Reader’s Links, March 11, 2018

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

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

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

About Eeyore

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

129 Replies to “Reader’s Links, March 11, 2018”

  1. JOHANNESBURG – A group of people grabbing land in Olivenhoutbosch near Centurion in Pretoria says their local Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader told them to take the plot.

    eNCA understands this has been going on for the last three days.

    There is a heavy police presence at the scene of the unfolding land grab.

    The Democratic Alliance (DA) recently sent out a text message to potential voters that some are describing as fear-mongering.

    https://www.enca.com/south-africa/watch-eff-invades-centurion-land-da-stands-by-fear-mongering-sms

    • Syrian rebels let militants leave eastern Ghouta

      A major Syrian rebel group says it has agreed to evacuate Al-Qaeda-linked fighters being held in its prisons in eastern Ghouta. The district is besieged by Syrian government forces.

      The group, Jaish al-Islam, said in a statement on Twitter on Friday that it will allow captive militant fighters to leave eastern Ghouta for Idlib Province, also held by rebels.

      Syria’s state-run television later broadcast footage it said showed 13 militants and their families leaving the besieged enclave in suburban Damascus.

      Jaish al-Islam is one of the main insurgent factions in eastern Ghouta. Its decision to move the prisoners appears to be an attempt to nullify the government’s justification for attacking the enclave to fight terrorists.

      But the government of President Bashar al-Assad has vowed to continue military operations, as it regards almost all rebel groups as terrorists. Observers say despite the continuing increase in civilian fatalities, there is little prospect that fighting in eastern Ghouta will ease.

      The government says its forces now control half the enclave.

      https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180310_14/
      ================================================
      The Latest: Al-Qaida Fighters in Syria Want to Go to Idlib

      The largest rebel group in eastern suburbs of the capital Damascus says they have agreed with a U.N. team that entered the besieged area to evacuate al-Qaida-linked fighters from the district.

      The largest rebel group in eastern suburbs of the capital Damascus says they have agreed with a U.N. team that entered the besieged area to evacuate al-Qaida-linked fighters from the district.

      In a statement Friday, The Army of Islam said that the first batch of fighters to be evacuated is currently detained in the group’s prisons in eastern Ghouta.

      The Army of Islam said that the detainees from the al-Qaida-linked Levant Liberation Committee have asked to be sent to the rebel-held province of Idlib in Syria’s northwest.

      It was not immediately clear if the government would accept such a relocation which will involve passing through state-controlled areas to reach Idlib.

      In a letter last month to U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres, the three main rebel factions in eastern Ghouta said they were committed to making al-Qaida-linked fighters and their families leave within 15 days.

      https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2018-03-09/the-latest-turkey-says-syrian-kurdish-enclave-surrounded

    • Syrian opposition: The Movie

      Jobar is a set-up, filmed over & over. Actually it’s a small neighborhood in Damascus proper, not even a suburb like al-Ghoutta. Highly professional video, PR – paid and promoted by Qatar (al-Jaz).

      Very easy to provide footage of alleged atrocities (like gas attacks) to journalists comfortably enconced in safe areas a couple blocks away.
      Sympathetic jihadis – like White Helmets – even include women!!

      Comment to their videos (few in English):
      “Women too must defend themselves against the terrorists of the Assad regime, against Russians, against Iranians. Your situation is very difficult, the enemy has the more modern weapons. I hope from the heart that you can survive this fight. Greetings from Austria.?

  2. HuffPo Normalizes Bestiality, Talks ‘Acceptance’ With Man Who Had Sex With Dolphin

    Buckle up, bigots! The social justice Left has a new crusade: dolphin sex acceptance.

    On Friday, HuffPost’s Ashley Feinberg took a stab at normalizing bestiality, posting a glowing interview with a man who considers himself a “heterosexual” who crosses “species lines” and infamously had sex with a dolphin.

    That’s right. He screwed a dolphin.

    Malcolm Brenner was the feature of a documentary called “Dolphin Lover,” wherein Brenner was “courted” by a dolphin named Dolly he eventually has sex with.

