Reader’s links for Nov. 5 – 2015

Daily Links Post graphic

In order to preserve the flow of conversation about various posted items, and also in order to make it easier for visitors to find the list of related links being shared by other readers, regulars and interested parties in one place, each day a post is automatically created at a minute past midnight ET.

This way, under the various posts of the day, conversation can take place without as much ‘noise’ on the various links and articles and ideas in the main posts and all the news links being submitted can be seen under these auto-posts by clicking on the comments-link right below these ones.

Thank you all for those that take the effort to assist this site in keeping the public informed. Below, typically people can find the latest enemy propaganda, news items of related materials from multiple countries and languages, op-eds from many excellent sites who write on our topics, geopolitics and immigration issues and so on.

About Eeyore

Canadian artist and counter-jihad and freedom of speech activist as well as devout Schrödinger's catholic

46 Replies to “Reader’s links for Nov. 5 – 2015”

  1. General: Russia Sends Anti-Aircraft Missiles to Syria (abcnews, Nov 5, 2015)
    http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/general-russia-sends-anti-aircraft-missiles-syria-34985184

    “Russia has sent anti-aircraft missiles to Syria in order to safeguard its jets involved in airstrikes against militants in the war-battered Arab country, the commander of the Russian Air Force was quoted as saying Thursday.

    Russia has been carrying out airstrikes on Islamic State fighters in Syria since the end of September at the request of President Bashar Assad, Russia’s long-term ally.

    Russian officials have insisted that their military involvement in Syria will be limited to an air force operation.

    Col. Gen. Viktor Bondarev said in an interview with the daily Komsomolskaya Pravda that the anti-aircraft missiles are there to project Russian fighter jets from a possible attack or hijack while on mission.

    “There can be different emergencies, such as hijacking the jet on the territory of a neighboring country or an attack on it,” he said. “We should be prepared for that.”

    Bondarev did not specify the type of missiles Russia provided.

    Russia and Western nations have been engaged in intense diplomatic talks in the past few weeks, aiming to bring about a political settlement in Syria, which has been torn by a civil war since 2011 that has killed 250,000 people and forced millions to flee.

    A Russian deputy foreign minister said earlier this week that Moscow is aiming to host a round of talks between Syrian officials and opposition leaders next week. He said the Syrian government has agreed to participate but it’s unclear which opposition groups might come.”

  2. Hi Eeyore,
    I think you missed the ironic bit where the musloid cultural enricher who complained that Sumte was boring and there was no Playstation was named Jihad.
    No kidding!!

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3302090/They-ll-living-500-month-benefits-Tensions-rise-German-village-migrants-soon-outnumber-locals-seven-one-batch-arrivals-moan-s-no-Playstation-s-boring.html#ixzz3qVxjIuwA

    I might go and have a look at Sumte in person next Thursday, to see the situation for myself.

    Billy 6’s 20min video was quite interesting and informative with the interviews with the leftist who wouldn’t put them up in his own flat because it was too small, and the very articulate and intelligent gent from Vienna on the protest march, who dissected the situation well. Billy 6 did a good job, and his questions were nuanced and intelligent.

    J

  3. Mutiny within Iran’s Revolutionary Guard after it incurs heavy losses in Syria: source

    A rising death toll within Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Syria is leading to a mutiny among some senior commanders, who have refused to obey orders to fight there, according to a source close to the Revolutionary Guard. The source said several Revolutionary Guard generals from Ahvaz province, which has a large Iranian-Arab population, have “chosen retirement and pursuing business activities” rather than having to head to Syria. The Revolutionary Guard has opened an official investigation into the large numbers of suddenly retired generals from the region.

    http://english.aawsat.com/2015/11/article55345559/mutiny-within-irans-revolutionary-guard-after-incurring-heavy-losses-in-syria-source

    • Will Iran Walk Away from Nuclear Deal?

      The world powers are now experiencing what it means to negotiate with Persian theocrats. All is negotiable; nothing is ever finally decided. Words never commit one to action.

