13: Paris: French President Emmanuel Macron said today the door was "always open" for Britain to remain in the EU after Prime Minister Theresa May said Brexit talks would begin next week.Jun 14: Mogadishu: Gunmen posing as military forces were holding dozens of hostages inside a popular restaurant in Somalia's capital in an attack that began when a car bomb exploded at the gate, police and a witness said tonight, while the extremist group al-Shabab claimed responsibility.Jun 15: Washington: The US Senate today overwhelmingly passed tough sanctions on Russia and Iran, sending the House of Representatives a bill that would prevent President Donald Trump from unilaterally easing penalties against Moscow.Jun 16: Washington: US President Donald Trump today vowed to roll back his predecessor Barack Obama's signature Cuba policy, saying it was "one-sided" and his administration will seek a "much better" deal for the Cuban people and America.Jun 17: Moscow: Russia said today that airstrikes carried out this month had killed about 180 Islamic State jihadists in Syria, including two field commanders.Jun 18: Tehran: Iran's Revolutionary Guard said it launched a series of missiles into Syria today in revenge for deadly attacks on its capital that were claimed by the Islamic State group.Jun 19: Bamako: An Al-Qaeda-linked jihadist alliance claimed responsibility today for an attack on a tourist resort near Mali's capital that left five people dead, including members of a European Union mission to the country.Jun 20: Brussels: An explosion rocked the central train station in Brussels today and a man was shot by police during the incident, prosecutors told Belgian media.Jun 21: Baghdad: Jihadists today blew up Mosul's iconic leaning minaret and the adjacent mosque where their leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared a "caliphate" in his only public appearance in 2014, an Iraqi commander said.Jun 22: Washington: The US has cleared the sale of 22 predator Guardian drones to India, governmental sources said today, a deal being termed as a "game changer" ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit here for his maiden meeting with President Donald Trump.Jun 23: Peshawar/Karachi: Twin blasts tore through a market crowded with Eid shoppers in a mainly Shia town, a suicide bomber blew up his explosives-laden car and militants opened fire on police in separate attacks in Pakistan's three major cities today, killing 62 people and wounding nearly 100.Jul 15: Dhaka: A 25-year-old medical student from was allegedly stabbed to death by his compatriot who then tried to commit suicide at their flat in Bangladesh's northeastern port city of Chittagong, police said today.Jul 16: Islamabad: The Army said today that it had no role in the investigation of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's family assets, asserting that it was "focused only" on safeguarding the country's security.Jul 17: London: and the UK have discussed key issues such as extradition, counter-terrorism and illegal immigration during high-level talks here, officials said today.Jul 18: Moscow: has sought time to "evaluate" Russia's offer of upgrading its Sukhoi-30 fleet to a near fifth- generation aircraft level, a top official of Russias Rostec State Corporation has said.Jul 19: Washington: The US today listed among the nations providing "safe havens" to terrorists, saying terror groups like the LeT and JeM continued to operate, train, organise and fundraise inside the country.Jul 20: Islamabad: today said it was fully resolved to fight terrorism and had taken strong measures against the menace, a day after the US listed it among nations providing "safe havens" to terrorists.Jul 21: Washington: Pentagon chief Jim Mattis said today that he believes Islamic State chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is still alive, following various claims he was dead.Jul 22: Dubai: Five Indian sailors, who were stuck on an UAE ship for months over non-payment of their salaries, will be returning home, the Indian Consulate General said here today.Jul 23: Moscow: has received a Russian-made Mi- 171E non-combat helicopter, the second such chopper delivered to the country this year, indicating growing ties between and Moscow, a media report has said.Jul 24: Islamabad: today summoned India's Deputy High Commissioner J P Singh over alleged ceasefire violations during which he lodged a strong protest over the death of an Indian soldier and many civilians in firing by Pakistani troops.Jul 25: Washington: US President Donald Trump today praised his son-in-law Jared Kushner for "proving" that he "did not collude" with the Russians and mocked opponents by saying that his 11-year-old son could be their next target.Jul 26: Washington: US President Donald Trump said today transgenders will not serve in the US military "in any capacity", asserting that their service would bring "tremendous medical costs and disruption".Jul 27: Islamabad: In the wake of the Panamagate case, Pakistani officials have recorded a stunning hike in taxes paid by lawmakers, from a paltry 15 to a whopping 3,852 per cent rise in individual cases, authorities said today.Jul 28: Washington: North Korea today launched an intercontinental ballistic missile for the second time in a month, the Pentagon said, a day after US Congress voted to impose new tougher sanctions against Russia, Iran and Pyongyang.Aug 5: Caracas: A new assembly loyal to President Nicolas Maduro fired Venezuela's attorney general, a vociferous critic, in its first working session today, bolstering criticism it is acting to create a "dictatorship."Aug 6: Warri: Twelve worshippers were shot dead at a church in southeast Nigeria today, with authorities suggesting the bloodshed was due to a local feud.Aug 7: Lahore: An explosive device tonight went off inside a truck parked on the route former prime minister Nawaz Sharif is to take on Wednesday for a public rally in Lahore, injuring at least 35 people, officials said.Aug 8: Beirut: US-led coalition raids on Raqa in northern Syria have killed 29 civilians over the past 24 hours as American-backed forces battle the Islamic Stategroup, a monitor said today.Aug 9: Washington: Defence Secretary Jim Mattis today warned North Korea to "stand down" from pursuing