    “She would rub her genital slit against me,” he says in the doc. “And if I tried to push her away, she would get very angry with me. One time, when she wanted to masturbate on my foot and I wouldn’t let her, she threw herself on top of me and pushed me down to the 12-foot bottom of the pool.”

    https://www.dailywire.com/news/28070/huffpo-normalizes-bestiality-posts-friendly-amanda-prestigiacomo?utm_medium=email&utm_content=031018-news&utm_campaign=position1

  3. Russian Military Demands Al-Rahman Legion Group to Cut Ties With Nusra Front (sputniknews, Mar 11, 2018)
    https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201803111062421199-russian-military-al-rahman-nusra/

    “The Russian center for Syrian reconciliation demanded that the Faylaq al-Rahman militant group in Syria cut ties and separate from the Jabhat Fatal al-Sham terror group as a condition for its withdrawal from the besieged East Ghouta, the center’s spokesman Maj. Gen. Vladimir Zolotukhin said on Sunday…”

  4. Over 170 Militants Killed in Afghanistan Over Past Day – Defense Ministry (sputniknews, Mar 11, 2018)
    https://sputniknews.com/asia/201803111062421315-170-militants-killed-afghanistan/

    “A total of 171 militants were killed as a result of anti-terror operations in 10 provinces of Afghanistan over the past 24 hours, the country’s Defense Ministry said on Sunday in a statement.

    “Within last 24 hours, 171 militants including six members of the Islamic State [IS terror group, outlawed in Russia] were killed during military operations in 10 provinces,” the ministry said in a daily bulletin.

    The largest number of militants (54) was killed in the southern province of Kandahar…”

  5. Rape, violence and drunks – the reality of life in an EU migrant camp on Lesbos (express, Mar 11, 2018)
    https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/930204/EU-refugee-migrant-camp-Lesbos-Greece

    “The EU’s Moria refugee camp on the Greek island of Lesbos has been left in a ‘state of filth and fear – and one migrant said “we’ve gone from one hell to another.”

    Uniformed aid workers go home at sunset, leaving vulnerable refugees at the mercy of their campmates – and rape and violence is reportedly rife.

    Moria is one of Europe’s largest camps, with 5000 people now living there.

    The Sunday Times gained access to both the camp and refugees and the picture shames the EU.

    A refugee called Celine, 22, said: “The men come and they bother me.

    “They don’t leave me alone.

    “I’m scared here. It’s not safe.”

    A third of people at the camp are children, many crammed in tents and shipping containers, surrounded by barbed wire.

    There are only 120 lavatories and 75 showers for the refugees to share – and many women so fear being raped that they cannot use them.

    Hasna, from Northern Syria, said: “I never go to the toilet at night.

    “I shower with some water my son brings me.

    “I’m afraid.”

    The EU and Turkey reached a migration deal in 2016 to reduce numbers coming into mainland Europe.

    But even in 2018, already more than 2500 migrants have arrived at Greece.

    Many of those people complain that there living conditions are worse in the camp than where they came from.

    Mohammed, 32, said: “We’ve gone from one hell to another.

    “They wanted me to live with 17 other people in a container.”

    He arrived at the camp last week from Yarmouk, near Damascus.

    Abdulrahman, 28, said: “All the different groups fight each other, and the men drink, all around the children.

    “It’s a very bad place.”

    Médecins sans Frontières, a charity, runs the clinic outside the camp in protest at conditions inside.

    It claims to have treated a number of female victims of rape and sexual violence recently.

    But most attacks go unreported according to aid workers…”

  6. ‘Afrin is becoming our Vietnam’: Pro-Kurdish protesters denouncing Turkey’s Syria campaign clash with German police (alaraby, Mar 11, 2018)
    https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2018/3/11/pro-kurdish-protesters-clash-with-german-police

    “Clashes broke out between pro-Kurdish demonstrators protesting against Turkey’s military campaign in northern Syria and German police at the Dusseldorf airport on Sunday, with several people injured, reported authorities.

    Demonstrators protesting against the “Olive Branch” operation against the Kurdish-held enclave of Afrin were sprayed with pepper spray by the German police.

    Nearly 150 people protested in an unannounced rally, one of several Kurdish demonstrations in Germany over the weekend, and left “a number of people suffering injuries” federal police reported to AFP.

    Protesters holding banners that read “Afrin is becoming our Vietnam – we will defeat fascism” were shared on social media.

    President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has threatened to “purge” Kurdish militia from the town…”

  7. euronews- A Russian hypersonic missile has been successfully test-launched from a MiG-31 jet.

  8. Pope decries fears of globalization; barriers for foreigners (abcnews, Mar 11, 2018)
    http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/pope-visits-rome-charity-works-peace-aids-refugees-53668212

    “Pope Francis rejected the branding of foreigners and poor people as enemies as he honored volunteers Sunday with a Catholic lay organization that helps Syrian war refugees reach Europe.

