Reader’s links for Dec. 30 – 2015

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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

53 Replies to “Reader’s links for Dec. 30 – 2015”

  1. Iran conducts ‘provocative’ live rocket tests near US ships (BBC, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-35197480

    “Iran’s navy conducted rocket tests last week near US warships and other commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, the American military has said.

    The tests threaten to cause new tensions between the two nations following their landmark nuclear deal.

    Iran fired “several unguided rockets” about 1,370m (1,500 yards) from two US vessels and a French frigate, US military spokesman Kyle Raines said.

    The tests were “highly provocative”, said Cmdr Raines…”

  2. Dagestan gunmen kill tourist at fortress in south Russia (BBC, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-35198059

    “Gunmen have shot and killed one person and wounded 11 others at the Derbent citadel in Dagestan, a Unesco World Heritage site in the North Caucasus.

    The tourists were attacked on Tuesday night outside the fortress in Derbent, one of Russia’s most ancient towns.

    Five of the injured were in a serious condition in hospital, local health workers said.

    Dagestan has been battling Islamist militants for years – partly a result of separatism in neighbouring Chechnya.

    It is not yet clear who opened fire on the tourists in Derbent, as the gunmen fled the scene…”

    • RT – 1 killed, 10 injured in attack on tourists at ancient fortress in Russia’s Dagestan

      A group of tourists on a visit to the Naryn-Kala fortress in Derbent, a city in Russia’s North Caucasus republic of Dagestan, were shot Tuesday night by unknown gunmen. The attack left one person dead and 10 injured.

  3. Libyans Probing Gadhafi Son’s Case Leave Lebanon Amid Threat (abcnews, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/libyans-probing-gadhafi-sons-case-leave-lebanon-amid-36004764

    “A Lebanese security official says members of a Libyan fact-finding mission who came to Beirut to investigate the case of a detained son of their country’s late dictator Moammar Gadhafi have left amid security concerns.

    The official says authorities advised the Libyan Justice Ministry delegation to leave Lebanon after relaying an unspecified threat to its safety. The delegation left Lebanon on Tuesday.

    The official did not elaborate. He spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

    Hannibal Gadhafi remains in Lebanese custody after unknown captors delivered him to authorities earlier this month. He is being questioned about the disappearance of top Shiite cleric Moussa al-Sadr while on a visit to Libya in 1978.

    The Libyan delegation came to request Gadhafi’s extradition for crimes committed during his father’s rule.”

  4. Turkish Prosecutor: Police Foil New Year’s Eve Attack (abcnews, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/turkish-prosecutor-police-foil-years-eve-attack-36004468

    “Turkish police have detained two suspected Islamic State militants who were believed to be planning suicide attacks during New Year celebrations in central Ankara, officials said Wednesday.

    The two men were detained following a raid in a low-income neighborhood of Ankara, where police also seized suicide vests armed with bombs that were fortified with ball bearings and metal sticks, the state-run Anadolu Agency said, quoting unidentified officials from the Ankara chief prosecutor’s office.

    A senior government official confirmed the report without providing further details. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because of government rules that bar civil servants from speaking to reporters without authorization

    The two Turkish nationals, identified by their initials M.C. and A.Y., were being questioned by anti-terrorism police, according to the officials from the prosecutor’s office.

    The agency said the attackers were planning to detonate the suicide vests at two locations near bars and a shopping mall during the celebrations…”

  5. India police arrest ex-air force officer for spy links with ISI (tribune, Dec 29, 2015)
    http://tribune.com.pk/story/1018202/india-police-arrest-ex-air-force-officer-for-spy-links-with-isi/

    “Delhi police said on Tuesday they have arrested a former Indian Air Force officer on charges of passing secrets to Pakistan’s spy service.

    Police said the man, who is accused of giving details of air force exercises to the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), had fallen victim to a “honey trap”.

    “Ranjith KK has accepted to have passed air force-related information pertaining to a recent air force exercise, movements of aircraft and deployment of various units in air force,” said Ravindra Yadav, Delhi police joint commissioner of crime, in a statement…”

  6. Landowner chops off teen farmer’s hands (emirates247, Dec 29, 2015)
    http://www.emirates247.com/news/region/landowner-chops-off-teen-farmer-s-hands-2015-12-29-1.615450

    “Police in Pakistan have arrested a locally powerful landowner and two accomplices for allegedly chopping off the hands of a 17-year-old farmworker whose family had failed to repay a loan of 15,000 rupees ($150).

    The incident took place around two months ago in the agricultural district of Hafizabad, some 80km northwest of Lahore city. It was only reported to police Monday after the victim’s family decided to speak out.

    Landowning families wield considerable power in rural Pakistan, practising a form of feudalism over the peasant and subsistence farmers in their employ.

    “Asad Israr-ul-Haq and his two accomplices have chopped off hand of Akram Abu Bakar, 17 years old,” said a copy of the police report.

    “The victim’s family had borrowed 15,000 rupees from the landlord and they were not able to return it,” it added.

    Local police station chief Mahmood Butt said the attackers had used a feed chopper to mutilate the teenager.

    Abu Bakar’s family returned to their native district of Sheikhupura after the attack, fearing further reprisals from the landowner. They were eventually persuaded by a local journalist to break their silence, Butt said.

    The office of Shahbaz Sharif, chief minister of the bread-basket province of Punjab where the attack took place, said he had asked police to submit their report to him.”

  7. Concerns over re-emergence of al-Qaeda in Afghanistan (khaama, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://www.khaama.com/u-s-officials-express-concern-over-al-qaeda-re-emerges-in-afghanistan-4446

    “As Afghan and NATO forces focus in confronting the militant groups of Taliban and Islamic State (IS) or Daesh, concern grows over the re-emergence of al-Qaeda.

    The New York Times reports that al-Qaeda training camps are sprouting up in Afghanistan, forcing the Pentagon and American intelligence agencies to assess whether they could again become a breeding ground for attacks on the United States.

    In October, The U.S. and Afghan forces conducted a joint operation and destroyed training sites of al-Qaeda in southern Kandahar province.

