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.
John Kerry Joins Joe Biden on Iowa Bus Tour – Kerry Touts Biden as Messianic Figure Who Can ‘Save the World’ (VIDEO)
Cristina Laila by Cristina Laila December 6, 2019 352 Comments
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Former Secretary of State John Kerry joined Joe Biden on his Iowa bus tour because nothing says diversity like two old white guys, right Dems?
John Kerry touted Joe Biden, who has been in government nearly 50 years, as a messianic figure who can single-handedly save the world.
Watch the two crooks exit Biden’s tour bus:
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2019/12/john-kerry-joins-joe-biden-on-iowa-bus-tour-kerry-touts-biden-as-messianic-figure-who-can-save-the-world-video/?utm_source=Email&utm_medium=the-gateway-pundit&utm_campaign=dailypm&utm_content=daily
REVEALED: Ukraine was the Origin of the Trump-Russia Collusion Hoax and It Ran Right Through the Office of Eric Ciaramella
During the first week of December 2015, Donald Trump began to establish a substantial lead over his Republican primary opponents.
Read more
Vice President Joseph Biden traveled to Ukraine to announce, on December 7th, a $190 million program to “fight corruption in law enforcement and reform the justice sector,” but behind the scenes explicitly linked a $1 billion loan guarantee to the firing of Ukrainian prosecutor Viktor Shokin, who had been investigating the energy company Burisma, which employed Biden’s son Hunter.
On December 9, 2015, the reported whistleblower Eric Ciaramella held a meeting in Room 236 of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building with Daria Kaleniuk, executive director of the Ukrainian Anti-Corruption Action Center, which was 59%-funded by Barack Obama’s State Department and the International Renaissance Foundation, a George Soros organization.
Also attending that meeting was Catherine Newcombe, attorney in the Criminal Division, Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, with the U.S. Department of Justice, where, among other duties, she oversaw the Department’s legal assistance programs to Ukraine.
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2019/12/revealed-ukraine-was-the-origin-of-the-trump-russia-collusion-hoax-and-it-ran-right-through-the-office-of-eric-ciaramella/?utm_source=Email&utm_medium=the-gateway-pundit&utm_campaign=dailypm&utm_content=daily
Finland: Several arrested as right-wing Independence Day rally met with counter-protest
Police in the Finnish capital, Helsinki arrested several people on Friday as a rally of the anti-immigration group Soldiers of Odin was met with a counter-protest by anti-fascist activists. The demonstration was held as the country marks 102 years of its independence.
Footage shows the right-wing supporters marching with Finnish flags and later with torches as police separate them from rival protesters chanting offensive slogans.
“Our main objective is offer for ordinary people similar kind of protests that traditionally student unions had a bit earlier on this day, with torches and darkness outside. So it looks very nice and very peaceful on a graveyard. It is a very touching moment for everybody,” said Teemu Lahtinen, chairman of the Finns Party Espoo City council group.
Independence Day celebrations in Finland are often marred by tensions and violence between rival activists.
Trump shares Saudi response to Pensacola shooting
VIDEO: Joe Biden puts out perfect campaign ad for President Trump
By J.E. Dyer December 5, 2019
Sometimes it just comes from the wrong guy. The really wrong guy.
In the case of this digital campaign ad tweeted by Democratic candidate Joe Biden, that’s kind of a two-fer. First there’s the idea of Biden, who recently made news with a video-recorded riff on leg hair, children stroking his leg hair, and something about cockroaches, proposing to embarrass Donald Trump with a video.
But then there’s the supposed source of embarrassment in the video, which is that foreign leaders like Justin Trudeau are laughing at Trump.
https://libertyunyielding.com/2019/12/05/video-joe-biden-puts-out-perfect-campaign-ad-for-president-trump/
Afghan Migrant Gets Just Two Years in Prison for Abusing Toddler (breitbart, Dec 6, 2019)
https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2019/12/06/afghan-convicted-abusing-five-year-old-gets-just-two-years-prison/
“Afghan migrant Ayub Miakhel has been found guilty of sexually abusing a five-year-old girl in the French commune of Avranches but was sentenced to just two years in prison.
The 27-year-old had initially denied the sexual assault, which took place during the night of April 28th, 2018, but the evidence presented to the Coutances correctional court confirmed the prosecution’s accusations of sexual assault and a judge found him guilty of the charge, La Manche Libre reports.
The incident took place at a home where the Afghan, along with several other migrants, was living at the time. The child’s mother had been sleeping on the floor of the apartment when she found the five-year-old in bed with the Afghan migrant.
The young girl told her mother that the 27-year-old had touched her inappropriately, which led to the mother telling neighbours about the incident, who then contacted the local police.
According to investigators, the victim told them the Afghan had asked her to touch his “hard sausage” during the incident.
