Reader’s links for April 14 2017

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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

90 Replies to “Reader’s links for April 14 2017”

  1. LONDON/SAN FRANCISCO —
    Facebook Inc said on Thursday it suspended 30,000 accounts in France as the social network giant steps up efforts to stop the spread of fake news, misinformation and spam.

    The move, which comes 10 days before the first round of a hotly contested French presidential election, is among the most aggressive yet by Facebook to move against accounts that violate its terms of service, rather than simply respond to complaints.

    Facebook is under intense pressure in Europe as governments across the continent threaten new laws and fines unless the company moves quickly to remove extremist propaganda or other content that violates local laws.

    The pressure on social media sites including Twitter, Google’s YouTube and Facebook has intensified in the run-up to the elections in France and Germany.

    Facebook already has a program in France to use outside fact-checkers to combat fake news in users’ feeds.

    Also on Thursday, Facebook took out full-page ads in Germany’s best-selling newspapers to educate readers on how to spot fake news.

    https://www.japantoday.com/smartphone/view/world/facebook-suspends-30000-fake-accounts-in-france

  5. http://www.reuters.com/article/us-israel-palestinians-violence-idUSKBN17G0XY

    A Palestinian man fatally stabbed a British woman on Jerusalem’s transit network on Friday, Israeli police said, as Christians marked Good Friday and Muslims held prayers at respective holy sites nearby.

    The incident occurred in a train carriage on the light rail network near Jerusalem’s municipality building and the walled Old City. TV footage showed blood on the floor of the carriage with police officers restraining a man and carrying him away.

    Israeli police said the victim was a 25-year-old British national, though it was initially unclear whether she also held Israeli citizenship.

  6. Facebook Aims to Defeat Le Pen with Censorship Purge
    Computing Forever
    Computing Forever

    • She probably acknowledges the UK as masters at whitewashing Muslim unpleasantness.

    • Look like the German security groups are getting close to a rebellion, this along with a civilian rebellion are the logical result of her crimes.

  10. Spain saves 73 migrants from 5 boats crossing from Africa (abcnews, Apr 14, 2017)
    http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/spain-saves-26-migrants-sinking-boat-mediterranean-46793771

    “Spanish rescue ships saved 73 migrants, including one pregnant woman, from five different smuggling boats trying to cross the sea from Africa to Europe during the previous 24 hours.

    The pregnant woman and 25 other migrants were aboard a vessel that was taking on water in the Atlantic Ocean when reached by the rescue boat Salvamar Gadir before daybreak Friday.

    They were found 15 miles (24 kilometers) southwest of the Atlantic coastal town of Barbate, which lies between Cadiz and Gibraltar. Emergency services for Spain’s Andalucia region said the 20 men and six women were all of North African descent.

    Another four boats carrying migrants who told Spanish authorities they were from Algeria were intercepted in the Mediterranean Sea…”

  11. Turkish prosecutors seek life terms for 16 for coup links (abcnews, Apr 14, 2017)
    http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/turkish-prosecutors-seek-life-terms-16-coup-links-46794685

    “Turkey’s state-run news agency says prosecutors are seeking life prison terms for 16 people, including journalists, for alleged links to last summer’s failed coup attempt.

    Anadolu Agency says Friday the prosecutors’ indictment accuses veteran journalists Nazli Ilicak and Ahmet Altan, as well as his brother Mehmet Altan, an economics professor, of having prior knowledge of the coup attempt and of supporting it. The three are in pre-trial detention.

    Turkey blames U.S.-based cleric Fethullan Gulen and his movement for the coup attempt. Gulen denies the allegations.

    Anadolu says 10 of the suspects, including Ekrem Dumanli, the former editor-in-chief of the Gulen-linked Zaman newspaper, are at large and will be tried in absentia. Dumanli has also been charged with “being a director of an armed terror organization,” the agency reported.

    The indictment needs to be approved by a court before a trial date is set.”

  12. Pakistan shootout leaves 3 soldiers, 10 militants dead (abcnews, Apr 14, 2017)
    http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/pakistan-shootout-leaves-soldiers-10-militants-dead-46794255

    “Pakistan’s military says security forces have raided a militant hideout in central Pakistan, triggering an intense shootout in which three soldiers and 10 militants were killed.

    In a statement, it said two soldiers were also wounded in Friday’s raid in the Dera Ghazi Khan district.

    Local militant commanders were among the 10 insurgents who were killed, the statement said.

    The paramilitary Rangers were still carrying out a search operation in the region to arrest more suspects, according to the military.

    The shootout comes days after Pakistani police killed a key facilitator of a recent suicide attack in which 13 people were killed in the eastern city of Lahore.

    Pakistan has carried out scores of operations against militants, killing thousands of them.”

  13. Turkey detains 5 suspected of IS attack plan on referendum (abcnews, Apr 14, 2017)
    http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/turkey-detains-suspected-attack-plan-referendum-46793111

    “Turkey’s state-run news agency says five people with alleged links to the Islamic State group have been detained, suspected of planning “sensational attacks” in the run-up to Sunday’s referendum.

    Police conducted three simultaneous operations in Istanbul Friday following a tip, according to Anadolu news agency.

    A Tajik national who has traveled to “conflict zones” and who works for IS in Istanbul is among the detained, reports the agency.

    IS has called for attacks against the referendum in its Arabic and Turkish publications this month, arguing that voting is opposing God and branding Muslim voters as “disbelievers.”

    Turkey is holding a referendum on constitutional amendments that would expand presidential powers.”

  14. Libyan rivals clash in neglected south (alaraby, Apr 14, 2017)
    https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2017/4/14/libyan-rivals-clash-in-neglected-south

    “Libya’s southern desert, long neglected by central authorities, risks becoming an arena for score-settling between rival governments vying for clout across the war-torn country, analysts say.

    Clashes erupted last week as forces loyal to Libya’s eastern authorities battled to seize a key southern airbase from militias that back a United Nations-endorsed unity government.

    The offensive by the self-proclaimed Libyan National Army (LNA) commanded by military strongman Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar threatened to trigger a broader conflict with forces allied to the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA)…”

    • I’m all for ragheads settling scores with each other. Hopefully it will be a tie game right up until allah decides the winner.

  15. Facebook suspends 30,000 fake accounts in France

    Facebook Inc said on Thursday it suspended 30,000 accounts in France as the social network giant steps up efforts to stop the spread of fake news, misinformation and spam.

    The move, which comes 10 days before the first round of a hotly contested French presidential election, is among the most aggressive yet by Facebook to move against accounts that violate its terms of service, rather than simply respond to complaints.

    Facebook is under intense pressure in Europe as governments across the continent threaten new laws and fines unless the company moves quickly to remove extremist propaganda or other content that violates local laws.

    The pressure on social media sites including Twitter, Google’s YouTube and Facebook has intensified in the run-up to the elections in France and Germany.

    Facebook already has a program in France to use outside fact-checkers to combat fake news in users’ feeds.

    Also on Thursday, Facebook took out full-page ads in Germany’s best-selling newspapers to educate readers on how to spot fake news.

    U.S. intelligence agencies have determined that the Russian government interfered with the U.S. election last year in order to help Donald Trump win the presidency. Officials say a similar campaign is under way in Europe to promote right-wing, nationalist parties and undermine the European Union.

    In a blog post, Facebook said it was acting against 30,000 fake accounts in France. It said its priority was to remove suspect accounts with high volumes of posting activity and the biggest audiences.

    Two people familiar with Facebook’s process said the company had strengthened its formula for detecting deceptive accounts being run by automated means. As an example, the new process considers accounts that have smaller circles of friends and that therefore had been less of a priority previously.

    A key motivator was the need to get tougher on misinformation ahead of the French elections, the people said, although the move also targets accounts that generated spam for financial gain.

    “We’ve made improvements to recognise these inauthentic accounts more easily by identifying patterns of activity — without assessing the content itself,” Shabnam Shaik, a Facebook security team manager, wrote in an official blog post.

