Briefly

EGYPT

Israel, Egypt talk truce, rebuilding Gaza Strip

Egypt and Israel held high-level talks in both countries on Sunday to shore up a truce between Israel and the Hamas militant group, and rebuild the Gaza Strip after a 11-day conflict that left much of the seaside enclave in ruins. Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shukry was meeting with his Israeli counterpart, Gabi Ashkenazi, who landed in Cairo on Sunday. It was the first public visit by an Israeli foreign minister in over a decade, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said. The two ministers would discuss topics including the cease-fire and the release of Israeli soldiers and citizens being held by Hamas. Egypt's intelligence chief, Abbas Kamel, flew to Tel Aviv for talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian officials in Ramallah, an Egyptian official said.

UNITED STATES

Republicans lash Biden budget plan

The White House on Friday unveiled a $6 trillion budget proposal for the 2022 fiscal year, drawing backlash from Republican lawmakers and budget watchers. The proposal, which included President Joe Biden's plan to increase investment in infrastructure, education, healthcare and beyond, calls for total spending to run above $6 trillion throughout the next decade, and rise to $8.2 trillion by fiscal year 2031. Deficits, meanwhile, would stay above $1.3 trillion in the next 10 years. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell lashed out at the plan, saying: "Americans are already hurting from far-left economics that ignore reality … So far the Biden Administration has recommended we spend $7 trillion additional this year. That would be more than we spent during World War II."

GERMANY

Colonial crimes recognized as genocide

More than 100 years after Germany was a colonial power in Namibia, the German government officially recognized the atrocities committed against the Herero and Nama ethnic groups as genocide, the Federal Foreign Office announced on Friday. After more than five years of negotiations, Germany and Namibia reached an "agreement on how to deal jointly with the darkest chapter of our common history," said Germany's Foreign Minister Heiko Maas. The German empire was the colonial power in what is today Namibia from 1884 to 1915. According to historians, 60,000 Herero and 10,000 out of 20,000 Nama were killed in the time.

Agencies - Xinhua