    The pontiff spent the afternoon with the Sant’Egidio Community, which has mediated peace accords in Africa and helped war refugees make it to Italy safely. The organization is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its founding.

    “Since your community was born, the world has become global,” the pope said while addressing Sant’Egidio volunteers in the ancient Santa Maria in Trastevere Basilica, where the community has sheltered the homeless on especially cold nights.

    “But for many people, especially the poor, new walls have been lifted,” Francis said. “Diversity is an occasion for animosity and conflict. A globalization of solidarity and of the spirit still awaits to be built.”…”

  9. Germany: A German citizens during a talk show about refugees on TV: “There is not a single refugee in Germany!!!

    “Anyone who is threatened with life and limb and carries his butt across ‘7 national borders’ can never have the status of a ‘refugee’!”
    (Watch the pearl clutchers when truth is spoken in the room)

    A guest of the talk show that appear to be a professor agree with the guest in his legal assessment of the situation.

  10. Girardoni Air Gun (original 1780 example)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dZLeEUE940

    • Napleon thought that a rifle that didn’t leave a smoke cloud was evil and ordered that all enemy soldiers armed with air rifles were to be killed on sight, not captured killed and very painfully if possible.

  11. Private jet flying from UAE to Turkey crashes in Iran, killing 11
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    TEHRAN, Iran — A Turkish private jet flying from the United Arab Emirates to Istanbul carrying a group of young women crashed Sunday night in a mountainous region of Iran during a heavy rain, killing all 11 people on board, authorities said. The doomed aircraft days earlier carried a bachelorette party bound for Dubai.

    Iranian state television quoted Mojtaba Khaledi, the spokesman of the country’s emergency management organization, as saying the plane hit a mountain near Shahr-e Kord and burst into flames. Shahr-e Kord is about 230 miles south of the capital, Tehran.

    Khaledi later told a website associated with state TV that local villagers had reached the site in the Zagros Mountains and found 11 badly burned bodies in the wreckage. He said DNA tests would be needed to identify the dead.

    Villagers near the crash earlier said they saw flames coming from the plane’s engine before the crash, according to a report by Iran’s state-run judiciary news agency Mizan.

    https://www.cbsnews.com/news/turkish-private-jet-crashes-iran-flying-to-istanbul-2018-03-11/

    • Odd.
      The “boycott” by UAE, et al., against Turkey and Iran doesn’t affect the rich, Westernized elites. High-flying party-animals, skip the hijab. dress in designer “distressed” jeans. Jet between capitals engaged in proxy wars everywhere but “home”.

  12. Mob of Migrants Terrorise Small Town Fair Sexually Harassing Women and Fighting Locals (breitbart, Mar 11, 2018)
    http://www.breitbart.com/london/2018/03/11/mob-migrants-terrorize-small-town-fair-sexually-harassing-women-fighting-locals/

    “A group of ten young asylum seeker men are said to have terrorised a local fair in the German town of Steinfurt by sexually harassing young women, fighting with local teens, and threatening ride owners.

    Most of the incidents occurred at or around a bumper car ride that was set up for the town fair. In one incident at around 6:30 pm, a 22-year-old migrant molested a young girl on the upper body and legs, Der Westen reports.

    The migrant, who was visibly intoxicated, also tried stealing one girl’s mobile phone and was told to leave the fair by security.

    It came to light later on that the man had molested two other young girls earlier that evening.

    Only an hour after the incident, the young man and his nine friends started to harass German teen males around the bumper car ride ending up in a physical fight. The fight was eventually stopped after police arrived and intervened…”

  13. In Rosenheimer Disco: Mann (22) attackiert 16-Jährige mit Messer

    Ein junger Mann aus Eritrea hat in einer Disco im oberbayerischen Rosenheim eine 16-Jährige mit einem Messer attackiert und verletzt.

    Rosenheim – Der 22-Jährige griff die Frau in der Nacht zum Samstag plötzlich an, als diese mit Freundinnen auf der Tanzfläche war, wie die Polizei mitteilte. Sie kam mit Verletzungen am Oberkörper ins Krankenhaus, konnte dieses aber nach kurzer Zeit wieder verlassen. Wie schlimm die Verletzungen waren, konnte die Polizei zunächst nicht sagen.