    The company is using automated pattern-recognition to identify repeated posting of the same content and increases in messaging.

    Thursday’s action follows other moves by Facebook to make it easier for users to report potential fraud and hoaxes.

    https://www.japantoday.com/smartphone/view/world/facebook-suspends-30000-fake-accounts-in-france

    ===============================================
    CNN – Facebook targets 30,000 accounts in crackdown on fake news in France

    Facebook has cracked down on 30,000 accounts found to be spreading fake news stories or spam in France ahead of the country’s pivotal presidential election.

    Facebook (FB, Tech30) said the move was part of its efforts to fight spam, misinformation and other deceptive content.

    “Our priority, of course is to remove the accounts with the largest footprint, with a high amount of activity and a broad reach,” Facebook security manager Shabnam Shaik said in a blog post.

    Facebook acknowledged, however, that the purge will not remove all accounts that are spreading fake news.

    “We know we have to keep getting better,” said Shaik.

    The spread of fake news has raised concerns in France ahead of the the country’s national elections. The first round of the voting, scheduled for April 23, will feature candidates including far right National Front leader Marine Le Pen.

    Le Pen is expected to perform well enough to earn a place in a runoff scheduled for May 7.

    The crackdown by Facebook represents a major shift in policy from only a few months ago, when the role of fake news in electoral politics came under scrutiny following Donald Trump’s surprise victory.

    Immediately following the vote, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said his company was not responsible for influencing people’s votes.

    “Personally, I think the idea that fake news on Facebook — of which it’s a small amount of content — influenced the election in any way is a pretty crazy idea,” he said.

    But public pressure has forced Facebook and other social media companies to rethink their role in the public debate, and many have implemented measures in recent months designed to discourage the spread of fake news.

    Facebook recently began warning users that certain stories have been “disputed by fact checkers.” It has also made it easier for users to report fake news and sought to undercut the business model used by publishers of fake news.

    In France, media newsrooms have partnered with Google News Lab and the non-profit First Draft News to identify and quickly debunk hoaxes and false claims as part of a program called “CrossCheck.”

    The initiative has debunked dozens of fake news and myths since it started in early February.

    Germany, which will also hold national elections later this year, has also cracked down on fake news.

    The German cabinet approved a plan earlier this month to start fining social media companies as much as as €50 million ($53 million) if they fail to quickly remove posts that breach German law.

    http://money.cnn.com/2017/04/14/media/facebook-fake-news-france-election/

    • Facebook tackles 30,000 fake accounts in France as election looms

      With just nine days until the French election, Facebook has announced that it has action against 30,000 fake accounts in France in its continued fight against fake news.
      The US social media giant took to Facebook on Thursday to announce a range of new security improvements, created to target “deceptive material, such as false news, hoaxes, and misinformation”.

      Facebook singled out France as a country where it had been implementing the new measures.

      “In France, for example, these improvements have enabled us to take action against over 30,000 fake accounts,” Shabnam Shaik, a Facebook security team manager, wrote in an official blog post.

      “While these most recent improvements will not result in the removal of every fake account, we are dedicated to continually improving our effectiveness.”

      It explained that this had been possible by automatic detection of pages that were repeatedly posting the same content or sending continuous spam messages.

      “We’ve found that a lot of false news is financially motivated, and as part of our work to promote an informed society, we have focused on making it very difficult for dishonest people to exploit our platform or profit financially from false news sites using Facebook.”

      With the presidential election taking place in just nine days, many have seen it as a priority to prevent the very modern plague of fake news stories on Facebook from influencing the election.

      In late February, a group of 37 French and international media outlets, supported by Google, launched “CrossCheck”, a joint fact-checking platform aimed at detecting fake information which could affect the French presidential election.

      “We need to give voters all the cards in their hand so they don’t vote on the basis of false rumours,” Clémence Lemaistre from French newspaper Les Echos, one of the partners in CrossCheck, told The Local at the time of the launch.

      “It’s important for democracy. We don’t want people to vote on the basis of something they happened to read on Facebook,” she added.

      While Lemaistre and those behind CrossCheck, including Agence France-Presse and French dailies Le Monde and Liberation, doubt that fake news could decide the outcome of the presidential election in which some 37 million French voters are expected to cast a ballot, they believe it could have an influence.

      https://www.thelocal.fr/20170414/facebook-tackles-30000-fake-accounts-in-france-as-election-looms

    • Catholic Marine Le Pen blasts Church for ‘meddling’ in French election

      PRESIDENTIAL hopeful Marine Le Pen, the leader of France’s anti-immigrant and anti-Europe Front National party, said on Friday that she was a devout Catholic but was currently at odds with the Church.

      She was frustrated at “meddling” religious leaders telling followers who to vote for in the French election, which will see its first round of voting on Sunday April 23.

      She told French Catholic daily La Croix: “I am extremely religious. But it’s true, I’m angry with the Church, because I think that it’s poking its nose into others’ affairs and not minding its own business.

      “Members of France’s bishops’ conference tend to meddle in affairs that do not concern them by trying to influence voters’ political opinions and attitudes.”

      She did not think religious officials should have the right to tell the French “who they should vote for” in the upcoming presidential election.

      The current presidential front-runner did, however, add she would invite Pope Francis to the Elysée Palace in Paris if she wins the presidency “with great pleasure”.

      But told him to stay out of “political interference”.

      Pope Francis called in February for a radical change of attitude towards EU-bound migrants, saying that they should be welcomed with dignity and should not be treated as “unworthy rivals”, before denouncing the “populist rhetoric” he said was fuelling fear across the West

      http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/792061/French-election-Marine-Le-Pen-Catholic-blasts-Church-religious-leaders-voting

      Le Pen slams pope on migrants

      ‘Angry’ at Francis’ words on welcoming them

      (ANSA) – Paris, April 14 – French rightist presidential candidate Marine Le Pen on Friday slammed Pope Francis for saying migrants should be welcomed. The Front National leader told the La Croix daily she was “extremely Catholic” but was “angry” with Francis over his stance on taking in migrants. Le Pen has been campaigning on an anti-immigrant, anti-euro and protectionist platform. She may win the firest round of French elections but is set to be beaten in the second round, polls say.

      http://www.ansa.it/english/news/politics/2017/04/14/le-pen-slams-pope-on-migrants-2_163949ae-b29d-453b-aed2-4bf2e3bd7190.html

    • WaPo -How Pope Francis can cleanse the far-right rot from the Catholic Church

      Pope Francis needs to take tougher action against the United States’ most influential Catholic in Rome, Cardinal Raymond “Breitbart” Burke. The renegade cleric is not only undermining Francis’s reformist, compassionate papacy, and gospel teaching as it applies to refugees and Muslims, but the rebel prince of the church is also using his position within the walls of the Vatican to legitimize extremist forces that want to bring down Western liberal democracy, Stephen K. Bannon-style. Simply put, the Vatican is facing a political war between the modernizing Pope Francis and a conservative wing that wants to reassert white Christian dominance.

      Burke was reduced to a ceremonial patron role at the Knights of Malta after a power struggle at the ancient chivalric order, won by the pope last month, following a spat over its humanitarian wing’s alleged distribution of condoms. Losing the leadership battle and prestige at the secretive society headquartered in Rome — Francis is appointing his own special delegate above Burke — was seen as a papal rap on the knuckles for the cardinal leading the charge against Francis’s writings on communion for divorcees. But the virulently anti-Islam (“capitulating to Islam would be the death of Christianity”), migrant-phobic, Donald Trump-defending, Vladimir Putin-excusing Burke is unrepentant and even defiant, continuing to preside over a far-right, neo-fascist-normalizing cheer squad out of the Holy See.

