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The Dow Jones shattered price records on Friday, hitting above 45,700 for the first time ever. Equities and general risk appetite soared after Fed Chair Powell made a dovish appearance. A September rate cut looks like a sure thing, bolstering general market sentiment. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) soared to new all-time highs on Friday, testing above 45,700 for the first time since the index’s inception. The Dow Jones soared over 900 points in a single day as investors piled ferociously back into bullish bets, as a September interest rate cut looks to be in the bag. The Dow Jones is once again testing frontier territory, exploring chart regions north of 45,500. It has been nine months since the Dow posted a record monthly high, and as long as the wheels stay on the cart, August could prove to be one of the best months of 2025. The Dow Jones is up over 3.4% from August’s opening bids, and is up almost 25% from the early April tariff plunge that landed near 36,615. Powell opens the door to rate cuts Jerome Powell delivered surprisingly dovish remarks on Friday at the annual Jackson Hole economic symposium, hosted by the Federal Reserve (Fed) Bank of Kansas. Powell acknowledged that, despite the Fed’s overall cautious stance on interest rates, policy adjustment may be needed as downside risks grow. “With policy in restrictive territory, the baseline outlook and the shifting balance of risks may warrant adjusting our policy stance.” While Fed Chair Powell didn’t outright say whether or not he endorsed immediate interest rate action, his comments were enough to send markets full-tilt into bets of an interest rate cut on September 17, and equities piling into record highs. According to the CME’s FedWatch Tool, rate markets are now pricing in around 90% odds of at least a quarter-point rate trim in September, up from ~70% just the day before. A follow-up interest rate cut in October remains unlikely, given the general unease Fed officials appear to have toward rate cuts. However, markets still have another rate trim chalked in for December. Despite dovish Fed tones, key data risks remain Some key roadblocks on the path to rate cuts still exist, however. Despite a steady unemployment rate and softening labor figures, both of which lend themselves to supporting interest rate cuts, US inflation remains a sticky affair, and there will be several iterations of key inflation data landing in markets’ laps before the Fed’s next interest rate decision. The latest round of core Personal Consumption Expenditure Price Index (PCE) inflation data is expected to be released next week, one of the Fed’s key inflation metrics. Although inflation has certainly cooled from its post-pandemic highs, PCE inflation has not dipped below 2.6% since April of 2021. The upper bound of the Fed’s inflation target sits at 2.0%, well below the current figures. Any fresh sparks in inflation data could knock back the Fed’s willingness to explore interest rate cuts next month. Dow Jones 5-minute chart Dow Jones daily chart Economic Indicator Core Personal Consumption Expenditures – Price Index (YoY) The Core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE), released by the US Bureau of Economic Analysis on a monthly basis, measures the changes in the prices of goods and services purchased by consumers in the United States (US). The PCE Price Index is also the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) preferred gauge of inflation. The YoY reading compares the prices of goods in the reference month to the same month a year earlier. The core reading excludes the so-called more volatile food and energy components to give a more accurate measurement of price pressures.” Generally, a high reading is bullish for the US Dollar (USD), while a low reading is bearish. Read more. After publishing the GDP report, the US Bureau of Economic Analysis releases the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index data alongside the monthly changes in Personal Spending and Personal Income. FOMC policymakers use the annual Core PCE Price Index, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, as their primary gauge of inflation. A stronger-than-expected reading could help the USD outperform its rivals as it would hint at a possible hawkish shift in the Fed’s forward guidance and vice versa. Information on these pages contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Markets and instruments profiled on this page are for informational purposes only and should not in any way come across as a recommendation to buy or sell in these assets. You should do your own thorough research before making any investment decisions. FXStreet does not in any way guarantee that this information is free from mistakes, errors, or material misstatements. It also does not guarantee that this information is of a timely nature. Investing in Open Markets involves a great deal of risk, including the loss of all or a portion of your investment, as well as emotional distress. All risks, losses and costs associated with investing, including total loss of principal, are your responsibility. