Reader’s links for Dec. 24 – 2015

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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

44 Replies to “Reader’s links for Dec. 24 – 2015”

  1. Breaking from the U.S., the U.K. Condemns the Muslim Brotherhood, Calling It a Terrorist Group

    Following an intensive 18-month governmental study, the United Kingdom issued a startling indictment of the Muslim Brotherhood (MB). It described the organization as fiercely anti-democratic, openly supportive of terrorism, dedicated to establishing an Islamist government, and opposed to the rule of law, individual liberty, and equality.

    http://www.nationalreview.com/article/428877/united-kingdom-muslim-brotheroood-terrorist-organization

    • The big question is will he have guts enough to keep saying they are a terror support group?

  2. Two young Syrian brothers have been arrested in a refugee camp in southern Austria on suspicion of belonging to rival terrorist groups, prosecutors said Wednesday.

    The arrests are likely to add fuel to an already heated debate in Austria over how to handle Europe’s worst migrant crisis since 1945.

    Many of those arriving are unaccompanied boys and young men, which has prompted far-right and conservative politicians to warn that the refugee flow may pose a threat to national security.

    http://www.thelocal.at/20151223/teen-terror-suspects-arrested-near-graz

    Hungary has accused Austria of confusing “solidarity and stupidity” after Vienna said that nations which do not accept their share of refugees under European Union quotas should face sanctions.

    “The Austrian chancellor does not see the difference between solidarity and stupidity” said Budapest’s Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto.

    “Solidarity means helping people who are in danger where they live, and helping them to return home once the conflict is finished,” Szijjarto told Hungarian national press agency MTI on Sunday.

    “Stupidity is letting hundreds of thousands of people — millions — into Europe with no controls, while everyone, Europeans and migrants alike, can see they’ll never get what they hoped for here,” he said.

    http://www.thelocal.at/20151221/hungary-accuses-austria-of-stupidity-in-refugee-crisis

  3. Police: 2 Palestinians Killed in Stabbing and Failed Attack (abcnews, Dec 24, 2015)
    http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/police-palestinians-killed-stabbing-failed-attack-35938526

    “A Palestinian stabbed two Israeli security guards in the West Bank on Thursday before being shot and killed, Israeli authorities said, as another Palestinian was shot dead in a separate suspected attack.

    The incidents were the latest in a three month-long wave of Israeli-Palestinian violence and came as revelers were gathering in the West Bank city of Bethlehem for Christmas celebrations.

    In the first incident Thursday, Police spokeswoman Luba Samri said the attacker approached the entrance to an industrial zone in the Ariel settlement and stabbed the guards, wounding them moderately, before being shot and killed. The attacker’s identity was not immediately known.

    Shortly afterward, the Israeli military said a Palestinian wielding a screwdriver was shot dead after he tried to stab security forces in the West Bank city of Hebron, a frequent flashpoint for violence. No Israelis were wounded.

    Near-daily Palestinian attacks have killed 20 Israelis and an American student. Israeli fire has killed 122 Palestinians, 84 of them said by Israel to be attackers and the remainder killed in clashes with Israeli forces. On Wednesday, two Palestinian attackers were shot dead after they stabbed and killed an Israeli man. Another Israeli man died after he was apparently shot by Israeli police trying to subdue the attackers…”

  4. Nigeria Boko Haram: Militants ‘technically defeated’ – Buhari (BBC, Dec 24, 2015)
    http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-35173618

    “Nigeria has “technically won the war” against Islamist Boko Haram militants, President Muhammadu Buhari says.

    He told the BBC that the militant group could no longer mount “conventional attacks” against security forces or population centres.

    It had been reduced to fighting with improvised explosives devices (IED) and remained a force only in its heartland of Borno state, he said.

    Boko Haram has been described as one of the world’s deadliest terror groups.

    Critics of the government argue that it has exaggerated the scale of its success against the militants, and that each time the army claims to have wiped out Boko Haram, the militants have quietly rebuilt…”

  5. Afghanistan: Officials say dozens of Taliban killed in battle for Sangin (BBC, Dec 24, 2015)
    http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-35174126

    “A local Taliban commander and 50 fighters have been killed in overnight fighting in Sangin in Helmand province, the Afghan interior ministry said.

