state of the union speech 2024
State of the Union address: Biden calls for an immediate 6-week ceasefire in Gaza:
On Friday, US President Joe Biden delivered the annual State of the Union address, which comes at a pivotal stage in the political career of the 81-year-old Democrat, as he seeks to convince hesitant voters of his ability to defeat Republican Donald Trump. Biden accused his rival Trump of “submitting” to Putin.
Biden told Congress, “The former Republican president tells Putin: Do whatever the hell you want.”
He added that "President Putin of Russia is moving forward and invading Ukraine and sowing chaos throughout Europe and beyond." “If anyone in this room thinks Putin will stop at Ukraine, I assure you he will not.”
Biden added that his country is working tirelessly to reach an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, calling for an "immediate six-week ceasefire" between Israel and Hamas. He pointed out that protecting and saving innocent lives in Gaza must be a priority.
Biden stressed to Congress during his annual State of the Union address: “Aid to Gaza cannot be a bargaining chip,” addressing Israeli leaders: “Humanitarian aid to Gaza cannot be bargained.” He added, "We are working to bring the largest amount of aid into Gaza, and we call on Israel to allow this."
The US President said: “We will give instructions to the army to establish a port in Gaza to deliver aid,” calling on Hamas to hand over those involved in the October 7 attack.
After Washington escalated its tone, Israel is preparing a new crossing to bring aid into northern Gaza.
It is expected that the first shipments will pass through this crossing in the coming weeks, first on an experimental basis, to be intensified later
Scattered protests across the United States ahead of the State of the Union address:
Before Biden's speech, dozens gathered near the White House
Scattered protests took place across the United States ahead of US President Joe Biden's upcoming State of the Union address, during which activists called for pressure for a permanent ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas and for more efforts to limit Israeli attacks in Gaza.
In response to what was circulated about the TikTok application and the project to ban it in America:
The White House presented a draft law in the US Congress that would give TikTok a choice between separating from the Chinese company ByteDance, which owns it, or facing a ban amid fears of espionage, according to what CNN reported.
TikTok considered that "this legislation has a predetermined outcome: a complete ban on TikTok in the United States, destroying the livelihoods of countless creators across the country."
The White House has been volatile in dealing with TikTok because of its attempt to balance the popularity of the application, which has 170 million users in the United States, with its potential security risks as a Chinese company.
It is worth noting that last month, Biden filmed his first short video clips on the platform in which he addressed light topics that ranged from politics to sports.