nuclear weapons and cease considering actions that would lead to the "end of its regime", after Pyongyang threatened missile strikes against US strategic military installations in Guam.Aug 10: Washington: has built a "hardened, secure, underground" complex in a remote mountainous region in the restive Balochistan province that could serve as a storage site for nuclear warheads, an American thinktank said today.Aug 11: Cairo: At least 41 people were killed and nearly 180 others injured today after two trains collided near Egypt's coastal city of Alexandria, officials said.Aug 12: Lahore: Pakistan's sacked premier Nawaz Sharif said today he will strive hard to replace the country's old and "flawed" system with a new law which will put an end to the unceremonious ouster of the prime ministers.Aug 13: Washington: North Korea's "grave threat" demands a "concerted effort" from the US and its international allies, a top American security official said today as he warned that the two countries were closer to war than they were a decade ago.Aug 14: Washington: US President Donald Trump today denounced racism as "evil" as he slammed white supremacist and neo-Nazi groups for the weekend violence in Charlottesville, describing them as "criminals and thugs".Aug 15: Washington: Religious freedom is under attack in where minorities like Sikhs, Christians and Hindus remained concerned over government's "inadequate" action to address forced conversions to Islam.Aug 16: Lahore: Pakistan's top anti-graft organisation has summoned ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his two sons in money laundering and corruption cases on Friday on the order of the Supreme Court.Aug 17: Barcelona: At least 13 people were killed today when a driver deliberately slammed a van into crowds on Barcelona's most popular street in an attack claimed by the Islamic State group.Aug 18: Lahore: Ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his two sons today failed to appear before the top anti-graft body, which wanted to interrogate them over money laundering and corruption charges revealed by the Panama Papers.Aug 19: Beirut: The Islamic State group today claimed responsibility for deadly attacks in and stabbings in Russia, in statements carried by the jihadists' propaganda agency.Aug 20: Riyadh: Qatar has blocked Saudi planes from transporting hajj pilgrims, Saudi state media said, after Riyadh reopened the border despite a major diplomatic crisis roiling the Gulf.Aug 21: Washington: US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson today spoke with Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, India's External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Afghan Foreign Minister Salahuddin Rabbani to discuss how they can help in shaping President Donald Trump's new South Asia strategy.Aug 22: Washington: is emerging as a very important regional strategic partner for the US that can help modernise Afghanistan both politically and economically, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said today.Aug 23: Benghazi: At least 11 people were beheaded today in an attack claimed by the Islamic State jihadist group on a checkpoint manned by forces of Libyan military strongman Khalifa Haftar.Aug 24: Charleston: A fired dishwasher shot and killed a chef and held a "small number" of people hostage for about three hours before he was shot by police at a crowded restaurant in a tourist-heavy area of downtown Charleston, South Carolina, today, authorities and one of the restaurant's owners said.Aug 25: United Nations: UN chief Antonio Guterres has informed through a letter to the Security Council of the order given by the International Court of Justice in the case of Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav, who has been sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court.Aug 26: Houston: At least three persons were killed today after tropical storm Harvey, the most powerful hurricane to hit the US mainland in 12 years, made landfall in central Texas coast with winds of 195 kmph.Aug 27: Houston: Harvey, the most powerful hurricane to hit the US in 13 years, left a trail of destruction as it sept through Texas today, pummelling the region with heavy rains and claiming at least five lives since making landfall on the US' Gulf Coast.Aug 28: Islamabad: today summoned India's Deputy High Commissioner here after three civilians died in alleged "ceasefire violations" by Indian troops along the Line of Control.Aug 29: Washington: The missile North Korea fired early today over Japan was an intermediate range ballistic missile and did not threaten the US, the Pentagon said today.Aug 30: Washington: The Trump administration said today it was necessary that take "decisive action" against militant groups based in Pakistan, after the National Assembly unanimously condemned US President Donald Trump's "hostile and threatening" statements against the country.Aug 31: Crosby: Storm-battered Texans faced a worrying new threat today as potentially harmful smoke spewed from a swamped chemical plant near Houston, as Harvey's floodwaters began to recede in America's fourth-largest city.Sep 1: Lahore: Pakistan's anti-graft watchdog has recommended freezing of assets and bank accounts of ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his family members, an official said today. Sep 2: Moscow: Russia today summoned the top US envoy in Moscow to protest a search it says American officials are planning at a diplomatic facility in Washington that is due to be shuttered.Sep 3: Washington: The US will launch a "massive military response" to any threats from North Korea, Defense Secretary James Mattis said today in a blunt warning to the reclusive nation after it carried out its biggest nuclear test.Sep 4: United Nations: The US today called for "strongest possible" measures against North Korea in the wake of a powerful nuclear test and warned that every nation that does business with Pyongyang and is aiding its "dangerous" nuclear intentions will be on its radar.Sep 5: Washington: US President Donald Trump today scrapped an Obama-era amnesty programme that granted work permits to immigrants who arrived in the country illegally as children, a move likely to impact 800,000 undocumented workers including more than 7,000 