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Turkish Media ‘Exposes’ French Bases in Syria Amid US Withdrawal (sputniknews, Dec 28, 2018)
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201812281071053155-french-troops-syria-turkish-media/
“Days after US President Donald Trump ordered US troops to withdraw from Syria, French European Affairs Minister Nathalie Loiseau said that Paris would maintain its presence in Syria.
A few days after French President Emmanuel Macron expressed “deep regret” over Donald Trump’s decision to pull troops out from Syria, Turkey’s state news agency Anadolu claimed that France would maintain 9 military sites in the country, while the total number of French soldiers deployed in “YPG/PKK-held parts” of Syria east of the Euphrates River amounts to only 200 troops.
The deployments reportedly include artillery batteries, technical personnel and special forces units.
According to the media outlet, French troops are present in the northern town of Ain al-Arab (Kobani), the Mistanur Hill and Sarrin districts, the town of Ain Issa, the Lafarge concrete plant in the village of Harab Isk, the Raqqa military base, the Kahar military site, the Tabqa airbase, and in parts of Manbij.
Anadolu Agency went on to claim that the French forces mostly rely on the US for logistics and otherwise are said to be under the protection of Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) and the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which Ankara considers terrorist organisations.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu earlier warned that France’s continued military presence in Syria wouldn’t benefit anyone.
“If France is staying to contribute to Syria’s future, great, but if they are doing this to protect the [militia], this will bring no benefit to anyone”.
Shortly after US President Donald Trump announced the withdrawal of all 2,000 troops from Syria, his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, stressed that nobody should forget about the Kurdish Syrian Democratic forces (SDF) fighting against terrorists in the region.
“An ally must reliable and act in coordination with other allies”, he said.
Earlier this week, French European Affairs Minister Nathalie Loiseau was cited as saying that France would maintain its presence in Syria as “the fight against terrorism is not over”.
French Defence Minister Florence Parly, in turn, tweeted that “Daesh is weaker than ever. Daesh went into hiding and insurgency in the way it fights. Daesh has lost more than 90% of its territory. Daesh no longer has the logistics it could have”…”
Interesting choice of words there….quoting from your comment:
Paris would maintain…not France? Many VT readers are well aware of the demographic politic of Paris and its immediate suburbs.
That comment does have several different possible interpretations.
”Turkey can forget about occupying #Manbij Syrian forces backed by Russia enter Manbij as US troops flee (? replace with leave) the area.”
The Syrian flag is raised followed by the YPG flag.
https://twitter.com/AWAKEALERT/status/1077748396184793089
Iran Slams Trump’s Visit to Iraq as Disrespect for Sovereignty – Reports (sputniknews, Dec 28, 2018)
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201812281071057135-iran-iraq-trump-visit-disrespect/
“The Iranian Foreign Ministry has criticized US President Donald Trump’s unannounced visit to Iraq, calling it disrespect for Iraqi sovereignty, the IRNA news agency reported.
Commenting on the US President’s visit, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi said Iraqi officials and people gave Trump the cold shoulder, according to the IRNA news agency.
“Regional nations will never allow aggressive aliens to sow discord among them”, Qasemi was quoted as saying by the agency.
This week, Trump and his wife Melania made an unannounced Christmas visit to US troops stationed in Iraq. The US president said he had no plans to pull out US forces of the country.
The statement comes after Washington imposed sanctions targeting core sectors of Iran’s economy in early November in a row of sanctions against Tehran after the US withdrawal from the Iranian Nuclear Deal.
Trump announced in May that the United States was withdrawing from the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and re-imposing its sanctions against Tehran that had been lifted under the agreement. The first package of the US restrictions came into force in August.”
“The Iranian Foreign Ministry has criticized US President Donald Trump’s unannounced visit to Iraq, calling it disrespect for Iraqi sovereignty, the IRNA news agency reported.”
After all the American blood and treasure that’s been spilled on Iraqi sands, there’s only one thing I have to tell Baghdad:
I’VE GOT YOUR IRAQI SOVEREIGNTY RIGHT HERE.
For all I care, Iran can have sloppy seconds.
Fears of ‘Relapse’ as Sweden Releases ‘Muhammad Cartoons’ Terror Attack Plotters (sputniknews, Dec 28, 2018)
https://sputniknews.com/europe/201812281071053401-sweden-muhammad-cartoons-terrorism/
“Four convicts, three of whom are Swedish citizens and one a Tunisian with a residence permit in Sweden, were sentenced for preparing a terrorist act in 2010 at the headquarters of the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten over Muhammad cartoons and intended to “kill as many as possible”.
Despite being sentenced to 12 years’ imprisonment each in 2012, the men will be released this Saturday, having only served two-thirds of their punishment, a practice common in the Scandinavian penitentiary system.
After the judgment, the men were moved to various institutions in Sweden. According to the Swedish Prison and Probation Service, all the prisoners had been reported for threats and violence against staff and other prisoners during the time served. One of the terrorists had to be isolated after suspected attempts to radicalise fellow inmates. However, none of the cases constituted sufficient reasons to postpone the conditional release, which becomes applicable after two-thirds of served punishment, including the time as deprived of liberty before they are convicted.
One of the terrorists visited al-Qaeda* training camps in Pakistan, whereas another one attempted to contact terrorist groups himself on several occasions. Furthermore, the action was sanctioned by al-Qaeda’s top leadership, the daily newspaper Dagens Nyheter reported.
“It is not possible to say with certainty that they will absolutely relapse and become dangerous upon release. But in such crimes there is a great risk of relapse”, Magnus Ranstorp, a senior researcher at the National Defence College and one of the nation’s leading experts on terrorism, told Dagens Nyheter.
According to Ranstorp, former terrorists tend to return to their previous environment after serving a penalty. There, they are worshipped as “as rock stars”.
Sweden’s Security Service (SÄPO) can also decide on post-release monitoring, which has been approved for all four involved in the Jyllands-Posten terrorist plot. In two of the cases, the Prison and Probation Service justified its assessment with a high risk of relapse, in effect repeating Ranstorp’s take.
“The problem is that there are no special efforts after release. They get assigned a contact person from the probation service, but are pretty much left for themselves they come out”, Magnus Ranstorp said, lamenting the absence of programs to rehabilitate, re-socialise and re-integrate the extremists.
According to Ranstorp, this is a neglected area internationally, which is all the more important as about 1,500 terrorists are about to be released in Europe in 2019. Still, he argued, some countries have begun to discuss compulsory programs as prerequisite for conditional release, while Germany and Denmark have invested in special talks during prison time.
In 2010, the four Islamists living in Sweden and currently aged 37 to 52 planned to carry out a bloodbath at the headquarters of the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten, which in 2005 published satirical drawings depicting Prophet Muhammad. According to the Danish Security Service (PET), the Islamists aimed to “kill as many as possible”. In connection with the arrests, carried out in collaboration between Danish and Swedish security police, weapons, ammunition and duct tape intended to bind people were found.”
Revealed: How Iran wages ‘CYBER TERRORISM’ to secretly spy on MILLIONS and incite ‘CHAOS’ (express, Dec 28, 2018)
https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1062095/Iran-news-world-war-3-cyber-warfare-cyber-terrorism-Tehran-Hassan-rouhani-NCRI-terror
“A NEW wave of “cyber warfare” is using “mass surveillance” to “actively disrupt the communication of protesters and dissidents” in Iran and “promote terrorism” across the globe, an explosive document has claimed.
The paper was compiled by the official Iranian resistance movement, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). It makes damning assertions which implicate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in waging “cyber warfare to preserve the theocracy”.
NCRI representative Hossein Abedini has spoken to Express.co.uk about his group’s findings.
Furious Iranians, making use of cyber technology to disseminate their message, have been part of a popular uprising that erupted in Tehran in December 2017.
But now the theocratic regime – led by Iran’s IRGC and the Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) – is using “cyber attacks” to suppress its people, the Iranian Resistance document seen by Express.co.uk claims.
It explains: “Millions of Iranians have access to the internet and more than 48 million own smartphones.
“Iran’s young and restless population has become increasingly ‘tech-savvy’ over the years to evade the regime’s controls and censorship.
“The continuous cyber resistance by the public has driven the regime to route internet traffic through one of the state-controlled systems, making it very difficult for any subscriber to evade state-sponsored cyber repression.”
The ominous paper argues the Iranian regime is among very few governments in the world where “its testbed of cyber attacks and strategies is its own citizens”.
It contends this approach is “in line with Tehran’s longstanding worldview of instilling fear and repression at home, while promoting terrorism, Islamic fundamentalism and chaos abroad”.
The document claims the regime uses malicious malware and spyware embedded within smartphone applications (apps) to “secretly spy” on its people.
The apps are distributed through Iran’s Android mobile marketplace, ‘Cafe Bazaar’, according to the NCRI paper.
It claims one of the main apps used to “spy on subscribers” is ‘Mobogram’, “whose embedded spyware and surveillance features can trigger significant access and authority without the user’s consent and awareness”.
According to the NCRI document, Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who is quoted as saying, “cyberspace is as important as the Islamic Revolution”, attributes great significance to containing the “cyber threat” to the regime.
Khamenei was also cited in August 2017 as saying: “If I were not the leader of the revolution, I would have definitely become the chief of cyberspace.”