      Iran demands right to implement a phased plan of centrifuge expansion to 150,000 over a period of 15 years.

      Iran demands that no sanctions are to be leveled against it because of alleged support for terrorism or human rights violations.

      Iran demands that it must be free to explore all future advances in nuclear enrichment technology.

      http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/6797/walk-away-nuclear-deal

      • Business and Espionage in Iran
        Siamak Namazi . . . was a consistent advocate for both rapprochement between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States and an end to sanctions, an eventuality that would win him significant profit. He was intimately involved with the National Iranian American Council (NIAC). . .

        Namazi may not be a nice man—emails . . . show that he has engaged in all the usual anti-Semitic [conspiracy theories]—but he is guilty of nothing but ambition and naïveté. He is no spy in any Western sense of the word.

        . . . . The Iranian people may be desperate to rejoin the international community, but that is the thing the Iranian leadership fears most. Barack Obama and John Kerry’s weakness has convinced Iran that it can seize hostages without consequence. Namazi is the latest, but he will not be the last. The Islamic Republic’s ideology and paranoia will trump any notion that it should bring its economy in from the cold and bolster the living standards of ordinary Iranians.

        https://www.commentarymagazine.com/foreign-policy/middle-east/iran/spies-and-business-in-iran/

  4. Iranian commanders refuse orders to fight in Syria, report says

    A rising death toll within Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Syria is leading to a mutiny among some senior commanders, who have refused to obey orders to fight there, according to a source close to the Revolutionary Guard. The source said several Revolutionary Guard generals from Ahvaz province, which has a large Iranian-Arab population, have “chosen retirement and pursuing business activities” rather than having to head to Syria. The Revolutionary Guard has opened an official investigation into the large numbers of suddenly retired generals from the region.

    http://www.jpost.com/Middle-East/Iranian-Revolutionary-Guard-fighters-refusing-to-fight-in-Syria-report-432035

    • Robin Wright:
      Iran’s Generals Are Dying in Syria

      Iran can no longer downplay its intervention in Syria’s civil war; there are too many public funerals these days. Two generals were killed in action this month. So was a senior bodyguard of former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. In recent weeks, senior Revolutionary Guards commanders—advertised as “military advisers”—have died on three separate fronts.

      http://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/irans-generals-are-dying-in-syria

  5. Analysis: Lone wolf terrorism and social media
    When senior Palestinian Authority officials joined the chorus accusing Israel of desecrating and “contaminating” the al-Aqsa Mosque, this mainstream voice was the catalyst that drove inflamed young people into the streets to randomly wound and kill Israelis. By any rational cost-benefit analysis, the initial wave of attacks seems to have failed. In most cases, the terrorist perpetrators were killed, wounded or captured, and the strategic damage they were able to inflict was limited. As a result, the Palestinian terrorist organizations led by Hamas published instructions on the Web on how the attackers could be more effective.

    The social networks are used by many young terrorists as a platform to convey their political messages before leaving for their attacks. Without these messages, the terrorist acts might lose their meaning. Another aspect is the glorification bestowed by the social media on the terrorists. Each terrorist act becomes a model for emulation, sparking a vicious cycle that is fueling a terrorist epidemic.
    Nevertheless, we need to be absolutely clear that the current wave of terror will only subside after the messages from the Palestinian leadership to the Palestinian public change.

    http://www.jpost.com/Jerusalem-Report/Lone-wolf-terrorism-and-the-social-media-430494#sthash.OKsphssB.pPdKJ17c.dpuf

  6. Why is the EU stigmatizing Israel?

    Many Israelis look in utter astonishment at EU plans to compel European importers and retailers to brand Israeli products from the settlements with newly minted, Israel-specific consumer labeling. And it seems these labels would apply only to Israel, not to other countries or territories embroiled in territorial disputes. Israel is an ally for Europe in the Middle East. We share the same humanist aspirations for our countries. But the labeling of Israeli products will not contribute to advancing the Middle East peace process.