    Afghan forces have been trying to recapture the area from the Taliban, who claim to control the district.

    Afghan officials said they retook key buildings in a counter-attack, while the US carried out air strikes.

    The ministry named the dead commander as Mullah Nasir, a confidant of Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour.

    Strategically located, and a centre for opium production, Sangin would be a significant gain for the Taliban.

    Fighting around the town has escalated in the past week, and by Wednesday the militants said they had captured all of Sangin, pinning down government troops in an army barracks.

    This was denied by the Afghan defence ministry, who said fighting was continuing and that reinforcements had been sent..”

  6. Belgian Authorities Arrest 9th Suspect Over Paris Attacks (abcnews, Dec 24, 2015)
    http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/belgian-authorities-arrest-9th-suspect-paris-attacks-35938534

    “Belgian authorities have announced the arrest of a ninth suspect linked to last month’s Paris attacks, a man they said had been in contact with the suspected ringleader’s cousin.

    The Belgian federal prosecutor’s office said the suspect, whose full name was not disclosed, was being held on charges of taking part in a terrorist group and terrorist murders.

    His arrest took place Tuesday, the prosecutor’s office said.

    It said the suspect, a Belgian citizen born in 1985, had been in contact several times with Hasna Ait Boulahcen following the Nov. 13 attacks in Paris, in which 130 people died.

    Both Ait Boulahcen and her cousin Abdelhamid Abaooud, the attacks’ suspected ringleader, were killed when French police besieged their hideout north of Paris.”

  7. IS Group Seizes District in Eastern City From Syrian Troops (abcnews, Dec 24, 2015)
    http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/group-seizes-district-eastern-city-syrian-troops-35938536

    “Syrian activists and the Islamic State group say the militants have seized a district previously held by Syrian troops in the eastern city of Deir el-Zour.

    The industrial district of Deir el-Zour fell to the group late Wednesday following an attack and fierce clashes between the two sides.

    The IS-affiliated Aamaq news agency said Thursday that the group began its attack on the district with three successive suicide operations that struck Syrian army outposts inside.

    The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also reported the IS capture of the district.

    The city in the country’s east is held mostly by IS but Syrian troops control a few districts inside and the Deir el-Zour airport on the outskirts of the city.”

  8. Saudi-led coalition: Pakistan won’t support moves against Syria or Iran, say officials (tribune, Dec 24, 2015)
    http://tribune.com.pk/story/1015559/saudi-led-coalition-pakistan-wont-support-moves-against-syria-iran-says-officials/

    “Pakistan may have joined the Saudi Arabia-led 34-nation coalition against terrorism, but it will not support any move that destabilises Syria or strains Islamabad’s relationship with Tehran, senior Foreign Office officials said on Wednesday.

    According to them, the assurance came from the federal government during an in-camera session of the Senate Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs. Prime Minister’s Adviser on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz and Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry attended the meeting presided over by committee chairperson Senator Nuzhat Sadiq…”

  9. India, Pakistan agree to exercise restraint along LoC (tribune, Dec 24, 2015)
    http://tribune.com.pk/story/1014760/india-pakistan-agree-to-exercise-restraint-along-loc/

    “Taking another step forward, Indian and Pakistan armies on Tuesday decided to continue maintaining restraint along the volatile line of control, where almost daily exchanges of firing had led to several military and civilian casualties as well as damage to property over the last couple of years.

    Held in a cordial atmosphere, the meeting was aimed at taking forward the confidence building measures initiated during the recent flag meeting at the level of Bridge Commanders of two sides, a Defence Ministry spokesperson Lt Colonel Manish Mehta said.

    The colonel level officers led the respective delegations and they discussed various issues including ceasefire violations, return of civilians inadvertently crossing the LoC, air space violations and construction activity close to the LoC, he added.

    Both sides mutually agreed to the importance of exercising restraint on the LoC and keeping the communication alive through established reconciliation mechanism, the spokesperson said, adding that the flag meeting ended on a positive note with both sides exchanging pleasantries and sweets at the zero line….”

  10. British holidaymakers in Tunisia warned Christmas terror attacks are ‘highly likely’ (express, Dec 24, 2015)
    http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/629095/Tunisia-terror-warning-state-emergency-Britons-warned-attack-highly-likely

    “The Foreign Office has warned sunseekers they should be particularly wary of threats over the festive period, with tourists advised to avoid crowded beach resorts over Christmas amid heightened fears of another terror attack.