Indian-Americans.Sep 6: United Nations: The United States today asked the UN Security Council to slap an oil embargo on North Korea and freeze the assets of leader Kim Jong-Un, in response to Pyongyang's sixth and most powerful nuclear test.Sep 7: Washington: US President Donald Trump offered today to mediate in the crisis between Qatar and its Arab neighbors and said he believed the dispute could be solved "fairly easily."Sep 8: Juchitan De Zaragoza: Mexico's most powerful earthquake in a century killed at least 40 people, officials said today, after it struck the Pacific coast, wrecking buildings and sending families fleeing into the streets.Sep 9: Damascus: Syrian troops broke the Islamic State group's siege of Deir Ezzor military airport today, dealing a fresh blow to the jihadists who also face a new offensive from US- backed fighters elsewhere in the province.Sep 10: Dhaka: Bangladesh's foreign minister said today that genocide was being waged in Myanmar's violence-racked Rakhine state, triggering an exodus of nearly 3,00,000 Muslim Rohingya to his country.Sep 11: Geneva: At least 30 people, most of them school children, were injured today when a train engine collided with carriages full of passengers at a station in the Swiss Alps, police and media said.Sep 12: Washington: US President Donald Trump today described the latest batch of UN-backed sanctions against North Korea as a "very small step" that must lead to tougher measures.Sep 13: Rockford (US): A shooter opened fire at a high school in Washington state today, killing one person and injuring at least three others, authorities said.Sep 14: Nasiriyah (Iraq): Gunmen and suicide car bombers killed at least 74 people today near the Iraqi city of Nasiriyah, in the deadliest attack claimed by the Islamic State group since it lost second city Mosul.Sep 15: London: An improvised explosive device (IED) exploded on a packed underground train at a London station today, injuring at least 29 people in the fifth terrorist attack this year, which Prime Minister Theresa May said was "clearly intended to cause significant harm".Sep 16: Bujumbura: At least 36 Burundian refugees have been killed in clashes with Congolese security forces who allegedly fired indiscriminately at protesters, the United Nations envoy to Congo said today.Sep 17: Lahore: Ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif's ailing wife today won the crucial by-election in Lahore that was seen as a test of support for the family after the Supreme Court dismissed Sharif from the office in the Panama Papers scandal.Sep 18: Seoul: North Korea bitterly denounced new sanctions on its economy as "vicious, unethical and inhumane" and warned the measures would only accelerate progress on its nuclear weapons programme, state media reported today.Sep 19: United Nations: Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif today slammed US President Donald Trump's address that took aim at Iran at the United Nations, calling it an "ignorant hate speech."Sep 20: United Nations: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe today declared the time for dialogue with North Korea is over and rallied behind a US warning that "all options" are on the table.Sep 21: Miami: Hurricane Maria left more than 15 people dead in hard-hit Dominica, the small Caribbean island's Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit announced today.Sep 22: New York: The number of threats and incidents endangering South Asia's peace and stability are on the rise, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today said, in an apparent reference toSep 23: Beijing: A shallow 3.5-magnitude earthquake which hit North Korea near the country's nuclear test site today was likely an aftershock from the hermit state's missile test on September 3, a nuclear test ban watchdog and other experts said.Sep 24: Berlin: Chancellor Angela Merkel clinched a fourth term in Germany's election today, but her victory was clouded by the entry into parliament of the hard right AfD, the best showing for a nationalist force since World War II.Sep 25: Washington: The White House today rejected claims that the United States has declared war on North Korea as "absurd" in the latest exchange of barbs and insults between the two nuclear powers.Sep 26: Washington: Two influential Democratic lawmakers, including an Indian-American, today introduced a legislation in the US House of Representative to support India's permanent membership to the UN Security Council.Sep 27: New York: Pakistan's Foreign Minister has acknowledged that Mumbai terror attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed, the Haqqanis and the LeT are "liabilities" but the country lacks the required "assets" to get rid of them.Sep 28: Islamabad: today dodged a question on the recent photograph gaffe by its top diplomat in the UN General Assembly, saying the incident cannot be used to deny an "indisputable fact" that Indian security forces were using pellet guns in Kashmir.Sep 29: Washington: The US said today it will withdraw about 60 per cent of its personnel from the embassy in Cuba in response to mysterious health attacks on more than 20 American diplomats in Havana.Sep 30: Kinshasa: A transport plane chartered by the Congolese army crashed near Kinshasa today, killing at least 11 people, military and airport sources said.Oct 1: Washington: US President Donald Trump said today that negotiating with North Korea over its nuclear program would be a waste of time after it emerged that Washington had channels of contact with Pyongyang.Oct 2: Beirut: Syria's war killed at least 3,000 people including 955 civilians in September, the deadliest month of the conflict this year, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor said today.Oct 3: Las Vegas: At least 58 people were killed and 500 injured when a heavily armed "lone wolf" gunman opened fire from a 32 -floor hotel room on an open-air concert on the Las Vegas Strip in the deadliest mass shooting in US history.Oct 4: Kathmandu: Nepal's Maoist party announced today an alliance with the largest communist bloc, ahead of key elections seen as the final step in the Himalayan nation's post-war transition to a federal democracy.Oct 5: Djibouti City: Djibouti today acknowledged India's role in maintaining peace