    We are being told the economic impact of such labeling should be small. But it stings that we are being singled out for special treatment. This is a political step with the distinctly political message that Israel is to be blamed and punished for the stagnation of the peace process. In Israel it is hard to explain how this could conceivably help kick-start peace talks. Nor does it appear to be a timely message. The Middle East is ablaze, with wars raging in Syria, Iraq, Libya and Yemen. And in these times the EU sees fit to slap quasi-sanctions on Israel, the only state in the region whose constitution embraces and defends Europe’s own values. The writer is Israel’s Ambassador to the EU and NATO.

    http://www.politico.eu/article/why-is-the-eu-stigmatizing-israel/

  7. Iran Responsible for Killing 14 Percent of U.S. Troops in Iraq

    At least 196 U.S. service members fighting in Iraq between 2003 and 2011 were killed by Iranian-made explosively formed penetrators, or EFPs, and another 861 were wounded, according to a report by U.S. Central Command.
    U.S. military leaders told the Senate that Iranian terror activities have claimed the lives of around 500 U.S. soldiers, which accounts for at least 14% of all American casualties in Iraq.

    http://freebeacon.com/national-security/iran-responsible-for-killing-14-percent-of-u-s-troops-in-iraq/

  8. Israel blasts Palestinians after accusations of organ-harvesting

    Israel’s UN Ambassador Danny Danon on Wednesday rejected Palestinian allegations that Israel had recently harvested organs from Palestinians its forces had killed, condemning the charges as anti-Semitic.

    The chief Palestinian delegate at the UN, Riyad Mansour, on Tuesday wrote to the president of the UN Security Council claiming that the bodies of Palestinians killed by Israeli forces “were returned with missing corneas and other organs.”

    Danon said, “This blood libel by the Palestinian representative exposes his anti-Semitic motives and his true colors.”

    He called on Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon “to repudiate this sinister accusation and to condemn the ongoing incitement by Palestinian leaders.”

    http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/11/04/us-israel-palestinians-un-idUSKCN0ST32420151104#tUcDcfhKUrwBPFpa.97

  9. Greece: Police & pro-refugee protesters scuffle in Lesbos ( 10 sec )

    Scuffles broke out between police and pro-refugee protesters in Lesbos, Thursday, on the same day that Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and European Parliament President Martin Schulz visited the island to monitor the ongoing refugee crisis in the area.

  10. USA – Man Who Wounded 4 In Stabbing Attack At UC Merced –
    Identified As Freshman, FAISAL MOHAMMAD

    […] investigators, including the FBI, were still trying to determine the motive for Mohammad’s attack, which wounded two students, a female student advisor and a construction worker

    http://www.weaselzippers.us/238651-attacker-in-uc-merced-identified-as-arab-freshman-faisal-mohammad/

    http://www.mercedsunstar.com/news/local/education/uc-merced/article43126323.html

    • The stabbing started inside Cob building near the library and then moved outside. One student said she saw the suspect wearing all black and running from an officer. UC Merced confirms he was a current student.

      “He had like a sweatshirt, and the hoodie was up… and it covered his whole face,” student Blanca Ayala said.

      The suspect carried a black backpack. He was shot by a campus police officer on Scholars Bridge, which cuts through the middle of campus.

      […]police continue their investigation, which may be focusing on the backpack the suspect wore. Police say they detonated the backpack and are testing a substance found inside.

      http://abc7news.com/news/suspect-in-uc-merced-stabbing-idd-as-18-year-old-faisal-mohammad-of-santa-clara/1069552/

  11. GERMANY – Germany’s ruling coalition parties strike plan to speed-up handling of asylum requests

    German coalition parties agree on registration centres for refugees – sources

    BERLIN, Nov 5 (Reuters) – The leaders of Germany’s ruling coalition parties have agreed on a concept to speed-up the registration and processing of asylum requests of the record numbers of migrants streaming into the country, two Social Democrat sources told Reuters on Thursday.