    The country has been faced with an ongoing threat since a crazed Islamist gunman murdered 38 people, including 30 Britons, as they lay on deckchairs in the attack in June.

    A state of emergency has been extended in the popular holiday destination until February 21…”

  11. Payouts to Afghans and Iraqis total £25m: More than 5,800 claims have been made from both countries as a result of military action (dailymail, Dec 24, 2015)
    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3372879/Payouts-Afghans-Iraqis-total-25m-5-800-claims-countries-result-military-action.html

    “British taxpayers are being forced to pay millions of pounds of compensation to Afghan and Iraqi civilians after claims resulting from military action in the countries.

    More than a decade after the 2003 invasion of Iraq, compensation paid out has hit almost £20 million, while Afghans have received £5.3m, The Times reported after a request under the Freedom of Information Act.

    Now the British courts have given a new lease of life to further claims, with 98 claims from Afghans still to be dealt with.

    Last night, the Ministry of Defence said they would be contesting ‘unjustified’ cases.

    In Iraq, there have been 1,145 claims. Some 323 have resulted in almost £19.6 million in out-of-court settlements.

    In Afghanistan, 4,727 claims have been made, leading to a £5.3million compensation bill so far.

    There is concern that claimants could use UK courts to seek higher compensation than offered by the Ministry of Defence.

    The MoD has won the right to put time limits on historical compensation claims in a Court of Appeal case this month.

    More than 600 claims submitted in 2013 became invalid because the alleged incidents happened more than three years before the complaints were made.

    Examples of claims include broken doors from British raids, costing the government £580.
    Meanwhile, damage to a wheat croft led to a payout of £4,590 and a man who had three teeth knocked out in a car accident claimed £336.

    Others were for minor injuries, damage to property and the death of family members are some of the reasons given for claims – two fatalities in Basra, Iraq, resulted in payouts of £5,384…”

  12. Imam claims US has enacted the policies of Donald Trump ‘before he has received a vote’ after his business visa was revoked as he tried to board a flight to New York (dailymail, Dec 24, 2015)
    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3372973/Imam-claims-enacted-policies-Donald-Trump-received-vote-business-visa-revoked-tried-board-flight-New-York.html

    “A British imam claims the US has enacted the policies of Donald Trump ‘before he has received a single vote’ after his visa was revoked as he tried to board a flight from London to New York.

    Ajmal Masroor, 44, from north London, claims he was banned from boarding a Virgin Atlantic flight from Heathrow to New York last week by US embassy staff who told him his business visa had been rescinded.

    He said he has never encountered any problems travelling on the visa before and has visited the US numerous times – claiming the latest treatment is ‘absolute discrimination’ which ‘plays into the hands of terrorists’.

    Mr Masroor, an imam and broadcaster, is the second British Muslim this week to allege he was banned from visiting the US due to his religion after it earlier emerged a British family heading for Disneyland were banned from boarding a flight for Los Angeles at London Gatwick….”

    • With Obama in the White House? We will never do anything about national defense that is rational while Obama is still President.

  13. Russia Rearms for a New Era

    Russia has bolstered its military and asserted itself
    on the world stage with a forcefulness not seen since the
    Cold War, ratcheting up tensions with the West. Here
    is what Russia has been doing to reclaim its influence.
    Russia Is Building and
    Expanding Bases in the Arctic

    Russia is reinvesting in its bases in the Arctic: building new ones, expanding old ones and deploying personnel to operate them. Analysts say Russia’s efforts in the Arctic are driven in part by climate change, as the country seeks to exploit and defend maritime trade routes and oil and natural gas resources in areas made more accessible by melting ice.

    Russia has bolstered its military and asserted itself
    on the world stage with a forcefulness not seen since the
    Cold War, ratcheting up tensions with the West. Here
    is what Russia has been doing to reclaim its influence.
    Russia Is Building and
    Expanding Bases in the Arctic

    Russia is reinvesting in its bases in the Arctic: building new ones, expanding old ones and deploying personnel to operate them. Analysts say Russia’s efforts in the Arctic are driven in part by climate change, as the country seeks to exploit and defend maritime trade routes and oil and natural gas resources in areas made more accessible by melting ice.
    http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/12/24/world/asia/russia-arming.html?_r=0

    • The interesting thing isn’t that they are rearming but rather that the Times is reporting it, the analysis is a PC on so you need to rethink some of what they are saying but it does show the Russian build up at a time when we are building down. Down below the point that is needed for our safety in a very dangerous world.

