Each day at just after midnight Eastern, a post like this one is created for contributors and readers of this site to upload news links and video links on the issues that concern this site. Most notably, Islam and its effects on Classical Civilization, and various forms of leftism from Soviet era communism, to postmodernism and all the flavours of galloping statism and totalitarianism such as Nazism and Fascism which are increasingly snuffing out the classical liberalism which created our near, miraculous civilization the West has been building since the time of Socrates.
This document was written around the time this site was created, for those who wish to understand what this site is about. And while our understanding of the world and events has grown since then, the basic ideas remain sound and true to the purpose.
So please post all links, thoughts and ideas that you feel will benefit the readers of this site to the comments under this post each day. And thank you all for your contributions.
This is the new Samizdat. We must use it while we can.
Germany: Afghan asylum seeker first attacks two strollers with a knife for no reason and then stabs policemen+++
A 19-year-old Afghan citizen first attacked two women for no reason on Thursday afternoon and injured two policemen during his arrest. The Afghan attacked a stroller in Harburger Street in Hanstedt around 2:30 pm. He then suddenly attacked her with a knife. A witness who had become aware of this came to the woman’s aid and was also attacked. However, both were able to escape unharmed into the woman’s car and drove to the police. The police searched for the attacker in a nearby accommodation for asylum seekers and found him there. When the man, who had come to Germany as an unaccompanied minor refugee, spotted the officers, he also attacked them with a knife. In the following arrest, the policemen were slightly injured. They were given medical care by the called paramedics. The perpetrator was taken to police custody. He is being investigated for an attempted homicide. One of the subjects of the investigation is what caused the asylum seeker to commit the offence.
More:
https://searchlight-germany.blogspot.com/2019/10/germany-afghan-asylum-seeker-first.html
(Richard: Pay close attention to this video she is making a very important point about what Hong Kong and all of the Western Nations need. This is a written Constitution that is difficult to change, in the Constitution you must enshrine the rights that the Hong Kong Protesters are fighting for. These rights must include the right allowing the Individuals to won any and all firearms with out restriction or registration by the government.
You don’t want Democracy what you want is a Representative Republic where the representatives are democratically elected. As she points out democracy is mob rule allowing the mob to vote away everyone rights anytime they want.)
Dear Hong Kong Protesters – Democracy Is Not What You’re Looking For
Germany: “Fridays for Future” activists are annoyed by what they consider to be too much attention paid to the synagogue in Halle, which has been attacked by terrorists+++
Because in their opinion politicians are not doing enough against the climate crisis, around 50 “Fridays for Future” activists protested in front of the exhibition grounds in Nuremberg yesterday. The reason: German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited the trade union conference of IG Metall and the activists wanted to welcome her with a protest. The motto of the rally was: “We bury our earth”. The demonstrators staged a funeral with flowers, grave candles, lights and a small grave.One of the demonstrators was particularly noticeable. Osteopath Björn L. (50 years old) proudly carried up his self-made poster.On the poster it was written: “If the climate were a synagogue…. What an outcry!!!”
“For me, the climate is simply more important right now,” says the Nuremberg native. And: “The terrorist attack in Halle was terrible, but what happens to the climate is much more terrible. The climate crisis affects us globally”. He himself considered his poster to be radical, but according to Björn L. this is the only way activists would be heard by politicians.He added: He went on to say: “If only a part of the compassion that was shown for the synagogue in Halle would be shown for our climate, then I wouldn’t have to stand here today”.
More:
https://searchlight-germany.blogspot.com/2019/10/germany-fridays-for-future-activists.html
Why This Hongkonger Laughs At My Haters
Trump Whistleblower Complaint Damaging WH-Intel Community Relationship—Fred Fleitz
Immigrants Invent Plan to Deport Themselves
Fireside Chat Ep. 103 – Hong Kong Protestors Demand Freedom
International Man of Controversy
Iran says oil tanker struck by missiles off Saudi Arabia
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Two missiles struck an Iranian tanker traveling through the Red Sea off the coast of Saudi Arabia on Friday, Iranian officials said, the latest incident in the region amid months of heightened tensions between Tehran and the U.S.
There was no word from Saudi Arabia on the reported attack and Saudi officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Oil prices spiked by 2% on the news.
“This latest incident, if confirmed to be an act of aggression, is highly likely to be part of the wider narrative of deteriorating relations between Saudi and the U.S. and Iran,” private maritime security firm Dryad Maritime warned.