    Official said the operation between 7 to Oct 11 was carried out after months of intelligence gathering and planning and that one of the training camps was one of the largest ever discovered which was used by the group’s new offshoot Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) formed in September 2014.

    According to the report, senior administration officials in the U.S. concede that there are other Qaeda camps or bases, including at least one in Helmand Province, though they are not certain exactly how many because they were made harder to detect after the October assault. The senior officials — four from three different federal agencies — spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss confidential intelligence assessments…”

  8. Unknown fate of 300 villagers detained by Daesh in Nangarhar (khaama, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://www.khaama.com/unknown-fate-of-300-villagers-detained-by-daesh-in-nangarhar-4445

    “The fate of around 300 villagers detained by the militant group of the Islamic State (IS) or Daesh in eastern Afghanistan is still unknown, an official says.

    Governor of Nangarhar’s Achin District has told VOA news that the 300 villagers have been kidnapped by the group in his district in last two months.

    According to Haji Ghalib Mujahid, Daesh is running eight captivities in Abdulkhil, Mamand, Pikhi, Shadal and Takhto areas.

    About the fate of the hostages, the governor said there is no information “On how many of them might have been killed.”

    Some local residents have also confirmed to the news agency that Daesh kidnapped several community elders in their areas…”

  9. Security forces arrest nine Taliban during a clash in Nangarhar (khaama, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://www.khaama.com/security-forces-arrest-nine-taliban-during-a-clash-in-nangarhar-4443

    “Afghan forces have arrested nine militants belonging to Taliban group during a clash in Nazyan District of eastern Nangarhar province.

    A statement released by Nangarhar Media Center on Tuesday states that Taliban planned to launch attacks on border police check posts in Maru area but security forces prevented them.

    The press release adds that a confrontation occurred between the two sides during which security forces arrested nine Taliban along with their weapons and explosives.

    Military uniforms were also recovered from the possession of the militants…”

  10. Drone strike kills two Taliban commanders in Laghman (khaama, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://www.khaama.com/drone-strike-kills-two-taliban-commanders-in-laghman-4442

    “A U.S. drone strike has killed two Taliban commanders in eastern Afghanistan.

    Sarhadi Zwak, spokesperson for the governor of Laghman province said the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) targeted Zarjan and Dil Agha in Masboud valley of Alishang District Tuesday afternoon.

    He said Zarjan originally hailed from Bombai area of Dawlat Shah District and was responsible for several terrorist attacks in the two districts.

    The governor’s spokesperson added that Zarjan was also under the surveillance of Afghan security forces…”

  11. NATO, US military commander seeks to keep more troops in Afghanistan (khaama, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://www.khaama.com/nato-us-military-commander-seeks-to-keep-more-troops-in-afghanistan-4441

    “As the security situation in Afghanistan deteriorating day by day, the NATO and U.S. military commander in Afghanistan General John F. Campbell seeks to keep as many U.S. troops in Afghanistan as possible through 2016.

    In a telephonic interview with USA TODAY from Kabul, Gen. John Campbell said that maintaining the current force of 9,800 U.S. troops to train Afghan forces and conduct counter-terrorism raids is vital, and that the scheduled reduction to 5,500 by Jan. 1, 2017, should be put off as long as possible.

    could,” he said. “At some point it becomes physics. I’m going to have to get them out.”

    Gen. Campbell will be Washington soon to brief senior leaders on the security situation in Afghanistan and troop levels required for their missions…”

  12. Afghan businessman charged with bribing US soldiers to obtain contracts (khaama, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://www.khaama.com/afghan-businessman-charged-with-bribing-us-soldiers-to-obtain-contracts-1895

    “The U.S. government has charged an Afghan businessman with bribing soldiers with bundles of cash to get the US contracts, it has been reported.

    This comes over $63 million of the Afghan businessman had been frozen by the U.S. Department of Justice United States in 2013.

    Local media reports citing a criminal complaint filed on 23rd December reported that the owner of the trucking company Hikmatullah Shadman was charged with conspiracy and bribery related to payments made to two soldiers in 2009.

    According to the complaint, Shadman had paid approximately $140,000 to Robert W. Green, then an Army staff sergeant to obtain the contracts.

    The investigators have said the two U.S. soldiers have pleaded guilty for receiving bribe, insisting that the contracts were awarded to Shadman’s company and others despite their prices were higher as compared to their competitors.

    Shadman’s case was reportedly uncovered as the law enforcement agencies are investigating corruption in the contracting process in Afghanistan, particularly between 2009 and 2012.

    The investigations are jointly conducted by the U.S. government agencies, which includes the FBI, U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction.”

  13. Muslim convert to be sentenced for Facebook threats against Tory MP Charlotte Leslie (express, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/630216/Craig-Wallace-Charlotte-Leslie-Conservatives-Syria-Facebook

    “A MUSLIM convert who threatened to bomb an MP’s house after she voted in favour of Syria air strikes is due to be sentenced.

    Craig Wallace, 23, launched a tirade of abuse on Facebook aimed at Tory MP Charlotte Leslie, who represents Bristol North West.

    He said: “I’m going to smash her windows then drop a bomb on her house while she’s tucked up in bed.

    The man, who calls himself Muhammad Mujahid Islam on Facebook, added: “You dirty f****** pig-shagging s***.”

    In a second post on December 3, the day after MPs voted to authorise strikes, Wallace said: “I’m going to find her and show her what it’s like to murder innocents.

    “You dirty pig-f****** whore.”

    Ms Leslie’s father saw the comments online and reported them to police.

    Wallace pleaded guilty at Hendon Magistrates’ Court to sending threatening communications on December 7.

    Wallace has a string of convictions for violent offences including possession of a knife, and is due to be sentenced at Willesden Green Magistrates’ Court.

    He converted to Islam while in prison serving a sentence of almost five years for attempted robbery.

    Three weeks after he was released he posted the messages on a thread of comments on the UK Truth Movement Facebook page.

    Wallace claimed he was “venting his anger” and had not had any sleep because he had been “protesting for two or three days”.