The case comes only months after a Nigerian migrant was arrested in the Italian city of Parma for allegedly abusing an eight-year-old girl.
Investigators stated that the 37-year-old Nigerian had lured the young girl into the bathroom of his shop where he proceeded to sexually abuse her on at least three separate occasions.
In October in Sweden, a migrant in his twenties was sentenced to just three years in prison for raping an 11-year-old girl several times, getting her pregnant twice.
While the man, whose nationality was not specified, will be deported after his sentence, he will be allowed back into Sweden after 10 years.”
Shooting shocks Gun Controlled Japan with Automatic Rifle
jihad watch – India’s cabinet approves bill to give citizenship to religious minorities persecuted in neighboring Muslim countries
“Critics have called the proposed law anti-Muslim.”
Why? Are non-Muslims not actually being persecuted in Muslim countries? This shows how the charge of being “anti-Muslim” is used to intimidate and silence anyone who dares stand against the jihad or with its victims.
Meanwhile, every nation on earth should offer a similar refuge.
“India’s cabinet sends religion-based citizenship bill to parliament,” by Devjyot Ghoshal and Zarir Hussain, Reuters, December 4, 2019:
NEW DELHI/GUWAHATI (Reuters) – India’s cabinet approved a bill on Wednesday to give citizenship to religious minorities persecuted in neighboring Muslim countries, the first time that the country is seeking to grant nationality on the basis of religion.
Last month, Amit Shah, India’s federal home (interior) minister, told parliament that non-Muslim minorities – Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, Christians, Sikhs and Parsis – who fled from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan would be given Indian citizenship under the proposed law.
The Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) was first introduced in 2016 by the Hindu nationalist government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi but was withdrawn after an alliance partner withdrew support and protests flared in India’s remote and ethnically diverse northeastern region.
Giving Indian citizenship to “Hindus, Jains, Buddhists and Sikhs escaping persecution” was part of the manifesto of Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of a general election in May 2019 that the nationalist leader swept.
Critics have called the proposed law anti-Muslim, and some opposition parties have also pushed back, arguing citizenship cannot be granted on the basis of religion….
https://www.jihadwatch.org/2019/12/indias-cabinet-approves-bill-to-give-citizenship-to-religious-minorities-persecuted-in-neighboring-muslim-countries
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Press TV – India government approves controversial citizenship bill
US sanctions leaders of Iran-linked militias accused of firing on Iraqi protesters
https://thedefensepost.com/2019/12/06/sanctions-ofac-iraq-iran-protest/
“The U.S. government on Friday sanctioned four Iraqi nationals, three for alleged involvement in the violent repression of ongoing protests, and a fourth for corruption and bribery.
The U.S. sanctioned Qais al-Khazali, his brother Laith al-Khazali and Husayn Falih ‘Aziz al-Lami “for their involvement in serious human rights abuses in Iraq.”
The three are accused of holding leadership positions in Iran-backed militias which have opened fire on Iraqi protesters in recent months, killing scores of people, according to separate December 6 statements by the U.S. Treasury Department and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
Laith and Qais al-Khazali are also accused of planning a 2007 raid in which members of Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq, an Iraqi Shia militia linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, kidnapped four U.S. soldiers from an Iraqi police headquarters before killing them. A fifth American soldier was killed inside the base.
Laith was imprisoned by the U.S. military in Iraq in 2007 for his alleged involvement in the raid but was released in 2009 in what Iraq’s chief negotiator at the time described as an attempt to gain the release of British hostages and bring the group militant back into the country’s legitimate political fold.
The U.S. accuses Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq of serious abuses in Iraq in recent years, including “widespread forced disappearances, abductions, killings, and torture [and] targeting Sunni Iraqis with impunity,” as well as using violence in 2015 to expel Sunnis from areas of Iraq’s Diyala province, the Treasury statement read.
The U.S. also alleges that Husayn Falih ‘Aziz al-Lami was “tasked by other senior militia commanders” with repressing Iraq’s recent wave of anti-government demonstrations, including by assassination of protest leaders.
The Treasury also sanctioned prominent Iraqi businessman Khamis Farhan al-Khanjar al-Issawi on allegations of corruption and bribing Iraqi officials.
Khanjar, who once advocated establishing an autonomous Sunni enclave in Iraq, has more recently been known to do business with organizations and individuals from a variety of sectarian and political backgrounds. It is not clear if he has direct ties with Iran-linked groups.
Friday’s sanctions were imposed under the Global Magnitsky Act, which authorizes the U.S. to freeze the assets of individuals and organizations accused of human rights violations.
As many as 400 protesters have been killed, many by direct fire unleashed by security forces, since Iraq’s ongoing demonstrations against corruption, nepotism and poor public services began in October.”