“It is likely that the region … will face another period of increasing maritime threats, as the Iranian and Saudi geopolitical stand-off continues,” it added.
Iranian state television said the explosion damaged two storerooms aboard the oil tanker and caused an oil leak into the Red Sea near the Saudi port city of Jiddah. The leak was later stopped, IRNA reported.
https://www.apnews.com/55f68b50763c40eeb25ee19027573d86
TANKER BLAST Iran oil tanker ‘hit by two MISSILES’ in ‘terror attack’ near Saudi Arabia port, reports claim
AN Iranian oil tanker was today hit by two rockets in a suspected terrorist act, according to reports.
The huge blast struck the vessel belonging to the National Iranian Oil Company 60 miles from the port city of Jeddah in Saudi Arabia.
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/10111909/iranian-oil-tanker-explosion-near-saudi-arabia/
UK -Manchester Arndale: three stabbed in ‘random’ knife attack
FIVE people have been stabbed in an attack at a Starbucks in a Manchester shopping centre today.
Counter terror cops are investigating after the Arndale Centre was evacuated – and say they are keeping an “open mind”.
DAILY MAIL – ‘He was trying to get as many people as he could’: Man is arrested over ‘terror attack’ after knifeman stabs five people – including four women – as he runs around ‘lunging’ at shoppers in Manchester’s Arndale Centre
Knifeman rampaged through shopping centre shouting ‘I’m going to f*** you up’ as he stabbed shoppers
Five people were stabbed, three have been taken to hospital and another was treated at the scene
Man, 41, is being held on suspicion of ‘the commission, preparation and instigation of an act of terrorism’
Footage from the street outside shows a man being held down by officers with a taser in the aftermath
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7562607/Several-people-stabbed-Manchesters-Arndale-Centre.html
sky news – Manchester Stabbings: Man arrested on suspicion of terror offences
channel 4 – Man arrested on suspicion of terror offences in Manchester
Inside northern Syria: Five Islamic State militants break out of prison after shelling
Five militants from the extremist Islamic State group have broken out of a Kurdish prison in northern Syria – after Turkish shelling nearby.
The escape happened from a facility in Qamishli city – where several people were killed and wounded in a car bombing earlier today.
As Turkish forces continue their operation against Syrian Kurdish fighters, to a growing international outcry, tonight we are in Istanbul and in Washington DC – but first our international editor Lindsey Hilsum is in Qamishli.
Turkish invasion raises fears of Islamic State prison break
BEIRUT (AP) — In the sprawling al-Hol camp in northeastern Syria, Islamic State wives and widows have set up special courts, stabbed to death at least two people accused of apostasy and wielded knives and pistols in clashes with their Kurdish guards.
Now, as Turkish troops invade northern Syria and the U.S. abandons its Kurdish allies, there are renewed fears of a prison break in the camp that could give new life to the extremist group.
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, who captured much of northeastern Syria from IS with close U.S. military support, are mobilizing to stop the Turkish invasion and say they may not be able to spare enough forces to secure al-Hol, home to tens of thousands of IS-linked women and their children, and other detention camps holding more than 10,000 male militants, including some 2,000 foreign fighters.
Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who remains at large, called on his supporters last month to attack the camps and set the detainees free.
Turkey views the Kurdish fighters as terrorists because of their links to the Kurdish insurgency in its southeast. President Donald Trump moved U.S. troops aside over the weekend to allow for the invasion, and said Turkey would take charge of the IS prisoners, including those Western countries refuse to repatriate out of security concerns. The U.S. is also planning to relocate dozens of the most feared IS prisoners to detention facilities in neighboring Iraq, according to Iraqi officials.
https://www.apnews.com/f366e0aeaa1349769cbc0a73bbe02c26
Turkey views the Kurdish fighters as terrorists…
…because they aren’t TURKS.
“Terrorist” is the fashionable term for someone who needs to be killed. The Armenian was an “agent of pollution”. A Jew was an insect to be “exterminated”. The State of Israel today is a “cancer” that has to be obliterated.
Border on fire’ as Turkey intensifies Syria campaign
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkey stepped up its air and artillery strikes on Kurdish militia in northeast Syria on Friday, escalating an offensive that has drawn warnings of humanitarian catastrophe and turned Republican lawmakers against U.S. President Donald Trump.
