Month: March 2025

Zelenskyy responds to Graham’s resignation demand, kindly offers him Ukrainian citizenship. 👇🏻 https://t.co/jW3kPWuOEq

— Alex Raufoglu (@ralakbar) March 3, 2025

Tbilisi, Georgia — The acting leader of Abkhazia has won a presidential election in the breakaway Georgian region, state media said Sunday, months after his predecessor was driven from office following protests over an investment deal with Russia.

Acting President Badra Gunba took almost 55% of the vote in Saturday’s election in the Russia-backed territory, ahead of opposition leader Adgur Ardzinba on just under 42%, Abkhazian state news agency Apsnypress reported, citing preliminary results from the electoral commission.

Georgia, of which Abkhazia is recognized as being part of by all but a handful of countries, called the election “another flagrant violation of Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

In footage published by state media, Gunba thanked voters and said he would work to make Abkhazia “independent, free and prosperous.”

Abkhazia has in recent months been plagued by an electricity crisis, with blackouts blamed on low water levels at a key hydroelectric plant and large-scale cryptocurrency mining, which requires large amounts of energy.

Gunba, Abkhazia’s vice president since 2020, took over as acting leader in November after his ally Aslan Bzhania resigned days after protesters seized government buildings and forced him to scrap an unpopular deal with Russia.

It was the third time since 2014 that an Abkhazian leader had been driven from office by mass protests.

A lush, Black Sea coastal territory of about 240,000 people, Abkhazia broke away from Georgia after a war in the early 1990s, with the support of Russia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Gunba on the election win Sunday, Russian media cited the Kremlin as saying.

Moscow recognized Abkhazia as independent territory after another war in 2008. Tens of thousands of ethnic Georgians were expelled from the region in successive conflicts.

Though the territory is politically and economically dependent on Russia, some Abkhazians have been critical of what they see as Moscow’s growing influence.

… way smarter plan from Starmer 👇#StandWithUkraine https://t.co/2qyN8jB65x

— Alex Raufoglu (@ralakbar) March 2, 2025

Dubai — Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said on Sunday that Egypt’s Gaza reconstruction plan, which ensures Palestinians remain in their land, is ready and will be presented at an emergency Arab summit in Cairo on Tuesday.

Arab states, which were swift to reject President Donald Trump’s plan for the U.S. to take control of Gaza and resettle Palestinians, are scrambling to agree on a diplomatic offensive to counter the idea.

Trump’s plan, announced on Feb. 4 amid a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, a U.S.-designated terror group, appeared to back away from long-standing U.S. Middle East policy focused on a two-state solution and sparked anger among Palestinians and Arab nations.

Abdelatty said Egypt would seek international backing and funding for the plan and emphasized Europe’s crucial role, particularly in the financing of Gaza’s reconstruction.

“We will hold intensive talks with major donor countries once the plan is adopted at the upcoming Arab [League] summit,” he said in a press conference with the EU Commissioner for the Mediterranean, Dubravka Suica.

Israel on Sunday blocked the entry of aid trucks into Gaza as a standoff over the truce that has halted fighting for the past six weeks escalated. Abdelatty said the use of aid as a weapon of collective punishment could not be permitted.

The first phase of the fragile ceasefire agreement expired this weekend.

Abdelatty reaffirmed Egypt’s commitment to the originally agreed ceasefire that had been scheduled to move into a second phase.  

“It will be difficult, but with goodwill and political determination, it can be achieved,” he said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said earlier that it had adopted a U.S. proposal for a temporary ceasefire in Gaza for the Ramadan and Passover periods.

Abdelatty said after Tuesday’s summit, foreign ministers of member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation would hold an urgent meeting in Saudi Arabia to discuss how to present the plans.

“We will ensure that the results of the Arab summit are presented to the world in the best possible way,” he said.

The current conflict began when Hamas killed 1,200 people and captured about 250 hostages in their Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel.  

Israel’s counteroffensive in Gaza has killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, according to the territory’s health ministry, with about half being women and children.

https://t.co/O1IgsnVZGf
–#NewsAndTimes #NT #TNT #News #Times #World #USA #POTUS#Intel #Security #CIA #FBI #ODNI #CI #DOD #DIA #DOJ #DOGE https://t.co/eqRPvokjpk pic.twitter.com/xhDhwAgnCN

— Michael Novakhov (@mikenov) March 2, 2025