    Wallace, of Teignmouth Road in Willesden Green, north London, admitted the offence earlier in the month.

    But his sentencing was adjourned so a full risk assessment could be carried out.”

  14. Norway pushes for crackdown on migrant rules after 30,000 enter the country this year (express, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/630138/Norway-immigration-migrants-refugees-rules-crackdown-Europe-crisis

    “NORWAY is pushing for a crackdown on asylum rules after it was revealed 30,000 migrants entered the country this year.

    The centre-right Government is proposing tighter controls in order to avoid what the immigration minister described as “violent consequences” to the country’s welfare system.

    The measures, which would need parliamentary approval, would make it difficult for refugees to bring family members to Norway and raise the requirements for permanent resident permits.

    The move comes after more than 30,000 asylum-seekers sought shelter in the country, which has a population of 5.1million people, this year.

    Immigration Minister Sylvi Listhaug, of the right-wing Progress Party, said the country’s influx of migrants was one of the highest numbers in Europe in relation to its population size.

    She said 10,000 to 100,000 people are expected to apply for asylum in Norway in 2016.

    Ms Listhaug added: ”If we are anywhere near the latter number it could have violent consequences for our welfare society.”…”

  15. Hundreds of migrants kicked out of Austria for LYING about their nationality (express, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/630241/Migrants-kicked-out-of-Austria-for-LYING-about-nationality

    “AUSTRIAN police have kicked hundreds of migrants out of the country for lying about where they had come from.

    Officials in the country, which is on the Balkan route from Greece to Western Europe, uncovered the scheme when many people couldn’t speak the language of their alleged homes.

    Translators in the province of Carinthia, which borders Slovenia, say they have seen a huge spike in the numbers of people trying to bluff their way through spot checks.

    More than 3,000 migrants have been crossing Carinthia’s 72-mile border every day.

    Officials would not provide exact numbers, but confirmed that at least 100 per day – three per cent of all arrivals – had been sent back since Boxing Day.

    A police spokesman said: “We assume that some are trying to take advantage of the situation, knowing very well that they have little chance of being granted asylum in Austria and Germany.”

    He did not specify which nationalities were being falsely claimed, or where the migrants were actually from…”

  16. Putin’s SUCCEEDING against ISIS: US officials FINALLY admit Russia’s doing the RIGHT thing (express, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/630253/putin-succeeding-in-syra

    “THREE months after Russia started its bombing campaign against Islamic State in Syria, US officials have said to finally have admitted Moscow is doing the right thing.

    Washington has long remained critical of Vladimir Putin’s actions in the Middle East, accusing the leader of propping up Bashar al-Assad’s highly controversial regime.

    But speaking on condition of anonymity, a US intelligence official has revealed the airstrikes have seen results against terror.

    He told Reuters: “The Russians did not go blindly into this, they are getting some advantage out of the price.”

    According to the Kremlin, in spite of carrying out more than 5,000 airstrikes since the beginning of the campaign, Russian troops have suffered only a small number of casualties.

    Financially, the military operation also seems to be working out for Moscow.

    Russia has an annual defence budget of $54billion, but country officials say sending military jets to Syria is costing a relatively modest one to two billion dollars per year.

    A senior US official said: “I think it’s indisputable that the Assad regime, with Russian military support, is probably in a safer position than it was.”

    However, experts say Russia’s military success against ISIS in Syria also means groups opposed to the beleaguered Syrian President Bashar al-Assad have been weakened…”

  17. Son of London hate preacher who called 7/7 bombers ‘Fantastic Four’ dies fighting for ISIS (express, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/630206/ISIS-Islamic-State-July-7-bombings-Omar-Bakri-Muhammad

    “THE son of a London hate preacher who fled the UK after his Islamic movement was suspected to being linked to the 7/7 bombings has been ‘killed in Iraq fighting alongside Islamic State (ISIS)’.Bilal Omar Fostock, son of Omar Bakri Muhammad, was reportedly killed during clashes with the Iraqi army in the north eastern part of Salahuddin province, north of the capital Baghdad.

    Bakri himself is serving a jail sentence in Lebanon on suspected terrorism charges after security forces caught him on the run after a crackdown on Islamic fanatics.

    Extremists were believed to have been behind a number of bombings in the Northern Lebanese city of Tripoli.

    He is also the co-founder of a terrorist movement in the UK called ‘Al-Muhajiroun’ which has been the subject of numerous investigations by Britain’s own security services, whom in the summer arrested his partner Anjem Choudary…”

  18. TERROR WARNING: Dying woman ‘plans ISIS attack in Europe’ amid refugee infiltration fears (express, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/630210/Islamic-State-ISIS-Syria-Russia-terminal-cancer-Georgia

    “A WOMAN with terminal cancer is feared to be planning a sickening Islamic State terror attack in Europe by disguising herself as a Syrian refugee – as the West faces a security lockdown over the festive period.

    Anti-terror police are desperately searching for the 21-year-old, identified only as Oygul M., after fears she will attack Russia.

    The woman, who has brain cancer, is believed to be based in Georgia with a 29-year-old male terror suspect, known as Bulat A.

    But she could take advantage of Europe’s migrant crisis by entering Russian territory disguised as a Syrian refugee, officers said…”

  19. Putin’s son-in-law boosted by $1.75 billion Russian state loan

    MOSCOW (Reuters) – The son-in-law of Vladimir Putin stands to benefit from $1.75 billion in cheap finance from the Russian state, a Reuters examination of public documents shows. The money will help fund a petrochemical project at a company in which Kirill Shamalov, husband of Katerina Tikhonova, the Russian president’s younger daughter, has a significant interest.

    Shamalov is a major shareholder in Sibur, Russia’s largest processor of petrochemicals. This month Sibur obtained $1.75 billion from Russia’s National Wealth Fund to help build a huge new plant in Tobolsk, Siberia.