    The party leaders have agreed in principle on reception facilities which include a requirement for refugees to stay in the county where they are registered, the sources said.

    There will be no “transit zones” or exterritorial centres and no new centres on the borders, the sources added.

    http://uk.reuters.com/article/2015/11/05/uk-europe-migrants-germany-centres-idUKKCN0SU2K420151105

  12. U.S. eyes more arms for Syria rebels after latest advance

    The U.S. military said on Wednesday it was moving toward providing additional weaponry to Syrian opposition forces battling Islamic State after territorial gains in the past week by the U.S.-backed fighters.

    Colonel Steve Warren, a Baghdad-based spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State, told reporters the Democratic Forces of Syria had taken back about 255 square kilometers from Islamic State around the village of al-Haul.

    Some of those forces included fighters from the Syrian Arab Coalition, which the United States says received 50 tons of U.S. ammunition during a U.S. airdrop into Syria on Oct. 12.

    Warren said the operation was backed by 17 U.S.-led coalition air strikes, killing 79 Islamic State fighters and destroying Islamic State weapons systems around al-Houl, near the Iraqi border.

    “While this is not a large tactical action, we believe the operation demonstrates the viability of our program to provide support to these forces,” Warren told Pentagon reporters.

    Asked whether this meant more air drops of weaponry, either arms or ammunition, Warren said: “On the weapons resupply, yes. The answer is yes.”

    The U.S. military, when it carried out its first air drop of ammunition last month to the Syrian Arab Coalition, said it was going to make sure the weaponry was used correctly before providing additional arms.

    “We have seen that. We believe that the success is 200-plus kilometers of ground that the Syrian Arab Coalition has managed to take, to some extent, validates this program,” Warren said.

    “It’s not a complete validation – I want to be clear about that. But we’re encouraged by what we see and … we intend to reinforce success.”

    Washington’s strategy in Syria has shifted from trying to train fighters outside the country to supplying groups headed by U.S.-vetted commanders.

    The United States also announced last week it would send dozens of U.S. special operations forces to northern Syria to advise those opposition forces fighting Islamic State.

    The decision by U.S. President Barack Obama, deeply averse to committing troops to unpopular wars in the Middle East, would mark the first sustained U.S. troop presence in Syria and raises the risk of American casualties.

    U.S. officials have stressed the forces would not engage in front-line combat.

    http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/11/04/us-mideast-crisis-usa-syria-idUSKCN0ST36920151104

  13. USA TODAY – Pentagon’s failed Syria program cost $2 million per trainee

    […]The “vast majority” of the funds paid for weapons, equipment and ammunition, some of which the U.S.-led coalition still has in storage, Navy Cdr. Elissa Smith, a spokeswoman, said in an email. In addition, some of those trained fighters have been calling in air strikes, and ammunition designated for the trainees has been given instead to other forces fighting ISIL, Smith said.

    “Our investment in the Syria train and equip program should not be viewed purely in fiscal terms,” Smith said.

    […]Separately, in Iraq, the Pentagon has spent nearly $1 billion training and equipping security forces to counter ISIL, according to Mark Wright, a spokesman. Despite that, ISIL still holds Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest city behind Baghdad, and Ramadi, a major city in the west.

    The Syria train-and-equip program had been a centerpiece of the White House and Pentagon strategy to confront the Islamic State, after its stunning success at capturing cities and territory across Iraq and Syria. The Pentagon announced that it planned to recruit, vet, train and equip thousands of Syrian “moderates” to protect their villages from ISIL’s onslaught.

    $240 millions for ammunitions

    $77 millions for weapons

    […]the Pentagon earmarked tens of millions of dollars to build training camps that were rarely if ever used and for flights to ferry the trainees from their homes to training sites and battlefields. Another $47 million was designated under the heading “services.”

    http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2015/11/05/pentagon-isil-syria-train-and-equip/75227774/

  14. France to deploy largest warship in mission against IS (BBC, Nov 5, 2015)
    http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-34738177

    “France is sending its largest warship to join operations again Islamic State (IS) in Syria and Iraq.

