22 May 2024

Spain, Ireland and Norway say they will recognize a Palestinian state. Why does that matter?

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Spain, Ireland and Norway said Wednesday that they would recognize a Palestinian state on May 28, a step toward a long-held Palestinian aspiration that came amid international outrage over the civilian death toll and humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip following Israel’s offensive.

The almost simultaneous decisions by two European Union countries, and Norway, may generate momentum for the recognition of a Palestinian state by other EU countries and could spur further steps at the United Nations, deepening Israel’s isolation.

Currently, seven member of the 27-nation European Union officially recognize a Palestinian state. Five of them are former east bloc countries who announced recognition in 1988, as did Cyprus, before joining the bloc. Sweden announced recognition in 2014.

The Czech Republic, an EU member, says that the 1988 recognition by the former Czechoslovakia — of which it then formed a part — does not apply to the modern state. Slovakia’s Foreign Ministry says that the two sides confirmed their recognition as Slovakia was becoming independent in 1992-93, and that the Palestinian state has a fully-functioning embassy in Bratislava since 2006.

EU members Malta and Slovenia say they may follow suit, though not immediately.

Some 140 of the about 190 countries represented in the U.N. have already recognized a Palestinian state.

Here’s a look at how and why the new European announcements could be important:

WHY DOES IT MATTER?

A U.N. partition plan in 1947 called for the creation of a Jewish state alongside a Palestinian state, but Palestinians and the wider Arab world rejected it because it would have given them less than half of the land even though Palestinians made up two-thirds of the population.

The Arab-Israeli war the following year left Israel with even more territory, Jordan in control of the West Bank and east Jerusalem, and Egypt in control of Gaza.

In the 1967 war, Israel seized all three territories, and decades of on-again, off-again peace talks have failed.

The United States, Britain and other Western countries have backed the idea of an independent Palestinian state existing alongside Israel as a solution to the Middle East’s most intractable conflict, but they insist Palestinian statehood should come as part of a negotiated settlement. There have been no substantive negotiations since 2009.

Though the EU countries and Norway won’t be recognizing an existing state, just the possibility of one, the symbolism helps enhance the Palestinians’ international standing and heaps more pressure on Israel to open negotiations on ending the war.

Also, the move lends additional prominence to the Middle East issue ahead of June 6-9 elections to the European Parliament.

WHY NOW?

Diplomatic pressure on Israel has grown as the battle with Hamas stretches into its eighth month. The U.N. General Assembly voted by a significant margin on May 11 to grant new “rights and privileges” to Palestine in a sign of growing international support for a vote on full voting membership. The Palestinian Authority currently has observer status.

Hamas has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, Canada and the European Union.

The leaders of Spain, Ireland, Malta and Slovenia said in March they were considering recognizing a Palestinian state as “a positive contribution” toward ending the war.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said Wednesday, “This recognition is not against anyone, it is not against the Israeli people,” he said. “It is an act in favor of peace, justice and moral consistency.”

Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide told The Associated Press that while the country has supported the establishment of a Palestinian state for decades, recognition is “a card that you can play once.”

“We used to think that recognition would come at the end of a process,” he said. “Now we have realized that recognition should come as an impetus, as a strengthening of a process.”

WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS OF RECOGNITION?

While dozens of countries have recognized a Palestinian state, none of the major Western powers has done so, and it is unclear how much of a difference the move by the three countries might make.

Even so, their recognition would mark a significant accomplishment for the Palestinians, who believe it confers international legitimacy on their struggle. Norway said it will upgrade its representative’s office for Palestine to an embassy but it was not clear what Ireland and Spain will do.

Little would likely change on the ground in the short term. Peace talks are stalled, and Israel’s hardline government has dug its heels in against Palestinian statehood.

WHAT IS ISRAEL’S RESPONSE?

Israel, which rejects any move to legitimize the Palestinians internationally, reacted rapidly Wednesday by recalling its ambassadors to Ireland, Norway and Spain.

In a video statement, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that “the intention of several European countries to recognize a Palestinian state is a reward for terrorism.”

He said “80% of the Palestinians in Judea and Samaria (West Bank) support the terrible massacre of October 7. This evil must not be given a state. This will be a terrorist state.” He was referring to the Hamas-led Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel that killed 1,200 people and led to the abduction of over 250 others.

Steps like the ones by the three European countries Wednesday will harden the Palestinian position and undermine the negotiating process, Israel says, insisting that all issues should be solved through negotiations.

Israel often responds to foreign countries’ decisions deemed as going against its interests by summoning those countries’ ambassadors and also punishing the Palestinians through measures such as freezing tax transfers to the cash-strapped Palestinian Authority.

WHO RECOGNIZES A PALESTINIAN STATE?

Some 140 countries have already recognized a Palestinian, more than two-thirds of the United Nations’ membership.

Some major powers have indicated their stance may be evolving amid the outcry over the consequences of Israel’s offensive in Gaza, which has killed more than 35,000 Palestinians according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The ministry does not distinguish between noncombatants and fighters in its count.

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British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said no recognition of a Palestinian state could come while Hamas remains in Gaza, but that it could happen while Israeli negotiations with Palestinian leaders were in progress.