    Messerattacke in Rosenheim: Sicherheitsdienst überwältigt Täter
    Der Sicherheitsdienst der Disco „Gatsby“ hielt den Täter fest, bis die Polizei eintraf. Die Beamten ermittelten wegen eines versuchten Tötungsdelikts. Das Motiv des Täters und der genaue Ablauf des Angriffs waren zunächst unklar.

    https://www.merkur.de/bayern/disco-gatsby-in-rosenheim-mann-22-attackiert-16-jaehrige-mit-messer-9682602.html

    ================================================
    Messerangriff in Rosenheimer Nachtclub – Mann sticht auf Mädchen ein

    Rosenheim – Die Kriminalpolizei Rosenheim ermittelt gegen einen 22- jährigen Mann wegen eines versuchten Tötungsdelikts. Dieser griff in der Nacht auf Samstag, 10. März, eine junge Frau in einem Nachtlokal unvermittelt mit einem Messer an und verletzte diese dabei am Oberkörper.

    UPDATE, 18.45 Uhr:
    Auf Antrag der Staatsanwaltschaft wird der Tatverdächtige dem Ermittlungsrichter zur Prüfung der Haftfrage vorgeführt. Das 16-jährige Opfer aus dem Landkreis befand sich gegen 0.45 Uhr mit ihren Freundinnen auf der Tanzfläche in einer Diskothek in Rosenheim, als der Angriff durch den 22-jährigen Mann aus Eritrea erfolgte.

    Die Geschädigte erlitt Verletzungen am Oberkörper, die sich als nicht lebensbedrohlich herausstellten. Der Angreifer wurde durch den Sicherheitsdienst festgehalten und an die Polizei übergeben. Die Ermittlungen der Kriminalpolizei bezüglich des Tathergangs und der Motivlage dauern an.

    Pressemitteilung Polizeipräsidium Oberbayern Süd

    Erstmeldung:

    In der Nacht von Freitag auf Samstag kam es Am Roßacker zu einem Großeinsatz der Polizei. Laut Informationen von vor Ort, soll in einem Nachtlokal eine junge Frau von einem jungen Mann attackiert und verletzt worden sein.

    Ein Sprecher der Polizeiinspektion Rosenheim bestätigte gegenüber rosenheim24.de einen Einsatz: “In diesem Zusammenhang laufen bei uns und bei der Kriminalpolizei die Ermittlungen.”

    Weitere Angaben wollte der Sprecher nicht tätigen. “Zeitnah” soll eine Pressemitteilung für Aufklärung sorgen.

    https://www.rosenheim24.de/rosenheim/rosenheim-stadt/rosenheim-ort43270/rosenheim-polizeigrosseinsatz-nachtclub-gatsby-9682435.html

  14. European Union Security Boss: More Terror Victims in European Cities for ‘Years to Come’

    Innocent people across the European Union (EU) will continue to suffer and die in terror attacks “for years to come”, the EU’s Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs, and Citizenship has said.

    “We cannot contemplate more victims in our cities, but we know that it is a reality we will probably have to face for years to come,” said Dimitris Avramopoulos, confessing the poor state of the bloc’s security, but without mentioning migration.

    Giving a speech on Thursday, the former Mayor of Athens pledged £104 million (€120 million) this year to help EU cities stem the wave of terror attacks that have struck the continent in recent years.

    London mayor Sadiq Khan was represented at the speech, along with the mayors of Brussels, Manchester, Nice, Oslo, Marseille, Berlin, Barcelona, and New York.

    http://www.breitbart.com/london/2018/03/11/eu-security-boss-europe-face-terrorism-years-come/

  15. Hillary Clinton’s Strange Ties To The Russia Investigation Makes One Thing Obvious

    There are many mysteries surrounding the Russia investigation.

    For example, what was the real reason the FBI started looking into the Trump campaign?

    The awful answer to that question is yet another connection to Hillary Clinton.

    The FBI claims the investigation kicked off in the summer of 2016 after an Australian diplomat named Alexander Downer had reported a drunken conversation he had months prior with low-level Trump campaign volunteer George Papadopoulos in London.

    Downer reported this conversation to the FBI shortly after WikiLeaks had released emails obtained from the Democrat National Committee.

    According to Downer, Papadopoulos claimed that Russians had approached him about a meeting to discuss how they’d obtained Hillary’s emails.