      This Vatican operation, called Dignitatis Humanae, or the Institute for Human Dignity, whose advisory board includes two of the four cardinals openly challenging Francis on marriage and sexuality, is slavishly promoting Burke’s favorite American white Catholic nationalist, Bannon, with star billing on its home page. The institute’s top office-bearers, Burke and his henchman, the media-savvy Breitbart contributor Benjamin Harnwell, are also encouraging Benito Mussolini fan Matteo Salvini, of Italy’s Northern League, and Muslim-baiting far-right Catholic poster girl Marion Le Pen, the National Front “rising star” niece of party leader Marine Le Pen in France.

      As the Italian press first revealed, Burke held a long meeting last week at his Vatican home with Salvini, a fierce critic of the pope who wants to push refugees back into the sea and close all mosques in Italy. It was a flagrant political intervention on the side of the extreme-right racist grouping ahead of the Italian elections. Mysterious posters also appeared around the Vatican decrying a sinister-looking pope’s “decapitation” of the Malta Knights order.

      The situation facing the Catholic Church raises alarming parallels with the ideological warfare that split the Vatican in the 1930s when ethnic nationalism was sweeping Europe under Mussolini and Hitler and when fascist forces infiltrated the highest echelons of the church. In 1937, Pope Pius XI published an encyclical in German denouncing the Nazi regime and its racism. The diatribe infuriated Hitler, but the focus was more on Nazi persecution of Catholics than laws targeting Jews.

      In Italy, the Vatican had long made accommodations with Mussolini for its own geopolitical gains, and Pius XI failed to quell widespread institutional anti-Semitism in the church before it was too late. When Mussolini decreed in 1938 that Italian Jews were to suffer a legal fate similar to those in Germany, Pius XI tried to prepare a fresh encyclical deploring anti-Semitism and racism, as revealed in historian David Kertzer’s book “The Pope and Mussolini,” he was double-crossed by pro-fascist forces in the Vatican working in tandem with Il Duce. Senior figures in the French Catholic Church also collaborated with fascism in France, where the Vichy regime aided the Nazis in deporting about 80,000 Jews to the death camps.

      The lesson of history has not been lost on Francis. After President Trump’s inauguration, he warned that rising populism could produce a new Hitler. But now, as Europe faces historic elections that could bring extreme-right nationalists back into power across the continent for the first time since World War II, he must act. The bellicose anti-Islam invective being marshaled by figures such as Burke shares much in common with the vicious anti-Semitism many Catholic clerics adhered to in the 1930s, when they saw Jews as a danger to the Christian West whose rights must be restricted.

      Burke, like Bannon, who says Islam is “the most radical” religion in the world, makes no distinction in his clash-of-civilizations frenzy between the Muslim faith’s diverse currents and interpretations, and violent jihadist movements derived mostly from Saudi-style Salafism. Unsurprisingly, Burke says he is “very satisfied” with Russian autocrat Putin’s “defense of life and family” and believes he may have “converted” since his KGB days. Yet, just as godless Communism posed an existential threat in the past, the Catholic Church has nothing to gain and everything to lose from cozying up to far-right extremists from the United States to Europe. They distort Christianity into an exclusionary ideology in defense of nation and race, and unite a new support base of Muslim-haters with historically anti-Semitic movements such as the National Front that are anything but Christian, and often neo-pagan.

      The options open to the pope in dealing with Burke are limited. Excommunication isn’t in the cards; Burke is not a heretic denying the Catholic faith. Nor is Burke refusing to submit to the pontiff like French archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, who was cast out by John Paul II after his ultra-conservative Society of Saint Pius X ordained its own bishops rather than take directions from the Vatican.

      However, Francis, who has full authority over his cardinals, could fully remove Burke from his remaining sinecure with Knights of Malta, call him in for a pastoral correction on the issue of his unacceptable political interventions, investigate Dignitatis Humanae with a view to shutting it down for its subversive politicking, and send the rebel cardinal back home to the United States. As Burke tries to run an insurgency and rebukes the pope for his doctrinal “ambiguities,” with the backing of thousands of priests, Francis could seize the agenda. In time-honored papal tradition, he could write an encyclical on the burning questions of populism and nationalism, with specific reference to migrants, Muslims and Jews, so priests including Burke know they are in breach of church teaching when they try to act as power brokers for the international extreme right.

      The stakes could hardly be higher, especially as the pope seems on a collision course with a Trump-Bannon White House that has imposed a form of a Muslim ban and disparaged him during the election campaign for daring to suggest that building a wall on the United States’ southern border was un-Christian. If the pope doesn’t put the reactionary elements such as Burke and his cronies back in their place, they could force a real schism during his papacy and leave the church open to justifiable accusations it failed to stand up to enablers of extremism and neo-fascism within its ranks.

      https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/global-opinions/wp/2017/02/09/how-pope-francis-can-cleanse-the-far-right-rot-from-the-catholic-church/

    • SPAIN – Sevilla – Holy week -2017 – procession
      ==================================
      wiki :

      Saeta (flamenco)

      The saeta is a revered form of Spanish religious song, whose form and style has evolved over many centuries. Saetas evoke strong emotion and are sung most often during public processions.

      The saeta is a song of Catholic Spain dating back many centuries. The saeta antigua [old saeta] probably arose from the recitation of psalms under the influence of liturgical music. “Saetas vary greatly in form and style, ranging from simple syllabic melodies to highly ornamented ones.” In the older tradition, solemn drums and horns might accompany the singer, or the saetero sang alone. Since the nineteenth century, however, the more favored saetas have incorporated distinct elements associated with Flamenco music, particularly the siguiriyas.[…]

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saeta_(flamenco)

    • BREITBART – PICS: Stampedes at Spain’s Good Friday Processions, 8 Arrests

      SEVILLE, Spain (AP) — Eight people in southern Spain have been arrested for allegedly provoking stampedes during Seville’s overnight Good Friday processions that left one person in critical condition.

      The city’s emergency services say those arrested had reportedly screamed to spark the stampedes, which took place about 4 a.m. Friday. Televised images showed police trying to stop panicked procession-goers, several of whom were crying, from running away.

      The city’s emergency services said the person in critical condition suffered a head injury while 16 others needed to be treated for anxiety.

      The nighttime processions between Holy Thursday and Good Friday feature elaborate floats carried through the city by men belonging to religious brotherhoods, some of which are hundreds of years old. The event draws thousands of spectators.

      http://www.breitbart.com/london/2017/04/14/stampedes-spains-good-friday-processions-8-arrests/

    • DAILY MAIL – Good Friday procession turns to mass panic that felt like ‘an earthquake’: Second stampede in a week mars Spanish Easter celebrations

      Police have launched an investigation following the incident in Seville
      The arrests were made following a late night procession in the Spanish city
      Police have released images on social media seeking the public’s help
      EIght people have been arrested and a dozen others were injured in the crush

      A major investigation is underway after at least eight people were arrested for causing dangerous stampedes during Easter processions in Spain attended by hundreds of thousands of people.

      The incident in Seville follows a similar scare in Marbella where a fight is believed to have led to a terrorist scare during the religious celebrations.

      The emergency services in Seville have taken to the social network sites to appeal for information, together with pictures and videos, so they can piece together what happened in the early hours of this morning.

      http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4411756/Carnage-Spanish-Good-Friday-procession.html

    • I lived in a convent-school dorm in Avila. Santa was acutely uncomfortable for me. It was the flip-side of PC, enthusiastic mock stake-burnings spoke to my DNA. Processions gave me nightmares.

  19. Moshe Ya’alon, former IDF Chief of Staff, and Israel’s Defence Minister from 2013 to 2016. He’s major league – this is a compulsory read.
    Though as a Bibi-babe, I loathe and despise Ya'alon.

    Erdogan Aims to Islamize Europe

    Three different radical Islamist movements are seeking hegemony in the Middle East and beyond. Iran seeks to export its “Islamic revolution” and has seen success in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen. Sunni jihadists, whether from ISIS or al-Qaeda, aim to impose an Islamic caliphate in the region. Turkish President Erdogan is the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood in the region, and seeks to create a neo-Ottoman empire based on the Brotherhood’s ideology.
    http://www.bicom.org.uk/analysis/i-great-believer-interests-not-illusions-dreams-briefing-moshe-yaalon/

  20. Why Overthrowing Assad Won’t Solve Syria’s Crisis

    Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad did not “gas his own people,” as was widely reported. Assad is an Alawite, a minority people that rules over the many non-Alawite tribes that constitute Syria. Assad gassed non-Alawite Muslims.