and stability in the Horn of Africa region as the two counties decided to join hands to eradicate the menace of terrorism.Oct 6: Karachi: A suicide bomber today blew himself up at a Shia shrine packed with devotees in Pakistan's troubled Balochistan province, killing at least 18 people and injuring 25 others, police officials said.Oct 7: London: At least 11 people were injured today when a car jumped on to a pavement and hit pedestrians near the Natural History Museum in London, the police said.Oct 8: Cox's Bazar (Bangladesh): A boat packed with Rohingya refugees fleeing violence in Myanmar's Rakhine state capsized today in a river near the coast of Bangladesh, leaving at least two people dead and scores missing, officials said.Oct 9: Washington: The head of the US Environmental Protection Agency said today that President Donald Trump's administration will move to repeal his predecessor Barack Obama's plan to restrict greenhouse gas emissions.Oct 10: Washington: The series of reforms initiated by the Modi government like demonetisation and the GST has put the Indian economy on a "far more stronger track", Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today said.Oct 12: Santa Rosa (US): The death toll from some of California's worst ever wildfires rose to 17 as thousands of firefighters battled today to bring the infernos under control.Oct 12: Beirut: A jihadist car bombing targeting displaced Syrians in the northeastern province of Hasakeh today killed at least 18 people, including Kurdish security forces, a monitor said.Oct 13: London: The leaders of Britain, France and Germany today said they remain committed to the international nuclear deal with Iran after US President Donald Trump refused to certify the agreement.Oct 28: Mogadishu: A suicide car bomb exploded outside a popular hotel in Somalia's capital today, killing at least 18 people and wounding more than 30, and gunfire continued as security forces pursued the attackers inside the building, police said.Oct 29: Mogadishu: The death toll from a deadly attack on a hotel in Mogadishu rose to 27 today, prompting the Somali government to sack its police and intelligence chiefs.Oct 30: Washington: A top Chinese diplomat has said that people accusing of indulging in "predatory economics" should "look into the mirror", underlining that there is no evidence of trying to dominate the region.Oct 31: Washington/New Delhi: today jumped 30 places to rank 100th in the World Bank's 'ease of doing business' ranking, sending the jubilant government to vow to continue reforms that will help the country break into top 50 in coming years.Nov 1: Washington: Osama bin Laden closely followed developments in Kashmir and the trial of Pakistani-American terrorist David Coleman Headley in the 26/11 Mumbai attacks case, indicated the documents seized during the 2011 US raid on a Pakistani compound that killed the al-Qaeda founder.Nov 2: Madrid: A judge in Madrid today ordered ministers of Catalonia's deposed government to be held in jail pending further probes into their role in the regional government's quest for independence, prompting calls for protests in Barcelona and other cities.Nov 3: Rome: The bodies of 23 people were recovered from the Mediterranean today after the dinghy they were travelling in sank, the EU's anti-migrant task force said.Nov 4: Islamabad: Pakistan's ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif denies any deal with the powerful establishment for his return to the country.Nov 5: Jerusalem: Ratan Tata has "testified" before the Israeli police in connection with allegations of corruption involving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, reports in Israeli media say, which were denied as "factually incorrect" by the noted Indian industrialist's office.Nov 6: Houston: A court-martialled former US Air Force airman armed with a powerful assault rifle sprays bullets on worshippers at a Sunday service at a rural church in Texas, killing at least 26 people and injuring 20 others in the latest gun-related massacre to shock the countryNov 7: Islamabad: Pakistan's Supreme Court says the disqualification of prime minister Nawaz Sharif was "uncontroversial" as it issues a detailed verdict rejecting review petitions filed by the Sharif family in the Panama Papers case.Nov 8: Washington: is a lot more attractive place for business than what the World Bank's recent ranking suggests, top Indian-American economist Arvind Panagariya says, noting that the 30-point jump in one year was "overdue".Nov 9: Beijing: President Donald Trump wraps up two days of intense talks with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping as both sides ink deals worth over USD 250 billion but doubts lingered about any headway over his efforts to push Beijing to take strong action to rein in nuclear-armed North Korea.Nov 10: Islamabad: says it will allow convicted Indian death row prisoner Kulbhushan Jadhav to meet his wife, months after had requested to grant a visa to his mother on humanitarian grounds.Nov 11: Danang (Vietnam): President Donald Trump said Saturday he believes Vladimir Putin is being sincere when he denies meddling in the US election that propelled Trump to power, adding that the Russian leader felt "very insulted" by the allegations.Nov 12: Washington: A magnitude 7.2 earthquake rattled northeast Iraq near the border with Iran today, the US Geological Survey said.Nov 13: Manila: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today held "very expansive" talks with US President Donald Trump during which the two leaders carried out a "broad review" of the strategic landscape in Asia, signalling deeper cooperation by the two countries in dealing with sensitive security issues confronting the region.Nov 14: Manila: In the backdrop of emerging configuration of a key quadrilateral alliance, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today held separate talks with his counterparts from Japan Shinzo Abe and Australia Malcolm Turnbull focusing on crafting a new strategy for the Indo-Pacific region.Nov 15: London: Embattled British Prime Minister Theresa May today called on MPs from all sides of the polit</s>Welcome to Mic’s daily read on Donald Trump’s America. Want to receive this as a daily email in your inbox? Subscribe here.