    But there was no meeting, and no one ever produced the emails that were deleted off Hillary Clinton’s server.

    http://greatamericandaily.com/hillary-clintons-ties-to-russia-investigation/

  16. PELOSI: Drag Queens Can Help Politicians Be More Authentic

    Democratic House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said politicians can learn a lesson in “authenticity” from drag queens Thursday after appearing on VH1’s “RuPaul’s Drag Race: All Stars.”

    Pelosi sat down with The Hollywood Reporter and said everyone in the county could take a cue from cross dressers and start being themselves.

    “Authenticity. Taking pride in who you are. Knowing your power — that’s what I talk about on my brief segment on the show,” Pelosi told the outlet. “This idea of people believing in themselves, being themselves, taking pride in themselves, is not just a lesson for politicians but for everyone in the country. And that’s why I was so excited and couldn’t resist being on the show.

    http://dailycaller.com/2018/03/10/nancy-pelosi-drag-queens/

  17. TRUMP: Chuck Todd a ‘Son of a B**ch;’ Maxine Waters ‘Low IQ’

    President Donald Trump took a detour during a speech he gave on Saturday, going after “Meet the Press” host Chuck Todd with colorful language.

    “He’s a sleeping son of a bitch, I’ll tell you,” Trump said during a speech in Moon Township, Pa.

    Trump referenced Todd while discussing his own appearance on “Meet the Press” in 1999.

    On the show, Trump called for an aggressive policy towards North Korea.

    https://www.libertyheadlines.com/trump-chuck-todd-son-bch-maxine-waters-low-iq/

  18. Gen Id Uk in Hyde park today

    #FREE SELLNER Speakers Corner Fee Speech Event Part 1 – 11/03/18

  19. University in Dammam draws fire for making a mockery of research (saudigazette, Mar 11, 2018)
    http://bit.ly/2IjLUVz

    “A research conducted at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University in Dammam has drawn a barrage of criticisms and ridicule for claiming that the sound waves produced while uttering “Allahu Akbar” (God is Great) have the power to extinguish fire”

  20. Al Houthis more dangeorus than Al Qaida, says Yemeni premier (gulfnews, Mar 11, 2018)
    http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/yemen/al-houthis-more-dangeorus-than-al-qaida-says-yemeni-premier-1.2186016

    “The Iran-backed Al Houthi movement is the most dangerous threat to security and stability in Yemen as they have killed thousands of Yemeni soldiers and mounted a coup against the internationally-recognised president, Yemen’s prime minister said.

    In an interview with the Egyptian Al Youm Al Sabaa newspaper, Ahmad Obeid Bin Daghar said that he sees Al Houthis as most dangerous group in the war-ravaged country even more so than Al Qaida or Daesh and his government would intensify military operations until they agree to disarm, exit major cities and turn into a purely political party.

    “Al Houthis’ rebellious movement have killed roughly 13,000 soldiers from the army, national guards and security services since 2004 in consecutive six wars,” he said.

    Despite vowing to defeat Al Houthi militarily, Bin Daghar said that he does not rule out the possibility of striking a political settlement with them, but he was sceptical given that previous peace talks proved that Al Houthis were unwilling to end their coup…”

  21. BBC appeals to U.N. over ‘collective punishment’ of its journalists by Iran (reuters, Mar 11, 2018)
    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-iran-journalists/bbc-appeals-to-u-n-over-collective-punishment-of-its-journalists-by-iran-idUSKCN1GO00B?il=0

    “British broadcaster the BBC said on Monday it was appealing to the United Nations to protect its journalists in Iran after it said persecution and harassment by the Iranian authorities escalated in 2017.

    “The BBC is taking the unprecedented step of appealing to the United Nations because our own attempts to persuade the Iranian authorities to end their harassment have been completely ignored,” BBC Director General Tony Hall said in a statement.

    “In fact, during the past nine years, the collective punishment of BBC Persian Service journalists and their families has worsened.”

    Britain’s foreign secretary Boris Johnson said in December he had raised “the official harassment of journalists working for BBC Persian and their families inside Iran” with his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif when he visited Tehran.

    The broadcaster said journalists in London working on BBC Persian, part of the BBC World Service, and their families in Iran had been targeted since the satellite TV station launched in 2009.

    The harassment escalated last year when Iranian authorities alleged the service’s work was a crime against Iran’s national security and froze the assets of more than 152 current and former BBC Persian staff, it said.

    BBC Persian said at the time that it was another step by Iran’s judiciary to silence impartial journalists.

