Sam Bankman-Fried stands accused of multi-billion dollar fraud – but insists that he has not committed any crime.
It has previously been pointed out that the 31-year-old was one of the Democratic Party’s and the Biden campaign’s largest individual financiers.
It has been reported that billions of dollars mysteriously disappeared after the crypto exchange FTX crashed, and that the founder Sam Bankman Fried apparently bears the main responsibility for the fraud.
Now the trial against him is starting and it seems likely that Bankman-Fried will defend himself by claiming that he did not think he was doing anything illegal or inappropriate – and also try to undermine the credibility of those who contradict his version, Reuters reports.
The crypto entrepreneur’s lawyers are believed to be focusing on insisting that their client “lacked criminal intent” and that it was “mistakes” that led to his clients losing their wealth and investments.
However, a large body of testimony suggests that Bankman-Fried was fully aware that his hedge fund, Almeda Research, had no right to borrow FTX clients money to pay debts, make investments or lend billions to Bankman-Fried himself and other executives – contradicting claims that he acted in good faith.
It should also be noted that three former executives at Alameda and FTX have already pleaded guilty to involvement in the fraud and will testify against Bankman-Fried during the trial.
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Israel and Hamas have reached a ceasefire agreement that will take effect on Sunday, January 19. Qatar, which mediated the negotiations, confirmed the news during a press conference on Wednesday evening.
The truce includes the release of hostages, humanitarian aid to Gaza, and the hope that the fighting will eventually stop completely.
Qatar’s Prime Minister, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Al-Thani, announced on Wednesday that the ceasefire will have an initial duration of six weeks, according to Swedish TV4.
The Prime Minister expressed hope that the truce will lead to a permanent solution.
– Hopefully, these are the last negotiations leading to a permanent ceasefire.
Under the three-stage agreement, Hamas will, in phase one, release 33 Israeli hostages (out of a total of 98) in exchange for Israel releasing a number of Palestinian prisoners. The parties have also agreed to allow daily shipments of up to 600 trucks of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, the Associated Press reports.
The “Trump effect” may have played a role
Political analysts and experts believe that US President-elect Donald Trump may have had an indirect impact on the agreement.
Isabell Schierenbeck, a political scientist at the University of Gothenburg, says: “Trump’s upcoming inauguration has probably acted as a catalyst for the parties to reach a ceasefire.There is a clear political signal that it may be more difficult to negotiate in the future”, she says in a comment to Stampen-owned Göteborgs-Posten.
Trump himself has taken credit for the agreement, expressing this on his social platform Truth Social.
– This epic ceasefire agreement could have only happened as a result of our historic victory in November, he wrote.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly thanked Donald Trump in a phone call for his role in making the truce possible.
Some hope but also uncertainty
The ceasefire is welcomed by many international actors as an important step towards reducing tensions and delivering much-needed humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza, with UN Secretary-General António Guterres, among others, expressing his support for the agreement and stressing the importance of getting aid to those in need.
Despite this, there is still uncertainty about how sustainable the agreement will be. Previous ceasefires have been broken by both sides, and the conflict between Israel and Hamas remains deeply rooted.
According to local reports, both sides plan to use the ceasefire to redeploy their forces, raising fears that fighting could resume with renewed intensity after the agreement ends.
Swedish foreign minister: “Greatly welcomed”
Several countries, including Sweden, have welcomed the agreement. The Swedish Minister for Foreign Affairs, Maria Malmer Stenergard (M), expresses cautious hope.
– The news of a ceasefire in Gaza is greatly welcomed. At last, several hostages can be reunited with their families. My thoughts are with the families of those who have not returned alive. It is now absolutely essential that the ceasefire eases the immense suffering of Gaza’s civilian population and increases access to humanitarian aid, writes the Foreign Minister in a comment to TV4.
Draft ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas (according to Associated Press).
PHASE 1: (42 days)
Hamas releases 33 hostages, including female civilians and soldiers, children and civilians over 50.
Israel releases 30 Palestinian prisoners for every civilian hostage and 50 for every female soldier.
Fighting stops, Israeli forces move out of populated areas to the outskirts of the Gaza Strip.
Displaced Palestinians start returning home, more aid enters the Strip.
PHASE 2: (42 days)
Declaration of “sustainable calm”.
Hamas releases remaining male hostages (soldiers and civilians) in exchange for a yet to be negotiated number of Palestinian prisoners and a complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Gaza Strip.
PHASE 3:
Bodies of deceased Israeli hostages are exchanged for bodies of deceased Palestinian soldiers.
Implementation of a reconstruction plan in Gaza.
Border crossings into and out of Gaza are reopened.
Despite calls for Gaza’s civilian population to seek shelter in so-called humanitarian zones, these continue to be attacked by Israeli warplanes.
Since May last year, at least 97 airstrikes have been carried out against areas set up to protect Palestinian civilians, killing at least 550 people.
– We have said it so so many times. There is no safe zone in Gaza. No place is safe. No-one is safe. No place is spared, explains Juliette Touma, from the UN refugee agency UNRWA.