Regardless of how Republicans fare in the 2018 elections, President Donald Trump can count out two of his biggest GOP critics — Sens. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) and Bob Corker (R-Tenn.). The two are not seeking re-election, so will no longer be causing trouble for Trump on Capitol Hill.

Meanwhile, speculation is swirling that former Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney will run for Sen. Orrin Hatch’s seat in Utah. It’s believed that if he were to run, Romney would likely cruise to victory. Romney has been a critic of Trump for years, going back to 2015 when Trump first announced his presidential bid.

Romney called Trump a “phony” in a March 2016 speech where he encouraged Republican voters to back Ohio Gov. John Kasich or Texas Sen. Ted Cruz for the presidency. Since then, Romney has implicitly and explicitly criticized Trump’s most controversial decisions, like when he supported Alabama GOP Senate candidate Roy Moore, or equivocated white supremacists and counterprotesters in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Romney would be positioned to assume the anti-Trump mantle, to a degree. But when it comes to policy that impacts Americans, the former Massachusetts governor would likely support Trump’s agenda.

Corker and Flake, for all their criticism of Trump, were largely reliable supporters of Trump’s 2017 agenda. Both repeatedly supported failed Affordable Care Act repeal efforts, and voted for the GOP tax plan. Corker even said he would vote “no” — then controversially changed his vote without having his concerns addressed.

Romney would likely be no different if he were to make it to the Hill. In 2012, he proposed cutting the corporate tax rate from 35% to 25%. The recently passed GOP tax plan cut the rate to 20%, the consensus figure among Republicans after months of internal debate. Romney stood behind a podium during his 2012 presidential campaign and said he would “repeal and replace Obamacare,” one of the earliest and most high-profile uses of the now-standard GOP slogan.

Furthermore, Romney has criticized Trump as a private citizen, not as a pro-business Republican senator from a deep red state. That criticism has come after some of Trump’s most controversial actions were widely rejected by many Republicans — including Hatch, who has not supported Trump’s most controversial statements, but praises him overall.

In 2017, Trump and Republicans implemented policies and pushed through appointees that made for a substantial year of reshaping the direction in which the United States is headed. The GOP agenda remains highly unpopular, raising concerns for Republicans that they could see major electoral losses in 2018.

Romney may become the next member prominent senator to criticize Trump, but he likely wouldn’t be very different in terms of voting. And his election in Utah would be far from a surprise in what will be a tumultuous election year.

Today’s question: How important do you think Romney’s election would be to the Senate?

Please email us at trumpsamerica@mic.com with your thoughts.

Shutdown negotiations: House and Senate leaders are meeting with Trump on Wednesday to discuss how to avert a government shutdown. Democrats are being more staunch in their demands that the deal to fund the government past Jan. 19 includes protections for recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. The Democrats also want higher domestic spending.

A top Trump adviser said Tuesday the president will demand border wall funding in exchange for those protections — which Democrats will not support — in a move to please his base. Democratic votes will be needed in the Senate, and maybe the House, to keep the government open.

Trump tweets: The president tweeted Tuesday evening that he will announce the “most dishonest and corrupt media awards” at 5 p.m. Monday. Mark your calendars.

Trump also said he has a “much bigger and more powerful” nuclear button than North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, who had bragged in his new year’s address of having a nuclear button on his desk.

North Korea: Despite the aggressive tweeting, North Korea has reopened a cross-border hotline with South Korea after two years. The move signals the two countries may begin serious talks.

Two women: Today on NBC is now hosted by two women. Hoda Kotb joined Savannah Guthrie on Tuesday as a permanent co-host following the firing of longtime host Matt Lauer over sexual assault allegations.

Sexual harassment: Vice Media placed two of its top executives on leave following reports they sexually harassed employees.

Israel: Trump threatened to cut off $300 million in annual funding the United States provides to the Palestinian Authority following criticism of Trump’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as the Israeli capital. Palestinians responded that they are “not for sale.”

Fewer international students: Students from around the world are coming to universities in the United States in smaller numbers, driving academic cuts, in part because of tighter U.S. immigration policies.

Another GOP resignation: Rep. Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) will not seek re-election. Trump carried his district by 42 points in 2016.

Sanctuary cities: The acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement said politicians who support sanctuary city policies should be charged with crimes.

Trump’s tweeting about launching a nuclear weapon has renewed calls for his impeachment. But it’s important to remember why that’s so unlikely. Mic’s Emily Singer breaks it down. Click or tap below to check it out.</s>Ramallah, Palestinian Territories — Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas’s office says Jerusalem is "not for sale" after US President Donald Trump threatened to cut annual aid of more than $300m to force them to the negotiating table.

"Jerusalem is the eternal capital of the state of Palestine and it is not for sale for gold or billions," Abbas spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina said on Wednesday, referring to Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

The December 6 declaration led Abbas to say the US could no longer play any role in the Middle East peace process.

"We are not against going back to negotiations, but [these should be] based on international laws and resolutions that have recognised an independent Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital," Abu Rudeina said.

Trump made the funding threat in a tweet on Tuesday, saying: "We pay the Palestinians HUNDRED OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS a year and get no appreciation or respect. With the Palestinians no longer willing to talk peace, why should we make any of these massive future payments to them?" It was not immediately clear whether Trump was threatening all of the budget, worth $319m in 2016, according to US government figures.

The US has long provided the Palestinian Authority with much-needed budgetary support and security assistance, as well as an additional $304m for UN programmes in the West Bank and Gaza.

Such programmes are seen by many analysts, including Israelis, as helping maintain stability in the Palestinian territories.