    The BBC said other measures against its journalists included the arbitrary arrest and detention of family members in Iran, the confiscation of passports and travel bans preventing people leaving Iran and the spread of fake and defamatory news targeting individuals especially women journalists.

    Iran accused the BBC of inciting unrest after the disputed re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in 2009 and has said its journalists had broadcast against the national interests of the Islamic Republic.

    The following year it banned Iranians from contact with dozens of foreign organizations, including the BBC, which it said were seeking to topple the Islamic theocracy.

    The BBC said it was planning a series of events in partnership with the International Federation of Journalists this week during the 37th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.”

  22. Taliban in Control of 12 Security Posts in Northern Afghanistan (tasnimnews, Mar 11, 2018)
    https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2018/03/11/1677671/taliban-in-control-of-12-security-posts-in-northern-afghanistan

    “In the Taliban’s attack, the militants have taken control of large areas in the northern city of Khwaja Ghar in Takhar Province, including 12 security posts.

    According to local media reports, intense clashes have taken place between the Afghan security forces and the Taliban militants.

    Sonnatollah Teymour, the spokesperson for Takhar Province, said the Taliban’s attack on Afghan forces in the province killed 16 military servicemen and injured 13 others.

    This is while Taliban Spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, in a statement, said the group has killed 30 Afghan security forces and injured dozens more in Khwaja Ghar.

    In another development, security officials in Urozgan Province in southern Afghanistan said the city of Khas in the province is under the siege of the Taliban and faces the danger of collapse.

    Afghan government forces have launched operations against the Taliban in various provinces of the country as fighting has intensified in recent days.”

  23. Shoes hurled at Nawaz Sharif in Lahore madrassa (tribune, Mar 11, 2018)
    https://tribune.com.pk/story/1657021/1-shoe-hurled-nawaz-sharif-lahore-madrassa/

    “In unusual occurrences, two men lobbed shoes at former prime minister Nawaz Sharif but one hit him while he was about to begin addressing a gathering in Lahore on Sunday.

    Soon Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief reached the podium to deliver a speech at an event organised by the Jamia Naeemia, which was set up at an outer area of the madrassa, a man hurled his shoe at Nawaz, hitting him between the neck and shoulder.

    He then jumped on the stage and raised slogans in favour of Mumtaz Qadri , the killer of Punjab Governor Salman Taseer, before fainting as the crowd jostled him.

    Meanwhile, another man hurled his shoe at the former premier, nearly missing him. It hit a man standing behind the PML-N leader.

    The Punjab Police have taken both the suspects into custody…”

  24. More than 18,000 convicted of sex offences in Turkey: Minister (hurriyetdailynews, Mar 11, 2018)
    http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/more-than-18-000-convicted-of-sex-offences-in-turkey-minister-128549

    “Some 18,492 people are currently in jail after being convicted of sex offences in Turkey, Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gül has said.

    Speaking in the Central Anatolian province of Konya, Gül said new “preventive and punitive” measures against child molesters are on the agenda of six ministries working on the issue collaboratively.

    “Currently, there are 18,492 convicts jailed for sex offences in Turkey. Six ministries are working on preventive and punitive measures on this issue collaboratively,” he added.

    “We aim to prevent these incidents in the first place. We will do our best to get over this issue by raising more awareness about child abuse and sexual abuse,” Gül said.

    Sexual abuse and pedophilia has recently dominated headlines in Turkey, following a series of cases reported in the media, including the rape of a four-and-a-half-year-old girl in the southern province of Adana in February.

    Ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) officials have responded to the outrage by calling for legal changes stipulating harsher punishments for child abusers…”

  25. Sweden to crack down on Islamic schools (thelocal, Mar 11, 2018)
    https://www.thelocal.se/20180311/sweden-to-tighten-law-on-religious-schools

    “Sweden plans to ban groups who do not support gender equality from starting or running schools, the country’s education minister said on Sunday.

    Gustav Fridolin made the call as he launched an inquiry into tightening the regulation of religious schools in the country.

    “The regulatory framework will be tightened,” Gustav Fridolin wrote in an article in the Aftonbladet newspaper. “Those who do not support fundamental values around equality and human rights should be stopped from running free schools in Sweden.”

    The proposal comes as the debate around religious free schools continues to rage in the country, most recently over the decision to let the Islamic headmaster and former Moderate party MP Abdirisak Waberi start a new Islamic school in the city of Borås.

    Waberi has been criticised in the past for attempting to explain why under Islam it is permitted for a man to marry four women but not for a woman to marry four men, and for expressing a desire to live in a state governed by Shariah law.