    Its involvement in the campaign will shorten the time it takes for French jets to carry out air strikes.

    France has been targeting IS in Iraq as part of the US-led coalition since September 2014. In September this year French forces began air strikes in Syria.

    The Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier has already been deployed against IS.

    The ship – France’s only such vessel – was used as a base for French jets in the Gulf from February to April.

    France is currently using six Mirage jets stationed in Jordan and six Rafale jets in the United Arab Emirates to target IS.

    The aircraft carrier can hold up to 40 aircraft and support 100 flights a day.”

  15. Adidas push to end ‘racist’ Native American mascots (BBC, Nov 5, 2015)
    http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-34738147

    “Sportswear company Adidas has announced that it will offer free design resources to US high schools that agree to drop Native American mascots.

    The company has also offered to help pay for the costs of the changes.

    The pledge comes on the same day President Barack Obama is hosting leaders from the 567 federally recognised native tribes in Washington.

    The use of Native American mascots and symbolism in sports is at the centre of a national debate in the US.

    Critics say such imagery is racially offensive and it exploits native people through stereotypes…”

  16. Syrian government ‘profits from enforced disappearances’ (BBC, Nov 5, 2015?
    http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-34732463

    “Syria’s government has been accused of profiting from a black market in which people pay huge sums to find relatives who have been detained or abducted.

    Amnesty International said officials and prison staff were benefiting from bribes paid to middlemen or brokers.

    One rights activist said such bribes had become “a big part of the economy”.

    As many as 65,000 people have been detained since 2011 in a campaign of enforced disappearances that Amnesty considers a crime against humanity.

    The human rights group says those taken are usually held in overcrowded detention cells in appalling conditions and cut off from the outside world. Many die as a result of rampant disease, torture and extrajudicial execution, it adds…”

  17. Somalia to deport illegal migrants from Kenya (BBC, Nov 5, 2015)
    http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-34733919

    “A Somali court has ordered the deportation of 27 Kenyans found to be in the country illegally.

    This is the first time in 25 years that Somalia is to expel foreigners for overstaying their visas.

    The men have also been fined $10 (£6.50) for each day they were in the country illegally.

    The BBC’s Mohammud Ali says job opportunities for foreigners have opened up as peace has gradually returned to Somalia.

    Judge Hashi Elmi Noor said that the case was a warning to others who are found to be in the country illegally.

    It is not clear how long the deportees had stayed in Somalia.

    Our correspondent says that a growing number of foreigners are taking up jobs in the construction and hotel industries, while others are getting teaching jobs in colleges and schools…”

  18. Migrant crisis: Three million expected to reach EU by 2017 (BBC, Nov 5, 2015)
    http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-34732415

    “Three million migrants are likely to arrive in Europe by 2017 as the record influx via the Mediterranean continues, the European Commission says.

    The EU’s executive arm said the influx would have a “small but positive” effect on EU economic output, raising GDP by 0.2-0.3%.

    The influx will raise the EU population by 0.4%, the Commission forecasts, taking account of failed asylum claims.

    The flow of Syrian refugees to Europe shows no sign of abating, the UN says.

    The weather in the Aegean Sea has got rougher with the onset of winter. But Peter Sutherland, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s special representative on migration, said Syrians were not put off by that.

    The Syrian war “is driving people to desperation in terms of leaving and it will continue in its effects”, he told the BBC.

    “This is now a global responsibility, but it is a particular European responsibility,” he said.

    Conflicts and abuses in Iraq, Afghanistan, Eritrea and Somalia are also pushing people towards Europe.