On January 26, 2018, Ahmad Jannati, the head of the regime’s ‘assembly of experts’ announced, “Khamenei had a meeting with a number of cyberspace specialists for a few hours on Tuesday, January 23, and had serious talks about the issue”, adding “cyberspace is a blow to our life”, the dystopian document states.
Of the revelations, NCRI member Mr Abedini said: “The regime has been using cyber repression to attack almost 50 million Iranians who are using social media.
“The Iranian youth are known as being ‘tech-savvy’ and they have been working with social media to send out their message.
“The Iranian regime has been using ‘cyber terrorism’ to attack both westerners, here, in universities in the UK and its own people.”
The pro-regime-change representative continued to claim British MPs had been personally targeted by the malicious regime.
His extraordinary assertions come after hundreds of Facebook accounts were suspended last month due to suspected links with the Iranian regime and Russia, who were both accused of using them to spread disinformation.
They also follow a recent expose which revealed how a Tehran-based agency has quietly fed propaganda through at least 70 websites to countries from Afghanistan to Russia.
Speaking to Express(.)co(.)uk, human rights activist and anti-regime campaigner Masoud Dalvand, who called for a resistance movement to overthrow the “religious dictatorship”, explained how the Iranian people have been attempting to fight back against Iran’s suppressive forces.
He said: “In January 2018, nationwide protests and uprisings began in Iran.
“They have continued in various parts of the country as widespread protests and strikes by different classes.
“The ruling dictatorship in Iran, in fear of being overthrown by the people and their organised resistance, arrested tortured and assassinated especially women and young people.”
In response to the regime’s alleged cyber repression, the NCRI has offered a series of “countermeasures” and called on the international community to reverse its policy of “ambivalence and inaction”.
The measures include “tough sanctions” for those implicated in waging cyber warfare, a “circumvention” system so Iranians can enjoy “safe, secure and free” internet access, making smartphone apps available in the Farsi language and enforcing “hygiene” measures in app marketplaces to “prevent the proliferation of spyware-enabled apps by the Iranian regime”.”
“The ruling dictatorship in Iran, in fear of being overthrown by the people and their organised resistance, arrested tortured and assassinated especially women and young people.”
Tender, “women and young people” are a lot more fun to play ‘hide the sausage’ with than any of those shriveled up oldsters. Plus, you get to break their spirit at the same time. What’s not to like?
Send Channel migrants back to France or risk catastrophe: Ex-immigration chief condemns ‘taxi service’ after 300 arrive in two months by smugglers’ boats – and it emerges only ONE Navy cutter patrols UK waters (dailymail, Dec 28, 2018)
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6534475/Send-Channel-boat-migrants-straight-France-avert-tragedy-says-ex-Home-Office-official.html
“Boat migrants crossing the Channel must be sent straight back to France to avert a tragedy, according to a former senior Home Office official.
David Wood, who was head of immigration enforcement, warned lives would be lost unless the Government adopted a new approach.
There were a further 34 attempted crossings overnight yesterday, bringing the total number rescued from the Channel since November to 300 and 82 since Christmas Day.
It is feared people smugglers are targeting the holiday period because they believe there will be fewer patrols. Just one cutter is patrolling UK waters, aided by two smaller craft.
‘We have to stop this or it will grow and grow. It will escalate. The answer is to return them to France as soon as they are picked up,’ Mr Wood said. ‘If we did that straight away, they would realise that paying £5,000 to the people smugglers would achieve nothing.’
Criticising the Home Office’s handling of the crisis, Mr Wood told the Daily Telegraph: ‘As far as organised crime is concerned, it’s de-risked their business.
‘They know they don’t have to get right across the Channel and land, they can get half way across and the migrants will be taken the rest of the way.
‘Given that the immigrants travelled from France, it would not be unlawful if the French agreed. In theory, under the Dublin agreement, there are circumstances when immigrants can be returned to France even when landed in the UK.
‘Britain’s border force, coastguards and lifeboats are being used as a taxi service for the migrants. There will be a hue and cry when a boat full of 12 migrants sinks and they die.’
Nine Iranians, including three children, were found on a beach in Kent yesterday after crossing the world’s busiest shipping lane in darkness in a 13ft dinghy. Another 14 Iranian men were stopped in two boats near Dover, and French authorities intercepted another 11 people as they set out from Calais, where five needed treatment for hypothermia.
The boats have also been helped by calm seas and a full moon.
Tim Loughton, a senior Tory MP on the Commons home affairs committee, last night said Home Office resources had been drained by Brexit preparations and fixing mistakes made with the Windrush generation.
He suggested that more coastguard cutters were needed to avoid ‘the impression of being a soft touch again’.
Immigration minister Caroline Nokes admitted the numbers were ‘deeply concerning’ and blamed organised gangs.
In the latest cases, five Iranian men, one woman, two boys and a girl were found on the beach at Sandgate, near Folkestone, in the early hours. Coastguards spotted their boat. The children were handed over to social services and the adults were transferred to immigration forces.
The Home Office failed to respond to questions from the Mail on whether there had been fewer Border Force patrols during the Christmas break.
Conservative MP for Dover, Charlie Elphicke, called on the Home Office and NCA to get more involved, demanding authorities ‘get a grip’ and step up patrols by cutters in the Channel.
Immigration minister Mrs Nokes blamed illegal people smugglers for some of the recent dangerous crossings, adding that British and French police were ‘working together 24 hours a day’ and the National Crime Agency (NCA) was working to ‘stop people smuggling at source’.
As the full scale of the problem emerged, it was revealed that yesterday alone:
At around half past midnight, nine migrants including three children, were detained near Battery Point near Sandgate in Kent after crossing the English Channel in a dinghy.
At 1.45am French authorities stopped a boat contain 11 would-be migrants in a small boat off Sangatte in northern France, and returned the passengers to Boulogne.
At 8.30am a small inflatable craft containing six adult male migrants was met by UK Border Force officers on Shakespeare Beach in Dover.
And at 8.45 eight men in a dinghy off the coast of Dover were stopped by immigration officers.
RNLI Lifeboats were scrambled at 12.30am yesterday to reports that a small RIB (rigid-hulled inflatable boat) was in the water off the coast of Folkestone.
A coastguard helicopter from Lydd in Kent illuminated the scene by searchlight helping RNLI volunteers from Littlestone lifeboat station find the 13ft boat, which by the time they arrived was ashore at Sandgate, just west of Folkestone.
Charlie Davies, operations manager of RNLI Littlestone, told MailOnline that his crew found the dinghy on the beach, adding: ‘The persons on the rib had gone ashore, and were apprehended by Border Force and Kent Police.’
Home Office confirmed they attended to nine Iranian migrants – five men, one woman, two boys, and one girl – who are being processed by immigration officials.
Each of the migrants have been given a medical assessment and transferred to immigration officials for interview – in the case of the adults – or into the care of social services.
Eleven migrants were rescued by French authorities in a small boat which was spotted by passenger ships in French waters off Calais around midnight.
The French coastal authority, the Maritime Prefecture of the English Channel and North Sea, said a Patrolman of Gendarmerie (PCG) boat, the Athos, was sent to rescue the migrants…”
Public report half a MILLION potholes as the problem of Britain’s crumbling roads increases by a THIRD in a year (dailymail, Dec 28, 2018)
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6534167/Public-report-half-MILLION-potholes-UK-councils.html
“More than half a million potholes were reported by members of the public to local authorities for repair last year.
Data released by councils following a Freedom of Information request has provided a snapshot of the crumbling state of Britain’s roads.
More than 512,000 potholes were reported to the 161 authorities who provided comparable figures, up 44 per cent on the 2015 figure of 356,000 potholes from 152 councils.
After extrapolating the numbers to take account of the 51 councils unable to provide data, the RAC estimated that pothole reports have increased by a third (33 per cent) over two years.
The motoring group, which submitted the information request to 212 councils, described this as ‘shocking’, and said it provides further evidence that ‘the condition of our roads is worsening’. Damaged shock absorbers, broken suspension springs and distorted wheels are among the most common vehicle problems caused by potholes…”
Legal Expert: European Court Ruling Could Open Door to Sharia in EU (breitbart, Dec 28, 2018)
https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2018/12/28/legal-expert-european-court-ruling-open-door-sharia-europe/
“French legal expert Gregor Puppinck has said that a recent European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruling in Greece could open up the door for limited aspects of Islamic sharia law to be adopted in Europe.
Puppinck, who serves as director of the European Center for Law and Justice (ECLJ) and is a member of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Panel of Experts on Freedom of Conscience and Religion, said that the ECHR ruling in Greece earlier this month runs counter to a previous judgement in 2003 that found sharia incompatible with “the fundamental principles of democracy,” Le Figaro reports.
The new ruling followed a case in which a Muslim woman in the Greek region of Thrace was deprived of her inheritance of her dead husband’s estate due to an application of sharia law which has been allowed in the region since the 1920s, despite his will naming her as his beneficiary.
Greek courts ruled the will to be void and determined the process be done under sharia law which led the ECHR to rule against the forced application of sharia in the case but not the use of sharia itself.