    In 2006, he told Ottar magazine that he thought men should be the heads of their families. “In my opinion, it is the man that is the strong person in the relationship. He controls the relationship, and the woman stands as a base,” he said.

    In his article, Fridolin said that no one should be forced to engage in any religious practices at any school, even those founded by religious organisations.

    “No child should be exposed to direct or indirect compulsion to take part in religious activities in any school in Sweden,” Fridolin wrote. “And all education should be completely free of religious infleunce.”

    Sweden’s Social Democrat-Green coalition government has appointed the Swedish jurist Lars Arrhenius to investigate what sort of religious instruction typically takes place in religious schools in Sweden, and also to see how the new laws being considered could be written so as to respect the European Convention on Human Rights.

    Fridolin stressed in an interview with Aftonbladet accompanying his article that the government was not interested in bringing in a total ban on religious schools in Sweden, as was once Social Democrat policy.

    “From my side there’s no point in attacking Jewish schools which have existed in Sweden since the 1950s,” he said.

    Sweden has over 70 religious schools, the majority of which are Christian, about 11 of which are Islamic, and a handful of which are Jewish.

    Fridolin complained that the current regulations over free schools did not allow school regulators to investigate the backgrounds of people or organisations who want to start a new school.

    “If a club or group wants to hire premises, we check who they are, but if they want to start a school, we say ‘just go ahead’. It’s totally absurd.”

    Arrhenius’s investigation is expected to be completed by the New Year.”

  26. AUSTRIA – Knife attacker shot dead outside Iran ambassador’s residence in Vienna

    Assailant ‘dies on the spot’ after guard opens fire, police spokesman says

    Vienna: A 26-year-old Austrian was shot dead outside the Iranian ambassador’s residence in Vienna on Sunday night after he attacked a guard with a knife, police said.

    The assailant “died on the spot” after the guard opened fire, police spokesman Harald Moeser said, adding that the attack took place just before midnight local time in a residential area

    http://gulfnews.com/news/mena/iran/knife-attacker-shot-dead-outside-iran-ambassador-s-residence-in-vienna-1.2186227
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    Knifeman shot dead outside Iranian ambassador’s residence in Vienna

    An attacker has been killed in a knife attack outside the Iranian ambassador’s residence in the Austrian capital of Vienna, local police say. A soldier suffered injuries in the attack.

    The incident happened at about 11:35 p.m. local time on Sunday when a 26-year-old man, whose name was not immediately released, attacked a soldier at an army post outside the ambassador’s residence.

    The ministry of defense said the soldier initially used pepper spray but was forced to use his weapon, killing the suspect. The soldier suffered a cut to his arm and was taken to hospital for treatment.

    There was no immediate word on a possible motive for the attack, but security has been increased at all diplomatic compounds across Vienna, according to the APA news agency.

    The attack happened outside Villa Blaimschein, which was taken by the Nazis from its Jewish owners during World War II. It was once the scene of negotiations for a provisional Austrian state government but is now owned by Iran and used as a residence for the ambassador, APA said.

    https://bnonews.com/site/index.php/2018/03/knife-attack-iranian-residence-vienna-austria/

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    Soldat erschießt Messerangreifer vor iranischer Residenz in Wien

    Ein 26-jähriger Mann hat in der Nacht eine Messerattacke auf einen österreichischen Wachposten vor der Residenz des iranischen Botschafters in Wien verübt. Die Polizei schließt einen Terrorangriff nicht aus.

    Der 26-Jährige sei ohne Vorwarnung auf den vor der Villa Blaimschein in der Wenzgasse 2 postierten Soldaten losgegangen, sagte Polizeisprecher Harald Sörös. Dieser gab “mindestens vier” Schüsse aus der Glock 17 ab. So viele Hülsen wurden bisher von den Spurensicherern eingesammelt. Der Angreifer starb an Ort und Stelle. Der Wachposten erlitt eine Schnittverletzung.

    Vom Täter war zunächst nur sein Alter bekannt und dass er im Besitz der österreichischen Staatsbürgerschaft war. Hinweise auf sein Motiv lagen zunächst keine vor. Klar ist, dass das Landesamt für Verfassungsschutz und Terrorismusbekämpfung die Ermittlungen übernommen hat. “Wir können einen terroristischen Hintergrund derzeit weder ausschließen, noch bestätigen”, erklärte Sörös auf SN-Anfrage.