    The flow of refugees and other migrants from Turkey to Greece is expected to continue at a rate of 5,000 daily this winter, the UN refugee agency UNHCR says…”

  19. Lebanon: Arsal border town rocked by bomb (BBC, Nov 5, 2015)
    http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-34735117

    “At least six people are reported to have been killed in a bomb attack in a town near Lebanon’s border with Syria.

    A bomb hidden inside a motorcycle exploded in front of the offices of a Muslim scholars committee in Arsal, the official National News Agency said.

    The Sunni clerics are believed to have been in trying to negotiate the release of Lebanese security personnel held by jihadist militants based in Syria.

    Arsal was the scene of fierce fighting between the two sides last year.

    The Sunni town, which hosts many Syrian refugees, is sandwiched between Syrian government-held territory and predominantly Shia Lebanese areas sympathetic to it…”

    • State media: Muslim scholar among 6 killed in Lebanon bombing (CNN, Nov 5, 2015)
      http://edition.cnn.com/2015/11/05/middleeast/lebanon-deadly-bombing/index.html

      “A bomb blast Thursday in a Lebanese town near the Syrian border killed at least six people — among them a leading Muslim scholar — and injured five others, the official National News Agency reported.

      The explosive “placed inside a motorcycle” went off outside the headquarters of the Muslim Scholars Committee, an organization that works with Syrian refugees and “conducts mediations” aimed at freeing those taken by al-Nusra Front. Al-Nusra Front is affiliated with al Qaeda and is among the groups fighting in Syria’s complex civil war to unseat President Bashar al-Assad.

      Sheikh Othman Mansour, the head of Kalamoun Religious Scholars, was among the dead in the blast in the northeastern Lebanese town of Arsal, according to the state news agency.

      Lebanon’s military court commissioner has ordered the security forces to launch an investigation into the explosion, National Media Agency delegate Huda Meniim said.

      It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the bombing, including whether it was carried out by a militant group or was possibly a criminal matter…”

  20. Refugees must take ‘Austrian values’ course (thelocal, Nov 5, 2015)
    http://www.thelocal.at/20151105/refugees-must-take-austrian-values-course

    “Austria’s minister for foreign affairs and integration, Sebastian Kurz, will present a 50 point integration plan for recognised refugees next week – which will include a special course to teach them “Austrian values”.

    The government has said that it expects 85,000 asylum requests this year. To date, there have been 63,000, with as many as 500 per day last week.

    Between 20,000 and 25,000 people are expected to be granted asylum this year, and of these one in two is expected to apply to bring family members to Austria. Kurz has said he expects the number of positive asylum decisions to rise to around 40,000 next year.

    Kurz has said that every recognised refugee will be given a personalized integration plan which will include access to German language courses, a five week course to determine a refugee’s skills and abilities with the aim of finding them work, and a compulsory eight hour “values” course which will discuss issues such as the rule of law, democratic values and equal rights for men and women.

    The values course will also cover compulsory education, waste disposal and recycling, as well as rules regarding times when you shouldn’t disturb your neighbours with noise (between 10pm and 6am)…”

  21. Possible charges for refugee convoy activists (thelocal, Nov 5, 2015)
    http://www.thelocal.at/20151105/possible-charges-for-activists-from-refugee-convoy

    “Austrian activists who took part in a “refugee convoy” and drove cars into Hungary to pick up refugees and help them reach Austria and Germany could face criminal charges of people smuggling, according to a report in Der Standard newspaper.

    Der Standard reports that at least three people who took part in the convoy on September 6th are the subject of an investigation by the Vienna public prosecutor’s office. Around 150 cars were driven to Budapest and Györ in Hungary, where they picked up refugees and drove them back to Austria for no charge.

    The Linz public prosecutor is investigating another citizen initiative to help refugees – an online platform called ‘fluchthelfer.in’ which was launched in Germany and gives people tips on how to help refugees without facing prosecution. The site’s owners could face charges of encouraging people to commit crimes and disobey the law, and if convicted they would face a maximum of two years in prison. Authorities in Germany are also looking into the case.