The ECHR instead spoke of the conditions for sharia law in Europe saying that countries could allow the parallel legal system if sharia is optional and not forced on Muslims and it does not run counter to “important public interests.”
Puppinck slammed the ruling saying it would open the door for pro-sharia political parties, such as the Islam Party in Belgium, to advocate for sharia law to act as though they were defending human rights by advocating for it.
“In law, as in the stock market, the value of values fluctuates. Facing them, however, sharia seems to enjoy great stability,” he said.
While sharia courts exist in very few countries in Europe, the French government was accused of using sharia principles to determine housing benefits for Muslims earlier this year.
In Sweden, a court was also accused of using sharia as a guide in a case where two lay judges found a man innocent of abusing his spouse because she came from a bad family, while he came from a good one. The lay judges also questioned the woman’s credibility asking why the woman had gone directly to the police instead of trying to solve the issue within the local Muslim community.”
{insert spooky music}
“{insert spooky music}”
Nee-nee nee-nee, nee-nee nee-nee…
And now for something completely different:
Islam Meets The Outer Limits
[Cue intro music and roll the Control Voice monologue]
There is nothing wrong with our ability to kick your whiny Islamic ass. Do not attempt to interfere. We are controlling the situation. If we wish to kick it harder, we will go all medieval. If we wish to kick it softer, we will only open up a six-pack on you. We will control the duration. We will control the intensity. We can roll you up; make your eyelids flutter. We can smear you into a soft blur or sharpen your pencil with a machete. For the next hour, sit quietly and we will beat on you until only your hair doesn’t hurt. We repeat: there is nothing wrong with you that a prolonged ass-kicking can’t cure. You are about to be on the receiving end of a major smackdown. You are about to experience the shock and awe which reaches from inside our missile silos to Tehran’s city limits.
If they keep pushing Trump is the man to do something like that.
Syria military takes control of flash-point Kurdish-led town (miamiherald, Dec 28, 2018)
https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/article223660640.html
“Syria’s military says it has taken control the flash-point Kurdish-held town of Manbij, where Turkey has threatened offensive.
The announcement Friday came shortly after the main Syrian Kurdish militia invited the government to seize control of Manbij to prevent an attack. The development signals the two sides have agreed to the new arrangement. It’s not clear what happens to the U.S. troops who patrolled the town and tense front line between Manbij and adjacent towns where Turkey-backed fighters were based.
Turkey, which views the Kurdish militia as a terrorist group, had threatened a military operation against Manbij.
The threats triggered the U.S. announcement it would withdraw troops from Syria.”
Syrian Forces Trying to Run ‘Psychological Operation’ in Manbij – Erdogan (sputniknews, Dec 28, 2018)
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201812281071064723-syria-manbij-erdogan/
“The Syrian state broadcaster earlier reported that the Syrian Arab Army entered Manbij and raised the flag of the Arab Republic. The army also stated it would “guarantee full security for all Syrian citizens and others” in the region.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called the report on Manbij passing under Damascus control a “psychological operation”, and said that the situation in the region remained unclear.
Erdogan further stated that Turkey’s main goal in Syria was to make terrorists leave the Mideast country, adding that Ankara wanted Kurdish militia to “learn a lesson” in the Arab Republic.
“If they [terrorist organisations] leave the area, we will have nothing left to do there”, he said.
In the meantime, Turkey’s Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said that Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) had no authority to invite others to Manbij and warned all parties against destabilising the region.
Earlier in the day, the Syrian government army entered Manbij after the YPG called on Damascus to take control of the city as Erdogan announced that Turkey was ready to launch an operation in the area.
“Considering the obligations of the army to respond to the call by the people of Manbij, the General Staff declares that the army has entered Manbij and raised the flag of the Syrian Arab Republic there”, the statement read as cited by the Syrian state broadcaster.
The northern Syrian town of Manbij, previously controlled by the YPG, was left by the Kurdish forces who said they would be concentrating on the fight against Daesh* to the east of the Euphrates.
“In conjunction with this, we invite the Syrian government forces which are obliged to protect the same country, nation and borders, to assert control over the areas our forces have withdrawn from, in particularly Manbij, and to protect these areas against a Turkish invasion,” the YPG said in a statement.
Earlier this month, the Turkish President stated that Ankara was ready to kick off a military operation against Kurdish fighters in Manbij, but later said that the launch of the offensive would be postponed following a phone conversation with his US counterpart Donald Trump, who decided to pull American troops out of Syria last week.”
Erdogan, dangerous and crazy. He reminds me of Hitler.
He has no Plan B while Trump has many plans.
John Bolton is meeting with him next week. This should be fun.
He is dangerous and crazy and discovering that a plan B is something that is essential if you are trying to become a major player in the Great Game.
Bolton is another person I wouldn’t want mad at me.
SDF Backs Syrian Army’s Entry Into Manbij Amid Turkish Threat – Spokeswoman (sputniknews, Dec 28, 2018)
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201812281071062711-syria-sdf-manbij-threat/
“The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) support the Syrian army’s entry into Manbij to protect the Syrian territory from possible invasion by Turkey, SDF spokeswoman Jihan Ahmed told Sputnik.
“We are in favour of the Syrian army’s entry into Manbij to protect Syria because if Turkey comes somewhere, it stays there”, Ahmed said, stressing that the Kurds and the Syrian government were “one family.”
The statement comes the same day as the Syrian army entered Manbij after it received a request from the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) to take control over the city amid Turkey’s plans to launch a military operation there.
Earlier in December, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that Turkey was ready to launch a military operation against Kurdish fighters in Manbij if the United States did not remove the militia from there.
Erdogan later noted that the start of the operation was postponed following a phone conversation with US President Donald Trump, who decided to withdraw US troops from Syria last week.”
Kurdish YPG Prepares to Focus on Anti-Daesh Fight East of Euphrates (sputniknews, Dec 28, 2018)
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201812281071058272-ypg-turkish-invasion/
“The development comes as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said earlier Ankara was ready to start an operation against the Kurdish-led People’s Protection Units (YPG) in Syria’s Manbij if Washington does not remove the militia from there.
Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) have called on the Syrian government forces to take control over Manbij amid Turkey’s plans to launch a military operation on the city, the YPG said Friday.
“Due to the invading Turkish state’s threats to invade northern Syria and displace its people similarly to al-Bab, Jarablus and Afrin, we as the People’s Protection Units, following the withdrawal of our forces from Manbij before, announce that our forces will be focusing on the fight against ISIS* [Daesh] on all the fronts in the east of the Euphrates,” the YPG said in a statement.
“In conjunction with this, we invite the Syrian government forces which are obliged to protect the same country, nation and borders, to assert control over the areas our forces have withdrawn from, in particularly Manbij, and to protect these areas against a Turkish invasion,” the statement added…”
UK and US Always Knew Crimea Wanted to Rejoin Russia – Archives (sputniknews, Dec 28, 2018)
https://sputniknews.com/analysis/201812281071042343-uk-us-crimea-russia/
“London and Washington knew of an overwhelming desire of the Crimeans to re-unite with Russia from early days of Ukraine’s independence. UK and US diplomats predicted that Ukraine would split and Crimea would look to Russia, British Cabinet papers released to the National Archives in London reveal.
In 1994 the British got a chance to learn firsthand about the strength of pro-Russian feelings in Crimea. A visit by Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd to Ukraine and Russia coincided with a crisis in relations between Kiev and Simferopol, Crimea’s capital. In May 1994 the Foreign Office informed Prime Minister John Major that Crimean parliament, the Supreme Soviet “decided to renew the validity of the Crimean Constitution adopted in 1992”. This, the FCO memo said, meant ending the legal status of Crimea as part of Ukraine.
Crimea had been an autonomous republic within the Russian Federation; in 1945 it was downgraded to a region within the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and in 1954 transferred to the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic in what the Foreign Office described as an “administrative fiat of [Communist leader — NG] Kruschev”.
Crimean leader at the time was sacked for opposing the move. Most Crimeans never accepted the transfer, which many saw as a “virtual deportation from Russia to Ukraine”, and in early 1991 over 80% of them voted in a referendum to restore Crimea’s autonomy. The Ukrainian Supreme Soviet acquiesced. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991, the Crimeans began a relentless campaign to reunite with Russia. In May 1992 the Crimean parliament adopted the republic’s Constitution which declared Crimea’s right to self-determination. Kiev threatened to open criminal proceeding against the Crimean leaders and hinted at military action to stamp out “separatism”.
The Crimeans had to put their drive for reunification with Russia on ice. Until 1994, when they repeated the attempt and elected their own president on a ticket of re-integration with Russia.
Grass Greener in Russia
The British Foreign Office briefed Prime Minister John Major in May 1994:
“Kiev insisted that the Crimean parliament should rescind anti-constitutional measures, particularly attempts to take over the command of interior ministry forces, the security services and demands for dual citizenship — Ukrainian and Russian.” [About 70% of Crimeans are ethnic Russians — NG]
The Ukrainian authorities see these moves as part of a further push for secession by Crimea, or possibly for eventual reunification with Russia.
If the Crimean parliament refuses to back down they could legally seek to impose direct rule…but it is hard to see how they could enforce this on the ground…”
Crimea, the FCO brief continued,” has always had a special status in the Ukrainian constitution and enjoys considerable autonomy under existing legislation”. In fact, Crimea had its own constitution which gave the republic sovereign powers.
