A city councilwoman in Cincinnati is under fire for comments posted on Facebook in the wake of a brutal downtown beatdown last weekend.
Day: July 31, 2025
Two of Belgium’s five governing parties on Wednesday called for parliament and the council of ministers to convene and discuss the situation in Gaza. “We hope that humanity will prevail over political boundaries,” said Vooruit party leader Conner Rousseau.
Countries including France and the United Kingdom are taking a definitive stance on the violence in Gaza, while the CD&V and Vooruit parties urge MPs and ministers to suspend their summer recess for discussions on the matter. The opposition parties Groen and Ecolo previously called for the foreign affairs committee of parliament to convene, which both the CD&V and Vooruit support, seeking to escalate the issue further by convening the council of ministers as well.
Decisive action
“The committee will limit itself to a hearing and therefore does not have sufficient power,” stated Nawal Farih, leader of the Christian democratic CD&V party. “It is important to us that the government considers this issue and takes decisive action.”
We also want both parliament and the council of ministers to meet in August
The council of ministers, consisting of federal government ministers, determines government policy typically by majority vote. Last week, Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot announced that Belgium would delay any decision regarding recognition of Palestine until early September.
This delay has raised concerns among some government parties, including the socialist Vooruit. “We also want both parliament and the council of ministers to meet in August,” Rousseau emphasized.
Stronger signal
Rousseau argued that this action is necessary “to send a stronger signal and take tougher action against the genocide taking place in Gaza.” He reiterated, “We hope that humanity will prevail over political boundaries.”
Any debate that seeks solutions to end this terrible situation is worthwhile
The Flemish nationalist N-VA, the party of Prime Minister Bart De Wever, has expressed support for a parliamentary committee meeting. “Any debate that seeks solutions to end this terrible situation is worthwhile,” stated the party’s parliamentary group leader, Axel Ronse.
Humanitarian aid
On the same day, Prime Minister De Wever announced that Belgium received approval from Jordan to provide short-term humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.
“Together with our European partners, we will continue to exert pressure to ensure that humanitarian aid can be organized safely and effectively,” De Wever wrote on X. “If that fails, we do not rule out further measures or sanctions,” he added, asserting that “the coexistence of Israel and a democratic Palestinian state is the only path to peace.”
Following the ongoing discussions, Belgian authorities are expected to stay engaged with their European partners to facilitate humanitarian efforts in the region.
Tasos Katopodis via Getty Images
- Ford is projecting a $2 billion bill due to the Trump administration’s tariffs.
- That is $500 million higher than what it forecast last quarter.
- Ford’s CEO says Trump’s reduced tariffs on Japan will give its automakers a “meaningful” advantage.
Jim Farley, the CEO of Ford, said on Wednesday that the Trump administration’s tariff policy will saddle the automaker with a $2 billion bill while benefiting its Japanese rivals.
“Our tariff bill is $2 billion, and that’s a net number,” Farley said in an earnings call. The company had projected a tariff hit of $1.5 billion in its last quarter.
Farley told analysts he expects automakers to adopt a regional rather than globalized approach toward their businesses. In addition to tariffs, Farley said the change is being driven by the rise of electric vehicles and new carbon regulations.
“We increasingly see Europe, North America, and Asia becoming kind of regional businesses with tariff rates that are aligned for those three or four regions,” Farley said.
“This is quite a fundamental change,” he added.
Representatives for Ford and the White House did not respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.
Farley said in an interview with Bloomberg on the same day that the Trump administration’s reduced tariffs on Japan would give its Asian rivals a “meaningful” cost advantage. Last week, President Donald Trump said the US would lower its tariffs on Japan to 15% from 25%.
The reduced tariffs, lower labour costs, and favorable exchange rates “really advantage their export,” Farley said.
A Kentucky-built Ford Escape could cost $5,000 more than a Japanese-made Toyota Rav4, while a Michigan-made Ford Bronco might be undercut by a Toyota 4Runner to the tune of $10,000, Farley added.
Farley told Bloomberg that Ford is working with the Trump administration to “minimize our tariff expense so that we can get more competitive.”
“But the bottom line is our plan at Ford is not to compete in those commodity segments,” he continued.
This isn’t the first time Farley has talked about the challenges Ford faces in the face of a new slate of tariffs. Farley said in an interview with Bloomberg earlier this year that Trump’s 25% tariff on Canada and Mexico is a “windfall for South Korean and Japanese companies.”
“In our guidance, we can handle a couple of weeks of tariffs. If it goes beyond that, obviously, it will be billions and billions of incremental profit headwinds for the company,” Farley told the outlet in February.
On Wednesday, Ford’s shares fell by nearly 1.6% in after-hours trading. The company’s shares are up by 9.8% year to date.
Read the original article on Business Insider