“Trump calls for World Bank to stop loaning to China”
Reuters – December 6, 2019
“Why is the World Bank loaning money to China? Can this be possible? China has plenty of money, and if they don’t, they create it. STOP!” Trump wrote in a post on Twitter.
https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-usa-china-worldbank/trump-calls-for-world-bank-to-stop-loaning-to-china-idUKKBN1YB015
Iran to Fully Exercise Right to Export Oil: UN Envoy
https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2019/12/06/2154100/iran-to-fully-exercise-right-to-export-oil-un-envoy
“Iran’s ambassador to international organizations in Vienna said Iran will fully exercise its rights to export oil…”
Resistance against US Leads to Production of Science: Iranian Cleric
https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2019/12/06/2154317/resistance-against-us-leads-to-production-of-science-iranian-cleric
“Tehran’s Provisional Friday Prayers Leader Hojjatoleslam Mohammad-Hassan Aboutorabi Fard highlighted the positive effects of Iran’s resistance against the US sanctions and said the struggle has led to the Islamic Republic’s progress…”
Humans Exposed to Far More Hormone-Disrupting Chemicals than Thought
https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2019/12/06/2154259/humans-exposed-to-far-more-hormone-disrupting-chemicals-than-thought
“Humans are being exposed to 44 times more infertility-causing and cancer-linked ‘gender-bending’ chemicals than previously thought, according to a new study.
Patricia Hunt, the researcher at Washington State University who first discovered that BPA, a dangerous toxin in plastics, can cause cancer and other diseases and disorders, has now developed a more accurate method of measuring it.
In a study published today, Dr Hunt reveals the new tool shows the ‘safe’ limit of BPA stipulated by the US Food and Drug Administration is flawed.
In fact, it is 44 times higher than what Dr Hunt considers safe.
‘This study raises serious concerns about whether we’ve been careful enough about the safety of this chemical,’ Dr Hunt, a corresponding author on the paper, said.
‘What it comes down to is that the conclusions federal agencies have come to about how to regulate BPA may have been based on inaccurate measurements.’
The amount of BPA the FDA considers acceptable varies based on the product.
Broadly, it claims that the chemicals are ‘safe’ and that people are exposed to such low doses of them that they’re not considered toxic.
However, in 2012, it amended its regulations and banned the use of BPA in baby bottles and sippy cups.
Methodology used by the FDA to establish what is or isn’t ‘safe’ has been subject to scrutiny from a number of scientists. Dr Hunt has led that charge.
She discovered the way that the BPAs – sometimes referred to as ‘gender-bending chemicals – interfered with the production of sperm, eggs, and male and female chromosomes.
Dr Hunt has long acknowledged that measuring humans’ exposure to BPAs is difficult – but argues that that is all the more reason to air on the side of caution.
So, in her latest work, she developed a new way to test just how much BPA people are exposed to and internalizing.
According to Dr Hunt and her colleagues, most studies attempting to measure the amount of BPA in human urine have done so by putting BPA metabolites – compounds generated as the chemicals pass through the body – into a snail-based enzyme solution that is supposed to turn the compounds back to BPA itself.
This is an ‘indirect’ measure, according to the study, published in the journal, The Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology.
Instead, she and her team devised a way to assess the metabolites themselves – directly.
What they found was alarming.
Not only was the disparity between the indirect measure and their ‘direct’ on as wide as 44-fold, the higher the level of BPA, the greater the gulf between their measure and the one used by the FDA was.
‘I hope this study will bring attention to the methodology used to measure BPA, and that other experts and labs will take a closer look at and assess independently what is happening,’ said the study’s first author, Roy Gerona.”
Greece Expels Libyan Ambassador Over Turkey Maritime Deal
https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/2023711/greece-expels-libyan-ambassador-over-turkey-maritime-deal
“Greece ordered the expulsion of the Libyan ambassador Friday in the latest escalation of a dispute over a controversial deal signed between Libya´s UN-supported government and Turkey on maritime boundaries in the Mediterranean.
Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias said the ambassador had been summoned to the ministry in the morning to be informed of the decision and was given 72 hours to leave the country. Turkey’s foreign minister condemned the move as “outrageous,” while the Libyan foreign minister described it as “unacceptable.”
The deal reached between Libya and Turkey would give Turkey access to an economic zone across the Mediterranean, over the objections of Greece, Cyprus, and Egypt, which lie between Turkey and Libya geographically.
All three have blasted the accord as being contrary to international law. The deal has added tension to Turkey’s ongoing dispute with Greece, Cyprus, and Egypt over oil and gas drilling rights in the eastern Mediterranean.
Although NATO allies, neighbors Greece and Turkey are divided by a series of decades-old issues, including territorial disputes in the Aegean Sea, and have come to the brink of war three times since the 1970s, including once over drilling rights in the Aegean.
The accord “constitutes a raw violation of the law of the sea and of the sovereign rights of Greece and of other countries,” Dendias said, adding it was a deliberate attempt to create tension “both on a bilateral and on a regional level.”