    Michael Platzer, an envoy of the Academic Council on the United Nations System (ACUNS), said at a meeting at the Institute of Criminology in Vienna that the state is forcing people to break the law as it has made legal passage for refugees impossible.

    He argued that the law regarding people smuggling should be abolished, as it only serves “to drive smugglers’ prices up”. Recent proposals to tighten asylum laws in Austria – which would make it harder for family members to join recognised refugees – will drive more people into the arms of people smugglers, he added.

    Vienna defence lawyer Joseph Phillip Bischof believes that the law is often used to disproportionately punish people. It states that someone is guilty of people smuggling if they have benefited from transporting someone, “but this could be something as small as an invitation to lunch” Bischof said.

    However, Gerald Tatzgern, head of the government’s Anti-Smuggling Unit said that his department is only “concerned with the serious cases” and that the priority is to protect refugees.

    Criminal law expert Andreas Schloenhardt told Der Standard that many people smugglers are in fact just doing what the government should be doing – giving refugees safe passage. He is in favour of targeted resettlement and the establishment of UN-supervised transit camps.”

  22. Razor wire fence appears on Slovenian border (thelocal, Nov 5, 2015)
    http://www.thelocal.at/20151105/razor-wire-erected-at-slovenian-border

    “Austria has begun to construct “technical barriers” along its border with Slovenia, despite the Chancellor’s stated opposition to constructing a fence.

    In a major policy reversal for the Austrian government, the Interior Ministry and police have begun to put in place temporary measures consisting of rolls of razor wire at major refugee border crossings, according to a report in the Kleine Zeitung newspaper.

    As police try to control the massive influx of people seeking to cross into Austria, they were overwhelmed with the numbers. A police spokesman said that “the embankment was secured with help from rolls of barbed wire.”

    Previously, Austrian chancellor Werner Faymann had criticised neighbouring Hungary’s fences, saying that Austria’s own “technical measures” would be different.

    “This is not about a border barrier of several kilometres,” he said last month. “We are not fencing Austria in.”

    Interior minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner defended the measures, saying in an interview on Germany’s ARD TV that “a fence is not a bad thing. Anyone who has a house, has a garden and a fence.”

    She explained that a “garden fence” was necessary to decide who was allowed to come in, and who would be kept out.

    German politician Hans-Peter Friedrich supported Mikl-Leitner’s analogy, saying “I don’t know why there is this demonization of fences. Many people have fences around their gardens.”

    “The crucial thing is that there is also a garden gate, where you can allow people to come in.”

    Austria’s policies came in for criticism from Germany’s SPD parliamentary leader Thomas Oppermann, who said: “At the moment there is lawlessness because Austria does not adhere to the Dublin procedure. Austria is refusing to send refugees back to Slovenia, and instead is passing them on to Germany.”…”

  23. Combat report: Russian jets hit 263 terror targets in Syria in 2 days (RT, Nov 5, 2015)
    https://www.rt.com/news/320908-russia-syria-terror-target/

    “The Russian Air Force has carried out 81 sorties hitting 263 Islamic State (IS) targets in two days in Syria, the Defense Ministry said in a statement.

    Russian jets hit targets that mostly belong to Islamic State and other militants in such provinces as Aleppo, Damascus, Deir ez-Zor, Idlib, Latakia, Raqqa, Hama and Homs, Igor Konashenkov, a Defense Ministry spokesman, said Thursday. After their combat missions all the jets returned to the Russian Khmeimim airbase in Latakia, he said.

    Russian Su-24M bombers destroyed IS repair facilities with seven armored vehicles near an airport in Aleppo province, Konashenkov said.

    “In the area of the populated locality of Raqqa, SU-34 bombers hit two fortified block posts belonging to the terrorists, located on the outskirts of the city. Direct aerial bomb hits destroyed the terrorists’ fortified structures housing four units of automobile and armored vehicles,” the spokesman said…”