The Foreign Office saw scope for even greater devolution for Crimea, particularly on economic matters which the central government in Kiev neglected, despite all the financial help it was getting from the West.
“Crimean demands for autonomy or re-integration with Russia will not go away. 70% of the population are ethnic Russians. They only became Ukrainian by administrative fiat of Kruschev in 1954. Their historic, linguistic and cultural ties are all with Russia and at present Russia looks to have a more prosperous future. The two parliaments may be able to come to a compromise, probably involving Crimea gaining further economic autonomy.
This ultimately is the key to security and stability in Crimea. Unless Ukraine embarks on a serious economic reform programme to stem economic decline the grass will always seem greener on the other (Russian) side.”
Negative Security Assurance
While in Ukraine Douglas Hurd was told that Kiev was open to international help in settling the dispute with Crimea. The Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) agreed to establish a resident Mission to Ukraine, to be based in Kiev with an office in Simferopol. The Ukrainians have subsequently unofficially claimed that they were able to handle Crimea without the CSCE’s help. “Some might see it [CSCE involvement] as internationalizing a purely internal Ukrainian problem”, an FCO memo said.
Russia, FCO observed, was acting responsibly by calling on Kiev and Simferopol to resolve their differences peacefully.
The British Ambassador in Ukraine cabled London:
“Deputy [Ukrainian] Foreign Minister Tarasyuk, said that president Kravchuk had informed president Yeltsin of Ukraine’s intention to resolve the situation strictly in accord with the Constitution and to treat it as an internal matter. Yeltsin had raised no objection. This had encouraged the Ukrainians to think that action up to normal law enforcement measures need not necessarily induce a Russian reaction.
Despite these resolute statements Ukraine has few options and is all too painfully aware of it.”
The Americans were also doubtful about the chances of a peaceful resolution of the Crimean issue but what most bothered them at the time was Ukraine’s accession to the Non-Proliferation Treaty. Ukraine had inherited Soviet era nuclear weapons, and Washington — as well as London — was eager for her to give them up for good. However, the issue of Crimea threatened to derail the denuclearization of Ukraine.
“Little cause for joy”, lamented US State Department. “Rada probably resistant to reform and effective decision-making. Crimea on a slow fuse. NPT ratification could be delayed.”
Ukraine had signed the Non-Proliferation Treaty but her parliament was delaying ratification, demanding extra security guarantees from the nuclear powers, on top of the standard negative security assurance offered by the established nuclear weapons powers to the states that joined the NPT regime.
A negative security assurance is a guarantee by a state with nuclear weapons that it will not use or threaten to use those against a non-nuclear weapon state. Unlike a positive security assurance, it does not require a nuclear weapon state to come to the aid of a non-nuclear weapon state if it is attacked by another state with nuclear weapons.
The Ukrainians insisted on a positive security assurance but neither London nor Washington were prepared to offer one.
In April 1994 the British Foreign Office reassured Prime Minister John Major that negative security assurances that Britain alongside the US and Russia agreed to give Ukraine in return for her giving up nuclear weapons “does not bind us to any significant new commitments”.
“A new paragraph which states ‘the sides will consult in the event this situation arises which raises a question concerning these commitments’ does not require us, we believe, to go beyond the steps which we would anyway wish to take in such a situation.
The assurance was less than the Ukrainians would like, FCO admitted. Kiev had repeatedly asked for a legally binding treaty, something which London and the other depositaries of the NPT had firmly resisted. To counter Ukraine’s pressure for more binding guarantees, the US suggested offering the same common assurance to Kazakhstan and Belarus. Both had agreed to get rid of their share of Soviet-era nukes and ratified the NPT in exchange for national guarantees given separately by each of the NPT depositary states. But Ukraine was insisting on a joint guarantee by all three depositaries [Russia, Britain and USA], hence this postdated offer of a joint guarantee to Kazakhstan and Belarus was designed to “serve as an example to Ukraine” and “help persuade doubters in the Ukrainian Government that this is really the best offer they are going to get”.
FCO advised the PM that a joint assurance to Kiev would add ‘nothing in substance’ and would not ‘open the flood gates to similar demands from other states.’
London and Washington were so worried that Ukraine would have second thoughts about agreeing to give up its Soviet era nuclear arsenal that they were looking for ways of luring Kiev into ratifying the NPT by promising partnership with EU.
EU’s Commissioner for Trade Sir Leon Brittan went to Ukraine to discuss the Ukrainian request that President Kravchuk sign the Partnership Cooperation Accord with EU in Brussels at the end of May or early June 1994. The request was clearly linked to the timing of the snap presidential election in June-July 1994 [which Kravchuk lost to Kuchma — NG].
Sir Brittan “had been obliged to reply that some member states wanted accession to the NPT [in other words, getting rid of nuclear weapons — NG] before the PCA was signed”.
Sir Brittan admitted that such strict conditionality might be hard to accept but it was apparently the only way forward to ratify the NPT and then move on to the PCA with EU.
Finally, Western efforts bore fruit and in November 1994 the Ukrainian parliament ratified NPT, albeit with “awkward provisos” in British diplomats’ view. Nevertheless, London and Washington told the new president Kuchma that they considered Ukraine’s accession as unconditional. Ukraine was given a joint negative security assurance by Britain, USA and Russia at the Budapest CSCE summit in early December 1994.
Splitting Ukraine
Once the NPT was out of the way, London channeled its efforts into luring Ukraine away from Russia.
The British Secretary of State for Defence Malcolm Rifkind wrote to the Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd:
“…the situation in Ukraine merits particular attention and it is in the clear interest of the West for us to make every effort to promote Ukrainian independence and stability. This is a major security interest for the UK, perhaps second only to what happens in Russia. We must take a long term view of our interests.”
Kiev took its own view of the way forward having obtained the security assurance by the nuclear weapons’ states. Four months after the Budapest summit it unilaterally abolished Crimean Constitution of 1992 and deposed the popularly elected President of Crimean Republic Yuri Meshkov.
His supporters claimed that Ukraine had effectively annexed Crimea through a coup d’etat. They made further attempts to uphold their constitutional rights in 1995, 1998 and 2006, to no avail. However, as the British diplomats opined in 1994, Crimean demands for autonomy or re-integration with Russia would not go away.
An American forecast for the long term developments around Crimea turned out to be prescient: “Ukraine could eventually split into more than two parts”, the State Department predicted in 1994. Fast forward to 2014 and it looks like Washington knew all along what would happen if Ukraine were forced to make an existential choice between East and West.
The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Sputnik.”
Diane Abbott admits she would INCREASE boat patrols to assist migrants coming from Calais (express, Dec 28, 2018)
https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1064363/migrant-crisis-dover-calais-english-channel-france-diane-abbott-boat-patrols
“LABOUR’s Diane Abbott claimed boat patrols may have to be increased to assist migrants crossing the French border from Calais to come to the UK on dangerous boat journeys.
The Shadow Home Secretary told BBC Radio 4 Today Programme she would consider increasing boat patrols in British waters to assist migrants once they have the right to go through the asylum seeking process. The Labour MP, however, claimed the UK should work closely with France to convince migrants to avoid making the dangerous journey in the first place…”
LONDON SHOOTING: Bus driver injured as gunshots fired outside North London Tube station (express, Dec 28, 2018)
https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1064361/London-news-turnpike-lane-shooting-tube-station-bus-driver
“A BUS driver suffered a cut to his forehead from flying glass after gunshots were fired outside a north London tube station in the early hours of the morning.
Armed officers swooped on Turnpike Lane station in Wood Green, north London, at 12.24am.
The station in Wood Green has bus stands where drivers swap shifts and one was found with minor injuries to his forehead from “glass shattering”.
He was taken to a north London hospital.
Officers from the Met Police, who found evidence a firearm was used, remain investigating at the scene…”
Threat from asylum seekers from the Middle East – church services under police protection in Garding, Germany+++
Under very special circumstances Christmas was celebrated in Garding in the district of North Frisia. During all three services on Christmas Eve, staff members of a guard service stood at the only open entrance to St. Christian’s Church (photo above) in the middle of the market square. The police were also on patrol. Pastor Thomas Knippenberg reports on request that the police will also be present at all events in the church until mid-January.The reason: An asylum seeker from the Middle East had smeared the church with Islamic slogans on the Third Sunday of Advent. When a citizen discovered him, he threatened that person, according to Pastor Knippenberg. “We then made contact with the police.” The young man had also molested visitors to the Star Singing on that Sunday. He also quarreled with Pastor Knippenberg. “Obviously, he has something against Christian Christmas.”In order to consider what should be done for the safety of the citizens, the pastor, the police, the social psychiatric service, the town, the church district of North Frisia and the bishop’s chancellery held a conference in the week before Christmas, as Knippenberg further reports, who by the way removed the graffiti himself. The young man was banned from the church and the church forecourt. For the Christmas Eve service a professional guard service was engaged, since the police on Eiderstedt was present only with a patrol car. “So we could celebrate the divine service relatively relaxed.”The precautions proved to be correct: the young man also showed up, but was successfully expelled. “It was good for me to feel that we are standing together here in Garding,” says Pastor Knippenberg with a view to 24th of December. “The people of Garding did not allow themselves to be deterred from coming to the service. Even Bishop Gothart Magaard called Christmas Eve to convey support and intercession. “I hope that peace will now return.”And of course the usual Neo-German dumb gossip at the end of this article. Mayor Andrea Kummerscheidt of Merkel’s alleged Christian Democratic Party expresses her concerns: “I hope this incident doesn’t attract right-wing radicals to Garding. We don’t want them here.”