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of FXStreet nor its advertisers. The author will not be held responsible for information that is found at the end of links posted on this page. If not otherwise explicitly mentioned in the body of the article, at the time of writing, the author has no position in any stock mentioned in this article and no business relationship with any company mentioned. The author has not received compensation for writing this article, other than from FXStreet. FXStreet and the author do not provide personalized recommendations. 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Information on these pages contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Markets and instruments profiled on this page are for informational purposes only and should not in any way come across as a recommendation to buy or sell in these assets. You should do your own thorough research before making any investment decisions. FXStreet does not in any way guarantee that this information is free from mistakes, errors, or material misstatements. It also does not guarantee that this information is of a timely nature. Investing in Open Markets involves a great deal of risk, including the loss of all or a portion of your investment, as well as emotional distress. All risks, losses and costs associated with investing, including total loss of principal, are your responsibility. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of FXStreet nor its advertisers. The author will not be held responsible for information that is found at the end of links posted on this page. If not otherwise explicitly mentioned in the body of the article, at the time of writing, the author has no position in any stock mentioned in this article and no business relationship with any company mentioned. The author has not received compensation for writing this article, other than from FXStreet. FXStreet and the author do not provide personalized recommendations. The author makes no representations as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability of this information. FXStreet and the author will not be liable for any errors, omissions or any losses, injuries or damages arising from this information and its display or use. Errors and omissions excepted. The author and FXStreet are not registered investment advisors and nothing in this article is intended to be investment advice. Editors’ Picks EUR/USD rallies above 1.1700 on dovish Powell remarks EUR/USD gathers bullish momentum and climbs above 1.1700 in the American session on Friday. The US Dollar weakens against its peers following Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s dovish remarks at the Jackson Hole Symposium, fuelling the pair’s rally. GBP/USD climbs above 1.3500 on broad USD weakness GBP/USD turns north in the second half of the day on Friday and trades above 1.3500. Fed Chair Jerome Powell acknowledged worsening conditions in the labor market and announced a new policy framework of flexible inflation targeting, triggering a USD selloff. Gold advances to fresh weekly high above $3,370 Gold makes a sharp U-turn following an earlier drop and trades at a fresh weekly high above $3,370 on Friday. The benchmark 10-year US Treasury bond yield declines sharply on Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s dovish tone at the Jackson Hole Symposium, helping XAU/USD push higher. AI boom or bubble? Three convictions for investors AI 2.0 = from “build it” to “prove it”: Big Tech’s AI investment is already in the hundreds of billions, but monetization remains modest. The cycle is shifting from spending on capacity to delivering productivity and revenue impact. Best Brokers for EUR/USD Trading SPONSORED Discover the top brokers for trading EUR/USD in 2025. Our list features brokers with competitive spreads, fast execution, and powerful platforms. Whether you’re a beginner or an expert, find the right partner to navigate the dynamic Forex market. Read More

Uttar Pradesh News: Nagpur-based Kavikulguru Kalidas Sanskrit University’s Vice Chancellor Professor Hareram Tripathi and his wife lost their lives in a road accident in Mau district of Uttar Pradesh on Saturday. The tragic incident took place on Saturday morning in Dohrighat police station area of Mau when their car collided with a trailer truck parked on the road. Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Anoop Kumar said that in Kusma village on Gorakhpur-Varanasi highway in Dohrighat police station area, their car collided with a parked trailer truck. Tripathi (58) and his wife, Badami Devi (56), who were in the car, died on the spot, Kumar added. In the incident, their car driver, Vaibhav Mishra (35), was seriously injured. ASP Kumar said that the driver has been sent to the hospital for treatment. The couple was going from Varanasi to their village in the Kushinagar district. Earlier, Tripathi was the Vice Chancellor of Sampurnanand Sanskrit University in Varanasi. In a statement, Kavikulaguru Kalidas Sanskrit University’s spokesperson said Prof Tripathi and his wife were on the way to their native place in Kushinagar when the accident occurred. The couple’s death cast a pall of grief in the university and the academic circle. In a post on social media platform X, Governor Radhakrishnan said he was deeply pained to learn about the death of Prof Tripathi and his wife. “Prof Tripathi was a distinguished Sanskrit scholar, researcher and a popular teacher. During his tenure, he worked with dedication for the promotion and propagation of the Sanskrit language. With his demise, we have lost a dedicated researcher and an able administrator who tirelessly worked for the cause of Sanskrit,” he said. CM Fadnavis said Prof Tripathi was renowned as a scholar of Indian philosophy and jurisprudence. “While conducting research on various subjects, he had authored more than 40 books. He was honoured with numerous awards such as the Maharshi Badarayan Presidential Award, Shankar Vedanta Award, and Panini Samman. He dedicated his entire life to the service of Sanskrit,” he said on X. Read More