Israelis see the whole of Jerusalem as their undivided capital.</s>WASHINGTON (AP) - President Donald Trump is threatening to cut off U.S. aid money to the Palestinian Authority and acknowledging that the Middle East peace process appears to be stalled.

Trump says in a pair of tweets that, "we pay the Palestinians HUNDRED OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS a year and get no appreciation or respect. They don't even want to negotiate a long overdue ... peace treaty with Israel."

He adds that, "with the Palestinians no longer willing to talk peace, why should we make any of these massive future payments to them?"

Trump infuriated many when he announced late last year that the U.S. would consider Jerusalem the capital of Israel and move its embassy there.

Trump has long said he wants to broker Mideast peace, calling it "the ultimate deal."</s>President Donald Trump turns to talk to the gathered media during a Christmas Eve video teleconference with members of the military at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla., Sunday, Dec. 24, 2017. AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster
• President Donald Trump appears to have changed his administration's policy on Israel.
• "We have taken Jerusalem, the toughest part of the negotiation, off the table," Trump tweeted.
• The president initially changed US policy on Israel, and Jerusalem in particular, in a landmark speech in December.



 President Donald Trump appears to have changed his administration's policy on Israel in a series of tweets late on Tuesday.

"We pay the Palestinians HUNDRED OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS a year and get no appreciation or respect. They don't even want to negotiate a long overdue peace treaty with Israel," Trump tweeted. "We have taken Jerusalem, the toughest part of the negotiation, off the table, but Israel, for that, would have had to pay more."

"But with the Palestinians no longer willing to talk peace, why should we make any of these massive future payments to them?"

Trump also addressed foreign aid to Pakistan in the tweets, writing that the US pays the country "billions of dollars to for nothing."

The president changed US policy on Israel, and Jerusalem in particular, in a landmark speech in December. In his remarks, Trump explicitly said that Jerusalem was the capital of Israel and the US would be moving its embassy in the country to the holy city from Tel Aviv.

The president's speech spurred weeks of deadly protests in the Palestinian territory and across the Arab world.

Recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital and moving the US embassy were both among Trump's campaign promises, and change decades of US policy in the Middle East.

Notably, Trump said that the US is not making any decisions on borders of an East and West Jerusalem, or a final status agreement of the city, which has long been considered to be determined by negotiations.

"We are not taking a position of any final status issues including the specific boundaries of the Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem or the resolution of contested borders," Trump said in his speech. "Those questions are up to the parties involved."

While East Jerusalem, including the historic Old City, has been under Israeli control since 1967, Palestinians view it as the capital of any future state. The status of the city has long been a sticking point in any Israeli-Palestinian negotiations.

"Jerusalem is a place for Jews to pray at the Western Wall and Muslims to pray at the Al-Aqsa mosque," the president said in December.

Trump now seems to have contradicted his speech and embraced a hardline policy that many Arab states feared. Without the opportunity for discussions on Jerusalem, it's unlikely Palestinian leadership would agree to any US-led peace talks.</s>President Donald Trump raised the prospect Tuesday of cutting off aid to the Palestinian territories unless Palestinian leaders agree to resume negotiations to broker a peace deal with Israel.

He also appeared to contradict his previous statement that the US recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital would not impact the final status of Jerusalem in peace negotiations, claiming instead that "we have taken Jerusalem, the toughest part of the negotiation, off the table."

"We pay the Palestinians HUNDRED OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS a year and get no appreciation or respect. They don't even want to negotiate a long overdue peace treaty with Israel," Trump tweeted. "We have taken Jerusalem, the toughest part of the negotiation, off the table, but Israel, for that, would have had to pay more. But with the Palestinians no longer willing to talk peace, why should we make any of these massive future payments to them?"

A White House spokesman declined to comment about the apparent contradiction.

Trump's tweets late Tuesday afternoon came nearly a month after he became the first sitting US President to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, drawing Palestinians into the streets in protest.

A central committee member of the powerful Palestine Liberation Organization, Hanan Ashrawi, responded to Trump's threat to cut aid by saying that "Palestinian rights are not for sale."

"We will not be blackmailed," Ashrawi said in a statement sent Wednesday morning.

"By recognizing Occupied Jerusalem as Israel's capital Donald Trump has not only violated international law, but he has also singlehandedly destroyed the very foundations of peace and condoned Israel's illegal annexation of the city."

Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as the Israeli capital caused Palestinian leaders to reject the US' decades-old role as the central negotiator in Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas earlier claimed that Trump's recognition of Jerusalem, which both Israelis and Palestinians claim as their capital, discredited the US as an honest broker in the peace process.

And while Trump administration officials told CNN last month that the Jerusalem decision did not mean tougher concessions for Israelis down the line, Trump wrote in his tweet that "Israel, for that, would have had to pay more."

While Trump administration officials have said they expected a "cooling off period" with the Palestinians, Trump's tweets Tuesday signaled the President has grown frustrated with Palestinians' refusal to partake in a US-led peace process in the wake of his Jerusalem decision. The tweets also came after the White House confirmed that the US plans to withhold some of its aid to Pakistan to pressure the country into better counterterrorism cooperation with the US.

The US spent $616 million on aid to the Palestinian territories in 2016, according to the US Agency for International Development, which includes humanitarian assistance, private sector debt payments and infrastructure development assistance.

