World Briefing: November 27, 2024
President Biden on Tuesday announced a cease-fire deal to stop the fighting between Israel and the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, just after the Israeli prime minister’s office said that ministers had approved the deal. Speaking in a televised address from the White House, Mr. Biden said the cease-fire would go into effect at 4 a.m. in Israel and Lebanon. He said that the deal was intended to definitively end the war between the two sides, saying it was “designed to be a permanent cessation of hostilities.”Hezbollah did not immediately comment on the announcement. The Israeli approval, along with the Biden announcement, raised hope that both sides were moving closer to a truce in their deadliest war in decades. Israel’s security cabinet approved the U.S.-backed proposal late on Tuesday night after hours of deliberations, the Israeli government said in a statement. Shortly afterward, Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, spoke with President Biden to reiterate that Israel would crack down on “any threat to its security.” In an address on Tuesday night to the Israeli public, Mr. Netanyahu sought to rebuff right-wing criticism at home over the decision to end the war with Hezbollah. He argued a truce was necessary to allow Israel to focus on the threat posed by regional foe Iran, isolate Hamas, and replenish weapons stockpiles. “We will respond forcefully to any violation” of the truce by Hezbollah, Mr. Netanyahu said. According to officials briefed on the proposal, both sides would first observe a 60-day truce, during which Israeli forces would withdraw from Lebanon and Hezbollah would move its fighters north. The cease-fire will be overseen by several countries, including the United States, as well as by the United Nations - NYT
After the cease-fire kicked off at 4 a.m. local time, the Israeli military warned civilians not to return to their homes in south Lebanon yet and not to approach Israeli positions. However, convoys of civilians crossed into southern Lebanon, defying the both the Israeli warning and appeal by the Lebanese Army, which is set to deploy to the area to replace the Israeli forces - RFE/RL
Analysis from the BBC’s Roland Bridge: For a president in the waning weeks of his term in office this is a foreign policy triumph, one that he can celebrate and promote rather than listening to the whispering behind the scenes in some Democratic circles about whether he cost the party the 2024 election by not withdrawing sooner. The hope from the administration is this can be a catalyst to resolving the conflict in Gaza.They believe it will de-escalate tensions in the region and put Hamas under pressure. President Biden closed by saying that ‘peace is possible’. With just under two months left in office, he says the US will continue to push for a ceasefire in Gaza too.
President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team officially signed the necessary docs on Tuesday to commence the transfer of power with the Biden administration after more than a month, according to Trump’s chief of staff Susie Wiles. However, the team is still refusing to sign at least two major agreements that will allow for the smooth transition of sensitive and classified information. The New York Times reported that the transition team has rejected signing an agreement that would allow the FBI to conduct security clearances for transition members. Additionally, the team has refused to sign an agreement to obtain secure office space, email accounts, and other security cleared assets from the General Services Administration. According to a statement from Wiles, the rejections were done in the name of government efficiency - Daily Beast
Russian forces are advancing in Ukraine at the fastest rate since the early days of the 2022 invasion, taking an area half the size of London over the past month, analysts and war bloggers said on Tuesday. "Russia has set new weekly and monthly records for the size of the occupied territory in Ukraine," independent Russian news group Agentstvo said in a report. The Russian army captured almost 235 sq km (91 sq miles) in Ukraine over the past week, a weekly record for 2024, it said. Russian forces had taken 600 sq km (232 sq miles) in November, it added, citing data from DeepState, which studies combat footage and provides front line maps. Pasi Paroinen, a military analyst with Finland's Black Bird Group, said Russian forces had taken control of an estimated 667 sq km (257 sq miles) this month, citing data he said could include some October gains noted with a delay - Reuters
Separately, Ukraine is said to have lost more than 40% of the territory in Russia's Kursk region that it captured in a surprise offensive in August with the Russians launching multiple counter-attacks, a senior source in Kyiv's army said. The source, who is on Ukraine's General Staff, said Russia had deployed some 59,000 troops to the Kursk region since Kyiv's forces swept in and advanced swiftly, catching Moscow unprepared 2-1/2 years into its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. "At most, we controlled about 1,376 square kilometres (531 square miles), now of course this territory is smaller. The enemy is increasing its counterattacks," the source said. “Now we control approximately 800 square kilometres (309 square miles). We will hold this territory for as long as is militarily appropriate." - France 24
The far-right, ultranationalist Calin Georgescu - who scored a surprise victory in the first round of Romania's presidential election - still has analysts scratching their heads. The little-known figure confounded the polls and experts to win the November 24 election, beating out favorites including leftist Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu of the Social Democratic Party, Romania's dominant party for decades. Georgescu’s success has largely been credited to his social media campaign, which apparently flew under the radar of many pundits. While he was present on Facebook and YouTube, he ran an adroit campaign on TikTok, generating support and connecting to a young audience in the millions - RFE/RL
Here’s more reaction to the shock win of the right wing, ultranationalist, Vladimir Putin-loving, vaccine sceptical Călin Georgescu.
It’s a TikTok win,” Ion M. Ionita, a Romanian historian, told the Financial Times. “You don’t need a party. You just need to go viral on social media, and he has gone viral for sure.” The journalist Dan Tapalaga told Balkan Insight that this was “the first election where social media has been more influential than television. We have seen how TikTok can defeat mainstream media.”
The International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor has announced an intention to seek an arrest warrant for Myanmar's military leader Min Aung Hlaing. He is accused of crimes against humanity for actions against the Rohingya Muslim minority. More warrants for other officials are expected.
The Hong Kong government has slammed US lawmakers over claims that the city is playing an “increasing role” as a hub for illicit financial activities, calling the allegations “grossly unfounded.” In a statement released on Tuesday, the government said it “strongly disapproves of and firmly rejects malicious slander of Hong Kong’s reputation as an international financial centre” in a letter that US lawmakers wrote to treasury secretary Janet Yellen. In the letter, the politicians said that since the passing of the Beijing-imposed national security law in 2020, Hong Kong had become a “critical player in the deepening authoritarian axis of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), Iran, Russia, and North Korea.” The lawmakers said the city had been leading the trade of banned Western technology to Russia and set up front companies to buy Iranian oil, among other allegations - HKFP
Australia’s House of Representatives on Wednesday passed a bill that would ban children younger than 16 years old from social media, leaving it to the Senate to finalize the world-first law. The major parties backed the bill that would make platforms including TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat, Reddit, X and Instagram liable for fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars ($33 million) for systemic failures to prevent young children from holding accounts. The legislation passed 102 to 13. If the bill becomes law this week, the platforms would have one year to work out how to implement the age restrictions before the penalties are enforced. Opposition lawmaker Dan Tehan told Parliament the government had agreed to accept amendments in the Senate that would bolster privacy protections. Platforms would not be allowed to compel users to provide government-issued identity documents including passports or driver’s licenses, nor could they demand digital identification through a government system - AP