France indicated that it isn’t ready to join other countries in recognizing a Palestinian state, even if it isn’t opposed to the idea in principle. French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné, in comments relayed by his ministry after a closed-door meeting with his Israeli counterpart on Wednesday, said that recognizing a Palestinian state must be “useful” in pushing forward a two-state solution and suggested that doing so now won’t have a genuine impact in pursuing that goal.

German, meanwhile, said it will not recognize a Palestinian state for the time being.

A spokesman for Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that Germany was hoping for a negotiated two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians that would lead to a separate Palestinian state but admits that that solution, while being the best one, is currently a long way off.

 

22 May 2024

Senate confirms 200th federal judge under Biden as Democrats surpass Trump’s pace

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WASHINGTON — The Senate on Wednesday confirmed the 200th federal judge of President Joe Biden’s tenure, about a month earlier than when Donald Trump hit that mark in his term, though Trump still holds the edge when it comes to the most impactful confirmations — those to the Supreme Court and the country’s 13 appellate courts.

The march to 200 culminated with the confirmation of Angela Martinez as a district court judge in Arizona. The milestone reflects the importance that Biden, a former chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., placed on judicial confirmations after Trump put his enormous stamp on the federal judiciary with the confirmation of three Supreme Court justices.

“Reaching 200 judges is a major milestone,” Schumer said just before the 66-28 vote. “Simply put, our 200 judges comprise the most diverse slate of judicial nominations under any president in American history.”

The current pace of judicial confirmations for this White House came despite Biden, a Democrat, coming into office in 2021 with far fewer vacancies, particularly in the influential appellate courts, than Trump, a Republican, did in 2017.

It’s unclear whether Biden can eclipse his predecessor’s 234 judges before the year ends.

Democrats have solidly backed the president’s judicial nominees, but there have been some cracks in that resolve in recent weeks. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., said he would not support nominees who do not have some bipartisan support, and the two Democratic senators from Nevada are opposing a nominee who would become the nation’s first Muslim appellate court judge. They did so after some law enforcement groups came out against the nomination.

The White House is aware of the obstacles as they rush to surpass Trump’s accomplishment. It’s a high water mark that remains a point of pride for the former president and senior Republicans who made it happen, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. Filling dozens of judicial vacancies requires time on the Senate floor calendar, which becomes more scarce as senators in the narrowly divided chamber shift into election-year campaign mode.

Of the more than 40 current judicial vacancies nationwide, half are in states with two Republican senators. That matters because for district court judges, home-state senators still can exercise virtual veto power over a White House’s nominations due to a long-standing Senate tradition.

White House officials say they have no illusions about the challenges they face but feel reaching 235 is possible. That doesn’t please Republicans.

“Unfortunately, they learned from our example about prioritizing lifetime appointments,” said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. Meanwhile, liberal advocacy groups are thrilled with the results so far.

“I just cannot rave enough about these judges,” said Jake Faleschini, who leads nominations work at the Alliance for Justice. “It’s been nothing short of transformative of the federal judiciary in terms of both excellence, but also demographic and professional diversity.”

At this stage in his term, Trump had two Supreme Court justices and 51 appellate court judges confirmed to lifetime appointments. Biden has tapped one Supreme Court justice and 42 appellate court judges. Biden has more confirmations of the district judges who handle civil and criminal cases. Those nominations tend to be less hard fought.

Biden has emphasized adding more female and minority judges to the federal bench. On that front, 127 of the 200 judges confirmed to the bench are women. Fifty-eight are Black and 36 are Hispanic, according to Schumer’s office. Thirty-five judges are Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders, more than any other administration, according to the White House.

In the appellate courts, 30 of the 42 circuit judges confirmed during Biden’s term are women, according to the White House. Thirteen Black women have been chosen as circuit judges, more than all previous administrations combined.

Under Biden, more Hispanic judges have been confirmed to the appellate courts than any other administration.

As abortion access remains a vital priority for the Biden administration and a key argument for the president’s reelection bid, the White House also points to several judges with backgrounds on the issue. They include Judge Julie Rikelman of the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, who before her nomination argued on behalf of the abortion clinic in Dobbs vs Jackson, the 2022 ruling that dismantled Roe vs. Wade; and Nicole Berner, a former attorney at Planned Parenthood who now serves on the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Conservatives say it is fine to have diversity, but that should not be the focus.

“I think the right standard isn’t trying to check boxes with nominees, but to try to find the men and women who are going to be faithful to the Constitution and the rule of law,” said Carrie Severino, president of JCN, a conservative group that worked to boost support for Trump’s nominees.

About a one-quarter of the judges Trump nominated were women and about 1 in 6 were minorities, according to the Pew Research Center.

Asked about the diversity of Biden’s nominees, GOP senators said there was too much focus on identity politics.

“I’m interested in competent lawyers who will administer justice fairly. Now, there are women that can do that. There are men that can do that. There are people of color that can do that,” said Sen. John Kennedy, R-La. “But their primary characteristic that they’re proudest of is racial identify or gender identify, and activist. And I just don’t think that’s what the American people want to see in their justice system.”