The incursion, launched after Trump withdrew U.S. troops who had been fighting alongside Kurdish forces against Islamic State militants, has opened a new front in the eight-year-old Syrian civil war and drawn fierce international criticism.
https://www.oann.com/turkey-bombards-syrian-kurdish-militia-thousands-flee-as-death-toll-mounts/
Hundreds take to Hong Kong streets ahead of weekend protests
HONG KONG (Reuters) – Hundreds of mask-wearing pro-democracy protesters marched through Hong Kong’s central business district on Friday, occupying a main thoroughfare and disrupting traffic as the Chinese-ruled city braced for another weekend of unrest.
Chanting their core demands, which include universal suffrage and an independent inquiry into perceived police brutality, the crowd occupied the financial district at lunchtime before peacefully dispersing.
https://www.oann.com/hong-kongs-metro-legislature-open-but-more-protests-planned-for-weekend/
FBI agent: We found ‘ten times’ as many Hillary emails as James Comey publicly claimed
By Rusty Weiss October 11, 2019
In the event she does elect to run for president again, Hillary Clinton will have some ‘splaining to do, according a new book. The work, titled “Deep State: Trump, the FBI, and the Rule of Law,” claims that the FBI found “ten times” as many Clinton emails on Anthony Weiner’s laptop as former FBI Director James Comey had acknowledged publicly.
The book’s author, James B. Stewart, writes that federal agents had been probing the former Democrat congressman’s explicit texts with a 15-year-old girl when they happened to find thousands of additional emails. “The agents called the discovery an ‘oh sh*t’ moment as they combed through Weiner’s iPhone, iPad and laptop,” Stewart writes. (RELATED: Report: FBI Never Reviewed Vast Majority of Emails Found on Anthony Weiner’s Computer)
The shock matched that of Abedin, a top aide to Clinton, who apparently broke down in tears when she realized her husband’s latest sexting scandal had exposed Hillary’s emails to further scrutiny at a crucial point in the 2016 election.
Clinton herself wrote in her election biography “What Happened” that Abedin appeared “stricken” after hearing that they had found the emails. She quoted Abdein as saying, “This man is going to be the death of me!” before “bursting into tears.” (RELATED: Clinton: Huma Abedin Broke Down Crying After Husband’s Sexting Scandal Led to Email Investigation)
https://libertyunyielding.com/2019/10/11/fbi-agent-we-found-ten-times-as-many-hillary-emails-as-james-comey-publicly-claimed/
Democratic candidates speak out on Christian faith’s compatibility with LGBTQ issues
By Daily Caller News Foundation October 11, 2019
The current field of Democratic candidates for president showed almost unanimous agreement on LGBTQ issues at Thursday night’s CNN forum in Los Angeles as they zoned in on the Christian faith’s compatibility with LGBTQ issues.
Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, former Texas Rep. Beto O’Rourke, New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, and former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julian Castro highlighted aspects of their faith and discussed how they believe faith embraces the LGBTQ community.
Warren described how she grew up understanding that the basis of her faith is love and that there were a lot of different people who “do a lot of different things who look different from each other, who sound different from each other, who are from different kinds of families.”
https://libertyunyielding.com/2019/10/11/democratic-candidates-speak-out-on-christian-faiths-compatibility-with-lgbtq-issues/
In Spain, clock is ticking for Franco’s exhumation
It was a campaign promise of Spain’s Socialist PM Pedro Sanchez: former dictator Francisco Franco would be exhumed from the mausoleum where he’s buried.
The Valley of the Fallen, a monument to the glory of Francoism built by political prisoners, had deeply divided Spaniards.
In September, Spain’s Supreme Court gave its green light to the exhumation process.
Now the government has little time left to honour its promise before a new self-imposed deadline of October 25.
The clock is ticking and Francoists are making their anger heard. Our correspondents report.
Spain: Franco supporters protest exhumation of former leader’s remains
Hundreds of people demonstrated in front of the headquarters of the Spanish Socialist Workers Party (PSOE) in Madrid on Thursday, to protest the exhumation of the remains of former Spanish leader Francisco Franco, buried in ‘Valle de los Caidos’.
Footage shows protesters performing the fascist salute and carrying flags of Spain. Martin Ynestrillas, one of the speakers, called on those present to resist what he described as the “collapse of our moral order.”
The demonstration was convened by ADÑ, a political coalition formed by the Falange Española de las JONS (FE-JONS) Falangist party and the far-right parties Alternative Spain (AES) and National Democracy (DN).
A police force of about 50 riot police protected the PSOE headquarters, avoiding any incident.