    Der Soldat versuchte zunächst, den Angreifer mit Pfefferspray abzuwehren, sagte Michael Bauer, Sprecher des Verteidigungsministeriums. Erst als das keine Wirkung zeigte, habe er zur Waffe gegriffen. Der Berufssoldat habe damit “aus jetziger Sicht alles richtig gemacht”, nämlich zunächst mit dem Pfefferspray das gelindeste Mittel eingesetzt.

    Tatzeitpunkt sei gegen 23.35 Uhr gewesen. Vor der Abgabe der Schüsse kam es laut Sörös auch zu einem kurzen Gerangel. Der Soldat trug eine Schnittwunde am linken Oberarm davon. Der laut Bauer 1994 geborene, in Wien wohnhafte Tiroler sei mit einem schweren Schock ins Spital gebracht worden.

    Der Nahbereich um den Tatort wurde abgesperrt, die Durchfahrt im Bereich Wenzgasse – Lainzer Straße war vorerst nicht möglich. Die Polizei ordnete zudem eine Verstärkung der Überwachung der diplomatischen Einrichtungen in ganz Wien durch den polizeilichen Streifendienst an.

    Beim Tatort handelt es sich um ein historisches Gebäude: Die Villa Blaimschein, im Zweiten Weltkrieg von den Nationalsozialisten von den jüdischen Eigentümern beschlagnahmt, war einst Schauplatz von Verhandlungen für eine provisorische österreichische Staatsregierung unter Karl Renner. Heute befindet sie sich im Eigentum der Republik Iran und dient dem Botschafter als Wohnort.

    Bei der Bewachung diplomatischer Einrichtungen durch das Bundesheer ist laut Bauer jeweils ein Soldat vor dem Objekt postiert, ein zweiter entweder im Gebäude oder, falls das nicht möglich ist, in der nächstgelegenen Polizeiinspektion – letzteres war hier der Fall. Durchgeführt werde der Objektschutz ausschließlich von Berufssoldaten. Die Bewachung als Assistenzleistung für die Polizei wurde mit August 2016 eingeführt. Die Männer erhalten dafür eine spezielle Ausbildung und Einweisung durch die Polizei.

    https://www.sn.at/panorama/oesterreich/soldat-erschiesst-messerangreifer-vor-iranischer-residenz-in-wien-25281391

  27. Saudis Said to Use Coercion and Abuse to Seize Billions (NYT, Mar 11, 2018)
    https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/11/world/middleeast/saudi-arabia-corruption-mohammed-bin-salman.html

    “Businessmen once considered giants of the Saudi economy now wear ankle bracelets that track their movements. Princes who led military forces and appeared in glossy magazines are monitored by guards they do not command. Families who flew on private jets cannot gain access to their bank accounts. Even wives and children have been forbidden to travel.

    In November, the Saudi government locked up hundreds of influential businessmen — many of them members of the royal family — in the Riyadh Ritz-Carlton in what it called an anti-corruption campaign.

    Most have since been released but they are hardly free. Instead, this large sector of Saudi Arabia’s movers and shakers are living in fear and uncertainty.

    During months of captivity, many were subject to coercion and physical abuse, witnesses said. In the early days of the crackdown, at least 17 detainees were hospitalized for physical abuse and one later died in custody with a neck that appeared twisted, a badly swollen body and other signs of abuse, according to a person who saw the body.

    In an email to The New York Times on Sunday, the government denied accusations of physical abuse as “absolutely untrue.”

    To leave the Ritz, many of the detainees not only surrendered huge sums of money, but also signed over to the government control of precious real estate and shares of their companies — all outside any clear legal process.

    The government has yet to actually seize many of the assets, leaving the former detainees and their families in limbo.

    One former detainee, forced to wear a tracking device, has sunk into depression as his business collapses. “We signed away everything,” a relative of his said. “Even the house I am in, I am not sure if it is still mine.”

    As the architect of the crackdown, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, prepares to travel to the United States this month to court American investment, Saudi officials are spotlighting his reforms: his promise to let women drive, his plans to expand entertainment opportunities and his moves to encourage foreign investment. They have denied any allegations of abuse and have portrayed the Ritz episode as an orderly legal process that has wound down.

    But extensive interviews with Saudi officials, members of the royal family, and relatives, advisers and associates of the detainees revealed a murkier, coercive operation, marked by cases of physical abuse, which transferred billions of dollars in private wealth to the crown prince’s control…”