Washington, Oct 11: President Donald Trump on Friday threatened to place an additional 100 per cent tax on Chinese imports starting on November 1 or sooner, potentially escalating tariff rates close to levels that in April fanned fears of a global recession.

The president expressed frustration with new export controls placed on rare earth elements by China — and said on social media that “there seems to be no reason” to meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping as part of an upcoming trip to South Korea.

Trump later told reporters he had not cancelled his meeting. “But I don’t know that we’re going to have it,” he said during an Oval Office appearance on another subject. “I’m going to be there regardless, so I would assume we might have it.”

Trump also suggested there may be time to ratchet down his steep new tariff threat. “We’re going to have to see what happens. That’s why I made it Nov. 1,” he said.

China’s new restrictions

On Thursday, the Chinese government restricted access to rare earth minerals, requiring foreign companies to get special approval for shipping the metallic elements abroad. It also announced permitting requirements on exports of technologies used in the mining, smelting and recycling of rare earths, adding that any export requests for products used in military goods would be rejected.

On social media, Trump described the export controls as “shocking” and “out of the blue.” He said China is “becoming very hostile” and that it’s holding the world “captive” by restricting access to the metals and magnets used in electronics, computer chips, lasers, jet engines and other technologies.

Trump said in a post that “starting November 1st, 2025 (or sooner, depending on any further actions or changes taken by China), the United States of America will impose a Tariff of 100% on China, over and above any Tariff that they are currently paying.” The president also said the US government would respond to China by putting its own export controls “on any and all critical software” from American firms.

The Chinese Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to an Associated Press request for comment.

Trump is known for using threats as a tactic

The S&P 500 tumbled 2.7 per cent on worries about the rising tensions between the world’s largest economies. It was the market’s worst day since April when the president last bandied about import taxes this high. Still, the stock market closed before the president spelt out the terms of his threat.

Not only could the global trade war instigated by Trump be rekindled, but import taxes being heaped on top of the 30 per cent already being levied on Chinese goods could, by the administration’s past statements, cause trade to break down between the US and China in ways that could cause growth worldwide to slump.

While Trump’s wording was definitive, he is also famously known for backing down from threats. Earlier this year, some investors began engaging in what the Financial Times called the “TACO” trade, which stands for “Trump Always Chickens Out.”

The prospect of tariffs this large could compound the president’s own political worries, potentially pushing up inflation at a moment when the job market appears fragile and the drags from a government shutdown are starting to compound with layoffs of federal workers.

The United States and China have been jostling for advantage in trade talks, after the import taxes announced earlier this year triggered the trade war. Both countries agreed to ratchet down tariffs after negotiations in Switzerland and the United Kingdom, yet tensions remain as China has continued to restrict America’s access to the difficult-to-mine rare earths needed for a wide array of US technologies.

There is already a backlog of export license applications from Beijing’s previous round of export controls on rare earth elements, and the latest announcements “add further complexity to the global supply chain of rare earth elements,” the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China said in a statement.

There are other flashpoints in the trade relationship, including US restrictions on China’s ability to import advanced computer chips, sales of American-grown soybeans and a series of tit-for-tat port fees being levied by both countries starting on Tuesday.

Analysts say there’s time to de-escalate

Trump did not formally cancel the meeting with Xi, so much as indicating that it might not happen as part of a trip at the end of the month in Asia. The trip was scheduled to include a stop in Malaysia, which is hosting the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit; a stop in Japan; and a visit to South Korea, where he was slated to meet with Xi ahead of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.

Sun Yun, director of the China program at the Stimson Center, said Beijing’s move was a reaction to US sanctions of Chinese companies this week and the upcoming port fees targeting China-related vessels — but said there’s room for de-escalation to keep the leaders’ meeting alive. “It is a disproportional reaction,” Sun said. “Beijing feels that de-escalation will have to be mutual as well. There is room for manoeuvre, especially on the implementation.”

Gracelin Baskaran, director of the Critical Minerals Security Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC, said China holds leverage because it dominates the market for rare earths with 70 per cent of the mining and 93 per cent of the production of permanent magnets made from them, which are crucial to high-tech products and the military.

“These restrictions undermine our ability to develop our industrial base at a time when we need to. And then second, it’s a powerful negotiating tool,” she said.