    There is no true Syrian people, except in the imagination of Westerners. The Western goal of keeping Syria whole, with its devout Muslims harmoniously living side-by-side with Alawite tribes they consider heretical, as well as with Syria’s pro-Assad Christian minority, is delusional and guaranteed to fail.

    Although the Alawite tribes now have the upper hand, they know that, if they lose, they will be mercilessly slaughtered, just as Assad is mercilessly slaughtering those who would overthrow his Alawite regime.

    http://news.nationalpost.com/full-comment/lawrence-solomon-why-overthrowing-assad-wont-solve-syrias-crisis

    • Welcome to Middle Eastern Politics, a place where they count bullets not ballots. The delusional leftist (I know an oxymoron) will never give up their delusions about everyone wanting the same thing. Their stupidity is making the death toll much worse and will end up causing WWIII to last much longer and be much bloodier then is necessary. Witness their screams of horror when President Trump does the rational thing in letting the Generals run the war and make the decisions on small unit tactics.

  21. Daniel Pipes:
    The Israel-Palestinian Peace Process Has Been a Massive Charade

    In “Do Palestinians Want a Two-State Solution?” Daniel Polisar of Shalem College in Jerusalem studied 400 opinion polls of Palestinian views to find that Palestinians collectively hold three related views of Israel: it has no historical or moral claim to exist, it is inherently rapacious and expansionist, and it is doomed to extinction.

    Palestinian rejectionism demands that Palestinians (and beyond them, Arabs and Muslims) repudiate every aspect of Zionism: deny Jewish ties to the Land of Israel, fight Jewish ownership of that land, refuse to recognize Jewish political power, refuse to trade with Zionists, murder Zionists where possible, and ally with any foreign power, including Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia, to eradicate Zionism.

    So long as rejectionism runs rampant, debates about one-, two-, and three-state solutions, or about electricity grids and water supplies, are for naught. There can be no resolution so long as most Palestinians dream of obliterating the Jewish state.

    My research finds, and Polisar’s confirms, that about 20% of Palestinians are ready to live peaceably with the Jewish state. The challenge is to increase this number to 60% and more, so that this group at last can wrest control of the Palestinian national movement from rejectionists.

    When Palestinians emerge from this ordeal, they will greatly benefit from throwing off the burden of anti-Zionism. Finally, they can begin to build their own polity, economy, society, and culture. All will gain when this proud people turns its attention to creating the institutions of civil society and to teaching children skills rather than hatred.

    https://mosaicmagazine.com/response/2017/04/the-israel-palestinian-peace-process-has-been-a-massive-charade/

  22. Syria: The Hidden Power of Iran – Joost Hiltermann
    As my own trip to northern Iraq and northern Syria last month revealed, even as the international coalition makes major gains against the Islamic State, the region’s crises are multiplying.

    ISIS is quickly losing ground. Its fighters are exhausted, its ranks depleted, but its remaining forces are clearly prepared to fight to the bitter end. Moreover, Islamic State ideology will remain attractive to Sunni Muslims as long as they feel politically excluded. Already, local ISIS recruits are blending in with civilians who are taking refuge in camps – lying low, waiting for more opportune times.

    The Iranian government wants to connect Iran to Hizbullah via Iraq and Syria with a land corridor running from its own borders to the Mediterranean. This is an aim that is acknowledged by Iranian analysts themselves, who describe it as a strategic necessity. It needs these routes to get arms to Hizbullah. That explains the importance of Iran’s alliance with the Assad government in Syria, and also why Iran and Hizbullah were in such a hurry after 2011 to prop up the Syrian regime when it was threatened with imminent collapse.

    http://www.nybooks.com/daily/2017/04/13/syria-hidden-power-of-iran/

  23. The Latest: Russian lawmaker: US bigger threat than N. Korea

    PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) — The Latest on tensions on the Korean Peninsula (all times local):

    8:40 p.m.

    A senior Russian lawmaker says the U.S. is a greater threat to global peace than North Korea.

    Konstantin Kosachev, the head of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the upper house of Russian parliament, said Friday “the most alarming thing about the current U.S. administration is that you can’t be sure if it is bluffing or really going to implement its threats.”

    He says “America objectively poses a greater threat to peace than North Korea,” adding that “the entire world is scared and left guessing if it strikes or not.”

    Kosachev says there is a “small hope” that President Donald Trump’s administration would listen to warnings from Russia and China not to use military force against nuclear-armed Pyongyang.

    http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AS_KOREAS_TENSION_THE_LATEST?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2017-04-14-00-38-08

  24. North Korean Official: Situation in a ‘Vicious Cycle’
    THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
    April 13, 2017, 10:22 PM CDT April 14, 2017, 12:02 AM CDT

    Pyongyang, North Korea (AP) — The Latest on tensions on the Korean Peninsula (all times local):

    12:40 p.m.

    North Korea’s vice foreign minister says President Donald Trump’s policy toward the country is more “vicious and aggressive” than President Barack Obama’s.

    Vice Minister Han Song Ryol told The Associated Press that Trump’s tweets were making trouble in the region.

    Trump tweeted Tuesday that the North was “looking for trouble” and if China didn’t do its part to rein in Pyongyang’s nuclear ambitions, the U.S. could handle it alone.

    Han said: “We are comparing Trump’s policy toward the DPRK with the former administrations and we have concluded that it’s becoming more vicious and more aggressive.” The country’s official name is the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-04-14/the-latest-nkorean-official-situation-in-a-vicious-cycle

    • U.S. military provocation will result in merciless counteraction of North Korea [English]

      A spokesman for the General Staff of the Korean People’s Army (KPA) issued a statement Friday as regards the extremely dangerous situation prevailing on the Korean peninsula due to the Trump administration’s reckless military provocation. The Trump administration of the U.S. began to disclose its brigandish nature timed to coincide with Key Resolve and Foal Eagle nuclear war games now under way in across south Korea, the statement said, and went on: The DPRK policy shaped by the Trump administration is first to put high-intensity sanctions and pressure together with someone, second to constantly keep tactical nuclear weapons deployed in south Korea and third to launch an independent military action aimed at “beheading operation” against the leadership of the DPRK and “preemptive strike”.

      In actuality, the Trump administration, which made a surprise cruise guided missile strike at Syria on April 6, has entered the path of open threat and blackmail against the DPRK, describing it as “a strong warning message” to it. The U.S. State secretary, Defense secretary and other officials concerned with security of the U.S. are openly crying out more often than not for launching an independent military action against the DPRK. Under the prevailing situation where the Trump administration’s serious military hysteria has reached a dangerous phase which can no longer be overlooked, the KPA General Staff re-clarifies its principled stand as follows upon authorization:

      1. All the brigandish provocative moves of the U.S. in the political, economic and military fields pursuant to its hostile policy toward the DPRK will thoroughly be foiled through the toughest counteraction of the army and people of the DPRK. Our toughest counteraction against the U.S. and its vassal forces will be taken in such a merciless manner as not to allow the aggressors to survive. Under the prevailing grave situation, the U.S. has to come to its senses and make a proper option for the solution of the problem.

      The army and people of the DPRK will as ever courageously counter those who encroach upon the dignity and sovereignty of the DPRK and will always mercilessly foil all the provocative options of the U.S. with Korean-style toughest counteraction.

  25. Vice President Pence heads to Seoul as North Korea tensions flare

    U.S. Vice President Mike Pence will travel to South Korea on Sunday in what his aides said was a sign of the U.S. commitment to its ally in the face of rising tensions over North Korea’s nuclear program.