(Richard: Read the entire article, it gives a different opinion about what is happening in the Middle East and how our pulling out isn’t bad for national security and isn’t a betrayal of our allies. This opinion isn’t one that we are hearing much about in the Propaganda or alternate media.)
Trump allies are missing the bigger picture in re troop withdrawals from Kurdish Syria
By Guest Editorial October 10, 2019
By Lt. Col. Robert L. Maginnis (U.S. Army, Ret.)
President Trump’s decision to withdraw our few troops from the Syria-Turkey border area has earned him considerable criticism from his allies. Sen. Lindsey Graham said the decision is “a catastrophe in the making.” Rep. Liz Cheney said it’s “a catastrophic mistake.” Former UN Amb. Nikki Halley said, “We must always have the backs of our allies.”
President Trump answered these critics by pointing out that the Kurds were engaged in a contractual relationship fighting the Islamic State (ISIS). They were well paid and equipped for their fighting, much like any mercenary group. Furthermore, they were given three years to consolidate eastern Syria to feed their long-held desire to form an independent Kurdistan with other Kurds in Turkey, Iraq, and Iran. They failed.
The Kurds’ problem, and by association the U.S., is that regional powers like Turkey and to a lesser extent Iran and Syria have long held the Kurds in disdain. In fact, Turkey considers the Syrian Kurds allies of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party or (PKK), which are Turkish Kurds and terrorists fighting for independence for the last 35 years.
Basically, the Kurds hijacked our fight with ISIS to feed their regional civil war to earn independence.
https://libertyunyielding.com/2019/10/10/trump-allies-are-missing-the-bigger-picture-in-re-troop-withdrawals-from-kurdish-syria/
I’m reminded of what English statesman and General Oliver Cromwell (1599-1658) said to his troops: “Put your trust in God, but mind to keep your powder dry.”
Shallow understanding.
Or, biased over-simplification. Wrong on several counts.
Finnish lawmaker receives 2nd verdict for ethnic agitation: reports
HELSINKI, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) — The Oulu District Court of Finland on Thursday sentenced Sebastian Tynkkynen, a member of the Finnish Parliament, to pay a 50-day fine, about 4,050 euros, for anti-Muslim agitation, Finish media reported.
The verdict applied to the text and images shared by Tynkkynen from the populist Finns Party in his Facebook account in 2016. Tynkkynen, aged 30, posted pictures of alleged perpetrators of terrorist attacks and stated in the title that “they have one thing in common: they all serve Allah.”
According to the verdict, Tynkkynen’s viewpoint of the Islamic group was a “deliberate, racist and disparaging” hate speech, which was generally directed at all Muslims, and likely to incite contempt and even hatred based on religious intolerance toward the Islamic group.
Therefore, the district court ordered Tynkkynen to remove the posts from social media and pay the fine.
This was not the first verdict Tynkkynen received. He was convicted of ethnic agitation against Muslims and sentenced a 50-day fine in January 2017 for another posting which claimed “the less Muslims in Finland, the safer.”
According to Yle, Tynkkynen will probably receive a third court decision, as he was also suspected of ethnic incitement against a group of people in his Facebook posts in 2017. The case has been already passed from police to the district prosecutor for consideration of charges.
Born in 1989, Tynkkynen was elected member of Finnish Parliament in April 2019. He has been chairman of the Finns Party youth league for five years and the third vice chairman of the Finns Party for four years.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-10/11/c_138461903.htm
Germany: ‘Danger of far-right very high’ – interior ministry spokesperson
Ukrainian MP publishes documents he claims show Biden-Kiev corruption
A Ukrainian MP has published documents that he says reveal corruption involving Kiev and US Democratic presidential hopeful, Joe Biden.
Iranian tanker suffers explosion in Red Sea; tanker company reports ‘rocket’ attack
By J.E. Dyer October 11, 2019
There was another strange report early on 11 October of an Iranian tanker suffering an explosion and damage in the Red Sea. See maps below for the location, which was southwest of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in the central Red Sea as of midday (Greenwich Mean Time) on Thursday. There is a very interesting echo of a previous event in this latest one.
Back in May, the Iranian tanker Happiness I reported coming under attack in the Red Sea, also near Jeddah. In that incident, neither the Iranian authorities nor the Saudis said the ship had been hit by rockets or missiles. But according to a social media post on Telegram, someone from the ship did say that. The damage to the ship was confirmed by the Saudis, who rendered assistance when Happiness I began sinking.