Read more:
https://searchlight-germany.blogspot.com/2018/12/threat-from-asylum-seekers-from-middle.html
Threat from asylum seekers from the Middle East – church services under police protection in Garding, Germany
How long will it be until indigenous Germans require a police escort just to do their regular grocery shopping? Please be confident that petty crimes such as food shoplifting, donation diversion, and general pilferage will become major issues as Third World cultures set up house all across a beleaguered Europe. It’s just part of business-as-usual for infecting once functional societies with the bio-agents of parallel economies and ethnic ghettoization.
Maybe an officer should be hovering nearby whenever some hausfrau opens her refrigerator—just in case a Nafri
opportunistpredator comes crawling out of the (recently polished and dusted) woodwork.Bosnian prosecutors charge 8 with war crimes against Serbs (abcnews, Dec 28, 2018)
https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/bosnian-prosecutors-charge-war-crimes-serbs-60048936
“Bosnian prosecutors have charged eight former fighters with war crimes against Serb civilians during the country’s 1992-95 ethnic war.
The prosecutor’s office said Friday the group are suspected of torturing more than 20 people who were unlawfully imprisoned in 1992 in the area of Lukavac, in northeastern Bosnia.
The suspects were members of various local militia units during the conflict.
The statement says the victims suffered “grave physical and psychological injuries, sexual harassment, humiliations and other inhumane acts.” Two people died, it adds.
Prosecutors say they will call 42 witnesses to back their case. Bosnia’s courts must confirm the indictment for the trial to be held.
The war among Bosnia’s Muslims, Serbs and Croats killed more than 100,000 people and left millions homeless.”
Boat with 300 migrants arrives in Spain after week at sea (abcnews, Dec 28, 2018)
https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/boat-300-migrants-arrives-spain-week-sea-60047275
“A Spanish aid boat carrying over 300 migrants rescued at sea arrived in Spain on Friday, ending a weeklong journey across the western Mediterranean.
The boat, operated by the nonprofit group Proactiva Open Arms, docked at the Spanish port of Algeciras.
The boat rescued 313 migrants in waters near Libya last week, but had to travel to Spain after Malta denied it permission to dock and Italy and other countries refused to help. Three of the migrants were later evacuated for health reasons.
Oscar Camps, head of Proactiva Open Arms, said Friday that the group of migrants included “19 different nationalities, with many people with the right to ask for asylum.”
In June, Spain opened its ports to another aid ship belonging to SOS Mediterranee Sea and Doctors Without Borders carrying over 600 rescued migrants after Italy and Malta refused to let it dock.
According to the U.N. refugee agency, over 2,200 migrants have died trying to cross the Mediterranean this year in unseaworthy smugglers’ boats while 119,336 have reached Europe.”
German charged over death of ‘slave’ under IS rule in Iraq (abcnews, Dec 28, 2018)
https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/german-charged-death-slave-rule-iraq-60048461
“German prosecutors have indicted a woman alleged to have belonged to the Islamic State group’s “morality police” in Iraq and to have let a small girl she and her husband held as a slave die of thirst.
The suspect, a 27-year-old German identified only as Jennifer W. in line with local privacy rules, was deported from Turkey to Germany in 2016. She was arrested in June and is now charged with murder and committing a war crime.
Federal prosecutors said Friday W. patrolled parks in Fallujah and Mosul in 2015, ensuring women adhered to IS dress and behavior codes.
They said she and her husband bought a 5-year-old girl as a slave. The husband left the girl chained outdoors as punishment for wetting her mattress. W. allegedly did nothing to prevent her dying.”
Germany: Turk hits female supermarket employee several times — he demanded respect from her+++
Police reported on Thursday the incident that occurred last Friday at around 5 pm. According to the police, a small bump escalated in a supermarket in Cottbus, Hardenberg street. According to initial investigations, a 40-year-old man of Turkish descent was accidentally bumped by a supermarket employee while shopping.Thereupon the Turk loudly demanded an apology and respect. The situation escalated and the man repeatedly struck the 52-year-old woman with his hand against her head. A witness prevented further fisticuffs. The criminal investigation department has started further investigations.
Read more:
https://searchlight-germany.blogspot.com/2018/12/germany-turk-hits-female-supermarket.html
More Bad News for California – Taxes, the Wealthy Leave
Make sure they don’t californicate decent red states.
In fact, they should be admitted on a trial basis only.
Trump threatens to close ‘Southern Border entirely’ if Dems don’t fund wall
By Chris Mills Rodrigo – 12/28/18 08:02 AM EST
7,478
8,900
President Trump on Friday threatened to “close the Southern Border entirely” if Democrats do not agree to provide money to “finish” building a wall on the Mexican border.
Trump made the threat as a partial government shutdown enters its seventh day with no end in sight.
The shutdown began on Saturday after Democrats rejected demands from Trump that $5 billion be included for the wall in a measure to keep the government open.
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/423082-trump-threatens-to-close-southern-border-entirely-if-dems-dont-fund
Richard: He has raised the stakes, next move up to the Dems.
Another, bigger migrant caravan is set to leave from Honduras next month
Another migrant caravan — this one estimated at 15,000 people — is preparing to leave Honduras on Jan. 15, according to migrant rights advocates and Spanish-language media.
“They say they are even bigger and stronger than the last caravan,” said Irma Garrido, a member of the migrant advocacy group Reactiva Tijuana Foundation.
inRead invented by Teads
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Meanwhile, thousands of Central American migrants from a caravan that left Honduras in October remain stranded at the U.S.-Mexico border and languishing in crowded Tijuana shelters while they wait out a lengthy process to file asylum requests with the United States.
Coordinators who helped direct the migrants on the 2,000-mile trek with bullhorns, arranging for buses and giving advice along the way, have mostly vanished. Many of the migrants say they feel abandoned and unsure where to turn next. Some are ready to return home.
https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-new-migrant-caravan-20181227-story.html
Top Chinese officials forced to carry out self-criticisms
Top Chinese leaders have been forced to undergo a self-criticism session, state media said Thursday, in a further sign of President Xi Jinping’s efforts to enforce party loyalty amid signs of internal dissent over his handling of a trade war with the United States.
A tool highly favoured by Mao Zedong and taken to extremes during the Cultural Revolution, self-criticism sessions are back in favour under Xi’s presidency as he seeks to consolidate power and tighten discipline in the upper party echelons.
Members of the Politburo “were asked to conduct criticism and self-criticism in light of work experience,” at a meeting held on Tuesday and Wednesday, state news agency Xinhua reported.
The were also questioned on “how they have taken the lead to implement Xi’s instructions and key Party regulations and policies,” it added.
The centre of power in China lies with the 25-member Politburo, though its role has lessened since Xi got the top job in 2012 and started concentrating powers in his own hands.
https://news.yahoo.com/top-chinese-officials-forced-carry-self-criticisms-113232750.html
“Top Chinese leaders have been forced to undergo a self-criticism session, state media said Thursday, in a further sign of President Xi Jinping’s efforts to enforce party loyalty amid signs of internal dissent over his handling of a trade war with the United States.”
As George Orwell knew so well, the Communists have always been streets ahead of the West. We may have self-loathing, but they have a Two Minutes Self-Hate. How can a running-dog gweilo hope to compete with that?
Well isn’t that special…
[/Church Lady]
(Click link for hilarious SFW cartoon.)
Reality’ bites: Cuba plans more austerity as finances worsen
HAVANA (Reuters) – Cash-strapped Cuba plans fresh austerity measures and will pressure the sluggish bureaucracy to tighten its belt and cut red tape to address weak growth, falling export earnings and rising debt.
FILE PHOTO: Self-employed Valentin Traba, 45, sells fruits on the street in downtown Havana, Cuba,
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-cuba-economy/reality-bites-cuba-plans-more-austerity-as-finances-worsen-idUSKCN1OR0VN
One food staple that’s hard to find is vegetables, especially of the green variety.
I was there for one month some years ago. I hung out with the Cubans and traveled throughout the country. When you find peas, they’re greyish-green in color.
Cubans aren’t allowed to hang out with tourists. They can be jailed if caught. So, it was a highly adventurous trip.
When communism falls the Cubans in Florida will go back and start screaming for the US to take over Cuba.
“When communism falls the Cubans in Florida will go back and start screaming for the US to take over Cuba.”
It could be our Puerto Rico 2.0!
After 60 years of revolution in Cuba, cracks in leadership emerge
Six months after being appointed as the new president of Cuba, Miguel Díaz-Canel will preside over ceremonies marking the 60th anniversary of a revolution while facing a stagnant economy and growing citizen protests. Six decades into its socialist experiment, his government is still trying to figure out how to satisfy the basic necessities of its population.
With minimal economic growth in 2018 and continuing shortages of basic staples like flour at year’s end, experts say the government is failing under his leadership.