    According to corporate documents, Sibur was able to borrow the money at a current interest rate of 2 percent. That is a bargain, according to financial analysts. Artyom Usmanov, an analyst at investment firm BCS, said borrowers on the Russian bond market would expect to pay over 7 percent interest for such a loan. Irina Alizarovskaya, an analyst with Raiffeisenbank called the financing “quite cheap.”

    Shamalov did not respond to a request for comment.

    In a statement by Sibur on Dec. 9, Dmitry Konov, its chief executive, described the state finance as having “favorable terms.” A Sibur spokesman said the company had no information “about family relations or relations between the company’s shareholders and the president of Russia.” The state loan, he said, “underwent all necessary procedures and was approved in strict accordance with the … laws.”

    http://www.oann.com/putins-son-in-law-boosted-by-1-75-billion-russian-state-loan/

  20. U.S. Spy Net on Israel Snares Congress

    President Barack Obama announced two years ago he would curtail eavesdropping on friendly heads of state after the world learned the reach of long-secret U.S. surveillance programs.

    But behind the scenes, the White House decided to keep certain allies under close watch, current and former U.S. officials said. Topping the list was Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

    The U.S., pursuing a nuclear arms agreement with Iran at the time, captured communications between Mr. Netanyahu and his aides that inflamed mistrust between the two countries and planted a political minefield at home when Mr. Netanyahu later took his campaign against the deal to Capitol Hill.

    The National Security Agency’s targeting of Israeli leaders and officials also swept up the contents of some of their private conversations with U.S. lawmakers and American-Jewish groups. That raised fears—an “Oh-s— moment,” one senior U.S. official said—that the executive branch would be accused of spying on Congress.

    http://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-spy-net-on-israel-snares-congress-1451425210

  21. Russia Drops a BOMBSHELL: Obama is ‘Protecting ISIS!’ – See more at: http://www.teaparty.org/russia-drops-a-bombshell-obama-protecting-isis-136643/#sthash.2HL0qqBr.dpuf

    Russian Defense Ministry spokesman thus commented regarding the recent statement by the Pentagon spokesperson who confirmed that the US didn’t intend to share the information on IS targets with Moscow

    (TASS) – The Pentagon, refusing to transfer the data on terrorist targets in Syria to the Russian military, continues to fight against the Islamic State terrorist group “in word only”, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov told reporters on Monday.

    He thus commented on a recent statement by the Pentagon spokesperson Michelle Baldanza who confirmed that the US military did not intend to share with Moscow the information on IS targets until Russia changes its policy towards Syrian President Bashar Assad. “We are not going to cooperate with Russia on Syria until they change their strategy of supporting Assad and instead focus on ISIL (IS),” Baldanza said.
    – See more at: http://www.teaparty.org/russia-drops-a-bombshell-obama-protecting-isis-136643/#sthash.2HL0qqBr.dpuf

  22. RT- France: Footage shows vandalised Muslim prayer room in Corsica

    Footage filmed on Wednesday shows the aftermath of the attack on a Muslim prayer room during an anti-Islam demonstration in the Corsican capital of Ajaccio last week.

    • RT – France: Cazeneuve condemns Islamophobic acts escalating in Corsica

      France’s Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve visited the Corsican city of Ajaccio on Wednesday where he condemned recent acts of Islamophobic hate crimes and anti-immigration protests. Islamophobic protests have flared up across the city after a team of firefighters were ambushed in a largely immigrant area last Thursday.

  23. House Democrats Move to Criminalize Criticism of Islam
    Lumping together violence with “hateful rhetoric” is a call to destroy the freedom of speech

    December 17, 2015 ought henceforth to be a date which will live in infamy, as that was the day that some of the leading Democrats in the House of Representatives came out in favor of the destruction of the First Amendment. Sponsored by among others, Muslim Congressmen Keith Ellison and Andre Carson, as well as Eleanor Holmes Norton, Loretta Sanchez, Charles Rangel, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Joe Kennedy, Al Green, Judy Chu, Debbie Dingell, Niki Tsongas, John Conyers, José Serrano, Hank Johnson, and many others, House Resolution 569 condemns “violence, bigotry, and hateful rhetoric towards Muslims in the United States.” The Resolution has been referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.

    That’s right: “violence, bigotry and hateful rhetoric.” The implications of those five words will fly by most people who read them, and the mainstream media, of course, will do nothing to elucidate them. But what H. Res. 569 does is conflate violence — attacks on innocent civilians, which have no justification under any circumstances – with “bigotry” and “hateful rhetoric,” which are identified on the basis of subjective judgments. The inclusion of condemnations of “bigotry” and “hateful rhetoric” in this Resolution, while appearing to be high-minded, take on an ominous character when one recalls the fact that for years, Ellison, Carson, and his allies (including groups such as the Hamas-linked Council on American-Islamic Relations, CAIR) have been smearing any and all honest examination of how Islamic jihadists use the texts and teachings of Islam to incite hatred and violence as “bigotry” and “hateful rhetoric.” This Resolution is using the specter of violence against Muslims to try to quash legitimate research into the motives and goals of those who have vowed to destroy us, which will have the effect of allowing the jihad to advance unimpeded and unopposed.

    http://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/261268/house-democrats-move-criminalize-criticism-islam-robert-spencer

  24. 23 Saudi women on trial over terrorism charges (saudigazette, Dec 30, 2015)
    http://saudigazette.com.sa/saudi-arabia/23-saudi-women-on-trial-over-terrorism-charges/

    “Twenty-three Saudi women accused of association with Al-Qaeda and Daesh (so-called IS) are currently being tried in the Kingdom. Some of them have been convicted and jailed.

    According to official sources, the Special Criminal Court began hearing the cases of these female extremists two years ago. They added that the most noteworthy case was that of Haila Al-Qaseer, who is known as “Lady Al-Qaeda,” and who was convicted of terrorism and sentenced to 15 years in jail.

    The court tried in October another woman, 27-year-old Um Oweis, who joined Daesh after pledging allegiance to Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi and helping provide logistical services to terrorism via media and found communicating with Daesh members and leaders of Al-Nusra Front through Twitter.

    Umm Oweis has a master’s degree from a Saudi university.

