عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
World

Trump Inauguration to Be Moved Indoors Due to Cold

A US Capitol Police officer walks with a K-9 dog in the seating area of the platform stage on the West Front of the US Capitol building, where the presidential inauguration traditionally takes place, on January 17, 2025, in Washington, DC. (AFP)
A US Capitol Police officer walks with a K-9 dog in the seating area of the platform stage on the West Front of the US Capitol building, where the presidential inauguration traditionally takes place, on January 17, 2025, in Washington, DC. (AFP)
TT
TT

Trump Inauguration to Be Moved Indoors Due to Cold

A US Capitol Police officer walks with a K-9 dog in the seating area of the platform stage on the West Front of the US Capitol building, where the presidential inauguration traditionally takes place, on January 17, 2025, in Washington, DC. (AFP)
A US Capitol Police officer walks with a K-9 dog in the seating area of the platform stage on the West Front of the US Capitol building, where the presidential inauguration traditionally takes place, on January 17, 2025, in Washington, DC. (AFP)

Donald Trump said Friday that his inauguration as US president on Monday will be moved indoors due to expected freezing weather.

"There is an Arctic blast sweeping the Country," Trump wrote on his app Truth Social. "Therefore, I have ordered the Inauguration Address, in addition to prayers and other speeches, to be delivered in the United States Capitol Rotunda."

The dramatic change of plan means Trump will not stand on the Capitol steps overlooking the National Mall, which traditionally hosts a large crowd to welcome in new presidents.

The last time a president took the oath of office indoors was Ronald Reagan in 1985, who also moved the ceremony into the Capitol's ornate Rotunda due to dangerously cold weather.

Washington is forecast to be well below freezing on Monday, with the wind adding to the cold.

In his post, Trump said that "various Dignitaries and Guests" will attend the events inside the Capitol, including prayers, Trump's inaugural address, and singing of the anthem.

However, the Republican, who has built a political brand around his staging of large rallies, said supporters could watch the event on a live feed in Washington's Capital One sports arena -- and that he would go there after.

Trump, 78, said the ceremonies in the Rotunda "will be a very beautiful experience for all, and especially for the large TV audience!"

"We will open Capital One Arena on Monday for LIVE viewing of this Historic event, and to host the Presidential Parade. I will join the crowd at Capital One, after my Swearing In."

Most Viewed

 
 
World

More than 1,000 Syrians Have Withdrawn Asylum Applications in Cyprus, Hundreds Return Home

Cyprus' deputy Minister of Migration and International Protection Nicholas Ioannides, right, and the EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner shake hands before their meeting at the Deputy Ministry of Migration and International Protection in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Friday, Jan. 17, 2025. (AP)
Cyprus' deputy Minister of Migration and International Protection Nicholas Ioannides, right, and the EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner shake hands before their meeting at the Deputy Ministry of Migration and International Protection in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Friday, Jan. 17, 2025. (AP)
TT
TT

More than 1,000 Syrians Have Withdrawn Asylum Applications in Cyprus, Hundreds Return Home

Cyprus' deputy Minister of Migration and International Protection Nicholas Ioannides, right, and the EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner shake hands before their meeting at the Deputy Ministry of Migration and International Protection in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Friday, Jan. 17, 2025. (AP)
Cyprus' deputy Minister of Migration and International Protection Nicholas Ioannides, right, and the EU Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner shake hands before their meeting at the Deputy Ministry of Migration and International Protection in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Friday, Jan. 17, 2025. (AP)

More than 1,000 Syrian nationals have withdrawn their applications for asylum or international protection because they intend to return to their homeland, while another 500 have already gone back, a Cypriot official said Friday.

Cyprus’ Deputy Minister for Migration and International Protection Nicholas Ioannides said after talks with European Migration and Home Affairs Commissioner Magnus Brunner that the development comes in the wake of the fall of the Assad government in Syria last month.

Cyprus has adopted tougher polices in the last few years to stem the arrival of thousands of migrants either by boat from neighboring Lebanon or Syria or from Türkiye via the island’s breakaway Turkish Cypriot north. Cypriot officials had said that the percentage of irregular migrants relative to the population had been as high as 6% — six times the European average.

The tougher policies have borne fruit, according to Ioannides. Speaking earlier this week, he said some 10,000 irregular migrants left Cyprus last year, either through voluntary returns, deportations or relocations to other European nations, making the island the European Union’s leader in departures relative to arrivals.

New asylum applications in 2024 amounted to 6,769 – a 41% drop from the previous year and about a third of those filed in 2022.

Ioannides had said the drop in new asylum applications has enabled authorities to more quickly process outstanding applications and offer the necessary support to those who qualify for international protection.

The minister said arrivals by boat in recent months — particularly from Lebanon — have dropped to nil, thanks to increased patrols and cooperation with neighboring governments and European and international authorities.

Last May, the EU unveiled a 1 billion euro ($1.03 billion) aid package for Lebanon to boost border control to halt the flow of asylum seekers and migrants from the country across the Mediterranean Sea to Cyprus and Italy.

But Cyprus has been called out for breaching the rights of migrants. Last October, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Cyprus violated the right of two Syrian nationals to seek asylum in the island nation after keeping them and more than two dozen other people aboard a boat at sea for two days before sending them back to Lebanon.