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis sought the support of fellow NATO members on the issue during an alliance meeting in London earlier this week.
Mitsotakis said the texts Ankara was referring to regarding maritime zones “are wrong geographically and historically, wiping Greek islands off the map and leading Turkey to an unprecedented diplomatic isolation.”
“We will do whatever we can for this deal not to apply,” Mitsotakis said during a speech in parliament Friday.
Turkey’s parliament on Thursday endorsed the deal that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan signed last week with Libya’s Tripoli-based government, led by Fayez Sarraj, which controls parts of the country’s west. They two have also signed a security cooperation agreement.
The two accords sparked outrage in the Libyan parliament, which is based in the east and aligned with the self-styled Libyan National Army. Lawmakers there denounced the deals as a “flagrant breach” of Libya´s security and sovereignty, saying they grant Turkey the right to use Libyan airspace and waters as well as build military bases on Libyan soil.
Libya has been divided between two competing governments since 2015, one based in Benghazi in the east and the other based in Tripoli.
Libyan Foreign Minister Mohamed Taher Siala said during an interview on local Alahrar TV that Greece’s expulsion of the ambassador was “unacceptable.”
“It is our right to reach understandings with those we wish. … We would expel the Greek ambassador if they had any representation in Libya,” he said.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu slammed the removal of the Libyan ambassador as “not mature behavior” and “outrageous.”
“Of course I condemn it,” he told a group of journalists on the sidelines of a regional meeting in Rome.
“Libya is a sovereign, independent state and the Libyan people give utmost importance to their dignity,” he said. “Expelling an ambassador for signing an agreement with another independent country is actually showing the real face of Greece.”
Cavusoglu defended the deals reached with Libya and said Turkey was prepared to reach similar agreements with other Mediterranean nations, apart from Cyprus – which Turkey does not officially recognize. Cyprus was split along ethnic lines in 1974 when Turkey invaded following a coup by supporters of uniting the island with Greece. Turkey is the only country to recognize a breakaway Turkish Cypriot state in the island’s north, where it maintains 35,000 troops.
“Turkey is here to protect its own right within its continental shelf and within its maritime borders. This is what we are doing and what we will continue doing with other coastal countries,” he said.”
UN: Iranian Forces ‘Shooting to Kill’ Protesters, At Least 7,000 Held
https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/2023851/un-iranian-forces-%E2%80%98shooting-kill%E2%80%99-protesters-least-7000-held
“The United Nations said Friday that at least 7,000 people have “reportedly” been arrested in Iran since mass demonstrations erupted last month, adding Iranian security forces were “shooting to kill” in their deadly crackdown against protesters in recent weeks.
In a statement, the UN human rights office said it had obtained “verified video footage” showing security forces firing on protesters, apparently with intent to kill.
The rights office added that it had “information suggesting that at least 208 people were killed” during the unrest, echoing a count also tallied by Amnesty International.
“There are also reports, which the UN Human Rights Office has so far been unable to verify, suggesting more than twice that number killed,” the statement added.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, said video obtained by her office shows “severe violence was used against protesters.”
“We have also received footage which appears to show security forces shooting unarmed demonstrators from behind while they were running away, and shooting others directly in the face and vital organs – in other words shooting to kill,” Bachelet said.
Additional video material shows “armed members of security forces shooting from the roof of a justice department building” in the city of Javanrud, west of Tehran in Kermanshah Province, as well as gunfire from helicopters in Sadra, in Fars Province.
The protests began on November 15 following a surprise hike in fuel prices.
Iran has yet to give overall figures for the number of people killed or arrested when security forces moved in to quell the unrest that saw buildings torched and shops looted.
Bachelet’s office said it had received many reports of ill-treatment against people arrested, “including with the apparent aim of extracting forced confessions.”
She charged that “many of the arrested protesters have not had access to a lawyer,” while raising alarm over “reports of severe overcrowding and harsh conditions in detention centers, which in some cities include military barracks, sports venues and schools.”
“I urge the authorities to immediately release from detention all protesters who have been arbitrarily deprived of their liberty,” she further said.
The demonstrations show the widespread economic discontent gripping Iran since May 2018, when President Donald Trump imposed crushing sanctions after unilaterally withdrawing the United States from the nuclear deal that Tehran struck with world powers.”
Jubeir: Iran’s Aggression Can No Longer Be Tolerated
https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/2024036/jubeir-iran%E2%80%99s-aggression-can-no-longer-be-tolerated
“Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir said Friday that Iran threatens the entire region and its aggression can no longer be tolerated.
“We support the maximum pressure campaign” on Iran, Jubeir told the Mediterranean Dialogues Conference held in Rome.
He stressed that Iran must be deprived of the tools that threaten the region and the world.