Proponents of diversifying the federal judiciary counter that people who come before the court have more trust in the legal process when they see people who look like them. They said it’s important to diversify the professional backgrounds of judges, too, so that more public defenders and those with a civil rights or non-profit background are considered.

“The American people deserve federal judges who not only look like America, but understand the American experience from every angle,” said Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., the Senate Judiciary Committee chairman.

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22 May 2024

Lawsuits claim 66 people were abused as children in Pennsylvania’s juvenile facilities

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By MARK SCOLFORO (Associated Press)

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Dozens of children who were sent to juvenile detention centers and similar facilities in Pennsylvania suffered physical and sexual abuse including violent rapes, according to four related lawsuits filed Wednesday.

The lawsuits describe how 66 people, now adults, say they were victimized by guards, nurses, supervisors and others. Some attacks were reported to other staffers and were ignored or met with disbelief, the lawsuits allege.

Their claims point to a broken juvenile justice system in Pennsylvania, said Jerome Block, a New York lawyer whose firm filed the new cases and is helping pursue similar lawsuits in Illinois,Maryland, New Jersey and Michigan.

“The purpose of the juvenile justice system is to rehabilitate and educate and reform, to equip them to lead healthy, productive lives,” Block said in a phone interview before filing the suits. “Instead these men and women were sexually traumatized as children. They came to these facilities needing help. Instead, they had trauma inflicted upon them.”

The lawsuits involve the Loysville Youth Development Center, the South Mountain Secure Treatment Unit and the North Central Secure Treatment Unit in Danville, all under the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services; Merakey USA’s Northwestern Academy outside Shamokin, which closed in 2016; and facilities run by Tucson, Arizona-based VisionQuest National Ltd. and Villanova-based Devereux Advanced Behavioral Health.

Copies of the lawsuit were emailed Wednesday morning, seeking comment, to spokespeople for the Department of Human Services, Devereux and Merakey. Several messages were left in recent days for VisionQuest.

All of those who are suing were born after Nov. 26, 1989, and meet the state’s legal standards for filing claims of sexual abuse when they were children.

Block said the legal team also represents more than 100 people who were similarly abused, but too long ago under time limits to file civil claims. Proposals to open a two-year window for such outdated claims have been blocked by Senate Republicans in the General Assembly.

Eighteen of the latest plaintiffs describe rapes and other sexual abuse at Devereux facilities. One man says that when he was 14, while sedated during “major anger outbreaks,” a staff member sexually abused him while he was restrained “so he could not fight back.”

Other claims, by 15 people who were confined at facilities run by the Department of Human Services, say children there “have long been subjected to a culture of exploitation, violence and rampant sexual abuse” committed by guards, counselors and other staff.

“The sexual abuse at commonwealth juvenile detention facilities has ranged from inappropriate strip searches to rape using violent physical force,” according to their lawsuit, which alleges negligence and failed oversight.

One of the plaintiffs says she became pregnant as a teenager as the result of a violent rape by a counselor at North Central about 20 years ago, and that another staffer didn’t believe her when she reported the rape. The lawsuit doesn’t describe what happened regarding her pregnancy.

Merakey USA, which operated Northwestern Academy before it shut down in 2016, is accused of a “culture of sexual abuse and brutality,” including “inappropriate and criminal sexual relationships with children,” who were granted or denied privileges to pressure them into sex.

That lawsuit says one 14-year-old girl who had not been sexually active was forced into sex acts by two Northwestern Academy staffers, and when she complained, she was accused of lying and her home leave passes were removed.

A male therapist then had her write about her sexual encounters during twice-a-week sessions for five months, telling her it was treatment for sex addiction and for a book he was writing. When she asked for the book upon leaving the facility, its director told her the book did not exist and her experience “would not be considered mental health treatment,” the lawsuit says.

22 May 2024

Don’t have tickets to Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals? Timberwolves hosting a block party outside the arena

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Tickets for Timberwolves home games during the Western Conference Finals figure to be hot, expensive commodities. But the team is offering another way for fans to be close to the action, starting with Game 2 on Friday.

That’s when Minnesota will launch its “Wolves Back” Block Party, which will open at 4 p.m. outside of Gluek’s Bar & Restaurant on Sixth Street, just outside of Target Center. The event will include live programming and entertainment, food and beverage offerings, fan activations and appearances by Wolves alums and broadcasters.

Come tip time, the game will be broadcasted on a large screen on stage with audio blaring.

Free tickets are available at www.Timberwolves.com/BlockParty.

A similar setup will likely be available for Games 5 and 7 in Minneapolis, should they be necessary. The block party could mimic other fan-centric outdoor watch parties created by hockey and basketball teams alike in recent years. During its title run in 2021, the Bucks established a “Deer District” that welcomed thousands of fans to watch the game together in Milwaukee.

“It’s an incredible time to be a Timberwolves fan,” Timberwolves and Lynx Chief Operating Officer Ryan Tanke said in a release, “and we look forward to providing the best fans in the NBA with exciting opportunities to gather and celebrate Wolves basketball.”

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