International

“Israel’s goal is to destroy memory,” says former Palestinian Minister of Culture

The writer and former Palestinian Minister of Culture Atef Abu Saif said that Israel’s goal is to destroy memory, eliminate Palestinian history and any evidence that unites the Palestinian people with their land.

“They are destroying museums, theaters, cultural centers… They try to eliminate our history,” said in an interview with EFE the author of ‘I want to be awake when I die: diary of the genocide in Gaza’ (2024), who traveled to Brazil to participate in a literary fair.

Cultural losses for Palestine due to Israeli attacks

The latest report of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) reported that, of the 120 sites it monitors through satellite images in Palestine, 69 were damaged since October 7, 2023, the day of the radical group Hamas attack on Israel that started the war.

Among them are religious sites, buildings of historical and/or artistic interest, deposits of cultural property, monuments and archaeological sites.

One of the key losses for the Palestinian people, says Saif, was the destruction of the Central Archive of Gaza City, which contained historical documents more than 150 years old, in December 2023.

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The politician, who dedicated himself to writing stories from a very young age, pointed out that in Palestine “culture is not luxury and entertainment,” but “a tool of struggle and resistance,” and stressed that currently the residents of the Strip have their lives on pause.

“You live little by little, second by second. You’re fine now, but that doesn’t mean it will be like that in the next minute. It’s a constant fight against death,” he laments.

For Saif, this historical event will be remembered as “the first genocide of the 21st century” and the moment in which “the international community was silent.”

‘I want to be awake when I die’, his latest book

The author, a native of the Yabalia refugee camp, believes that it is a responsibility to talk about the suffering that the people of Palestine are going through.

“Of course I would like to talk about love, life, hopes and dreams. But I can’t avoid, for example, when I describe my characters, the fact that none of them can leave Gaza through the border posts. I would love not to talk about it, but what normal life can you have if no one is qualified to leave a place?” Saif wonders.

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From that notion is born his latest book, ‘I want to be awake when I die: diary of the genocide in Gaza’, a story of his days in the Gaza Strip after October 7.

The book was translated into ten languages and its Portuguese version was recently presented at the Paraty International Literary Festival (Flip), the largest event of letters in Brazil.

Saif was in Gaza with his son for work when the Israeli offensive began and was trapped for three months with his relatives and more than 2 million inhabitants, so he saw no other way out than writing to tell stories.

“War is a machine that reduces us to just numbers. We are not numbers, we are stories, we are lives, we are part of a family. We are past, present and future,” said the author, who is displaced from his home.

“When people ask me where I live, I don’t know what to answer. Sometimes I say that I live in the world while I wait for the war to end so I can return to Gaza.”

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International

Paraguay summons Brazilian ambassador over Itaipú espionage scandal

Paraguay summoned the Brazilian ambassador in Asunción on Tuesday to demand “explanations” and called its own representative in Brasília for consultations following Brazil’s acknowledgment of an espionage operation. The Brazilian government, led by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, attributed the operation to the previous administration.

The surveillance effort aimed to uncover Paraguay’s position in now-suspended negotiations with Brazil regarding the pricing of electricity from the binational Itaipú hydroelectric plant, according to reports in the Brazilian press.

The Brazilian government “categorically denied any involvement in the intelligence operation,” stating in a Foreign Ministry communiqué on Monday that the espionage was carried out under former President Jair Bolsonaro’s administration (2019-2023).

“The operation was authorized by the previous government in June 2022 and was annulled by the interim director of the (state intelligence agency) ABIN on March 27, 2023, as soon as the current administration became aware of it,” Brazil’s government asserted.

Paraguay’s Foreign Minister Rubén Ramírez announced that Brazilian Ambassador José Antonio Marcondes de Carvalho was summoned “to provide detailed explanations” regarding the operation. Additionally, Paraguay recalled its diplomatic representative in Brasília “to report on aspects related to the intelligence activity conducted by Brazil regarding Paraguay’s government affairs.”

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International

Elon Musk to step down as government advisor, per Trump insiders

President Donald Trump has informed his inner circle that Elon Musk will be stepping down from his role as a government advisor, according to a report by Politico today.

Citing three individuals close to Trump, Politico states that the president is pleased with Musk’s leadership at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), where he has implemented significant budget cuts. However, both have agreed that it is time for Musk to return to his businesses and support Trump from a different position outside the government.

A senior administration official told Politico that Musk will likely maintain an informal advisory role and continue to be an occasional visitor to the White House. Another source warned that anyone thinking Musk will completely disappear from Trump’s circle is “deluding themselves.”

According to the sources, this transition is expected to coincide with the end of Musk’s tenure as a “special government employee,” a temporary status that exempts him from certain ethics and conflict-of-interest regulations. This 130-day period is set to expire in late May or early June.

International

Milei vows to make Argentina so strong that Falkland Islanders “choose” to join

Argentine President Javier Milei reaffirmed his country’s claim over the Falkland Islands (known as the Islas Malvinas in Argentina) and praised the role of the nation’s armed forces during a ceremony marking the “Veterans and Fallen Soldiers of the Malvinas War Day,” commemorating 43 years since the 1982 conflict with the United Kingdom.

Argentina continues to assert sovereignty over the islands, arguing that Britain unlawfully seized them in 1833.

“If sovereignty over the Malvinas is the issue, we have always made it clear that the most important vote is the one cast with one’s feet. We hope that one day, the Malvinas residents will choose to vote with their feet and join us,” Milei stated.

“That is why we aim to become a global power—so much so that they would prefer to be Argentine, making deterrence or persuasion unnecessary. This is why we have embarked on a path of liberation, working to make Argentina the freest country in the world and once again the nation with the highest GDP per capita on the planet,” he added.