The President's tweets late Tuesday afternoon, though, did more than threaten US aid to Palestinians -- they also appeared to contradict his own statements about the impact of his recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital and may have undermined his administration's efforts to hammer home that message in the Middle East.

"We are not taking a position on any of the final status issues including the final boundaries of the Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem," Trump said last month as he made his Jerusalem announcement. "Those questions are up to the parties involved. The United States remains deeply committed to helping facilitate a peace agreement that is acceptable to both sides."

Trump's statement at the announcement was intended to reassure Palestinians and the broader Arab and Muslim world that the US was not giving away control of Jerusalem to Israel or forsaking Palestinian claims to the holy city.

And in the weeks after, Trump administration officials would urge those inflamed by Trump's decision to pay attention to his message about "not taking a position" on the future status of Jerusalem.</s>Acknowledging his push to broker peace in the Middle East has stalled, U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday appeared to threaten to cut off U.S. aid money to the Palestinian Authority, asking why the U.S. should make "any of these massive future payments" when the Palestinians are "no longer willing to talk peace."

Trump, in a pair of tweets, said the U.S. pays "the Palestinians HUNDRED OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS a year and get no appreciation or respect."

"They don't even want to negotiate a long overdue ... peace treaty with Israel," he wrote.

Trump infuriated Palestinians and Muslims across the Middle East when he announced late last year that the U.S. would consider Jerusalem the capital of Israel and move its embassy there, upending decades of U.S. policy and igniting protests.

While the Palestinians haven't closed the door to a potential deal with Israel, Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas said the announcement had destroyed Trump's credibility as a Mideast peace broker, calling the decision "a declaration of withdrawal from the role it has played in the peace process."

Tuesday's tweets mark a tacit admission by Trump that his decision to move the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem has thrown a wrench into his administration's plans to restart the peace process between Israelis and Palestinians, which he had dubbed "the ultimate deal."
• Israel raises threshold to cede parts of Jerusalem in peace deal

Trump tasked son-in-law Jared Kushner to restart the effort, and brought his former attorney, Jason Greenblatt, into the White House to lead the negotiations. Trump's Mideast peace team had held meetings with Israeli, Palestinian and Arab leaders for nearly a year ahead of an expected peace proposal.

But by recognizing Israel's claim to Jerusalem, Trump was seen by the Palestinians as siding with Israel on the most sensitive issue in the conflict. The Palestinians seek east Jerusalem — which Israel captured in 1967 — for their capital.

Trump said his decision merely recognized the reality that Jerusalem already serves as Israel's capital and wasn't meant to prejudge the final borders of the city.
• Muslims around the world protest Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital

In his tweets, Trump argued his decision had taken "Jerusalem, the toughest part of the negotiation, off the table, but Israel, for that, would have had to pay more."

When Trump declared Jerusalem to be Israel's capital, he insisted, counterintuitively, that the move would improve, not hurt, prospects for clinching a peace deal.

In the days after the decision, Trump administration officials said the strategy was based on the notion that Israel had lost faith in the U.S. as a committed partner during the Obama administration. With trust in Washington restored, Netanyahu's government would be more inclined going forward to make tough concessions that would ultimately be needed for a peace deal, the U.S. officials argued at the time, and Israeli officials quietly indicated that they could potentially do so.

No one spelled out, however, what the Palestinians would receive in return.

Trump on Tuesday also issued a threat to cut off foreign aid dollars to an unspecified list of countries that don't reciprocate.

"It's not only Pakistan that we pay billions of dollars to for nothing, but also many other countries, and others," Trump wrote, appearing to reference a Jan. 1 tweet lambasting Pakistan for failing to do enough to combat terror groups while taking U.S. aid. "No more!" Trump had tweeted Monday.

Trump's language marks a striking departure from decades of bipartisan U.S. practice and reflects Trump's transactional view of global affairs. U.S. leaders of both parties have long utilized foreign assistance dollars — a minor percentage of the overall budget — to promote American interests abroad, alleviate humanitarian crises and support oppressed peoples.

Trump's envoy to the United Nations, U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley, foreshadowed Trump's warning earlier Tuesday at the UN Security Council. Haley said the president doesn't want to give more funds "until the Palestinians are willing to come back to the negotiation table."

"We still very much want to have a peace process. Nothing changes with that. The Palestinians now have to show they want to come to the table," Haley said. "As of now, they're not coming to the table, but they ask for aid. We're not giving the aid. We're going to make sure that they come to the table."
• Nikki Haley confirms U.S. holding back $ in aid for Pakistan

Since a Dec. 21 UN vote condemning Trump's Jerusalem decision, U.S. officials have been weighing various options for retaliating against the Palestinians for pushing the resolution, which passed by a 128-9 margin.

Those options, which were to be discussed by Trump's top national security aides at a meeting next week, included several involving cutting off some or all aid to the Palestinian Authority. Another option would cut funding to the UN agency that provides services to the Palestinians in places like Gaza, Jordan and Lebanon.

The talks are in their very early stages, with no determination yet of a fixed amount or percentage of assistance to be cut, according to officials familiar with the discussions.

However, the officials noted that only a relatively small amount of the more than $220 million that the U.S. was planning on sending to the Palestinians in the current budget year actually goes to the Palestinian Authority. Most of that assistance flows to non-governmental groups that are involved in building civic organizations that promote good governance, anti-corruption efforts, and health and education projects.