Craig Singleton, senior director of the China program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a think tank, said Trump’s post could “mark the beginning of the end of the tariff truce” that had lowered the tax rates charged by both countries.

“Mutually assured disruption between the two sides is no longer a metaphor,” Singleton said. “Both sides are reaching for their economic weapons at the same time, and neither seems willing to back down.”

Wadi Gaza, Oct 11: Tens of thousands of Palestinians headed back to the heavily destroyed northern Gaza Strip on Friday as a US-brokered ceasefire came into effect in a deal that raised hopes for ending the Israel-Hamas war. All the remaining hostages were set to be released within days.

Questions remain over who will govern Gaza as Israeli troops gradually pull back and whether Hamas will disarm, as called for in US President Donald Trump’s ceasefire plan. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who unilaterally ended a ceasefire in March, hinted that Israel might renew its offensive if Hamas does not give up its weapons.

The latest truce nevertheless marks a key step toward ending a ruinous two-year war that was triggered by Hamas’ 2023 attack on Israel. The fighting has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and displaced around 90 per cent of the Gaza population of some 2 million, often multiple times. Many of them will find fields of rubble where their homes once stood.

The military confirmed the start of the ceasefire Friday, and the remaining 48 hostages, around 20 of them believed to be alive, are to be released by Monday. Palestinians said heavy shelling in parts of Gaza earlier on Friday had mostly stopped after the military’s announcement.

Netanyahu said in a televised statement Friday that the next stages would see Hamas disarm and Gaza demilitarised.

“If this is achieved the easy way — so be it. If not — it will be achieved the hard way,” Netanyahu said.

The Israeli military has said it will continue to operate defensively from the roughly 50% of Gaza it still controls after pulling back to agreed-upon lines.

Aid shipments to begin Sunday

Meanwhile, the United Nations was given the green light by Israel to begin delivering scaled-up aid into Gaza starting Sunday, a UN official said. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss details not yet made public.

The aid shipments are meant to address severe malnutrition and famine conditions triggered by Israeli offensives and restrictions on humanitarian help. The International Criminal Court is seeking the arrest of Netanyahu and his former defence minister for allegedly using starvation as a method of war. Israeli officials deny the accusations.

The aid will include 170,000 metric tons that have already been positioned in neighbouring countries such as Jordan and Egypt as humanitarian officials awaited permission from Israeli forces to restart their work.

UN officials and Israeli authorities have engaged in a series of discussions in Jerusalem over the last 24 hours about the volume of aid humanitarian organisations can bring in and through which entry points.

UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told reporters Friday that fuel, medical supplies and other critical materials have started flowing through the Kerem Shalom crossing. UN officials want Israel to open more border crossings and provide safe movement for aid workers and civilians who are returning to parts of Gaza that were under heavy fire until only recently.

In the last several months, the UN and its partners have been able to deliver only 20% of the aid needed in the Gaza Strip, according to UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher.

People on the move

A steady stream of people, the vast majority on foot, crammed onto a coastal road in the central Gaza Strip, heading north to see what might remain of their homes. It was a repeat of emotional scenes from an earlier ceasefire in January. Others headed to different parts of the Palestinian territory in the south.

The destruction they find this time will be even greater, after Israel waged a new offensive in Gaza City, in the north, in recent weeks. The military bombed high-rises and blew up homes in what it said was an attempt to destroy Hamas’ remaining military infrastructure.

Palestinians have expressed relief that the war may end, tempered with concern about the future and lingering pain from the staggering death and destruction.

“There wasn’t much joy, but the ceasefire somewhat eased the pain of death and bloodshed, and the pain of our loved ones and brothers who suffered in this war,” said Jamal Mesbah, who was displaced from the north and plans to return.

In Gaza’s southern city of Khan Younis, hundreds of Palestinians returning to their homes found wrecked buildings, rubble and destruction after Israeli troops withdrew.

“There was nothing left. Just a few clothes, pieces of wood and pots,” said Fatma Radwan, who was displaced from Khan Younis. People were still trying to retrieve bodies from under the rubble, she added.

Many buildings were flattened, and none was undamaged, as people went back to search for their belongings. Hani Omran, who was also displaced from Khan Younis, said: “We came to a place that is unidentifiable … Destruction is everywhere.”

The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostage.