(Bloomberg) — A United Nations-backed body declared a famine in Gaza for the first time since the Israel-Hamas war broke out in 2023, prompting intensified international calls for an end to fighting and the accelerated delivery of aid.  More than 640,000 people in the Palestinian territory will face “catastrophic levels of food insecurity” by the end of September, according to a report released Friday by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, which monitors global hunger with the backing of the UN and other aid agencies.  That’s about a third of Gaza’s population of about 2 million, and “acute malnutrition is projected to continue worsening rapidly,” the IPC said. The group called for an “immediate and sustained cessation of hostilities” and “unconditional and safe humanitarian access” to alleviate the crisis. Israel rejected the findings, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office calling the report “an outright lie” in a statement.  “Israel does not have a policy of starvation. Israel has a policy of preventing starvation,” he said. The country’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, or COGAT, said the analysis relied on “partial, biased data and superficial information originating from Hamas.”  The IPC scale is a globally recognized system to categorize food security levels in a population. The UN-backed body has declared only four other famines since its creation in 2004, all in Africa. Those were in Somalia in 2011, South Sudan in 2017 and 2020 and Sudan in 2024.  Netanyahu on Thursday authorized the start of fresh talks to secure the release of hostages still held by Hamas and end the war, though he has hardened his conditions for a deal in recent weeks. The government now demands that Hamas, designated as a terrorist organization by the US and the European Union, surrenders, disarms and releases all 50 hostages held in Gaza, while previous talks centered on the initial release of half the 20 hostages believed to be alive. At the same time, Israel’s military is stepping up plans to take over Gaza City, the territory’s de-facto capital, in an escalation of the campaign. That plan has been widely condemned by governments in the Middle East and beyond, though it retains the support of the US, Israel’s chief ally.  “We cannot allow this situation to continue with impunity,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said following the release of the IPC’s report. He called for “an immediate ceasefire, the immediate release of all hostages, and full, unfettered humanitarian access.” In response to the IPC announcement, the European Union urged Israel to provide “immediate, unimpeded, and sustained humanitarian access” in a statement from the European Commission. The foreign secretary of the UK, David Lammy, issued similar remarks, adding an appeal for a ceasefire.  “We are in a race against time,” Rein Paulsen, the Food and Agriculture Organization’s director of office of emergencies and resilience, told reporters on Friday. “Every effort must be made for immediate and decisive action to prevent further loss of life and alleviate suffering.”  UN organizations have warned of widespread starvation and malnutrition in Gaza for months, particularly after Israel blocked the entry of international aid following the expiration of the most recent truce in March.  The government agreed to allow easier access for humanitarian groups at the end of July, leading to a sharp increase in the number of food trucks crossing into Gaza, though groups such as the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs say the amount remains insufficient to meet minimal levels of food needs. “In recent weeks, a massive influx of aid has flooded the Strip with staple foods and caused a sharp decline in food prices,” Israel’s foreign ministry said. Hamas, designated as a terrorist group by the US and European Union, on Monday said it had agreed to a ceasefire proposal by mediators Qatar and Egypt. Israel hasn’t formally responded.  The war in Gaza began after Hamas attacked Israel in October 2023, killing about 1,200 people and abducting 250. More than 62,000 Palestinians have been killed in the subsequent Israeli campaign, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry.    –With assistance from Chris Miller, Carla Canivete and Rachel Lavin. (Updates first paragraph, adds Netanyahu comment in fourth paragraph and adds EU, UK and UN comment after eighth paragraph.) More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Read More