Jubeir said there is a possibility of calming the situation in Yemen as a prelude to reaching a settlement in the conflict.
“There is a possibility to calm down the situation that will be followed by a settlement in Yemen,” he told the conference.
The Saudi Foreign Ministry said that Jubeir held talks with Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio on the sidelines of the conference.
They “reviewed bilateral relations between the two countries and discussed regional and international developments,” it said.”
Germany Says Iran Must Reverse Breaches of Nuclear Deal
https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/2024006/germany-says-iran-must-reverse-breaches-nuclear-deal
“Iran needs to reverse recent atomic activities that violate the 2015 landmark nuclear deal with world powers, Germany’s Foreign Ministry said Friday as diplomats from the nations involved gathered in Vienna.
The remaining signatories to the faltering Iran nuclear deal began crunch talks in Vienna Friday with questions over the survival of the landmark agreement after Tehran vowed to continue to breach the deal’s limits on its nuclear program.
Envoys from Britain, France, Germany, China, Russia, and Iran are taking part in the meeting, which is the first time the six parties gather in this format since July.
Iran has recently exceeded the stockpiles of uranium and heavy water allowed by the so-called Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, and has started enriching uranium at a purity level beyond what is permitted.
The JCPOA has been unraveling since the unilateral withdrawal of the United States last year and the re-imposition of American sanctions, which has left Iran’s economy struggling.
Tehran’s violations – all announced in advance – have been an attempt to put pressure on the other world powers involved – France, Germany, Britain, China, and Russia – to offer new economic incentives to offset the effect of the American sanctions.
German Foreign Ministry spokesman Christofer Burger told reporters in Berlin, however, that the approach was “unacceptable” and that diplomats would make that clear at the Vienna meeting.
“We will underscore that Iran must fully reverse its breaches of the JCPOA,” he said.
Since May, Iran has taken a series of measures, including stepping up uranium enrichment, in breach of the 2015 deal, with another such move likely in early January.
Iran insists that under the agreement it has the right to take these measures in retaliation for the US’s withdrawal from the deal in 2018 and reimposition of crippling sanctions.
Since last month, European members have in turn begun raising the possibility of triggering the so-called “dispute resolution mechanism” foreseen in the accord, which could lead to the resumption of UN sanctions on Iran.”
UK Figures: 350 Convicted, Suspected Terrorists Freed in Past 7 Years
https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/2023616/uk-figures-350-convicted-suspected-terrorists-freed-past-7-years
“More than 350 convicted and suspected terrorists have been freed from prisons in the UK over the last seven years, according to the Home Office.
There were 41 convicted terrorists released from jail in the year to June as well as 12 suspects who had been held in custody but not sentenced, Britain’s The Daily Mail said in a report citing figures from the Home Office.
Overall, 353 terror criminals and suspects have been released from prison between June 2012 and June 2019, of whom 245 were convicted of offenses, it said.
It is not known how many more have been released in the last six months. The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) said it was unable to provide the latest figures.
The figures emerged less than a week after the London Bridge terror attack which left two people dead.
Convicted terrorist Usman Khan went on the rampage while attending a prisoner rehabilitation program at Fishmongers’ Hall last Friday.
The 28-year-old, armed with two knives and wearing a fake explosives vest, was tackled by members of the public, including ex-offenders from the conference, before he was shot dead by police.
Khan, a British national from Staffordshire, was released from prison on license in December 2018, halfway through a 16-year prison sentence after he was convicted of terror offenses in February 2012.”
Saudi Arabia to grant citizenship to highly qualified expats
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20191206-saudi-arabia-to-grant-citizenship-to-highly-qualified-expats/
“Saudi King Salman Bin Abdulaziz has issued a royal decree to grant citizenship to distinguished professionals in scientific, legal and cultural fields, local media reported.
The move aims to attract distinguished and creative professionals from around the world to live in the kingdom and contribute to promoting development there.
Saudi Sabq news portal said the royal decree includes professionals in different disciplines including “Islamic scholars as well as experts in nuclear and renewable energy, medicine, pharmacology, computer science, oil, artificial intelligence, robotics, ecology, astronautics, aviation, culture, sports and arts.”
“It also covers domains needed by Saudi Arabia due to its geographical nature such as distinguished scientists in the desalination technology and helping in attaining objectives of expediting development,” it added.
The royal decree includes distinguished professionals who are members of bedouin tribes in Saudi Arabia as well as children of Saudi women with foreign fathers and children born in Saudi Arabia who meet the naturalisation criteria.
There was no official comment from the Saudi authorities on the reports.”
EU grants €297M to assist Syrian refugees
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20191206-eu-grants-e297m-to-assist-syrian-refugees/
“The European Union will grant €297 million ($329 million) to support Syrian refugees and host communities in Jordan and Lebanon, the European Commission announced on Thursday, Anadolu reports.