    In December, the criminal court opened the case of “Al-MohajIra,” 25-year-old female member of Al-Qaeda and Daesh who also served as a media member. She was charged with supporting and pledging allegiance to Al-Baghdadi, as well as encouraging killing in conflict zones and inside the Kingdom. — Al Arabiya”

  25. It’s Not ISIS We Need to Beat — It’s the Caliphate
    Understanding the Caliphate Curve.

    A recent report by, of all places, the Tony Blair Faith Foundation, found that the Syrian rebels were mostly Islamic Jihadists and that even if ISIS were defeated there were 15 other groups sharing its worldview that were ready to take its place.

    And that’s just in Syria.

    The official ISIS story, the one that we read in the newspapers, watch on television and hear on the radio, is that it’s a unique group whose brand of extremism is so extreme that there is no comparing it to anything else. ISIS has nothing to do with Islam. Or with anything else. It’s a complete aberration.

    Except for the 15 other Jihadist groups ready to step into its shoes in just one country.

    Islamic Supremacist organizations like ISIS can be graded on the “Caliphate curve”. The Caliphate curve is based on how quickly an Islamic organization wants to achieve the Caliphate. What we describe as “extreme” or “moderate” is really the speed at which an Islamic group seeks to recreate the Caliphate.

    ISIS is at the extreme end of the scale, not because it tortures, kills and rapes, but because it implemented the Caliphate immediately. The atrocities for which ISIS has become known are typical of a functioning Caliphate. The execution of Muslims who do not submit to the Caliph, the ethnic cleansing and sexual slavery of non-Muslims are not aberrations. They are normal behavior for a Caliphate.

    • Finally some sense about the Caliphate, ISIS is just one of the groups what wants to create a Caliphate, the Iranians want a Caliphate they just want an Iranian to be Caliph, the other groups have different ideas on who should be Caliph. Turkey is helping ISIS because Edrogen wants to be Caliph and ISIS looks to be the current best chance of a Sunni dominated Caliphate being formed.

  26. Iraqi FM says could use military option against Turkey if forced

    Iraq’s foreign minister said on Wednesday it could resort to military means if forced to defend itself from what it says is an intrusion of Turkish forces into part of its north.

    Turkey said it had deployed a force protection unit earlier this month to the area due to heightened security risks near a camp where its troops were training an Iraqi militia to fight Islamic State insurgents. Ankara acknowledged that there had been a “miscommunication” with Baghdad over the deployment.

    Iraqi security forces have had only a limited presence in Nineveh province where the camp is located since collapsing in June 2014 in the face of a lightning advance by Islamic State.

    Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari said Iraq was committed to exhausting peaceful diplomatic avenues to avoid a crisis with its northern neighbour Turkey, but insisted that all options remained open.

    “If there is no other solution but this (military), then we will adopt this solution. If we are forced to fight and defend our sovereignty and riches, we will be forced to fight,” he told reporters in Baghdad.

    Turkey’s deployment of around 150 troops this month to the Bashiqa military base in northern Iraq prompted Baghdad to accuse Ankara of violating its sovereignty and lodge a formal complaint at the U.N. Security Council.

    Turkey later withdrew some troops to another base inside the nearby autonomous Kurdistan region and said it would continue to pull out of Nineveh province, where Bashiqa is located. It did not say how many troops would be moved or where to.

    After the diplomatic dispute flared, the base came under fire from Islamic State when militants fired rockets in an attack on Kurdish Peshmerga forces in the area. The Turkish military said its soldiers returned fire and four had been lightly wounded in the incident.

    Baghdad’s forces have regrouped and retrained with U.S. help since the debacle at the hands of Islamic State 18 months ago and on Sunday retook the western provincial capital of Ramadi, their first big victory against the ultra-hardline militants.

    http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-mideast-crisis-iraq-turkey-idUKKBN0UD1G520151230

  27. Sweden: Muslim Refugees Can Be Listed as “Children” If They Don’t Look Over 40
    I’ve heard of extended childhood, but this is ridiculous.

    ‘ve heard of extended childhood, but this is ridiculous.

    Every time you hear talking points about the Muslim migrants being widows, orphans and children, remember how low the bar is set. If you’re under 40, you too can be a child.

    This revelation comes in Ingrid Carlqvist’s regular roundup of insanity in Sweden at Gatestone all of which is worth reading and much of which will make you feel like Alice stepping into a lefty wonderland where ISIS is up and sanity is down.

    November 9: Social commentator and whistleblower Merit Wager revealed on her blog that administrators at the Immigration Service had all been ordered to “accept the claim that an applicant is a child, if he does not look as if he is over 40.”

    A staggering 32,180 “unaccompanied refugee children” had arrived during 2015 by December 1 — since then another 1,130 have come — and the government finally decided to take action. If its proposition is approved by Parliament, everyone who looks adult-aged will be forced to go through a medical age-determination procedure. One of the reasons Sweden stopped doing these in the first place, was that pediatricians refused to take part in them. They said the procedures were “unreliable.”

  28. Kerry: We Brought Peace to Syria
    Aside from all the fighting, Syria is peaceful

    Aside from all the fighting, Syria certainly is peaceful. Also aside from all the water, the ocean certainly is dry. But like Chamberlain, Secretary of State John Kerry has to tout his imaginary accomplishments.

    Peace in our time.

    The State Department is counting “bringing peace” to Syria as one of its wins in 2015.

    A boastful recap of the State Department’s accomplishments, written by spokesman John Kirby, includes the bold subheadline of “Bringing Peace, Security to Syria” above a more modest entry talking about U.S. aid for those affected by the country’s turmoil and the U.S. push for a political transition from President Bashar Assad.

    http://www.frontpagemag.com/point/261276/kerry-we-brought-peace-syria-daniel-greenfield

  29. TURKEY – Santa chased, converts to Islam in anti-New Year celebration demonstration

    Men dressed as Ottoman janissaries chased Santa Claus in a street show protesting the celebration of New Year’s Eve in western Turkey, which ended with Santa converting to Islam.