In a heartwarming display of cultural exchange, Japan’s Ambassador to India, Ono Keiichi, hosted Rajasthan’s Deputy Chief Minister Diya Kumari at his residence in New Delhi this week. The meeting blended Japanese traditions with diplomatic dialogue, highlighting growing cultural and tourism ties between Japan and Rajasthan. Welcoming Ms Kumari in a tatami-matted room adorned with calligraphy, Mr Keiichi donned traditional attire and served freshly whisked matcha tea in the spirit of Chado– the Japanese Way of Tea. Sharing a glimpse of the meeting on X (formerly Twitter), the envoy wrote, “Welcomed H.E. @KumariDiya, Deputy CM of Rajasthan, at my residence and served her freshly whisked #matcha, in the spirit of Chado – the Way of Tea. We shared a thoughtful conversation on boosting tourism between Japan and Rajasthan. May our cultural bridges grow ever stronger.” See the post here: Ms Kumari also expressed gratitude on social media, calling the welcome “warm and memorable.” She noted that the meeting would help deepen ties and pave the way for tourism opportunities as she prepares to attend the JATA Tourism Expo in Japan. Cultural exchanges like these highlight the beauty of shared traditions and the strength of building bridges between nations, the Deputy CM wrote. Reacting to the post, a user wrote, “I really like the calm and minimalistic vibe of your home H.E. Ambassador. Dhanyawad for letting us see your home.” Another user wrote, “Culture binds us all, exchanging cultural practices like these preserves it. Long live Indo-Japanese friendship!” “What’s better than a freshly brewed Matcha?” the third user asked. “Japanese house interiors are so simple and calming. No extra unnecessary decoratives or infuriating colours. It’s just plain , simple , calming and spacious,” the fourth user commented. “I love how Japanese culture is so grounded,” the fifth user wrote. Read More

A Bunty Aur Babli-style scam has caught the attention of the Delhi police, who just arrested a con couple inspired by the Bollywood movie for allegedly duping aspiring actors by posing as TV serial producers and directors. According to DCP (southwest) Amit Goel, the accused have been identified as Tarun Shekhar Sharma, a 32-year-old resident of Lucknow, and Asha Singh alias Bhawna, a 29-year-old resident of Delhi. They have been linked to more than 20 similar complaints across the country. Here’s how the couple lured aspiring actors Tarun and Bhawna reportedly lured their targets through social media platforms on the pretext of giving them roles in popular TV serials and OTT shows. In the latest case, the DCP said a woman aspiring to be an actor was duped of ₹24 lakh. The complainant came across the self-posing producers’ social media page, which was seeking newcomers for a TV show, and contacted them. The couple asked her for money on different pretexts, such as processing and membership charges. However, after she transferred about ₹24 lakh, the woman found herself “blocked”. How did the police catch the Bunty Aur Babli-style scamsters? According to the DCP, the police followed the money trail and tracked the accused to a rented apartment in Bengaluru and arrested them. On interrogation, the police found that the accused operated from different cities, frequently changing their locations to evade detection. They stayed in luxury hotels and lived lavishly, police said. The couple had 7 mobile phones, 10 SIM cards, 15 bank cheque books and passbooks, 8 ATM cards and a pair of gold earrings in their possession, all of which were seized. “They opened around 15 bank accounts and used multiple SIM cards issued from different states. The fraudsters even trained themselves through online videos,” the officer said. The accused are also wanted in a case in Jammu and Kashmir and involved in several similar frauds in Uttar Pradesh and Delhi, the DCP said. (With PTI inputs) Read More

A day after the Enforcement Directorate conducted multiple searches at the premises linked to Karnataka Congress MLA KC Veerendra Pappy and some others, theED on Saturday arrested him from Gangktok in connection with illegal online and offline betting case. Veerendra was arrested under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. The investigative agency said it hasrecovered amount of approximately ₹12 crore in cash, including around ₹1 crore in foreign currency, gold jewellery worth ₹6 crore, silver articles around 10 kilograms. It also found international casino membership/reward cards of MGM casino, Metropolitan Casino, Bellagio casino, Marina casino, Casino Jewel. Multiple credit and debit cards of various banks, luxury hospitality membership cards of Taj, Hyatt and the Leela hotels, cars with number plate 0003. Veerendra is a legislator from the Chitradurga assembly seat in Karnataka. Premises linked to the MLA and some others were searched in a case linked to online betting and gaming. ED’s Bengaluru zonal office searched 30 premises spanning Chitradurga (6), Bengaluru (10), Jodhpur (3), Hubli (1), Mumbai (2), and Goa (8), including five prominent casinos–Puppy’s Casino Gold, Ocean Rivers Casino, Puppy’s Casino Pride, Ocean 7 Casino, and Big Daddy Casino. The officials said that Preliminary findings suggest that the Chitradurga MLA and his associates were running multiple illegal betting websites under names such as King567, Raja567, Puppy’s003, and Rathna Gaming, reported news agency ANI citing officials. The investigation further revealed that Veerendra’s brother, KC Thippeswamy, was operating three Dubai-based entities, Diamond Softech, TRS Technologies, and Prime9 Technologies, that were linked to the call centre and gaming operations. The agency also searched premises linked to Anil Gowda, brother of MLA Kusuma H from Rajarajeshwarinagar, Bengaluru. Incriminating digital and documentary evidence related to the betting racket and its alleged overseas links were seized during the searches. Read More