    Pence’s Seoul stop kicks off a long-planned 10-day trip to Asia – his first as vice president – and comes amid concerns that Pyongyang could soon conduct its sixth nuclear test.

    President Donald Trump has warned against further provocations, sending an aircraft carrier group to the region as a show of force. His officials have been assessing tougher economic sanctions as well as military options to curb North Korea’s nuclear ambitions.

    http://www.reuters.com/article/us-pence-asia-idUSKBN17G08X

  26. Japan readying for N. Korea emergency

    The United States has deployed the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson to waters near the Korean Peninsula amid rising military tensions over North Korea. The Japanese government, which has asked the United States to provide advance consultation if it decides to launch military action against North Korea, has ramped up preparations for unexpected situations.

    The Japanese government anticipates the possibility of a joint response with the United States should a contingency arise.

    Prime Minister Shinzo Abe stressed on Wednesday that the region is becoming increasingly tense. “[U.S. President Donald Trump] has stated that all options are on the table. It’s a fact tensions are rising,” he said at the Prime Minister’s Office after receiving a written proposal calling for tougher sanctions on North Korea from the Liberal Democratic Party’s Eriko Yamatani, chief of the headquarters for the abduction issue.

    “If an unexpected situation occurs, we’ll ask the United States to cooperate in rescuing the abduction victims,” Abe added.

    The Trump administration is reviewing U.S. policy toward North Korea and has not ruled out military options, including a preemptive strike. Tensions in the region have risen sharply since the United States carried out a missile attack on Syria on April 6.

    http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0003638430

  27. Air China cancels some Beijing-Pyongyang flights
    [Reuters]
    ReutersApril 14, 2017

    BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s national airline, Air China, has canceled some flights to the North Korean capital, Pyongyang, due to poor demand but it has not suspended all flights there, it said on Friday, denying a report by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.

    CCTV had reported that all flights run by the airline between the two cities were to be suspended indefinitely.

    “Air China did not stop operation of the Beijing to Pyongyang route, but temporarily canceled some flights based on the situation of ticket sales,” said a person in Air China’s communications team.

    Subsequent flights would be scheduled according to ticket sales, the official said.

    Air China’s flights, which operate on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, began in 2008 but have frequently been canceled due to unspecified problems, CCTV’s report said.

    China is North Korea’s sole major ally but it disapproves of the North’s weapons programs, and its confrontations with the United States and its Asian allies, and it has supported U.N. sanctions against it.

    https://www.yahoo.com/news/air-china-suspend-beijing-pyongyang-flights-chinese-state-130906912–finance.html

  28. ‘Stop being racist to Muslims or die,’ hackers tell far-right group Britain First (RT, Apr 14, 2017)
    https://www.rt.com/uk/384641-britain-first-bomb-threat/

    “The website and social media accounts of Britain First have been hacked and the group’s far-right supporters warned that they had better “stop being racist to Muslims” or they will die.

    Unnamed hackers took over Britain First leader Paul Golding’s personal website and Twitter account, swapping his bio for the words “racist f****** chav.” His personal details, including his home address, were also divulged online.

    Jayda Fransen, Britain First deputy leader, also had her website altered to show a death threat to any of the group’s members presumably planning to attend a march in Birmingham on June 3.

    “Several bombs will detonate and those who will march be dead (sic),” the plain text said, adding that “whoever goes to the march will die.”

    Britain First has been banned from entering any mosque in the country, after a series of harassment cases were launched against their “mosque invasions.” The group claims to oppose the “Islamification of Britain.”

    The group is known for marching in areas with large Muslim communities, while carrying large white crosses. Golding and Fransen have previously been found guilty of wearing a political uniform, an offense in the UK since the British Union of Fascists was made illegal…”

    • The Fascist Left is increasing the level of violence against those who oppose them, I predict that the British Government will move to curtail if not totally stop Britain First in the name of saving lives.

  29. ‘Top secret CIA virus control system’: WikiLeaks releases ‘Hive’ from #Vault7 series (RT, Apr 14, 2017)
    https://www.rt.com/news/384719-wikileaks-vault7-cia-hive/

    “Hive, the latest batch of WikiLeaks documents exposing alleged CIA hacking techniques from ‘Vault 7’, details how the agency can monitor its targets through the use of malware and carry out specific tasks on targeted machines.

    Described as a multi-platform malware suite, Hive provides “customisable implants” for Windows, Solaris, MikroTik (used in Internet routers), Linux platforms, and AVTech Network Video Recorders, used for CCTV recording. Such implants allow the CIA to communicate specific commands…”

  30. Getting ready: Pentagon to protect electric grid from massive attack
    By Paul Bedard (@SecretsBedard) • 4/14/17 9:04 AM

    Amid warnings that North Korea and Iran have plans to take out parts of the U.S. electric grid through a cyber attack or atmospheric nuclear blast, the Pentagon is taking steps to both protect the nation’s communications and power lifeline.

    The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has charged BAE Systems to map a system that can detect a cyber attack and gin up an alternative communications network for military and civilian use if the grid is fried, according to Defense Systems, the online newsletter.

    Former CIA Director James Woolsey has been warning for years that the grid is extremely vulnerable and recently the Pentagon, and some states, have taken the warning seriously. Woolsey and former EMP Commission chief of staff Peter Vincent Pry have pointed a finger at North Korea, which is now threatening the U.S.

    http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/getting-ready-pentagon-to-protect-electric-grid-from-massive-attack/article/2620280

    • OT/ @Richard- This week’s Parsha is Tzav, Leviticus 6:1 – 8:36.
      Continues to detail the sacrifice procedures for the inauguration of the Tabernacle and for later, when the Temple is built. The Sages searched these passages after the destruction of the Second Temple to work out the code of laws that would sustain the people -as a people- in exile.

      Passover marks the “Shabbat Ha-Gadol” – the Great Sabbath. It’s almost exactly the half-point of the Torah yearly cycle. Time to cram for Torah quiz contests, a sport like spelling-bees for secular school kids.

      – May you celebrate the miracle of Easter with joy and renewal. All good things and the promise of more.
      Shabbat Shalom

  31. U.S. May Launch Strike if North Korea Reaches for Nuclear Trigger

    by William M. Arkin, Cynthia McFadden and Kenzi Abou-Sabe

    The U.S. is prepared to launch a preemptive strike with conventional weapons against North Korea should officials become convinced that North Korea is about to follow through with a nuclear weapons test, multiple senior U.S. intelligence officials told NBC News.

    North Korea has warned that a “big event” is near, and U.S. officials say signs point to a nuclear test that could come as early as this weekend.

    http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/u-s-may-launch-strike-if-north-korea-reaches-nuclear-n746366

  32. ‘Brought to you by agency which produced Al-Qaeda & ISIS’ – Assange trolls CIA chief (RT, Apr 14, 2017)
    https://www.rt.com/usa/384708-assange-cia-pompeo-wikileaks/

    “Julian Assange has responded to CIA Director Mike Pompeo’s accusation that WikiLeaks is a “non-state intelligence agency” by trolling the CIA over its own roles in producing “Al-Qaeda, ISIS, Iraq, Iran and Pinochet.”

    Assange tweeted, “Called a ‘non-state intelligence service’ today by the ‘state non-intelligence agency’ which produced Al-Qaeda, ISIS, Iraq, Iran & Pinochet.”

    Pompeo accused WikiLeaks of siding with dictators and being a “non-state hostile intelligence service,” at a Center for Strategic and International Studies event on Thursday. He called Assange and his associates “demons” and said “he and his ilk make common cause with dictators.”

    Assange in turn accused the CIA of producing terrorist groups and dictators. He said the CIA produced Al-Qaeda, referring to the agency’s role in arming and training mujahideen fighters in Afghanistan to fight the Soviets during the 1970s, some of whom – including Osama Bin Laden – later evolved into Al-Qaeda and the Taliban.