In the most recent incident on 11 October, Iranian news sources say the National Iranian Tanker Company (NITC) and Iranian National Oil Company (INOC) have reported the tanker being attacked by two “rockets” or “missiles” (apparently depending on translation), in the 0500 hour local time.
https://libertyunyielding.com/2019/10/11/breaking-iranian-tanker-suffers-explosion-in-red-sea-tanker-company-reports-rocket-attack/
Richard: Iran is probably establishing an excuse for harassing or seizing more tankers in the gulg.
https://libertyunyielding.com/2019/10/11/breaking-iranian-tanker-suffers-explosion-in-red-sea-tanker-company-reports-rocket-attack/
On Tuesday, it was reported that the Intelligence Community Inspector General told Congress the “whistleblower” who filed a complaint about Trump’s 25 July phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had had a “professional tie” with one of the Democratic candidates for president in 2020. That relationship factored in as one of IG Michael Atkinson’s “indicia of arguable political bias” in the “whistleblower’s” motives.
As discussed when this news came out, the statement was not that the “whistleblower” was connected to anyone’s political campaign. What Atkinson said was that the individual had a previous professional tie to one of the candidates. Given the other information about the person – that he or she was a career CIA employee who had recently been detailed to the National Security Council for a period of time – this piece of information almost certainly meant that the 2020 presidential candidate was Joe Biden.
On Thursday, the Washington Examiner reported that former officials were confident of that: “The 2020 Democratic candidate with whom the CIA whistleblower had a “professional” tie is Joe Biden, according to intelligence officers and former White House officials.”
https://libertyunyielding.com/2019/10/11/report-officials-say-whistleblower-worked-with-joe-biden-during-obama-administration/
On this day in history:
The Battle of Tours
https://thewriterinblack.com/2019/10/10/7475/
ISIS family members trying to escape from camp in northeastern Syria – report
Syrian Kurdish officials have said its security agencies contained an apparent escape attempt at a sprawling camp in northeastern Syria, home to thousands of family members of #ISIS militants.
Mustafa Bali, spokesperson for the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), said on Friday dozens of camp residents attacked the exit gate of AlHol camp, which is home to more than 70,000 women and children.
Video from a closed-circuit camera at the camp, operated by the SDF, showed security members chasing women covered in black dress, as they attempted to flee down a main road inside the facility.
Bali labelled the situation as “critical.”
Ep. 1086 The List of Suspects is Short. The Dan Bongino Show 10/11/2019.
Comment from an Israeli blog: “It’s surreal listening to the arguments on both sides of the question. It’s as though they are reporting from alternate realities.”
Link to this video [with Eng. subtitles:
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6bb5nl?fbclid=IwAR1GXz_dRG9s9y9TfTpsDoiMULOj066G-4BozaSC4d2bF46kd-Qk4mhob28
[Did I get the link wrong?]
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x7mhieq?fbclid=IwAR1GXz_dRG9s9y9TfTpsDoiMULOj066G-4BozaSC4d2bF46kd-Qk4mhob28
“That’s Been Happening” – DEVIN NUNES Claims Democrats Have been Working with Fired Ambassador Yovanovich Before Her Scheduled Testimony (VIDEO)
“That’s Been Happening” – DEVIN NUNES Claims Democrats Have been Working with Fired Ambassador Yovanovich Before Her Scheduled Testimony (VIDEO)
Jim Hoft by Jim Hoft October 11, 2019 144 Comments
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Rep. Devin Nunes (D-CA) went on with America’s Newsroom on Friday before the scheduled testimony of fired Ukrainian Ambassador Marie Yovanovich before the House Intelligence Committee.
Nunes told FOX News that the fired ambassador was working with Democrats before her testimony today.
Rep. Devin Nunes: It was well known. We’ve had both former officials and current officials come and tell us that this was a very partisan ambassador. This was somebody who was not only supporting the Clintons, when Clinton was running, telling the people that Clinton was going to win, prognosticating about it. But also once Trump won was badmouthing the Trump administration in Ukraine, to Ukrainians and State Department staff… We would want to get her on the record, did she support the Trump administration? Did she really say these negative things about the Trump administration? Was she looking at journalists? Was she monitoring journalists in the United States? These are all questions that we want answers to… My guess here is that this is someone who the Democrats have been coordinating with. Let’s not pretend that this ambassador hasn’t been working with the Democrats. That’s been happening.