HomeWorld NewsChinese bridge collapse kills at least 12 construction workers Sixteen workers were on the bridge in northwest China’s Qinghai province when a steel cable snapped about 3 a.m. Friday during a tensioning operation, Xinhua said. Boats, a helicopter and robots were being used in the search for the missing. By AP August 23, 2025, 2:55:00 PM IST (Published) The collapse of an under-construction railway bridge over a major river in China has killed at least 12 workers and left four others missing, state media reports said. Aerial photos from the official Xinhua News Agency show a large section missing from the bridge’s curved aquamarine arch. A bent section of the bridge deck hangs downward into the Yellow River below. Sixteen workers were on the bridge in northwest China’s Qinghai province when a steel cable snapped about 3 a.m. Friday during a tensioning operation, Xinhua said. Boats, a helicopter and robots were being used in the search for the missing. The bridge is 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) long and its deck is 55 meters (180 feet) above the surface of the river below, the English-language China Daily newspaper said. Read Also: InterGlobe Aviation to get $537 million inflow after Nifty 50 entry Read More

Gor is currently the Director of White Houses’ Presidential Personnel Office, which is responsible for aiding the President in recruiting, vetting and nominating over 4,000 political appointees throughout the federal government. President Donald Trump has nominated a top MAGA leader and his close confidante Sergio Gor as the next US Ambassador to India. Gor has been nominated close to seven months after Trump was sworn in as President for a second term. However, Gor can only travel to India as Ambassador once his nomination is approved by the US Senate. At 38 years of age, Gor is set to be the youngest US Ambassador to India. Like Eric Garcetti and Kenneth Juster, Gor too is not a career diplomat, but a political appointee. However, what makes his appointment extremely important for India is the fact that he is a member of the President’s inner circle and someone whom the President relies on. He is also considered extremely loyal to the President, a source told CNBC-TV18 requesting anonymity. Also read | Meet Sergio Gor, the new US ambassador to India This is the first time that a US Ambassador to India has been given the charge of Special Envoy for South and Central Asian Affairs. While Gor will be stationed in India, he will be overseeing developments and closely working with US Ambassadors in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Nepal, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. His appointment would be crucial for India at a time when India-US ties have come under strain due to the threat of 50% tariffs on Indian goods. President Trump had on August 1 imposed 25% tariffs on Indian goods and then announced an additional tariff of 25% because of India’s purchase of Russian oil. Having Gor in New Delhi, may help South Block in breaking the ice and reducing tensions between India and the US. President Trump in recent months openly called for closer ties with Pakistan and has announced a trade deal with the country. While Pakistan had thanked Trump for the ceasefire post Operation Sindoor, India has always maintained that the US had no role in a matter which was purely bilateral in nature. Sergio Gor’s presence may help India in convincing the Trump administration about Pakistan’s role in supporting terror groups and about the larger importance of India-US ties. Also read | Donald Trump says he will go on patrol in Washington with police, military Gor is currently the Director of White Houses’ Presidential Personnel Office, which is responsible for aiding the President in recruiting, vetting and nominating over 4,000 political appointees throughout the federal government. Gor has closely worked with Donald Trump and played an important role in his election campaigns over the last decade. He is also the co-founder of Winning Team Publishing, a conservative publishing house which has published some of Trump’s best-selling books. According to the website of the publishing house, Gor has worked with numerous best-selling authors including Donald Trump Jr, Rand Paul, Charlie Kirk and Eric Bolling. A graduate of the George Washington University, Gor has worked extensively in national politics including in the US House of Representatives, US Senate and on numerous Presidential campaigns. President Trump in a post on Truth Social called Sergio Gor a great friend who has been by his side for many years and someone whom he fully trusts. (Edited by : Jerome Anthony) Read More