    As the show proceeded, Santa was brought to face a qadi, an Islamic judge in the Ottoman era, after he was caught by the janissaries, the Ottoman elite infantry units.

    The act, staged by members of the nationalist-Islamic Grand Unity Party (BBP) in the province of Bolu, highlights anti-New Year’s Eve celebrations sentiments in Turkey, where the festivity is widely deemed to be associated with Christianity.

    […]This year’s play involved a similar theme; however, Santa faced the qadi this time, not the sultan. Mahmut Alan, a former BBP provincial head who played the qadi, then asked Santa why he was running. Santa answered that they were celebrating the birth of Jesus, wearing red clothes and drinking alcohol. The qadi then summoned two people acting as ordinary men in the crowd and asked if they were pleased with the celebrations. They testified they were, so the qadi let Santa go because he was not forcing anyone to celebrate.

    Surprised by the decision, Santa said he heard that the Turks were barbaric. The qadi answered that there was no room for barbarism or violence in Islam. Moved, Santa converted to Islam by reciting the Islamic Shahada, the Muslim profession of faith.

    http://www.todayszaman.com/national_santa-chased-converts-to-islam-in-anti-new-year-celebration-demonstration_408389.html

    video ( 4 min 36 )

  30. Turkey to have military base in Qatar

    NKARA, Turkey — Turkey will build a military base in Qatar, its staunchest regional ally, officials said.

    The move comes a year after the two countries signed a military cooperation agreement. The treaty was ratified by the Turkish parliament in June.

    Turkish diplomats dealing with security matters said that the military base in Qatar will help the two countries to counter common security threats and enemies.

    Turkey and Qatar, whose majority of Muslims are Sunni, spearhead efforts for the ousting of Syrian President Bashar Assad, who is supported by Shiite administrations in Iran and Afghanistan, as well as Russia.

    The diplomats said that about 3,000 Turkish troops would be stationed at the base in Qatar. The troops will be supported by aerial and naval assets and their operations would be augmented by special forces units.

    The multipurpose base also will serve as a military training camp.

    Qatar is home to the largest U.S. air base in the Middle East, Al Udeid. There are around 10,000 U.S. troops there.

    http://www.defensenews.com/story/defense/2015/12/16/turkey-build-military-base-qatar/77421650/

  31. End the Anti-Cop Witch Hunt
    The Obama-#BlackLivesMatter cases have fallen apart, it’s time to tell the truth.

    The dirty alliance between Obama and #BlackLivesMatter has torched cities, goosed crime rates, killed cops and suppressed law enforcement with the Ferguson Effect. But the lies about “police murders” fall apart when they come up against even the most basic evidentiary standards of the justice system.

    The refusal of a grand jury to indict the police officer in the Tamir Rice case buries yet another of BLM’s banner cases. The Tamir Rice case joins the Michael Brown case, the Sandra Bland case, the Eric Garner case and the faltering Freddie Gray case in the litany of failed police lynchings by BLM and the DOJ.

    In four out of five of these cases, the DOJ-BLM pro-crime lobby couldn’t even get an indictment.

    What does it say about a movement when its claims repeatedly fail evidence-based tests? Angry racist protesters scream about justice, but the justice system has spoken. Racist activists have tried to blame individual prosecutors, jurors and judges, but a consistent pattern has emerged, no matter what the race and political orientation of the prosecutors or jurors, BLM’s cases just don’t hold up in court.

    Rather than admit the truth, #BlackLivesMatter has escalated the hate. And Obama’s Justice Department has pursued extralegal vendettas against entire police departments. The DOJ has failed to find grounds for charges against individual officers, but instead lashed out at entire departments. The DOJ’s pettiness can be seen in its assault on the Ferguson Police Department after its attempt to compel the department to supp

    http://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/261285/end-anti-cop-witch-hunt-daniel-greenfield

  32. Hillary Clinton Finally Decides Christians are Suffering Genocide
    How nice of Hillary.

    How nice of Hillary.

    Hillary Clinton on Tuesday called the killing of Christians and other religious groups in the Middle East a “genocide” -— a term she had previously been reluctant to use.

    “Yes, I will now. I will because we now have enough evidence,” Clinton told a man during atown hall at Berlin High School, who asked whether she would join the Pope and other religious and political leaders in using the term.

    What “new evidence” suddenly showed up to change her mind?

    The statistics have been there for some time now. ISIS has been at it ever since it began its campaign in Syria.

    http://www.frontpagemag.com/point/261292/hillary-clinton-finally-decides-christians-are-daniel-greenfield

  33. Post-San Bernardino Warning: Background Checks on Foreign Muslims are Discrimination
    Even if it might have saved lives in San Bernardino.

    Obama is really taking Islamic terrorism seriously after the San Bernardino attack. And by taking it seriously, I mean he’s working overtime to intimidate Americans for being so Islamophobic. (Hat tip)

    A special release from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission that specifically mentions the “attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, California” warns employers to provide prayer rooms for Muslims and crack down on any discussions about terrorism. And cautions against background investigations.

  34. CANADA _ TORONTO – A Video Message from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for Reviving the Islamic Spirit Convention 2015

    ==========================================
    Toronto convention to focus on true message of Islam

    Toronto event expected to attract 20,000 people to hear Muslim leaders and scholars

    A massive Islamic convention this week will help to “inoculate” young Muslims against Islamophobia and throw a counterpunch against those who advocate for extremism, according to a local lawyer.

    “They have genuine leaders who are informed, who understand the modern world, who understand Islam and try to educate the youth about . . . what Islam stands for,” said lawyer Faisal Kutty, who teaches at Osgoode Hall and Valparaiso University. “It’s an extremely important event.”

    Around 20,000 people are expected to attend the Reviving the Islamic Spirit conference at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. The event runs from Dec. 25 to 27, and will feature speakers that include scholars, imams and authors.

    Kutty predicted the event would draw criticism, noting the unfair assumption that “Muslims have to answer for the actions of the extremists.”

    The theme of the 2015 event is “Alliance of Virtue,” which organizer Summayah Poonah said speaks to a need to “[form] cross cultural alliances in order to aid and facilitate social justice.”