      • It is resources exploitation they are interested in and this isn’t being driven by Global Warming but by Putin wanting to make Russia the big boy in the world.

        • You know this stuff best, but I suppose some exercises are essential. Not necessarily ruffles and flourishes, but the soldier has to train and drill just as the equipment has to be maintained, fine-tuned and updated.

          I’d like to think our military is quietly going through its paces all the time. But I bet we’re no where near as sharp as we should be.

          As for Russia strutting her stuff, munitions are a significant source of export revenue. Maybe deployment serves to advertise her most glossy wares. Having your plane shot down – besides all else – has to be embarrassing for the bear.

  14. Christians in China feel full force of authorities’ repression

    GUIYANG, China — Pastor Su Tianfu slides into the back seat and tells the driver to hit it.

    He looks over his shoulder: “Is there anybody following us?”

    It is days before Christmas, but instead of working on his sermon, Su is giving his tail the slip.

    The slight and soft-spoken Protestant preacher is no stranger to surveillance. Su has worked for years in China’s unregistered “house churches,” and he said he has been interrogated more times than he can count.

    But even Su is surprised by what has happened in Guiyang this month: a crackdown that has led to the shuttering of the thriving Living Stone Church, the detention of a pastor on charges of “possessing state secrets” and the shadowing of dozens of churchgoers by police.

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/christians-in-china-feel-full-force-of-authorities-repression/2015/12/23/7dd0ec5a-a736-11e5-b596-113f59ee069a_story.html

  15. Chinese TV employs robot as weather reporter; anchors worried

    Read more at:
    http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/50308175.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

    BEIJING: For the first time, a Chinese news channel has employed an artificial intelligence robot as a weather reporter on its live breakfast show, raising concerns among the country’s journalists as it could threaten their jobs.

    “I’m happy to start my new work on the winter solstice,” robot XiaoIce said during her debut on Tuesday morning.

    XiaoIce is actually a piece of software developed by Microsoft using smart cloud and big data.

    In the first two days of her wor ..

    Read more at:
    http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/50308175.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

  16. South American left in retreat as economic crisis deepens

    BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — After a decade on the advance, the left in South America is in retreat.

    Just in the past month, voters in Argentina elected a conservative businessman president over the chosen successor of Cristina Fernandez and Brazil’s congress launched an impeachment probe against President Dilma Rousseff, whose approval ratings have been languishing in single digits.

    In perhaps the biggest turnabout, voters in Venezuela, where the region’s leftward shift began, handed the opposition a landslide victory in congressional elections – its first nationwide legislative win since the U.S.-bashing Hugo Chavez won the presidency in 1998.

    The backlash comes amid an economic storm of the likes the region hasn’t seen in decades. While all political dynasties are paying the price for broken economies and unchecked corruption, most of South America’s governments are run by leftists who came to power as China’s economy was taking off over the past 15 years, fueling demand for the region’s raw materials.

    Now that the Asian giant is struggling, prices for the region’s copper, soy beans and oil have plummeted along with its currencies, taking with them the aspiration

    BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — After a decade on the advance, the left in South America is in retreat.

    Just in the past month, voters in Argentina elected a conservative businessman president over the chosen successor of Cristina Fernandez and Brazil’s congress launched an impeachment probe against President Dilma Rousseff, whose approval ratings have been languishing in single digits.

    In perhaps the biggest turnabout, voters in Venezuela, where the region’s leftward shift began, handed the opposition a landslide victory in congressional elections – its first nationwide legislative win since the U.S.-bashing Hugo Chavez won the presidency in 1998.

    The backlash comes amid an economic storm of the likes the region hasn’t seen in decades. While all political dynasties are paying the price for broken economies and unchecked corruption, most of South America’s governments are run by leftists who came to power as China’s economy was taking off over the past 15 years, fueling demand for the region’s raw materials.