The newly adopted assistance package aims at improving healthcare and living conditions of the Syrian refugees and host communities, as well as creating new job opportunities and social protection.
The EU Regional Trust Fund in Response to the Syrian Crisis provides financial aid. It was originally set up in 2014 to tackle the humanitarian crisis caused by the Syrian war. The EU now decided to extend the mandate of the aid fund until 2023.
“The work of the EU Trust Fund has been instrumental in providing vital assistance to refugees fleeing the Syrian war and to countries hosting refugees,” said Oliver Varhelyi, EU commissioner for neighborhood and enlargement…”
Muhammad makes top 10 list of baby names in US for first time
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20191206-muhammad-makes-top-10-list-of-baby-names-in-us-for-first-time/
“Considered the most popular boys’ name in the world, Muhammad has now made the list of top ten baby names for boys in the US for the first time. According to the parenting website BabyCenter’s annual list, Muhammad along with the girls name Aaliyah (Arabic for “exalted”) have replaced Mason and Layla (Arabic for “night”) in tenth place on the list. Sophia remains the most popular name for girls, however, with Liam climbing to the number one spot for boys.
Muhammad, which means “praiseworthy”, is the name of the Prophet of Islam (peace be upon him) whom Muslims believe to be the final messenger of God. It has been rounded out to the latest list due in part to the variations in its spellings, such as Mohammad, Mohammed, or Muhamad.
“Muhammad’s been rising on BabyCenter top baby name lists around the world, so we knew it would soon break into the U.S. top 10,” explained Linda Murray, BabyCenter’s global editor in chief, in a press statement. “Muslim families often choose Muhammad for firstborn sons to honor the prophet and bring blessings to the child.”
The name Muhammad has long been popular in the UK, having been the most popular boys’ name in Britain for the last three years, however, research officially lists Oliver as the most popular, due to the disparity in spelling of Muhammad mentioned earlier. It is also officially the most popular boys’ name in the capital London.
The name Muhammad remains the most popular name in Israel overall, although the Jerusalem Post cited one report suggesting this is starting to decline.
Earlier this year it was reported that Muhammad entered the top 20 names list in France, with the French National Centre for Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE) saying the name’s popularity had doubled between 1998 and 2018.”
Turkey’s Erdogan opens Europe’s ‘first eco-friendly mosque’ in Cambridge
https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2019/12/6/erdogan-opens-europes-first-eco-friendly-mosque-in-cambridge
“Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday oversaw the formal opening of Cambridge Central Mosque, the first eco-friendly mosque in Europe.
Arriving from a NATO conference in London, the Turkish president was met by a heavy police presence in the city.
Several residential roads surrounding the mosque were closed, while supporters cheered and waved Turkish flags as Erdogan’s motorcade approached the mosque’s carpark.
Footage from inside the mosque shows the Turkish president reciting verses from the Quran.
Elsewhere in the city, in King’s parade and outside Cambridge Police Station, hundreds of protesters gathered to demonstrate against his visit.
One group, Cambridge Stop The War Coalition, wrote on Facebook: “We will be standing in solidarity with the Kurdish community against Turkish war crimes and against the oppression of any who dare to protest against the Turkish Government”.
The idea for the mosque was conceived in 2008, after Muslim students in Cambridge reached out to Timothy Winter, Shaykh Zayed Lecturer for Islamic Studies at Wolfson College, Cambridge University.
The four mosques in Cambridge, which were formerly churches and homes, had failed to accommodate the city’s growing number of worshippers.
Tens of thousands of individuals and organisations have donated towards the project, including the Qatari National fund. Yet the main donor was a consortium of agencies in Turkey.
British singer-songwriter Yusuf Islam, commonly known as Cat Stevens, became a patron of the project, who invited Erdogan as the official guest to the ceremony.
A competition for the mosque’s design was won by husband and wife-led architecture firm Marks Barfield, who had helped to create the London Eye.
Timber, from sustainably sourced spruce, has been used to build the structure of the near zero-carbon footprint mosque. Photovoltaic cells have been placed on the roof, which supply 30 percent of the mosque’s electricity needs, rising to 40 percent in the summer.
Large skylights in the roof provide natural light all year round, supplemented by low LED bulbs.
The mosque is heated and cooled by locally generated energy through heat pumps in its basement. Rainwater is harvested to flush WCs and irrigate the garden, where many plants and trees are found.
The mosque’s Imam, Ali Tos, told Anadolu Agency that the mosque has been warmly received by the community and that worshippers far and wide visit the mosque to worship and witness its splendour.
Nearly a thousand visitors remain on the waiting list, most of whom are non-Muslim keen to learn more about the unique features of the mosque, as well as more about the faith of Islam.
The mosque has two Imams, one Turkish and another Bosnian-Herzogovnian.
The Imam added that the mosque did not serve citizens of a single state, but all Muslim around the world.”