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2019/10/thats-been-happening-devin-nunes-claims-democrats-have-been-working-with-fired-ambassador-yovanovich-before-her-scheduled-testimony-video/?utm_source=Email&utm_medium=the-gateway-pundit&utm_campaign=dailyam&utm_content=daily
BLAST FROM THE PAST: Obama State Dept. Was Confronted About Hunter Biden’s Position on Ukrainian Burisma Board in 2014!… Their Response Will Shock You! (VIDEO)
White House threatens Turkey with ‘very powerful’ sanctions
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced that President Trump has cleared the path for severe sanctions aimed at damaging Turkey’s economy if the country did not stop its assault on Syrian Kurds.
Mnuchin threatens sanctions against Turkey
U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin held a press briefing on possible sanctions being imposed on Turkey. The briefing comes in light of the recent attack on Northern Syria after President Trump announced he would be pulling U.S. troops out of the region.
Pentagon urges Turkey to halt Syria incursion
NEWSWEEK EXCLUSIVE: TURKEY ATTACKS US SPECIAL FORCES IN SYRIA, APPARENTLY BY MISTAKE
A contingent of U.S. Special Forces was caught up in Turkish shelling against U.S.-backed Kurdish positions in northern Syria, days after President Donald Trump told his Turkish counterpart he would withdraw U.S. troops from certain positions in the area. A senior Pentagon official said shelling by the Turkish forces was so heavy that the U.S. personnel considered firing back in self-defense.
Newsweek has learned through both an Iraqi Kurdish intelligence official and the senior Pentagon official that Special Forces operating on Mashtenour hill in the majority-Kurdish city of Kobani fell under artillery fire from Turkish forces conducting their so-called “Operation Peace Spring” against Kurdish fighters backed by the U.S. but considered terrorist organizations by Turkey. No injuries have been reported.
Instead of returning fire, the Special Forces withdrew once the shelling had ceased. Newsweek previously reported Wednesday that the current rules of engagement for U.S. forces continue to be centered around self-defense and that no order has been issued by the Pentagon for a complete withdrawal from Syria.
The Pentagon official said that Turkish forces should be aware of U.S. positions “down to the grid.” The official could not specify the exact number of personnel present, but indicated they were “small numbers below company level,” so somewhere between 15 and 100 troops. Newsweek has reached out to the Pentagon for comment on the situation.
The Turkish Defense Ministry issued a statement in response to Newsweek’s report, denying that its military had targeted U.S. forces. The ministry affirmed that “Turkish border outposts south of Suruc came under Dochka and mortar fire from the hills located approximately 1,000 meters southwest of a U.S. observation post.”
“In self-defense, reciprocal fire was opened on the terrorist positions of the attack. Turkey did not open fire at the U.S. observation post in any way,” the statement added. “All precautions were taken prior to opening fire in order to prevent any harm to the U.S. base. As a precaution, we ceased fire upon receiving information from the U.S. We firmly reject the claim that U.S. or Coalition forces were fired upon.”[…]
https://www.newsweek.com/us-troops-syria-turkey-1464727
Turkey and the Kurds: It’s More Complicated Than You Think
By Andrew C. McCarthy
October 10, 2019 12:36 PM
We are grateful for the Kurds’ help, and we should try to help them in return. But no one wants to risk war with Turkey.
NRPLUS MEMBER ARTICLE
O n Monday, President Trump announced that a contingent of fewer than 100 U.S. troops in Syria was being moved away from Kurdish-held territory on the border of Turkey. The move effectively green-lighted military operations by Turkey against the Kurds, which have now commenced.
Some U.S. military officials went public with complaints about being “blindsided.” The policy cannot have been a surprise, though. The president has made no secret that he wants out of Syria, where we now have about 1,000 troops (down from over 2,000 last year). More broadly, he wants our forces out of the Middle East. He ran on that position. I’ve argued against his “endless wars” tropes, but his stance is popular. As for Syria specifically, many of the president’s advisers think we should stay, but he has not been persuaded.
https://www.nationalreview.com/2019/10/turkey-and-the-kurds-its-more-complicated-than-you-think/
Eurasia’s Great Game: India, Japan, and Europe Play to Putin’s Needs
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Eurasia’s Great Game is anything but simple and straightforward. A burgeoning alliance between China and Russia that at least for now is relegating potential differences between the two powers to the sidelines has sparked a complex geopolitical dance of its own.
With India, Japan, and Europe seeking to drive a wedge between China and Russia, the Central Asian states, where anti-Chinese sentiment is rising, are quietly hoping that Asian rivalries will grant them greater maneuverability.