    “We need to be able to diversify our portfolio as a community and contribute in a significant way to other social platforms, like the issue of race or income inequality,” said Poonah.

    Past conferences had focused on more basic needs, Poonah said: “a roof over your head and food on the table.”

    Poonah said she is looking forward to hearing Linda Sarsour, the executive director of the Arab American Association of New York. The New York Times credited Sarsour with “[helping] to partly dismantle the New York Police Department’s program of spying on the city’s Muslims.”

    The event also features a “grand bazaar,” and the convention’s website promotes a popular “matrimonial program” — a chance for attendees to meet possible future spouses.

    An interfaith dialogue is planned for Saturday, featuring a cardinal, imam and pastor.

    Justin Trudeau spoke at the 2012 convention. IRFAN-Canada, which the CRA said used “deceptive fundraising” to help Hamas, pulled out of sponsoring the event that year.

    Male speakers far outnumber female speakers promoted on the conference’s website. Female exclusion needs to be “targeted from the root up,” Poonah said.

    “University-qualified” women, Poonah said, might be “treated like second-class citizens” in a mosque.

    “What the organization is trying to do . . . is try to focus on women who have had that academic background and give them a platform to . . . voice their opinion, because often they’re overlooked,” Poonah said. “We’ve come a long way, but I think that there’s a long way to go.”

    http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2015/12/23/toronto-convention-to-focus-on-true-message-of-islam.html

    ==========================================

  35. GERMANY – Migrants: ZDF, Merkel’s New Year speech with Arabic subtitles

    ANSAmed) – BERLIN, DECEMBER 30 – In a first ever, German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s New Year address to the nation will be broadcast tomorrow with Arabic and English subtitles by ZDF, in the ”mobile” version for smart phones conceived for migrants. The speech will be available at 7:15 pm, right after the televised address traditionally scheduled at 7 pm.

    This is one of the services provided by the German public broadcaster to migrants, through the mobile service for smart phones ”Zdf Arabic/Zdf English”.

    The Christmas speech of German President Joachim Gauck is available as of today with subtitles in the two languages most used by migrants who travelled to Germany this year.

    As of January 4, the 5 pm edition of the news with be broadcast with Arabic and English subtitles. The service with subtitles began on December 7 and offers at the moment short newscasts for children and a selection from other formats. ZDF aims to provide migrants with information on politics, current events and German history and culture. (ANSAmed)

    http://www.ansamed.info/ansamed/en/news/nations/europe/2015/12/30/migrants-zdfmerkels-new-year-speech-with-arabic-subtitles_1c5a35a0-d699-416f-bec9-e45b7b5a7972.html

  36. HOUSTON – Man charged with setting Houston mosque fire was a devout attendee

    A Houston man has been arrested in connection with a suspected arson at a mosque on Christmas Day.

    A spokeswoman for the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives confirmed that the man was arrested early Wednesday, sometime after midnight, and appeared in court 7 a.m. Wednesday.

    The suspect, Gary Nathaniel Moore, 37, of Houston, appeared in court at 7 a.m., spokeswoman Nicole Strong said.

    According to a charging instrument released by the Harris County District Clerk, Moore told investigators at the scene that he has attended the mosque for five years, coming five times per day to pray seven days per week.

    Moore told investigators he had been at the mosque earlier on Dec. 25 to pray, and had left at about 2 p.m. to go home. Moore told investigators he was the last person to leave the mosque and saw no smoke or other signs of fire when he left. He had returned to the scene after hearing about the fire from a friend.

    Though the suspect said he was a regular at the mosque, MJ Khan, president of the Islamic Society of Greater Houston, which operates the mosque, said he was unfamiliar with Moore. “We are just looking into it ourselves,” he said Wednesday morning after learning of the arrest.

    “We are really very surprised and saddened by this whole thing,” said Khan.

    Using surveillance video from multiple businesses nearby, investigators were able to identify Moore, according to records. A search warrant of his home was conducted, in which investigators recovered a backpack and clothing that seemingly matched that which was seen in surveillance footage, as well as one half of a two-pack of charcoal lighter fluid bottles that seemed to match another lighter fluid bottle found inside the mosque.

    Bond for Moore has been set at $100,000.

    It took about 80 firefighters to put out the two-alarm blaze at the storefront mosque in Savoy Plaza, near Wilcrest Drive and West Bellfort.

    http://www.chron.com/houston/article/Federal-officials-arrest-man-in-connection-with-6727623.php

    VIDEO – ( 9 min 03 ) Should We Blame Trump for the Christmas Mosque Burning?

    Zainab Chaudry, Council On American Islamic Relations (C.A.I.R) joins Thom. A Houston-area Muslim community is reeling after their mosque caught fire on Christmas Day. Muslim leaders are warning against jumping to conclusions – but officials are saying that it could be arson. What has caused this uptick in outright violence against Muslims in America? Is this a reaction to Paris – or Donald Trump’s rhetoric – or something deeper?

  37. Hamas bans Gaza New Year’s Eve parties

    Islamist group Hamas has banned public New Year’s Eve parties in the Gaza Strip because they offend the territory’s “values and religious traditions”, police said on Wednesday.

    “The interior ministry and police department did not give permits to any restaurants, hotels or halls for end-of-year parties” after several venues requested permission, police spokesman Ayman al-Batinji told AFP.

    He said New Year’s Eve celebrations were “incompatible with our customs, traditions, values and the teachings of our religion”.

    Parties had also been curtailed in “solidarity with the families of the martyrs of the Jerusalem intifada,” Batinji said, referring to violence that has swept the city and parts of the West Bank in recent months.

    ^…]In previous years restaurants, hotels and cafes in Gaza were allowed to host closed events to celebrate New Year’s Eve.

    The new year under the Islamic calendar began this year in October, but the new year under the Gregorian calendar is widely celebrated across the Arab world.

    Islamists Hamas tightly restrict public parties and celebrations in Gaza.