The BBC analyzed the Israeli attacks and found that the humanitarian zone, which includes the towns of Khan Younis and Deir al-Balah, has been heavily shelled. More than a million people live here – many in makeshift tent camps with limited access to food, water and medical care.
The IDF established the zone in October 2023 with the promise to keep civilians out of danger. But according to the UN and humanitarian organizations, the reality is different.
According to the BBC, more than 550 people have been killed in the 97 attacks documented in the zone – although Israel itself has only admitted responsibility for a minority of these. The analysis also shows that attacks have taken place near hospitals and residential complexes.
– We were displaced to Khan Younis because it was designated as a safe zone, but in fact we find nothing here but insecurity. We have been denied the true sense of security, with fear dominating our lives, says Khaled, who was urged by the IDF to move to the area.
The area in Gaza which Israel’s military has told people to go to “for their safety” has been hit by 97 strikes since May.
NRC’s access manager in Gaza highlighting the near daily strikes within the so-called “humanitarian zone” including from Israeli ships & small drones:
The Israeli army itself routinely claims that it is only attacking Hamas – and that the terrorist group is using the civilian population as human shields and using the humanitarian zone to attack Israeli targets with rockets.
Assessors, however, dismiss these explanations, saying that Israel uses the zone’s “humanitarian” status as a front, and that it is subject to frequent bombardments in the same way as the rest of Gaza.
The UN and human rights groups working in the area note that no “safe zones” exist in Gaza today. Gavin Kelleher of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) stresses that even the areas where refugees have been ordered to seek refuge can be attacked by warships or drones at any time.
More journalists have been killed in Gaza than in any other war and the Israeli military has also been accused of deliberately killing journalists and photographers to prevent any war crimes from being documented.
At the same time, very few journalists are granted Israeli permission to enter Gaza at all, and because reporting on the ground is so limited, it is often very difficult to get a picture of the scale of Israeli attacks.
UNRWA, the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, will continue its work in Gaza – despite Israel’s ban on the organization.
– We will however stay and deliver, explains the organization’s director Philippe Lazzarini.
Last autumn, Netanyahu’s government decided to ban the UN organization from conducting any activities in Israel or occupied East Jerusalem. The Israeli government justified the decision with accusations that UNRWA was linked to Hamas and that UNRWA staff participated in the 7 October attacks – accusations that the organization itself denies.
However, the Swiss Philippe Lazzarini, who currently heads the refugee agency, declares that it will not accept the ban, which comes into effect at the end of the month. On the contrary, UNRWA will continue its relief work in Gaza as far as practically possible.
– UNRWA’s local staff will remain and continue to provide emergency assistance and, where possible, education and primary healthcare, he explained.
“UNRWA will stay & deliver”
We will continue to provide services across all of the occupied Palestinian territory including in #Gaza.
If implemented, the Knesset bills on UNRWA will deprive Palestine Refugees of lifesaving assistance and access to primary health & education. https://t.co/iGBoiRIeFJ
Meanwhile, it is understood that Israel will refuse to issue visas to international UN staff, making it virtually impossible for them to enter Gaza.
– These staff will be compelled to withdraw under protest, it says.
Lazzarini further stresses that aid workers are already being threatened and harassed by Israeli authorities and that threats against UNRWA staff are expected to increase further in the future.
He warns that the complete disappearance of the refugee agency from the Palestinian territories will only add to the suffering and misery already endured by the civilian population.
Journalist and broadcaster Akira Ikegami has caused a stir in the West after he recently tried to explain to Japanese viewers how the United States is governed and why it remains Israel’s most important ally.
According to Ikegami, a key explanation is that the US economy and politics are dominated by people of Jewish descent, and he singles out the lobby group AIPAC as perhaps the most influential in the country.
In the program, which aired at the end of last year on the nationwide TV channel TV Asahi, Ikegami argues that both the Republicans and the Democrats fully support Israel and that the United States is Israel’s most loyal ally and financier, contributing significantly to funding the Israeli military.
When asked why the US actually supports Israel, a controversial explanation is presented – viewers are told that “the US has a lot of Jews at the top of banks and big business”.
– It is a presence that cannot be ignored, it is proclaimed, and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Google’s Larry Page are singled out as two such examples.
The audience is also visibly surprised to learn that six of the world’s 10 richest people are Jewish, as Ikegami points to a board listing various influential people of Jewish descent.
– In the US, there are quite a few Jews in politics and economics, it is further explained, and the Japanese are also told that there are also Jewish lobby groups in the US that have “even more influence” than that.
Top Japanese journalist says AIPAC and the Jewish Lobby are “what really moves America.”
– Lobby groups do in fact lobby Congress and negotiate various issues, but there are certain groups that have a particularly strong influence on the political world, Igame explains, pointing to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) as perhaps the most powerful lobby group in the United States.
– It is these who truly run the United States, he adds.
It is unclear how the program was received in Japan at the time of its broadcast, but it has caused quite a stir since it was translated into English and shared on Western social media.
Many point out that it illustrates very clearly the cultural and political differences between West and East, and argue that a program of this kind should never have been allowed to air on a European or American TV channel.