    Assange has previously stated that the CIA’s role in arming the mujahideen led to Al-Qaeda, which led to 9/11, the Iraq invasion and, later, the formation of ISIS…”

  33. Chechens tell of prison beatings and electric shocks in anti-gay purge: ‘They called us animals’

    Up to several hundred gay men are feared to have been rounded up and some killed in ultra-conservative Russian republic

    At least once a day, Adam’s captors attached metal clamps to his fingers and toes. One of the men then cranked a handle on a machine to which the clamps were linked with wires, and sent powerful electric shocks through his body. If he managed not to scream, others would join in, beating him with wooden sticks or metal rods.

    As they tortured him, the men shouted verbal abuse at him for being gay, and demanded to know the names of other gay men he knew in Chechnya. “Sometimes they were trying to get information from me; other times they were just amusing themselves,” he said, speaking about the ordeal he underwent just a month ago with some difficulty.

    Adam’s testimony, as well as that of another gay Chechen man with whom the Guardian spoke, backs up reports that a shocking anti-gay campaign is under way in the Russian republic of Chechnya, involving over a hundred and possibly several hundred men. Some are believed to have been killed.

    Adam was held in an informal detention facility with more than a dozen other gay men, who were all subjected to torture on a daily basis. A similar “mop-up” campaign by governmental security forces took place in towns across the republic.

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/apr/13/they-called-us-animals-chechens-prison-beatings-electric-shocks-anti-gay-purge

    • U.S. May Launch Strike if North Korea Reaches for Nuclear Trigger

      by William M. Arkin, Cynthia McFadden and Kenzi Abou-Sabe

      The U.S. is prepared to launch a preemptive strike with conventional weapons against North Korea should officials become convinced that North Korea is about to follow through with a nuclear weapons test, multiple senior U.S. intelligence officials told NBC News.

      North Korea has warned that a “big event” is near, and U.S. officials say signs point to a nuclear test that could come as early as this weekend.

      http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/u-s-may-launch-strike-if-north-korea-reaches-nuclear-n746366

  34. the daily caller – PAKISTAN -Students Beat Classmate To Death While Screaming ‘Allahu Akbar’

    A mob of students beat a classmate to death for blasphemy while shouting “Allahu Akbar” at a Pakistani university Thursday.

    Approximately 10 students stripped Marshal Khan naked, stomped on him, and hit him with planks, smashing his skull while other students watched, as reported by Reuters. The deadly beating was caught on camera.

    Khan, whose religion is unknown, had purportedly posted blasphemous material on social media, according to police officers and school officials at the university in Mardan.

    Mocking the Prophet Mohammed constitutes blasphemy in the Muslim-majority country. Seventeen people convicted of the crime sat on death row in Pakistan and 19 were serving life sentences as of the end of 2014, according to Human Rights Watch.

    “After severe torture that led [to] his death, the charged students then wanted to burn his body,” Mohammad Alam Shinwari, police chief in Mardan, told Reuters. Shinwari reported that 10 students are under arrest for the murder.

    Khan studied journalism and one of his teachers spoke about his behavior.

    “He was brilliant ?and inquisitive, always complaining about the political system of the country, but I never heard him saying anything controversial against the religion,” said the unnamed teacher.

    Sixty-five people or more have been killed because of blasphemy accusations since 1990, according to the Center for Research and Security Studies.

    http://dailycaller.com/2017/04/14/students-beat-classmate-to-death-while-screaming-allahu-akbar/

  35. Europe sacrifices the victims to avoid fighting the executioners
    Berlin, London, Stockholm … Just three important terror attacks which took place on European soil in the last three months.

    Europe feels that the price it is paying for Islamic terrorism is tolerable and that these crimes should not divert the continent from its lazy lifestyle. We must be passive in the face of ignominy. We light candles, bury the dead, we treat a terror attack like a car accident and we publish editorials to say “they will not change our lifestyle”.

    European compassion has become totally debilitating. It is reflected in the astonishment that an entire society, France, reputed to be pluralistic and free, has silently accepted the fact that 40,000 of its Jews have packed and left for Israel in the last fifteen years.
    In 1940, a French historian, Marc Bloch, published a book titled L’Étrange Défaite, (The Strange Defeat), in which he argued that the French élites failed to recognize the Nazi threat and blamed the ruling political and intellectual class for a weak defense against the German menace. Bloch was eventually tortured and shot by the Gestapo. His book’s main message couldn’t be more actual today.

    The Islamic hurricane will not pass. Instead, it will change Europe’s face forever.
    Europe seems to have devised a new strategy in wartime: sacrificing the victims to avoid having to fight the executioners. It is as if we collectively accepted the sacrifice because we think we will not have the moral strength and the political firmness to fight the vicious Islamic killers. That is the meaning of the slogan “we must live with terrorism.” This is reflected in the legal concept of “state of emergency.”

    http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/20394

    • The Islamic hurricane will not pass. Instead, it will change Europe’s face forever.

      This it will, I am not one of the pessimists who think that Europe will become a Moslem dominate region and remain that way but I do think that the Islamic invasion will change Europe back into a Continent that will once again value individual freedom and the indigenous culture of all of its many nations. Nationalism/Patriotism has caused many wars but it has also inspired the nations that defeated Fascism and the Soviet Union. Hopefully the evil virus of Socialism will be driven into massive remission during WWIII and will remain in remission for at least a Century after the war is over.

  38. UK -‘Stop being racist to Muslims or die,’ hackers tell far-right group Britain First

    The website and social media accounts of Britain First have been hacked and the group’s far-right supporters warned that they had better “stop being racist to Muslims” or they will die.

    Unnamed hackers took over Britain First leader Paul Golding’s personal website and Twitter account, swapping his bio for the words “racist f****** chav.” His personal details, including his home address, were also divulged online.

    Jayda Fransen, Britain First deputy leader, also had her website altered to show a death threat to any of the group’s members presumably planning to attend a march in Birmingham on June 3.

    “Several bombs will detonate and those who will march be dead (sic),” the plain text said, adding that “whoever goes to the march will die.”

    Britain First has been banned from entering any mosque in the country, after a series of harassment cases were launched against their “mosque invasions.” The group claims to oppose the “Islamification of Britain.”

    The group is known for marching in areas with large Muslim communities, while carrying large white crosses. Golding and Fransen have previously been found guilty of wearing a political uniform, an offense in the UK since the British Union of Fascists was made illegal.

    Someone please hack the Britain first page and post loads of gay porn on it ?? I would actually pay
    — Shan (@TheShaniah) March 23, 2017

    The Metropolitan Police is now investigating the hack, according to the Independent. Britain First refused to comment to the paper.

    https://www.rt.com/uk/384641-britain-first-bomb-threat/

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

    Britain First INVADES Islamic bookshop selling EXTREMIST literature!

    • ‘Extremely British Muslims’ caught telling porkies about Britain First & Tommy Robinson!

  39. Afghanistan: Smoke rises above Achin district following ‘mother of all bombs’

    Smoke could be seen rising from the Achin district in the Nangarhar province of Afghanistan on Friday, after US forces dropped its largest non-nuclear bomb, known as the ‘mother of all bombs,’ on a militant tunnel system close to the border with Pakistan.

    The district chief of Achin explained the situation: “There were bases and safe-heavens for Daesh [IS] in the area where US forces dropped a big bomb last night. A lot of ISIS affiliates may be demolished but we don’t have the precise figures of the casualties.”

    The over 21,000 lb (10-tonne) GBU-43 bomb, or ‘MOAB’, was dropped by a MC-130 aircraft at around 19:00 local time (14:30 GMT). The strike reportedly killed 36 suspected militants aligned with the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) in the mountainous region.

    SOT, District Chief of Achin (Pashto): “There were bases and safe-heavens for Daesh in the area where US forces dropped a big bomb last night. A lot of ISIS affiliates may be demolished but we don’t have the precise figures of the casualties.”

    SOT, Afghan Security Forces Commander (Pashto): “They appeared on the hilltop to attack us before carrying out the attack by US air forces yesterday.”