Indian PM Narendra Modi, on a recent visit to Russia during which he attended the annual Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok (established to attract Asian investment in the country’s Far East), announced a $1 billion credit line to fund development of the region.
Modi and Russian president Vladimir Putin also agreed to establish a maritime link between Russia’s Far East capital, Vladivostok, and Chennai that would reduce transport time from 40 to 24 days.
The connection could serve as an extension of the Indian Ocean Corridor that links India to Japan and the Pacific and competes with China’s “pearl of strings,” a series of ports across Asia in which Beijing has invested heavily.
https://besacenter.org/perspectives-papers/india-japan-europe-putin/
SYRIA: DON’T ROMANTICIZE THE KURDS
Most of the ire directed at Mr. Trump has to do with hand-wringing over our “Kurdish allies,” even after the President warned Turkey not to engage in its habitual behaviors – since Ataturk created his ethno-racist state – towards the Kurds. Regardless, here are a few salient points one should bear in mind about the Kurds which the hand-wringers conveniently ignore in their hagiographies: – Kurdish predatory mass killings of Christians and Yazidis are well-characterized and went on for centuries. Grinding persecution continues to this day, as can be gleaned from detailed reports by both Assyrian and Yazidi organizations (here; here; here)… Andrew Bostom
https://www.jihadwatch.org/2019/10/dont-romanticize-the-kurds
+
CROSSTALK: DEMYSTIFYING SYRIA
video – 24 minutes 56 seconds
Almost all of the criticism lodged against Trump’s Syria policy is not rooted in facts. Actually, that criticism is driven by false narratives and the inability to admit the international proxy war to overthrow the Damascus government has failed. The sooner all American troops leave Syria, the better for Syria and the region.
The Truth About Extinction Rebellion
Trump Dramatically Reduces Legal Immigration
Trump Supporters ATTACKED Outside Minnesota Rally, Dozens Of MAGA Hats Torched
NBA Offends China
Steve Bannon: CCP Will Collapse If US-China Economies Decouple – Zooming in
Hong Kong protest tension surfaces in Richmond, Canada, the world’s most-Chinese city outside Asia
Hong Kong braces for another weekend of demonstrations
Trump to send more troops to Saudi Arabia amid Turkey attacks on Syria
Kurds are obviously getting pounded by Turkey ATM. Lots of video online.
But ISIS joined the party too, Kurds are attacked from all sides. As has been said before, ISIS is far from beaten, they’re just regrouping. Car bomb attack in Qamishli. 4 civilians killed and 9 injured. Videos of aftermath here:
https://twitter.com/cmoc_sdf/status/1182645742420279296?s=20
https://twitter.com/GforGilgo/status/1182644980780847106?s=20
More photos:
https://twitter.com/Jake_Hanrahan/status/1182670117559291905
While Turkey attacks, european ISIS women in al-Hol/al-Hawl camp try to escape:
https://twitter.com/baxtiyarumut/status/1182575367791534080
https://twitter.com/NPA_SY/status/1182617195278491648
ISIS tells them to lay low, apparently:
https://twitter.com/_Caki__/status/1182606674495987713
Erdogan’s shock troops are ISIS members yelling ISIS slogans, apparently:
https://twitter.com/Mekut_Mallet/status/1182666841992421376
More Turkey-backed ISIS enthusiasts. This is the Sultan Murad brigade, which has received help from the west in the past. The dutch government gave them pickup trucks, claiming they were moderates fighting for democracy in Syria (lol).
https://twitter.com/Mekut_Mallet/status/1054007890057617409
ISIS supporters in Jarabulus:
https://twitter.com/Mekut_Mallet/status/1112790855012765701
Turkey’s SNA jihadis:
https://twitter.com/nighttides/status/1182678525536591873
PS fuck Erdogan!
PS fuck Erdogan!
feh
Gaddafi-style, that’s the only way..
I hope you watched the last 2 episodes of South park Yucki. They said that about the Chinese Government.
Uzbekistan repatriates 64 children of ‘terrorists’ from Iraq
https://thedefensepost.com/2019/10/11/uzbekistan-repatriates-64-children-iraq-isis/
“Uzbekistan announced on Friday, October 11 that 64 children had arrived in the Central Asian country from Iraq where their parents are serving life sentences “as members of terrorist organizations.”
The Uzbek foreign ministry said the children were brought to the country by plane Thursday night thanks to a joint effort involving the authorities of both countries and the United Nations children’s agency UNICEF.