    A source close to the police said security forces would close down “any unlicensed party”.

    http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/2/8/177778/World/Region/Hamas-bans-Gaza-New-Years-Eve-parties.aspx

  38. Moscow demands arrest of rebel for ‘murder’ of Russian warplane pilot

    Moscow on Wednesday called for Ankara to arrest a rebel it claims killed the pilot of the Russian jet downed by Turkey last month on the Syrian border.

    “We demand that the Turkish authorities take immediate steps to apprehend Alparslan Celik and his accomplices and bring them to justice for the murder of the Russian pilot,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement.

    In an interview published Sunday in Turkish newspaper Hurriyet, Celik — a Turkmen rebel and citizen of Turkey — said that his “conscience cannot be bothered by a person who threw bombs at Turkmen civilians every day,” referring to the slain Russian pilot.

    Both pilots aboard the downed Su-24 jet ejected and parachuted to the ground on the Syrian side of the border, one of whom was killed by gun fire from the ground.

    “Revenge is the most natural right,” Celik said in the interview, while refraining from claiming the pilot’s death.

    Moscow and Ankara have been locked in a bitter spat over the downing of the Su-24 jet on November 24, with the Kremlin imposing a raft of economic sanctions against Turkey.

    Zakharova said that the publication of Celik’s comments in a major Turkish newspaper had angered and surprised Moscow, and accused the media outlet of being a “platform where terrorists and murderers brag about their crimes and spread hate of Russia and the Russian people through nationalist ideology.”

    She added that Celik’s comments constituted an admission of his “direct involvement in the murder of the Russian pilot”.

    Turkish authorities have accused Russia of “ethnic cleansing” in Syria, targeting Turkmen and Sunni population that oppose the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Moscow’s long-time ally.

    Turkey says the Russian jet strayed into its airspace and ignored repeated warnings, while Moscow insisted it did not cross over from Syria and accused Ankara of a planned provocation.

    http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/2/8/177790/World/Region/Moscow-demands-arrest-of-rebel-for-murder-of-Russi.aspx

  39. SAUDI ARABIA – Cross-dresser arrested inside mall

    Abaya-wearing man held in Saudi Arabia after shopper became suspicious

    A man in his 20s in Saudi Arabia will this week know his fate after he was caught wearing a traditional woman’s abaya – the black coverall traditionally worn by women in the Gulf – and covering his face.

    The cross-dresser was arrested in a shopping mall in Taef in western Saudi Arabia and was referred to the public prosecution for questioning.

    He was reportedly detained after a shopper was puzzled by the attitudes of a black-clad woman.

    He later discovered that the woman was in fact a man and alerted members of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice who were inside the mall, Saudi news site Sabq reported.

    The members checked the identity of the person in black and they confirmed he was a man who was wearing a woman’s clothes.

    Strict ban

    He was escorted out of the mall and taken to the police who arrested him for cross-dressing.

    He was referred to the prosecution for further questioning and for legal action. No details emerged about his reasons for dressing up like a woman.

    Cross-dressing is strictly banned in Saudi Arabia and in the other member countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council, a loose alliance set up in 1981 and comprising Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

    Several men in these countries resort to wearing the abaya in order to beg for money. The trick boosts their chances of receiving money from people who tend to sympathise more with women seemingly in need.

    In 2012, police in Kuwait City arrested an expatriate who disguised himself as a woman to beg for money.

    The man who fooled people in the upscale Salmiya neighbourhood in Kuwait City was arrested after a woman who gave him money felt there was something wrong with the begging “woman”.

    Her husband alerted the police who rushed to the place and arrested the beggar who confessed to receiving up to 25 dinars (Dh324.80) a day.

    In Saudi Arabia, a man begged for five months as a woman before his disguise was uncovered.

    The man, wearing an abaya told police that he earned up to 200 riyals (Dh195.82) on a regular day and that his income increased on Fridays as a larger number of devout Muslims headed to mosques.

    http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/saudi-arabia/cross-dresser-arrested-inside-mall-1.1645730

  40. German Commissioner Oettinger voices fears of EU ‘collapse’

    Germany’s EU Commissioner Guenther Oettinger Wednesday voiced fears the European Union could fall apart under the pressure of rising populism.

    “The EU has learnt to overcome crises. But the number of unstable or populist governments is rising. That makes me worried,” said Oettinger, a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union.

    “I see for the first time a real danger that the EU could collapse,” the EU’s digital commissioner warned, without specifying which countries he was most worried about.

    The EU has been battered by a litany of challenges this year, with a bad-tempered row over how to handle the Greek debt crisis, and a record migrant influx splitting opinion across the bloc.

    While Germany is taking in around a million asylum seekers this year, several eastern European nations including Hungary want to keep refugees out.

    http://www.eubusiness.com/news-eu/politics-oettinger.15q1

    ?European Commissioner: Turkey is unlikely to join the EU in next decade

    Turkey’s EU membership will not happen in the next decade, while there is concern that the EU will fall apart.

    Report informs citing the Russian media, this was stated by European Commissioner for the Digital Economy and Information Society Günther Oettinger, in his interview to Bild.

    “Turkey’s joining (to the EU) will not happen in this decade, maybe it will not happen in next decade also,” said Oettinger.

    He added that he “sees a serious threat to disintegration of the EU”, which is to come to power in European “unstable and populist governments.”

    According to the European Commissioner, all countries in Europe must preserve the opportunity to join the EU, if “they fulfill the conditions.” This, in particular, we are speaking of the Western Balkan countries, said Oettinger.

    “However, there is a need for strict conditions for admission. It will not be harmful, if the European Union acquires more new members over next 10 years,” – said the commissioner.

    http://report.az/en/other-countries/european-commissioner-turkey-is-unlikely-to-join-the-eu-in-next-decade/

    ‘Turkey’s governing style unacceptable in EU’: Accession postponed

  41. France: Refugees protest over lack of housing in Paris

    A group of 200 refugees and pro-refugee activists gathered on the Place de la Republique in Paris, Wednesday, to protest over the lack of accommodation provided for refugees and migrants by the French government. Minor scuffles broke out during the rally with some activists being briefly detained by police.