    SOT, Shir Nabi, Member of local police in Achin district (Pashto): “ISIS affiliates made tunnels in the Assad Kheil area of Achin district. Last night, US forces dropped a bomb on the tunnels and killed ISIS affiliates.”

    SOT, Resident of Achin district (Pashto): “Looking at the heaviness of the attack, a lot of ISIS affiliates must have been killed.”

  42. the intercept – Leaked NSA Malware Threatens Windows Users Around the World

    The ShadowBrokers, an entity previously confirmed by The Intercept to have leaked authentic malware used by the NSA to attack computers around the world, today released another cache of what appears to be extremely potent (and previously unknown) software capable of breaking into systems running Windows. The software could give nearly anyone with sufficient technical knowledge the ability to wreak havoc on millions of Microsoft users.

    The leak includes a litany of typically codenamed software “implants” with names like ODDJOB, ZIPPYBEER, and ESTEEMAUDIT, capable of breaking into — and in some cases seizing control of — computers running version of the Windows operating system earlier than the most recent Windows 10. The vulnerable Windows versions ran more than 65 percent of desktop computers surfing the web last month, according to estimates from the tracking firm Net Market Share.

    The crown jewel of the implant collection appears to be a program named FUZZBUNCH, which essentially automates the deployment of NSA malware, and would allow a member of agency’s Tailored Access Operations group to more easily infect a target from their desk.

    According to security researcher and hacker Matthew Hickey, co-founder of Hacker House, the significance of what’s now publicly available, including “zero day” attacks on previously undisclosed vulnerabilities, cannot be overstated: “I don’t think I have ever seen so much exploits and 0day [exploits] released at one time in my entire life,” he told The Intercept via Twitter DM, “and I have been involved in computer hacking and security for 20 years.” Affected computers will remain vulnerable until Microsoft releases patches for the zero-day vulnerabilities and, more crucially, until their owners then apply those patches.

    “This is as big as it gets,” Hickey said. “Nation-state attack tools are now in the hands of anyone who cares to download them…it’s literally a cyberweapon for hacking into computers…people will be using these attacks for years to come.”

    Hickey provided The Intercept with a video of FUZZBUNCH being used to compromise a virtual computer running Windows Server 2008–an industry survey from 2016 cited this operating system as the most widely used of its kind.

    Susan Hennessey, an editor at Lawfare and former NSA attorney, wrote on Twitter that the leak will cause “immense harm to both U.S. intel interests and public security simultaneously.”

    A Microsoft spokesperson told The Intercept “We are reviewing the report and will take the necessary actions to protect our customers.” We asked Microsoft if the NSA at any point offered to provide information that would help protect Windows users from these attacks, given that the leak has been threatened since August 2016, to which they replied “our focus at this time is reviewing the current report.” Asked again, the spokesperson replied that Microsoft has “nothing further to share.”

    https://theintercept.com/2017/04/14/leaked-nsa-malware-threatens-windows-users-around-the-world/

  43. Mutilating Little Girls in Michigan’s Little Palestine
    A female genital mutilation horror in the Midwest

    Livonia, Michigan is known as Little Palestine. The Detroit suburb is famous for its anti-Israel meetings. You could go hear Mustafa Barghouthi, Omar Barghouti and Ali Abunimah without taking a long drive.

    It’s also known for its shady doctors.

    Dr. Murtaza Hussain was busted for letting unlicensed employees diagnose patients and write prescriptions. Dr. Waseem Alam and Dr. Hatem Ataya pleaded guilty in the nation’s largest Medicare fraud case totaling $712 million in false billings centering on Shahid Tahir, Muhammad Tariq and Manavar Javed’s Livonia medical firms. But what was going on at one Livonia clinic was far worse than the theft of millions. Anyone passing by at the right time could hear the screams of little girls.

    We think of horrors like female genital mutilation as a terrible thing that happens over “there.” But as the implacable tide of Muslim immigration swept across Europe, “there” became the United Kingdom.

    England recorded 5,700 cases of FGM in less than a year. France has jailed 100 people for FGM. An estimated 50,000 women in Germany have undergone FGM with a 30 percent boost due to the rise of Islamic migration in the last several years. In Sweden, it’s 38,000. And now, as American towns and cities are reshaped by Muslim migration, “there” is now right here. The terrible practice is in America.

    http://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/266413/mutilating-little-girls-michigans-little-palestine-daniel-greenfield

  44. Germany sells arms to UAE despite Yemen conflict (DW, Apr 14, 2017)
    http://www.dw.com/en/germany-sells-arms-to-uae-despite-yemen-conflict/a-38430841

    “Germany has approved more major weapons deals with the UAE, including deliveries of high-caliber ammunition. The UAE is involved in a conflict in Yemen that has caused famine and humanitarian disaster.

    Germany is supplying more weapons to belligerents in the Yemen conflict, even though the ongoing war in the Middle East’s poorest country has triggered a famine and a refugee crisis.

    Citing an Economy Ministry document delivered to parliament, both “Der Spiegel” and the “taz” newspaper reported this week that the German government approved the sale to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) of 203,448 detonators for 40-mm shells by the Rottweil-based company Junghans Microtec, as well as 126 million euros ($134 million) worth of armor-plating for military vehicles by Dynamit Nobel Defence, located in Burbach, North Rhine-Westphalia.

    The sales show that Germany is continuing its policy of arming countries in the Middle East despite their direct involvement in the Yemen conflict, and despite the German government’s policy of vetting arms deals for potential humanitarian impact.

    The political opposition was quick to condemn the new sales. “…”

  45. ISIS in Afghanistan kidnapped wives, daughters for forced marriage: Nicholson (khaama, Apr 14, 2017)
    http://www.khaama.com/isis-in-afghanistan-kidnapped-wives-daughters-for-forced-marriage-nicholson-02566

    “The commander of the US forces in Afghanistan leading the NATO-led Resolute Support Mission (RSM) General John Nicholson told reporters in Kabul that the deadly airstrike against the ISIS terrorist group was carried out in response to the barbaric acts of the terror group affiliates, including the kidnapping of the wives and daughters for forced marriage to their fighters.

    Gen. Nicholson further added that the group has sent suicide bombers to attack peaceful demonstrations and killed and wounded hundreds of civilians and dragged elders out of their homes in Nangarhar, beheaded them in front of their families.

    He said night’s complex strike in Achin district of Nangarhar was part of alliances campaign to destroy ISIS-K in Afghanistan in 2017.

    “The weapon used, the GBU-43, is designed to destroy caves and tunnels in Achin Nangarhar,” Gen. Nicholson said, adding that “ISIS-K used tunnel and minefields to move around battlefield, protect themselves from Afghan & US Forces in Achin Nangarhar.”

    Stressing that GBU-43 was the right weapon considering the condition in Achin, Gen. Nicholson said “I want to assure you that our forces took every possible precaution to prevent civilian casualties.”

    “We have US Forces at the site and we see no evidence of civilian casualties nor have there been reports,” he added.

    Gen. Nicholson also added that Afghan Army and Commandos are leading this fight against these barbaric terrorists on behalf of the people of Afghanistan.

    According to Gen. Nicholson, the alliance is united with the Afghan government to prevent terrorists from establishing safe havens in Afghanistan.”

  46. Asylum seeker faces jail for racist attacks (express, Apr 14, 2017)
    http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/792131/asylum-seeker-faces-jail-racist-attacks

    “AN ASYLUM seeker who won the right to stay in Britain after claiming he was persecuted in his own country was today facing jail over a series of foul-mouthed racist attacks.

    Palestinian Riyad Hantouli, 39, was repeatedly arrested after he referred to takeaway and restaurant staff working near his city centre apartment as “Iranian and Pakistani ********”.

    Jobless Hantouli threatened to kill one waiter and spat in his face when he was refused a drink.

    He later told another worker in Manchester: “You Iranian and Pakistanis are all the same.”