    Now that the Asian giant is struggling, prices for the region’s copper, soy beans and oil have plummeted along with its currencies, taking with them the aspiration

    http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/L/LT_LATIN_AMERICA_LEFTIST_RETREAT?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-12-23-18-26-55

    • The worlds economy is going to collapse even if there aren’t any civil wars next year, the civil wars will just make the collapse worse. Since the left has been in control for so long they will (correctly) be blamed for the economic collapse and the wars.

  17. As Islamic State threat mounts on its doorstep, Indonesia scours a jungle

    POSO, Indonesia (Reuters) – Indonesian forces are mobilizing for a manhunt in steamy jungles on the far-flung island of Sulawesi to flush the country’s most-wanted man from his hideout and deal a pre-emptive blow to Islamic State. The real threat could be much closer to home.

    Militant leader Santoso, the first Indonesian to publicly pledge loyalty to the radical jihadist group that holds swathes of territory in Syria and Iraq, has eluded capture for years. He has until Jan. 9 to surrender.

    But while the army girds for action just south of the equator, alarm bells are ringing in the capital, Jakarta.

    Raids by security forces across the populous island of Java last week netted several Islamic State supporters and foiled a string of attacks. Police said the men arrested were just foot-soldiers and their leaders are still on the run, plotting attacks on government leaders, officials and buildings.

    Sidney Jones, a Jakarta-based expert on Islamist militants at the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict, says there is only a slim chance in Indonesia of an Islamic State attack like last month’s bloodshed in Paris, but the threat is growing under the government’s nose.

    “While the police and army have been focused on going after Indonesia’s most-wanted terrorist, Santoso, in the hills of Central Sulawesi, ISIS has succeeded in building a network of supporters in the suburbs of Jakarta,” she wrote in a commentary last month, using a common acronym for Islamic State.

    http://www.oann.com/as-islamic-state-threat-mounts-on-its-doorstep-indonesia-scours-a-jungle/

  18. [ why Disneyland when they could go to Mecca ]

    RT – ‘Trumped?’ US bans British Muslim family from Disneyland trip

  19. Channel 4 – British Muslim family banned from flight to California

    David Cameron has been urged to investigate why

  20. ITV – US ‘stops British Muslim family of 11 from going to Disneyland’

    …… children’s “devastation”:

    • They are talking about changing tactics, not changing the ROE’s, the ROE’s are what limit when and how the ground troops can shoot at the enemy. When they changed it from shooting the enemy anytime they are found to no shooting except when being attacked they said the US and the allies weren’t allowed to win the war.

  21. Russia: Three Muslim terrorists killed by Russian forces in North Caucasus

    Three suspected militants were killed in the Republic of Kabardino-Balkaria by Russian security forces on Thursday. According to reports given by the National Anti-Terrorist Committee, a ‘suspicious’ car was spotted travelling in the Lechinkai locality. After being approached by security forces, militants inside the car opened fire, leading to a deadly gun battle.

    Among those killed was the alleged ringleader of the group, Nazir Tohov, who according to reports allegedly received training in militant camps in Syria. The aftermath of the battle was revealed on Thursday with footage showing the assailants burnt out car. At the scene, police found firearms with ammunition while the vehicle driven by Tohov’s gang was examined by bomb disposal experts.

  22. DAILY MAIL – Man named Jihad arrested for threatening ‘jihad’ on California police and making bomb threat

    Cops in El Monte, California arrested Jihad Mufaddi Khalaf Haddadin, 52
    Haddadin allegedly walked up to the police station and told them he had a bomb inside a backpack
    Cops say the man mentioned ‘jihad’ several times
    Police sent a robot to detonate the backpack but no bomb was found
    Police say the man is cooperative but they have no idea what his motive is

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3372526/Man-named-Jihad-arrested-threatening-jihad-California-police-making-bomb-threat.html

  23. Germany: 12 injured in suspected arson attack against migrants in Wallerstein

    At least 12 people were injured after an alleged arson attack struck two adjacent buildings in the Bavarian village of Wallerstein, Thursday. According to the police the buildings were mostly occupied by migrants.

    Seven of the twelve injured were reportedly teenagers, with none of the victims suffering serious injuries. A suspect, who was near the scene of the attack and under the influence of alcohol, was arrested and is being questioned by the police. The police have stated that the fire was a suspected arson attack, however the investigation has yet to be concluded.