And unlike his predecessors, who ruled with almost absolute power, Díaz-Canel exposed internal conflicts earlier this year when his government reversed unpopular regulations to increase control over the private sector, was prone to soften a decree that legalizes censorship of independent art, and decided to withdraw from the draft Constitution a controversial article that would open a pathway to same-sex marriage. The move was viewed by Cuba watchers as a response to fear of losing support from members of the religious sector for a referendum that is up for a vote in 2019.
Read more here: https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/cuba/article223562470.html#storylink=cpy
President Trump: U.S. will cut off aid to Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador
President Trump is calling on Democrats to fund the border wall. He made the remarks in a tweet Friday morning, adding, the U.S. will be forced to close the southern border entirely if obstructionist Democrats don’t comply. He also blasted the current immigration laws by saying we need to change them.
In another tweet, the president said the U.S. will be cutting off aid to Honduras, Guatemala as well as El Salvador, which he said has done nothing but take money from the U.S.
https://www.oann.com/president-trump-u-s-will-cut-off-aid-to-honduras-guatemala-el-salvador/
Dawah Man a.k.a. Imran Ibn Mansur flips over muslim woman eating (“sucking”) a banana:
https://twitter.com/Imamofpeace/status/1078537710099283968
What happened? Did his turban unravel?
Analytical note on new claim: Michael Cohen’s cell phone was near Prague in 2016
By J.E. Dyer December 27, 2018
McClatchy reports on Thursday that unidentified sources (“people with knowledge of the matter”) say there is evidence placing Michael Cohen’s cell phone in or near Prague in “late summer” 2016.
McClatchy’s summary:
https://libertyunyielding.com/2018/12/27/analytical-note-on-new-claim-michael-cohens-cell-phone-was-near-prague-in-2016/
Richard: Putting it breifly, until we get more info, specific info treat the report with suspicion.
Terror Cell Behind Hikers’ Gruesome Murder Targeted Security Services, Tourists
The number of arrests following the ghastly killing of two Scandinavian hikers has reached 19, spurring fears of far-reaching consequences for the Moroccan economy, which is heavily reliant on tourism.
The recent batch of arrests conducted in connection with the macabre murder of Louisa Vesterager Jespersen (24) of Denmark and Maren Ueland (28) of Norway include the alleged ringleader of the terrorist group, the head of Morocco’s central office for judicial investigation, Abdelhak Khiam, said, as quoted by AFP.
Investigators said that the terrorist cell, dismantled through a series of arrests in several cities, was made up of 19 members, including three with terror-related criminal records.
Abdessamad Ejjoud, a 25-year-old street vendor living on the outskirts of Marrakesh, was identified as the “emir” of the group. According to Khiam, Ejjoud had formed a cell that discussed how to carry out a terrorist act inside the kingdom, targeting the security services or foreign tourists.
Ejjoud was said to appear in a video shot a week before the murders, in which four main suspects are seen pledging an oath of allegiance to Daesh* and its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi with a black Daesh flag hanging in the background.
Under the influence of their “emir”, the group is said to have specifically chosen the Imlil region frequented by tourists, where it targeted the two tourists in a deserted area, Khiam said. The others suspected of direct involvement in the killings were Abderrahim Khayali, a 33-year-old plumber, 27-year-old carpenter Younes Ouaziyad, and Rachid Afatti, a 33-year-old street vendor.
Despite having sworn allegiance to Daesh, the cell had no contact with Daesh operatives in conflict zones, be it Syria, Iraq or Libya, Khiam assured. This impression was previously voiced by Boubker Sabik, a spokesman for the Moroccan security and domestic intelligence services, who described the suspects as “lone wolves”, who “need no permission from their leader”.
Thomas Hegghammer, a Norwegian Defence Research Institute researcher and one of Europe’s leading experts on terrorism, described the killings as “very amateurish, improvised and opportunistic” that took almost no planning. According to Hegghammer, getting media attention was the single most important goal of the terrorist act. However, he also stressed that the killing of defenceless girls indicates how desperate Daesh have become.
https://sputniknews.com/europe/201812271071026565-morocco-killing-tourism/
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MOROCCO – Murder of two Scandinavian tourists: new revelations about the head of the Imlil cell
[…]the local authorities inform the relevant services have brought the movements of the head of the cell and his attempts to become an imam in mosques
[…]the privileged hunting ground of this chief, who was already known as a salafist, was the outskirts of Marrakech and the surrounding villages. It focused mainly on small mosques that were far from the guarded areas. He sometimes used the absence of imams to preside over the prayers and spread his radical ideology to the faithful.
[…]the head of the cell often traveled with two people who had been imams themselves in the same mosques
https://navva.org/morocco/morocco/murder-of-two-scandinavian-tourists-new-revelations-about-the-head-of-the-imlil-cell/
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MEURTRE DE DEUX TOURISTES SCANDINAVES: NOUVELLES RÉVÉLATIONS SUR LE CHEF DE LA CELLULE D’IMLIL
http://fr.le360.ma/societe/meurtre-de-deux-touristes-scandinaves-nouvelles-revelations-sur-le-chef-de-la-cellule-dimlil-181222
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…described the killings as “very amateurish, improvised and opportunistic” that took almost no planning.
In other words, for sport.
This version is even more chilling.
I’m certain it was his first beheading. He’s hacking away in frustration after the slicing. He couldn’t get the head off.
Even scarier is the thought that there are a lot more like him in every Islamic country.
San Francisco creates district for trans people to spread gender-fluid culture
By Daily Caller News Foundation December 28, 2018
San Francisco created a special cultural district for transgender persons, marking the first legal transgender district created anywhere in the world.
San Francisco’s Tenderloin district is now home to “Compton’s Transgender Cultural District,” The Daily Beast reported Tuesday.
The Tenderloin is a triangular neighborhood located a few blocks from San Francisco’s City Hall. It is also San Francisco’s most notorious drug district, according to authorities, Vice reported in 2014.
Trending: Dem rep introduces bill preventing Paul Ryan from using gym during government shutdown
It is one of the most dangerous districts in the city, authorities say.
https://libertyunyielding.com/2018/12/28/san-francisco-creates-district-for-trans-people-to-spread-gender-fluid-culture/
Transgender fluids.
yech. puts me right off my chow.From CNN*: Inside the Japanese town that pays cash for kids
NR: Back in 1981 trend analyst, Faith Popcorn, predicted “cocooning”. This consumer behavior amounted to DINKs (Dual Income No Kids) sheltering-in-place at home after a high stress workday. Her forecast included the emergence of such customer-friendly amenities as home delivery of VCR tapes with pints of ice cream and other such super-premium services. Many of her prognostications became reality, especially the cocooning part.
It appears as though semi-rural Nagi-cho has discovered the benefits of giving economically fatigued urbanites a place to flourish. In its less-choked atmosphere new arrivals can stop huddling and begin spreading their wings, to the benefit of all.
I predict this phenomenon of “nuclear cocooning” (i.e., promotion of indigenous nuclear families) to be one of the only viable ways of overcoming declining societal population replacement rates.
One day, entropy will see the universe equilibrated into a tepid, barely rippled soup of similarly charged, equally sized subatomic particles, all with an evenly distributed mean free path (i.e., average spacing or pressure).
This entropic principal of thermodynamics also manifests at a genetic level. The future of prolonged borderless immigration is a world overcrowded with fast breeding, light-brown-skinned, below par IQ, sub-six-foot (<182 cm), innovatively challenged worker bees whose carefully cultivated hive minds will never risk a skyward glance.
The wiser heads of Nagi-cho understand that in order to overcome this soon-to-be-irreversible PoMo objective, they must provide weary city cocooners a place to spread their wings and metamorphose into living a more robust and family-oriented lifestyle.
Rest assured that this town's relatively modest financial incentives for having children are eclipsed by an extensive support net of social services and, even more crucial, a community mindset that values the healthy growth of Japan's indigenous culture.
* All MSM content should be assaulted to taste.
Moroccan Authorities Find Woman’s Decapitated Body in Ifrane
Moroccan gendarmerie found the decapitated body of a 24-year-old woman in Ifrane region, in central Morocco.
Rabat – Local inhabitants of the Oued Ifrane rural community in the Ifrane region in Morocco’s Middle Atlas Mountains, found a decapitated woman’s body in a deserted area of the region, on Friday.
The woman, aged 24, was a Moroccan divorcee with one daughter, according to Moroccan media.
According to Moroccan television channel TéléMaroc, the woman’s head was found about six meters away from the body.
The gendarmerie and local authorities rushed to the crime scene to investigate the brutal murder.
The authorities transported the woman’s body to the morgue of Azrou Regional Hospital for an autopsy.
The motives for the murder are unknown, and police have not released any information about potential suspects.
The murder comes just 11 days after terrorists murdered two young Scandinavian women near Imlil, 90 kilometers south of Marrakech.
Shocked and horrified by the act of terror, Moroccans condemned the murder and expressed sympathy for the victims’ families on social media, on the streets, and in front of the Norwegian and Danish embassies in Morocco.
https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2018/12/261861/woman-decapitated-morocco-ifrane/
Cairo tourist bus explosion: Major blast in Egypt capital – fatalities reported
A TOURIST bus has exploded in Egypt’s capital Cairo – killing a number of those onboard.