    Officers struggled to detain Hantouli when they arrested him after he refused to pay a taxi driver.

    The father-of-one, who pockets state handouts, has racked up a string of convictions since arriving in the UK in 2002.

    He won the right to stay after claiming he was targeted because of his colour and religion in his native Palestine…”

  47. Four brothers confess to killing sister for ‘hanging around with men’ in Turkish capital (hurriyetdailynews, Apr 13, 2017)
    http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/four-brothers-confess-to-killing-sister-for-hanging-around-with-men-in-turkish-capital.aspx?PageID=238&NID=111969&NewsCatID=341

    “Four brothers have been arrested in the Turkish capital Ankara for killing their sister “because she was socializing with men.”

    Özlem Aykutlu?, 35, was found shot dead in Ankara on Feb. 28 and homicide department police officers focused their investigation on her family in the eastern province of Kars.

    Aykutlu?, a mother of two children, was killed with six bullets on the road between Istanbul and Ankara.

    Police determined that the act was an “honor killing” and said she was brought to Ankara two days before the incident. They concluded that the decision to kill was made by her family ..”

  48. State Department designates 2 Canadian citizens for joining jihadist groups
    By Thomas Joscelyn | April 14, 2017 | tjoscelyn@gmail.com | @thomasjoscelyn

    The State Department announced yesterday (Apr. 13) that two Canadian citizens have been added to the US government’s list of designated terrorists.

    One of them, Tarek Sakr, is allegedly “linked” to Al Nusrah Front, which was the public arm of al Qaeda in Syria until mid-2016. Even though Nusrah was rebranded as Jabhat Fath al Sham in July 2016 and then merged with four other groups to form a joint venture (“Assembly for the Liberation of the Levant”) in January, State still refers to organization by its original name and describes it as al Qaeda’s “affiliate in Syria.”

    Sakr is a “Syrian-born Canadian citizen who has conducted sniper training in Syria and periodically travels to Turkey,” according to State. Sakr was a pharmacology student before joining the jihad against Bashar al Assad. But according to the Canadian press, he began to acquire his skills as a marksman before he even left for Syria.

    In late 2016, CBC News and Radio-Canada’s Enquête connected Sakr to a band of 10 aspiring jihadists in the Montreal area who regularly practiced at a shooting range. Seven of them left for Syria in 2012 and 2013, with some joining Free Syrian Army-branded rebels. After one member of the crew was heard saying he wished the shooting targets were real infidels, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) began monitoring the young men.

    Enquête, which first published the photo of Sakr seen on the right, also learned that “two of Sakr’s cousins were killed in Latakia,” a coastal province that has long been a stronghold for the Assad family.

    Another member of Sakr’s group in the Montreal area was Wassim Boughadou, whose family is from Algeria. CBC News reported in late March that Boughadou had been arrested after he boarded a plane in Adana, Turkey.

    Boughadou and possibly other members of Sakr’s gun club are suspected of playing a role in the kidnapping of Theo Padnos and Matthew Schrier, two Americans who were held by Al Nusrah in Syria. After his release, Padnos said his captors had French-Canadian accents. And, according to Radio-Canada’s investigation, one of Schrier’s credit cards was used to purchase computers that may have been shipped to Boughadou.

    Padnos, who was released by Nusrah in 2014, subsequently explained to the New York Times how fighters affiliated with the Free Syrian Army had betrayed him to the jihadists. Schrier escaped from Nusrah’s custody prior to Padnos’ release.

    Multiple reports describe Boughadou as being associated with the Islamic State. It is not clear if Boughadou’s arrest affected the timing of Sakr’s designation by the US government, or if authorities have learned more about Sakr’s activities from his detained comrade.

    Abu Usama al Somali

    The other newly designated jihadist is Farah Mohamed Shirdon, a Canadian citizen with Somali roots who joined the Islamic State in 2014. State describes Shirdon, also known as Abu Usama al Somali, as “a prominent ISIS fighter and recruiter” who “has also been involved in fundraising.”

    Canadian authorities charged Shirdon with various terrorism-related offenses on Sept. 24, 2015. The photo of Shirdon seen below was released by Canadian authorities when the charges were announced in 2015. He is pictured standing in front of a Humvee with an Islamic State logo painted on it.
    The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) found that Shirdon “left Canada on March 14, 2014 to allegedly join and fight with the Islamic State in Syria.” Some reports indicated that Shirdon was quickly killed while fighting for the so-called caliphate, but the RCMP said “these reports were proven not to be true.”

    “Our investigation showed that [Shirdon] served in a combat role and performed other functions for ISIS such as recruiting, fundraising, encouraging others to commit violence, and spreading propaganda – all designed to enhance the activities of the ISIS,” Assistant Commissioner Marlin DeGrand, the officer in charge of the RCMP’s Criminal Operations in Alberta, was quoted in a press release as saying.

    The Islamic State wasted no time in using Shirdon in its propaganda. In a video released online just a few months after he absconded from Canada, Shirdon was shown burning his passport. He also threatened the US, Canada and President Barack Obama. “We are coming, and we will destroy you,” Shirdon said.

    In Sept. 2014, Shirdon spoke with VICE News about his decision to join the jihad. Shirdon claimed to be speaking from Mosul, which was overrun by Abu Bakr al Baghdadi’s men just a few months earlier. And he taunted members of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), describing them as “imbeciles” for failing to stop his journey beforehand. Shirdon also threatened New York, claiming that “brothers” were “mobilizing” for a “brilliant attack.” The founder of VICE, Shane Smith, confirmed during the interview that Shirdon was in the company of other foreign fighters, including a German and a British recruit.

    During his interview with VICE, Shirdon again addressed President Obama. “I swear you infidel, I swear to Almighty God…we will fight you to the end,” he said. An Ontario court later ordered VICE to turn over the logs of its chats with Shirdon via the Kik instant messenger app. The court order was issued after the RCMP argued that it needed the digital files to prove its case against Shirdon.

    The State Department places Shirdon in Raqqa, Syria as of Nov. 2015.

    Sakr turned 30 in March and Shirdon will be just 24 years-old on Apr. 18. Thousands of other young men living in the West have been drawn abroad to the fighting in Iraq and Syria.

    http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2017/04/state-department-designates-2-canadian-citizens-for-joining-jihadist-groups.php

  49. Sharia Councils and Sexual Abuse in Britain

    by Khadija Khan
    April 14, 2017 at 5:00 am

    https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/10191/sharia-councils-sexual-abuse

    The most recent scandal surrounding the sexual exploitation of Muslim women by Islamic religious leaders in the UK is yet further proof of the way in which Britain is turning a blind eye to horrific practices going on right under its nose.

    A BBC investigation into “halala” — a ritual enabling a divorced Muslim woman to remarry her husband by first wedding someone else, consummating the union, and then being divorced by him — revealed that imams in Britain are not only encouraging this, but profiting financially from it. This depravity has led to many such women being held hostage, literally and figuratively, to men paid to become their second husbands.

    This ritual, which is considered a misinterpretation of Islamic sharia law even by extremist Shi’ites and Saudi-style Salafists, is practiced by certain Islamic sects, such as Hanafis, Barelvis and Deobandis. When a husband repeats the Arabic word for divorce — talaq — three times to his wife, these sects consider a Muslim marriage null and void. For such a woman to be allowed to return to the husband who banished her, she must first marry someone else — and have sex with him — before the second husband divorces her.

    These divorce rites, despite the laws of the land, are common in India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and other Asian countries, where a majority of the people belong to the Hanafi, Barelvi or Deobandi sects. Nevertheless, local seminaries, mosques and online services openly advertise and promote halala with impunity; it is accepted by society and rarely monitored by state authorities.

    In Britain, halala has emerged as a booming business, with websites and social media sites offering to provide women with second husbands for exorbitant sums of money. As bad as this is, there is an even darker side to the story: Under sharia law, the second husband is under no obligation to give his wife a quick divorce — allowing him to keep her as his virtual sex slave for as long as he wishes.