The officials said one possibility would be to redirect aid from the Palestinian Authority to those groups. Similar proposals were envisioned for the U.N. relief agency for Palestinians, the officials said, noting that Palestinian children in Gaza, Jordan and Lebanon would be disproportionally affected by an immediate and complete cut-off.

One basket of money that is unlikely to be affected is security assistance that helps the Palestinian Authority coordinate police cooperation with Israel, the officials said. They spoke on conditions of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about internal deliberations.​</s>JERUSALEM — Palestinian officials voiced outrage on Wednesday over U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to cut funding to the Palestinian Authority, calling his tweets “blackmail” in the aftermath of the U.S. administration’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s office rebuffed the U.S. leader’s remarks, saying that “Jerusalem is not for sale, neither for gold nor silver.”

Abbas’ spokesman Nabil Abu Rdeneh said that “if the United States is keen on its interests in the Middle East, it must implement the international resolutions which call for a state on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.”

“Without this, the United States will push the region to the abyss,” Abu Rdeneh added.

Trump expressed frustration on Tuesday over the lack of progress in his attempts to broker peace between Israel and the Palestinians, and pointed his finger at the Palestinians.

“We pay the Palestinians HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS a year and get no appreciation or respect,” he tweeted. “But with the Palestinians no longer willing to talk peace, why should we make any of these massive future payments to them?”

Trump upset the Palestinians last month by recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and announcing plans to move the U.S. Embassy to the holy city. The Palestinians, who claim Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem as their capital, accused Trump of siding with Israel on the most sensitive issue in the conflict and subsequently said the U.S. could no longer serve as a mediator.

International support for the Palestinians increased sharply after the creation of the Palestinian Authority in 1994, an autonomy government that was meant to last for five years as a prelude to a final peace deal. But negotiations have repeatedly sputtered, and the Palestinian Authority has become a permanent fixture, propped up by billions in international aid to prevent a humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian territories.

The U.S., as one of the largest donors to the Palestinians, could inflict great pain on the Palestinians by cutting off aid. Yet it could also have a negative effect on Israel, which also relies on the Palestinian Authority to help maintain calm.

Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem — areas claimed by the Palestinians for a future state — in the 1967 Mideast war.

As an occupying power, Israel is formally responsible for the welfare of Palestinians. The existence of the international-funded Palestinian Authority means Israel no longer needs to shoulder that financial burden. Israel also has a security interest in the continued functioning of the authority, since Palestinian security services co-operate with Israel to prevent attacks by Hamas and other militant groups.

The United States has contributed over $5 billion in economic and security aid since the mid-1990s, according to Congressional research figures. Annual economic aid since 2008 has averaged around $400 million, much of it devoted to development projects. Between 2012 and 2016, the United States Agency for International Development provided over $1.7 billion in development and humanitarian aid to the Palestinians, according to the U.S. State Department.

Additionally, the U.S has donated an average of $100 million annually to Abbas’s security services — and cutting that funding could prove disastrous for Israel.

The World Bank says there is currently no feasible alternative to aid as budget support to the Palestinian Authority, given the poor state of the Palestinian economy. It blames Israeli restrictions in the West Bank and Gaza, as well as a continued rift between the PA and the Hamas rulers in the Gaza Strip for the economic troubles.

Senior Palestinian official Hanan Ashrawi said the Palestinians “will not be blackmailed” by the president, adding that Trump “singlehandedly destroyed the very foundations of peace” by recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital last month.

“Trump has sabotaged our search for peace, freedom and justice,” she said Wednesday.

American officials have been weighing possible retaliatory actions against the Palestinians for a UN resolution condemning Trump’s Jerusalem decision. The resolution passed last month by a 128-9 margin.
• U.S. says it negotiated $285M cut in United Nations budget
• Netanyahu says ‘several countries’ may follow Trump’s lead on Jerusalem embassy switch

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley presaged Trump’s threat on Tuesday, saying the president doesn’t want to give more funds “until the Palestinians are willing to come back to the negotiation table.”

“We still very much want to have a peace process. Nothing changes with that. The Palestinians now have to show they want to come to the table,” Haley said. “As of now, they’re not coming to the table, but they ask for aid. We’re not giving the aid. We’re going to make sure that they come to the table.”

In addition to its support for the Palestinian Authority, the U.S. is also the largest donor UNRWA, the UN agency that assists Palestinian refugees.

The U.S. donated $355 million to UNRWA in 2016, nearly 30 per cent of its total funding. A large portion of the organization’s activity is focused on providing health care, education and food aid to Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. Ending this aid could precipitate a humanitarian crisis, particularly in impoverished Gaza, where a majority of residents are eligible for UNRWA support.

UNRWA spokesman Chris Gunness said it had not been informed of any changes to U.S. funding at this time.

Culture Minister Miri Regev, a senior member of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Cabinet, said she was “very pleased” by Trump’s call to cut funding to the Palestinians. She said the Trump administration’s call to cut aid to UNRWA was “correct and important.”
President Donald Trump tweets that the U.S. may withhold future payments to the Palestinian authority, over 350 million dollars per year, because they are "no longer willing to talk peace" with Israel, and that Israel "would have had to pay more" in return for his recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.