The blast was said to have happened in the south of the city in the Giza district, which is home to the world-famous pyramids. It is unknown who or how many people were on the bus. Local reports claim “several people were injured” while many more are wounded.
https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1064551/cairo-tourist-bus-explosion-terror-fears-egypt-bomb-latest
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BREAKING Egypt ‘tourist bus explosion’: Casualties feared ‘after blast near pyramids’
There has been an explosion on a tourist bus in Giza, Egypt, according to reports.
Sky News Arabia reports a number of people are dead and wounded following the explosion on a passenger bus in the Haram area.
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/breaking-egypt-tourist-bus-explosion-13787352
====================================================
According to Sky News Arabia, the blast occurred in the city of Cairo on Friday.
The vehicle carrying tourists reportedly blew up near the Giza pyramid complex. Addressing the incident, the Egyptian Interior Ministry stated that two Chinese tourists were injured.
There are dead and wounded due to the blast, Sky News Arabia reported citing sources.
5 injured in bomb explosion on bus in Nasr City, Cairo
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201812281071076274-bus-cairo-explosion/
Bomb blast kills two Vietnamese tourists on Cairo outskirts: ministry
CAIRO (Reuters) – Two Vietnamese tourists were killed and 12 other people were injured on Friday when their bus was hit by a blast from an explosive device in Giza, Egypt, the interior ministry said.
Ten of the injured were Vietnamese tourists and two were Egyptians, a ministry statement said. The bus was hit by an explosion from an improvised device hidden near a wall on Marioutiya street at around 1815 (1615 GMT), the ministry said.
Police are investigating, the statement said.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-egypt-blast/bomb-blast-kills-two-vietnamese-tourists-on-cairo-outskirts-ministry-idUSKCN1OR1DK
DAILY MAIL – Two tourists are killed and ten more injured after bomb blast hits tour bus near Pyramids in Egypt’s first terror attack against foreign holiday makers in two years
Tourist bus was attacked on Friday night with at least two people confirmed dead
There were conflicting reports on whether an Egyptian or two Vietnamese died
A picture from the scene showed the side of the bus ravaged by the explosion
A roadside bomb has struck a tourist bus near the Giza Pyramids in Egypt, killing at least two people.
The homemade device was placed near a wall and ripped through the bus which was carrying 14 tourists close to the ancient monuments, officials said.
There were conflicting reports on the nationality of the victims, with one source saying an Egyptian died while another said two Vietnamese visitors had been killed.
The improvised device exploded at 6.15 pm local time (4.45pm GMT), with the bus driver and the tour guide, both Egyptian, also wounded in the explosion.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6536355/At-two-dead-Egyptian-tourist-bus-hits-roadside-bomb-near-Pyramids-Giza.html
UPDATED: Death toll in IED attack on Vietnamese tourist bus in Giza rises to four
Egypt’s prosecutor-General Nabil Sadek announced on Friday night that the death toll in the IED attack on a bus carrying Vietnamese tourists in Giza earlier today has risen to four – three vietnamese and one Egyptian fatality.
Sadek added that the number of injured stands at 11.
[…]
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/320857/Egypt/Politics-/UPDATED-Death-toll-in-IED-attack-on-Vietnamese-tou.aspx
Egypt: At least four dead, 11 injured after bomb blasts tourist bus in Giza
Egypt: PM Madbouly visits injured tourists at hospital after bus blast near Giza
‘MAJOR INCIDENT’ declared in English Channel: Migrant crisis out of control, admits Javid (express, Dec 28, 2018)
https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1064540/migrant-crisis-english-channel-major-incident-sajid-javid
“SAJID Javid has declared the rising number of migrants attempting to cross the English Channel a “major incident” and has asked for an urgent meeting with French ministers.
Home Office officials said Mr Javid had “taken control of the response to the rising number of migrants attempting to cross the Channel in small boats”. It added there was “concern that it is only a matter of time before people lose their lives”. Home Secretary Mr Javid has held a conference call with Border Force officials, Immigration Enforcement and the National Crime Agency.
The department said: “He has insisted the Home Office treat the situation as a major incident and has appointed a Gold Commander and asked for daily updates.
“The Home Secretary has also asked for an urgent call with his French counterpart over the weekend to reaffirm the continuing need for the UK and France to work closely together to tackle the problem.
“He has also commissioned detailed options from Border Force about the provision of additional vessels in the Channel, including another Border Force cutter, and whether this is likely to encourage more people to try and make the crossing rather than act as a deterrence.”
Mr Javid will speak with French interior minister Christopher Castaner over the weekend to ensure France steps up their commitments to tackling the growing problem of migrants trying to get into Britain.
Earlier today, two boats carrying 12 men from Syria and Iran were intercepted in separate incidents by border patrol forces as they tried to cross from France.
At about 3am, an inflatable boat containing one man from Syria and three Iranians was spotted and reported to the Coastguard.
Just hours later, at 9am, a second boat carrying eight Iranians was also intercepted in the Channel.
More to follow…”
Illegal Migrants Try to Seize French Fishing Boats for Cross-Channel Runs (breitbart, Dec 28, 2018)
https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2018/12/28/illegal-migrants-try-to-seize-french-fishing-boats-for-cross-channel-runs/
“Illegal migrants appear to have boarded and forced the bridges of a number of French fishing vessels in an attempt to reach the British coast.
French fishermen discovered fishing boats in the port of Boulogne-sur-Mer which had seemingly been forced overnight by illegal migrants having to steal the vessels and make a drive across the English Channel, La Voix du Nord reports.
The migrants were unable to start the vessels, although at least one of them, the Don-Lubi II, had had its dashboard taken apart in an attempt to hot-wire it.
This comes just days after a fishing boat which was successfully stolen and put to sea with 16 migrants on board was intercepted by the French authorities, and taken back to the port of Bolougne.
Meanwhile in November, a stolen fishing boat carrying 17 migrants managed to reach England successfully…”
Moment ‘greedy’ shopkeeper, 33, who murdered five people in a £300,000 insurance scam explosion lied about escaping from the ‘hell’ blaze just hours after he doused his supermarket in six gallons of petrol (dailymail, Dec 28, 2018)
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6535291/Three-men-guilty-murdering-five-people-shop-explosion.html
Man, 29, is injured after being sprayed with ‘ammonia’ in attack on busy London street in capital’s SECOND such ‘acid attack’ of the day (dailymail, Dec 28, 2018)
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6533663/Man-29-injured-sprayed-ammonia-London-attack.html
“A 29-year-old man has been left injured after he was sprayed with ‘ammonia’ on a busy London street this evening in the second ‘acid attack’ of the day.
The man was attacked on Roman Road in Tower Hamlets at around 5.40pm and police were called to the scene.
The victim has been rushed to hospital however his injuries are not believed to be serious and an investigation is underway…”
‘She confessed… how can we forgive her?’: Asia Bibi’s former neighbours still want her put to death (telegraph, Dec 27, 2018)
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/12/27/confessed-can-forgive-asia-bibis-former-neighbours-still-want/
Friend of Jihadist Who Plotted Theresa May Beheading Guilty of Terror Offences (breitbart, Dec 28, 2018)
https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2018/12/28/friend-jihadist-who-plotted-pm-assassination-guilty-terror-offences/
“Mohammad Aqib Imran, 22, was found guilty at the Old Bailey on Thursday of terrorism offences after making plans to join Islamic State.
Imran, from Birmingham, was friends with 20-year-old Bangladesh-born north London resident Naa’imur Zakariyah Rahman, who was jailed earlier this year for plotting to behead Prime Minister Theresa May.
The pair had been caught following investigations and undercover operations from the combined efforts of the Metropolitan Police, MI5, and America’s Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)…”
Extremists seize Nigerian town and key military base (abcnews, Dec 28, 2018)
https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/extremists-seize-nigerian-town-key-military-base-60051497
“Extremists have seized a Nigerian town and a key base for a multinational force fighting Boko Haram insurgents, raising their flag and sending many people fleeing, residents and military sources said Friday.
One military source told The Associated Press that reinforcements trying to retake the town have been repelled, with some casualties. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to reporters.
The attack on the northeastern town of Baga comes as President Muhammadu Buhari seeks a second term in February’s election. He took office in 2015 vowing to defeat the Boko Haram extremists, who have split as one faction pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group.
One fleeing resident, Musa Hajaye, told the AP that the extremists “have hoisted their flag and warned us of the evil fate of saboteurs.” Residents said the attack began on Tuesday night, with the military base seized on Wednesday.
Many residents have fled to Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state and the birthplace of Boko Haram.
The fighting continued on Friday in Baga, the chief of army training and operations, Maj. Gen. Lamidi Adeosun, told reporters…”
Thousands demonstrate in Sudan against Bashir’s rule (abcnews, Dec 28, 2018)
https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/thousands-demonstrate-sudan-bashirs-rule-60049638
“Thousands are demonstrating Friday in a string of neighborhoods of the Sudanese capital of Khartoum, calling for President Omar Bashir to step down, according to activists, keeping up the pressure on the autocratic general-turned-president who has been in power for nearly 30 years.