The ministry said the children – 14 of them under the age of three – had suffered “moral, psychological and physical problems” after their parents chose “a wrong path” by joining militant groups there.
The children will be housed in special accommodations where they will receive “medical, psychological and social assistance by specialists,” the ministry said, adding that the parents had given permission for the repatriation.
So far three Central Asian countries – Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan – have brought citizens back from either Syria or Iraq where thousands from the Muslim-majority region joined Islamic State and other jihadist groups.
Kyrgyzstan has also said it intends to bring citizens back from Iraq in the near future.
Uzbekistan’s foreign minister said in September it planned to bring 235 citizens, including 65 children, to the country from Iraq after it repatriated 156 citizens from there in May.
The ministry did not say when the adults would return and whether they would be punished.
The fall of Islamic State’s caliphate in Iraq and Syria has left many countries grappling with what to do with the militants and their relatives.
Many of their countries of origin have been reluctant to repatriate them or put them on trial at home.
The largest repatriation effort by a European country so far saw Kosovo in April take back 110 of its nationals from Syria – mostly the wives and children of ISIS fighters.”
Female ISIS adherents in Syria’s al-Hol camp attack security forces
https://thedefensepost.com/2019/10/11/syria-isis-women-attack-al-hol-asayish/
“Members of the Kurdish police force known as Asayish were attacked early Friday, October 11 by women in a camp housing thousands of foreign female Islamic State adherents, a camp official said.
A protest that began around 6 a.m. developed into a melee with women throwing stones and attacking the Asayish, said the official identified by the Rojava Information Center as Eylul.
Contrary to early reports, the official said no one escaped, but added they were likely trying to get past the police force and out of the camp.
Five women were arrested, he said…”
US to deploy additional troops, Patriot batteries and THAAD system to Saudi Arabia
https://thedefensepost.com/2019/10/11/us-troops-patriot-thaad-saudi-arabia/
“The United States will deploy additional troops and equipment to Saudi Arabia amid tensions with Iran in the region, the Department of Defense said on Friday, October 11.
At CENTCOM’s request, Esper approved the deployment of two fighter squadrons, an Air Expeditionary Wing, two Patriot air defense batteries and Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system (THAAD) to the kingdom, the Pentagon said.
Taken together with other deployments this constitutes an additional 3,000 forces that have been extended or authorized within the last month, and an increase of 14,000 forces to the CENTCOM area of operations since May.
Last month the Pentagon said it would send an additional 200 support personnel to Saudi Arabia to accompany a Patriot battery and four Sentinel radar systems.
Esper approved the additional batteries and THAAD system at the time, which came after coordinated projectiles struck two major Saudi crude oil processing plants in an economically damaging attack which the U.S. and Saudi officials have blamed on Iran…”
Iranian Cleric Warns Turkey against ‘New Quagmire’ in Syria
https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2019/10/11/2116384/iranian-cleric-warns-turkey-against-new-quagmire-in-syria
“Tehran’s Provisional Friday Prayers Leader Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami deplored Turkey’s recent military operation in northeastern Syria as an act of aggression against a sovereign state and said Ankara should avoid creating a new quagmire for themselves…”
Iran Calls Attack on Oil Tanker ‘Dangerous Adventurism’
https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2019/10/11/2116261/iran-calls-attack-on-oil-tanker-dangerous-adventurism
“Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyed Abbas Mousavi deplored the Friday attack on an Iranian oil tanker in the Red Sea near Saudi Arabia as “dangerous adventurism” and said a probe into the incident is underway…”
Somalia: USAID announces some $50M in education funding
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20191011-somalia-usaid-announces-some-50m-in-education-funding/
“The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) announced on Friday nearly $50 million in education funding in Somalia, reports Anadolu Agency.
In a statement, the US embassy in the Somali capital of Mogadishu said the five-year program “aims to increase access to quality education and support accelerated learning for out-of-school children and youth who have been persistently left behind.”
Dubbed “Bar Ama Baro”, or Teach or Learn, the program brings funding for Somali education by USAID to $65 million.
“USAID is currently supporting a $10 million project implemented by UNICEF and a $5 million contribution to the Girls’ Education Challenge program managed by the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development,” the statement added.
Somalia welcomed the announcement, saying: “More goodies & goodwill when governance is well driven.”
A third of Somalia’s debt is owed to the multilateral development banks including the World Bank and African Development Bank as well as the International Monetary Fund (IMF).”