Socialism has worked in UK and it will work again: Labour’s Corbyn
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-election-debate-corbyn/socialism-has-worked-in-uk-and-it-will-work-again-labours-corbyn-idUSKBN1YA2EV
“The leader of Britain’s opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn said democratic socialism had improved the living standards of the country’s poorest in the past and the party would turn to it again if he wins the Dec. 12 election…”
Record number of people behind bars in Turkey, data shows
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/record-number-of-people-behind-bars-in-turkey-data-shows-149532
“The number and ratio of imprisoned people in Turkey have soared in recent years, data from the country’s statistical authority has shown.
The prison population across Turkey was 264,842 on Dec. 31, 2018, with an increase of 14 percent compared to the same date in 2017, the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜ?K) said in a statement on Dec. 5.
“While the number of people in prison per 100,000 was 188 on Dec. 13, 2013, the figure on the same day reached 288 in 2017, and 323 in 2018 with a steady increase,” TÜ?K said.
“Meanwhile, 401 of every 100,000 people over the age of 12 were placed in a prison at the end of 2018,” it added.
Second highest rate in OECD rankings
Turkey ranks second after the United States among 36 countries in terms of incarceration rate per 100,000 of national population, according to the latest OECD data.
The figure was recorded as 655 in the United States, 318 in Turkey, 234 in Israel, 231 in Chile and 214 in New Zealand, whereas the lowest figures were in Iceland with 37, Japan with 41, Finland with 51, Sweden with 59 and the Netherlands with 61.
Thieves make majority
Nearly 79 percent of Turkey’s prison population were in the status of convict, and the rest of them were under arrest, TÜ?K also said.
The 96 percent of the prison population consisted of men.
The number of entrance records of convicts between Jan.1 and Dec. 31, 2018 was 266,889. The number of discharge record of convicts between the same dates was 215,170.
The number of jailed juveniles (12-17 age group) was 2,095 with an annual increase of about 2 percent. However, when the date of the committed crime was considered, the number of juvenile prisoners increased by 23 percent in a year, hitting 14,502.
When the major punishment was taken into account in cases of conviction over multiple crimes, 17 percent of the convicts behind bars were thieves. Assailants and drug dealers followed by 12 and 7 percent, respectively. Some 6 percent of the prison population was convicted of opposition to the Bankruptcy and Enforcement Law. Murderers made up nearly 4 percent of the convicts.”
Erdo?an rejects reference to ‘Islamic terror’
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/erdogan-rejects-reference-to-islamic-terror-149517
“A Muslim cannot be a terrorist and Islam does not produce terrorists, the Turkish president said on Dec. 5, once again rejecting the term “Islamic terrorism”.
Recep Tayyip Erdo?an said racism, discrimination and Islamophobia have spread like poison ivy in countries once seen as cradles of democracy…”
Turkey condemns Greece over expulsion of Libyan ambassador
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-condemns-greece-over-expulsion-of-libyan-ambassador-149530
“The Turkish foreign minister on Dec. 6 said that Turkey condemns Greece’s decision to expel the Libyan ambassador over a deal Turkey and Libya signed on Nov. 27, saying such a move is “unacceptable.”
“It is unacceptable for an ambassador to be deported. Is it OK to threaten a country? [The deal] is no secret. Is it possible that something passed from our parliament to stay secret? If you call Libya and say, ‘I will deport your ambassador if you do not send that document,’ Libya is a proud country, it will not bow down,” Çavu?o?lu said…”
3 mayors in eastern Turkey detained over terror links
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/3-mayors-in-eastern-turkey-detained-over-terror-links-149501
“As part of a terror probe in eastern Turkey, several local officials from a political party accused of terrorist ties were detained on Dec. 6, according to security sources.
Three mayors and two so-called co-mayors from the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) were detained in the eastern Van province over suspected terror links.
The mayors are Y?lmaz Salan of Muradiye, Yakup Amaç of Özalp, and Erkan Acar of Ba?kale.
This August, mayors in the Van, Diyarbak?r, and Mardin provinces in eastern and southeastern Turkey were suspended over alleged terror links.
They all came from the HDP, which Turkey’s government accuses of having links to the YPG/PKK terror group.”
Singer Yusuf Islam’s media consultant converts to Islam
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/singer-yusuf-islams-media-consultant-converts-to-islam/1666047
“Media consultant of a prominent British singer-songwriter and philanthropist Yusuf Islam converted to Islam in Cambridge Central Mosque, newly inaugurated by the Turkish president in Cambridge, England.
Following the Friday prayer ceremony last week, Pedro Carvalho had a conversation outside of the mosque with Ali Tos, a Turkish imam, about the necessity of the Christian world to get to know Islam better.
Carvalho added that the obstacles for learning the religion should be removed, and that he learned about Islam while working with Muslims.