Young Kurdish men, including members of religious minorities, recently signed up to join the Syrian government’s General Security forces in Afrin, an area in the country’s north from which Kurds were forcibly displaced years ago. The push to recruit ethnic and religious minorities comes as the government in Damascus faces increased scrutiny after outbreaks of sectarian violence in recent months, during which there were widespread reports of government-affiliated fighters killing and humiliating civilians from the Alawite and Druze sects. A U.N.-backed commission that investigated violence on Syria’s coast recommended earlier this month that authorities should recruit from minority communities for a more “diverse security force composition” to improve community relations and trust. Minorities are increasingly wary of the new authorities in Damascus, who are led by Sunni Muslim Islamist former insurgents who overthrew President Bashar Assad in December after a nearly 14-year civil war. An agreement reached in March between Damascus and Kurdish-led forces that control much of northeast Syria has also been on shaky ground. Abbas Mohammad Hamouda, a Kurdish Alawite, was among the young men lining up at a recruitment centre in Afrin on Wednesday. “I came with young men from my district to join the new state,” he said. “We will stand together, united, and avoid problems and wars from now on.” The Kurds in Afrin “have been subjected to a lot over the past eight years,” Hamouda said, adding, “I hope that the youth of Afrin will not think badly of us because of this affiliation” with the new authorities. Formerly a Kurdish-majority area, Afrin was seized by Turkish forces and allied Syrian opposition fighters in 2018, following a Turkey-backed military operation that pushed fighters from the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces and thousands of Kurdish civilians from the area. Arabs displaced from other parts of Syria have settled in the area since then, and the Kurds who stayed have complained of discrimination against them. Some are hoping the recent drive to recruit them to the security forces signals a shift toward more inclusion. Malik Moussa, a Kurd from the Yazidi sect who signed up, said he had come hoping to be “part of the Syrian army and for there to be no discrimination.” “We hope that the new government will be for all the people, for there not to be oppression like there was in the past,” he said. Ferhad Khurto, a government official responsible for political affairs in the Afrin district, said about 1,000 young men had signed up in recent days to join General Security in the area from “all of its sects and colours and doctrines.” He did not give a breakdown of the demographics of the new recruits. “This is the first step, and there is a strategy … for the sons of Afrin to share in all the government institutions, not only on the side of internal security but in civilian institutions,” he said, adding that the recruitment drive in Afrin is part of a larger national strategy. When asked for the numbers and percentage of minorities joining the security forces, Noureddine al-Baba, spokesperson for the Syrian Ministry of Interior, told The Associated Press, “competence and patriotism are the criteria used, not sectarian quotas.” The recruitment effort drew scepticism in some quarters. The Afrin Social Association, an initiative providing support to people displaced from Afrin in the Kurdish-controlled northeast, said in a statement posted on Facebook that “enrolment of some young people in the General Security Forces, without any guarantees to protect Afrin’s communities and ensure the dignified and voluntary return of the displaced, is an irresponsible act.” The association accused the authorities in Damascus of trying to “circumvent” the March agreement, which called for displaced people to be able to return to their homes, including in Afrin, along with a merger of the new government’s army and the U.S.-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces. Wladimir van Wilgenburg, an Iraq-based Kurdish affairs analyst, said “in theory, the recruitment could improve the situation of Kurds in Afrin.” “It also depends if Kurds will be appointed to leadership positions in the security forces in Afrin and if they will really have any say, and if some Turkish-backed groups would return to their original areas … and if some of the violations stop,” he said. A Kurdish man living in Afrin, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of security concerns, said locals have mixed feelings about the recruitment. They believe it could be positive if the authorities are “really serious about giving a role in Afrin to the original people of this area,” but they fear the Kurdish recruits would be “employed negatively” in case of an armed conflict between the state forces and SDF, he said. Some Kurdish families are pushing their sons to join, either because the security forces are seen as a career path for those without other options or in hopes of gaining political benefits, the man said. “I know a young guy who was working as a barber and his grandfather forced him to go to the General Security, saying that we must have influence in the state,” he said. Read More: ‘No client list, Trump a gentleman in all respects’: 10 takeaways from Ghislaine Maxwell-DoJ interview Read More