The activists said hundreds also took to the streets Friday in the railway city of Atbara north of Khartoum, Obeid in the western North Kordofan province, and Senar and Wad Madani south of the capital. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they feared reprisals.
They said police used tear gas to disperse protesters in the Khartoum suburb of Omdurman, a traditional hotbed of dissent.
Friday’s protests were the latest in a wave of demonstrations that began across much of Sudan on Dec. 19, first against price rises and shortages but which later turned against Bashir, in power since a 1989 military coup he led. They coincide with worsening economic woes that saw a currency devaluation spiking prices, fuel shortages and a steep rise in the price of bread, a main fare to most Sudanese.
As in previous protests, participants were numbered in the hundreds or the very low thousands, but the continuing defiance of the government in the face of security forces that have reportedly killed scores and injured hundreds speak of a high level of popular discontent.
It’s too soon to speculate on whether these relatively modest numbers could force Bashir to step down, but they might embolden top army commanders to counsel the president to quit in the nation’s interest, although another general at the helm is unlikely to placate the Sudanese. A protracted uprising would paralyze the country and turn into the kind of chaos seen in Libya, whose 2011 revolt turned into a civil war that has left the country divided to this day…”
REPORT: House Dems Quietly Plotting Ways to Reopen Government Without Border Wall Funding
House Democrats are quietly plotting ways to reopen the government while stiffing President Trump every penny on border wall funding as soon as they regain power next week.
House Speaker designate Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and other top Dems are kicking around several options that would deny President Trump the $5 billion he is requesting to build several hundred miles of border wall, according to a new report by far-left Politico.
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2018/12/report-house-dems-quietly-plotting-ways-to-reopen-government-without-border-wall-funding/?omhide=true
Triple Amputee Brian Kolfage: Attacks By Jimmy Kimmel Led to Death Threats on My Wife and My Children (VIDEO)
A Florida-based triple amputee veteran created a GoFundMe push to fund President Trump’s border wall through donations from the public.
The campaign was launched on Sunday night December 16th.
Brian Kolfage, who launched the GoFundMe, is also an active free speech advocate who has spoken against censorship on digital media platforms.
Kolfage promises that he will make sure the United States government will be legally required to spend the donations on the wall and only the wall.
The GoFundMe page passed $17 million in ten days.
The left is OUTRAGED that Brian would have the nerve to help fund a project to defend America.
Gateway Pundit reporter Cassandra Fairbanks spoke with Brian earlier this week.
Deranged leftists have been sending triple-amputee veteran Brian Kolfage mountains of abuse after he was trashed by the Daily Beast, Jimmy Kimmel, Alyssa Milano and other high-profile liberals.
The hate mail provided to the Gateway Pundit contains appalling statements such as people asking if his brain was “amputated too,” calling him a “handicapped bitch,” telling him to commit suicide, wishing harm upon his children and mocking him for having lost his limbs while fighting for this nation.
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2018/12/triple-amputee-brian-kolfage-attacks-by-jimmy-kimmel-led-to-death-threats-on-my-wife-and-my-children-video/?omhide=true
Triple Amputee Brian Kolfage: Jimmy Kimmel Attacks Led to Death Threats on My Wife and My Children
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2018/12/triple-amputee-brian-kolfage-attacks-by-jimmy-kimmel-led-to-death-threats-on-my-wife-and-my-children-video/?omhide=true
Alabama AG Is Investigating the Far Left Disinformation Campaign Targeting Roy Moore During Special Election
Corrupt Democrats ran a Facebook smear campaign against Judge Roy Moore in the Alabama Senate race in 2017 and Facebook allowed it.
PLEASE NOTE: Russia’s 2016 disinformation campaign targeted both pro-Trump and pro-Hillary supporters. The liberal mainstream media does not like to mention this in their reporting. Russia spent just $6,000 in the last six weeks of the 2016 election on ads. Russia spent only $4,600 on Google ads in the 2016 campaign. The Russian influence in the 2016 election was minimal and is one of the biggest lies by the left this century.
Alabama AG Is Investigating the Far Left Disinformation Campaign Targeting Roy Moore During Special Election
Jim Hoft by Jim Hoft December 27, 2018 193 Comments
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Corrupt Democrats ran a Facebook smear campaign against Judge Roy Moore in the Alabama Senate race in 2017 and Facebook allowed it.
Democrat activists took what Russia did on a minute scale in the 2016 election and ramped it up times one thousand.
PLEASE NOTE: Russia’s 2016 disinformation campaign targeted both pro-Trump and pro-Hillary supporters. The liberal mainstream media does not like to mention this in their reporting. Russia spent just $6,000 in the last six weeks of the 2016 election on ads. Russia spent only $4,600 on Google ads in the 2016 campaign. The Russian influence in the 2016 election was minimal and is one of the biggest lies by the left this century.
Learn more about RevenueStripe…
Democrats took this “Russian model” and ramped it up — times a million!
Facebook allowed this to happen.
LinkedIn billionaire Reid Hoffman was a top funder of this deception.
But it gets better…
The same hacks who ran this deceptive campaign against Judge Roy Moore are the same people who wrote the junk “Russia interference” report for the US Senate!
The SAME PEOPLE!
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2018/12/alabama-ag-is-investigating-the-far-left-disinformation-campaign-targeting-roy-moore-during-special-election/?omhide=true
LinkedIn co-founder ‘sorry’ for funding fake Russian tweets for Democrats
China vs Taiwan: Top 5 Differences (Part 2) | China Uncensored
China vs Taiwan: Top 5 Differences | China Uncensored
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“ICE Dump of Illegals Highlights Leftist Attack on Detention Policy, Numbers Crossing Border” by R. Cort Kirkwood – December 26, 2018
https://www.thenewamerican.com/usnews/immigration/item/31026-ice-dump-of-illegals-highlights-leftist-attack-on-detention-policy-numbers-crossing-border
“ICE Removes Two More Mexicans Wanted For Killings, Early December Raid Nets 63” by R. Cort Kirkwood – December 27, 2018
https://www.thenewamerican.com/usnews/immigration/item/31036-ice-removes-two-more-mexicans-wanted-for-killings-early-december-raid-nets-63
“Illegal-alien Cop Killer Highlights Need for Border Wall”
by R. Cort Kirkwood – December 28, 2018
https://www.thenewamerican.com/usnews/crime/item/31043-illegal-alien-cop-killer-highlights-need-for-wall
“California Illegal Alien ‘Cop-Killer’ May Have Ties To Violent Gang Accused Of Murders, Human Smuggling”
Weasel Zippers – December 28, 2018
https://www.weaselzippers.us/406859-california-illegal-alien-cop-killer-may-have-ties-to-violent-gang-accused-of-murders-human-smuggling/
Mizzou Official Claims Tall Men Asking Out Short Women Could Constitute Sexual Misconduct
Getting up the courage to ask someone out on a date can already be nerve-racking, but now that college campuses have completely gone off the deep end, that fear will be intensified.
Today’s crazy comes from — unsurprisingly — the University of Missouri (Mizzou), best known for torpedoing its enrollment rates after campus protests led a professor to threaten a student journalist. An official at Mizzou indicated during a deposition that a male student who was physically larger than the female student he asked out may have violated the school’s Title IX policy because his physical size gave him “power over her.”
For years, we have been told that one must receive “affirmative consent” before anything of a dating or sexual nature takes place. Critics of such policies, such as this reporter, have often wondered what would happen if the mere ask is unwanted, does that also constitute sexual harassment or assault?
Now we appear to have our answer: Yes.
https://www.dailywire.com/news/39732/mizzou-official-claims-tall-men-asking-out-short-ashe-schow
“The Arrested Chinese Princess and the Next Evil Empire”
by Selwyn Duke – December 27, 2018
https://www.thenewamerican.com/world-news/item/31029-the-arrested-chinese-princess-and-the-next-evil-empire
“Mueller Gang Lies and Tries to Delay Jerome Corsi Case Because of Partial Government Shutdown – Judge Rejects Mueller’s Request”
by Jim Hoft – December 28, 2018
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2018/12/mueller-gang-lies-and-tries-to-delay-jerome-corsi-case-because-of-partial-government-shutdown-judge-rejects-muellers-request/
“‘Criminal’ Justice Department Cowers As Klayman Presses On. Trump Must Act Now!” Freedom Watch – Published on December 28, 2018
Fehler der Lufthansa verursachte Merkels G20-Odyssee
Einen Monat nach der peinlichen Panne des Kanzler-Jets ist klar, dass eine fehlerhafte Lötstelle den Defekt auslöste. Für den Totalausfall des Funksystems aber war wohl ein Lapsus der Lufthansa verantwortlich.
[…]
http://www.spiegel.de/politik/deutschland/lufthansa-fehler-der-der-fluglinie-verursachte-angela-merkels-g20-odyssee-a-1245430.html
Church attacked in Austria, 15 injured, monks taken hostage by “foreign” men
By Pamela Geller – on December 27, 2018
A group of unidentified assailants attacked a church in the Austrian capital of Vienna on Thursday. Five monks were tied up and assaulted at an Austrian church in Vienna.
Police found the monks tied up, one of them with head injuries, after nearly three hours
Rush to judgement: Police immediately ruled out terror, which means more likely than not……
https://gellerreport.com/2018/12/austria-church-attack.html/