In Israel’s ensuing offensive, more than 67,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza and nearly 170,000 wounded, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants but says around half the deaths were women and children. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government, and the United Nations and many independent experts consider its figures to be the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties.

The war has also triggered other conflicts in the region, sparked worldwide protests and led to allegations of genocide that Israel denies.

How the agreement is expected to unfold

Israel is set to release around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the remaining hostages. A list Israel published Friday did not include high-profile prisoner Marwan Barghouti, the most popular Palestinian leader and a potentially unifying figure. Israel views him and other high-profile prisoners as terrorists and has refused to release them in past exchanges.

Khalil al-Hayya, a senior Hamas official and lead negotiator, said Thursday evening that all women and children held in Israeli jails will be freed.

The hostage and prisoner releases are expected to begin Monday, two Egyptian officials briefed on the talks and a Hamas official said, though another official said they could occur as early as Sunday night. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to be publicly named speaking about the negotiations.

A relative of one of the Israeli hostages believed to have died in captivity says the family hopes that his body will be returned for burial.

“It’s a measured sense of hope in all hostage families,” said Stephen Brisley, whose sister, Lianne Sharabi, and her two teenage daughters were killed in the October 7 attack.

Lianne’s husband, Eli Sharabi, was eventually released, but his brother, Yossi, is believed to have died in an airstrike in January 2024. The family hopes to give him a dignified burial.

“We hold our hope lightly because we’ve had our hopes dashed before,” Brisley told The Associated Press from his home in South Wales.

The Trump plan calls for Israel to maintain an open-ended military presence inside Gaza, along its border with Israel. An international force, comprised largely of troops from Arab and Muslim countries, would be responsible for security inside Gaza. The US would lead a massive internationally funded reconstruction effort.

The plan envisions an eventual role for the Palestinian Authority — something Netanyahu has long opposed. But it requires the authority, which administers parts of the West Bank, to undergo a sweeping reform program that could take years.

The Trump plan is even more vague about a future Palestinian state, which Netanyahu firmly rejects.

Washington, Oct 10: The White House on Friday slammed the Nobel Peace Prize Committee, accusing it of ignoring President Donald Trump’s contributions to global peace, an honour he has been aggressively seeking often on the back of exaggerated or unverified claims, including his assertions of defusing tensions between India and Pakistan.

“The Nobel Committee proved they place politics over peace,” White House Director of Communications Steven Cheung said in a social media post, hours after Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was declared the winner of the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize.

Cheung said Trump “will continue making peace deals, ending wars, and saving lives. He has the heart of a humanitarian, and there will never be anyone like him who can move mountains with the sheer force of his will”.

Shortly after Cheung’s comments, Trump, in a social media post, thanked Russian President Vladimir Putin for praising his peace efforts, despite not winning a Nobel.

“Thank you to President Putin!” he wrote.

Replying to a question, Putin told reporters in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, that Trump is doing a lot to resolve complex crises that have lasted for years and even decades.

In another post, Trump reposted Machado’s recognition of him, but didn’t comment on her remarks.

In a post on social media, Machado praised Trump’s “decisive support”, as she dedicated the prestigious award to the US president and to the Venezuelan people.

“This recognition of the struggle of all Venezuelans is a boost to conclude our task: to conquer Freedom. We are on the threshold of victory and today, more than ever, we count on President Trump, the people of the United States, the peoples of Latin America, and the democratic nations of the world as our principal allies to achieve Freedom and democracy.

“I dedicate this prize to the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his decisive support of our cause!” she wrote.

According to the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Machado was awarded for her “tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy”.

Trump has been claiming credit for brokering peace agreements, most notably the Abraham Accords, which normalised relations between Israel and several Arab nations.

The US President has asserted multiple times that he deserved the Nobel Peace Prize for settling “eight wars”, including the recent military conflict between India and Pakistan.

India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam attack that killed 26 civilians.

India and Pakistan reached an understanding on May 10 to end the conflict after four days of intense cross-border drone and missile strikes.

India has consistently maintained that the understanding on cessation of hostilities with Pakistan was reached following direct talks between the Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) of the two militaries.

Trump has repeated several times that in the second term of his administration so far, he has ended several wars, including between India and Pakistan, Cambodia and Thailand, Kosovo and Serbia, the Congo and Rwanda, Israel and Iran, Egypt and Ethiopia and Armenia and Azerbaijan.