He told the imam about his intention of becoming a Muslim, but that he was “looking for the right time”.
“If you’re looking for the right time, the right time is right now. We live in a world where we have no guarantee for another second, so the right time is right now,” Tos said.
Upon asking the imam to “show him how to become a Muslim,” Carvalho and Tos proceeded together into the mosque where the media consultant converted to Islam.
Carvalho told Anadolu Agency that converting to Islam has been a journey for him, adding: “It’s all to do with my feelings for the Almighty, for Allah.”
Pointing to his heart, Carvalho said that converting to Islam was an inner decision.
“This feeling is part of my soul, it’s part of me, and one day I will meet my Maker, and today I feel much happier,” he added.
Following his conversion to Islam, people in the mosque kept greeting and hugging Carvalho.
British singer — also known as Cat Stevens, who became Muslim over 40 years ago — later on also congratulated his media consultant on the conversion, while Carvalho’s fiancee, also a converted Muslim, along with her family supported him on his decision.
Cambridge Central Mosque
The new Cambridge Central Mosque is considered Europe’s very first eco-friendly mosque.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan along with first lady Emine Erdogan and a group of high-level Turkish officials on Thursday attended the inauguration ceremony of the mosque.
Also attending the ceremony, Islam said the mosque will promote mutual understanding among the communities, and thanked the Turkish president and Turkey’s Religious Affairs Directorate for assistance in building the mosque.
The road to building Europe’s first eco-friendly mosque began back in 2008, when the capacity of local churches and houses was unable to meet the worship needs of local Muslims. Muslim students in the city turned to one of Britain’s most influential Muslims Timothy Winter, also known as Shaykh Abdal Hakim Murad — also the dean of the Cambridge Muslim College — who was instrumental in getting the land for the new mosque.
More than 10,000 people and groups donated money for the landmark purchase, with Turkish groups donating most generously.
The Qatar National Fund also was among the donors.
The design of the mosque’s backyard, where some 1,000 people can pray at the same time, pays respect to Islamic traditions, and makes the mosque building eco-friendly.
Besides using natural materials such as wood and marble, the mosque is already famed for its zero-carbon footprint.”
Italians dogged by anxiety, many want a strongman- CENSIS report
http://www.ansa.it/english/news/2019/12/06/italian-people-are-dogged-by-anxiety-censis-report_d2512c32-3e74-4b3d-8434-7172f24f40c1.html
“The dominant feeling for 65% of the Italian population is uncertainty, according to research institute CENSIS’s latest report on the country’s social situation.
The report, which was released on Friday, said that widespread anxiety and distrust have led some people to adopt “individual strategies” of self-defence while others are subject to “increasing antidemocratic impulses”.
It said that many people are hoping for the arrival of a Messiah-like “strongman who solves everything”.
Indeed, the report said 48% are in favour of having a “strongman in power” who does not need to worry about parliament and elections.”
Bosnia decides to close Vucjak migrant camp
http://www.ansamed.info/ansamed/en/news/sections/generalnews/2019/12/06/bosnia-decides-to-close-vucjak-migrant-camp_45871c1e-7bdd-486a-868f-8d220dcd1ef2.html
“Bosnian authorities on Friday reached an agreement to transfer migrants who are currently living in inhumane conditions at the Vucjak camp in Bihac, which will be shut down in the coming days.
Local media said the transfer of the refugees from Vucjak to a barracks in Blazuj, not far from Sarajevo, will begin on Monday, and by the end of next week Vucjak will be closed.
The decision was made following a meeting on Friday between Bosnian Security Minister Dragan Mektic and Mustafa Ruznic, the prime minister of Una-Sana Canton (northwest Bihac).
The international community has recently on several occasions called for the closure of the camp, which is completely inadequate and lacks the most basic sanitary conditions.
“We are working to set up the barracks in Blazuj as best as possible. It will be ready soon. By the end of next week the Vucjak camp will be closed,” Mektic said.
He said there is also a plan for transferring migrants out of Una-Sana Canton who are currently hosted at the reception centres in Miral (near Velika Kladusa) and Bira (near Bihac).
Both towns are in northwest Bosnia-Herzegovina near the border with Croatia, a country that migrants want to enter in order to continue their journeys towards Western Europe.
Mektic spoke of a project to create a large transit centre outside city centres.
He said local municipal services will get rid of the makeshift tent camps once the migrants have been transferred, and the areas will be cleaned and reclaimed so that refugees no longer set up camps there.
He said the migrants will be transferred against their will, given that at the moment they reside illegally in Bosnia-Herzegovina and they aren’t allowed to decide on the place they stay or establish on their own the management of migrant flows in the country.
The arrival of winter, with snow and intense cold, has further worsened conditions at makeshift refugee camps in Bosnia, particularly at Vucjak, which has become a true hell.
For several days now, over 600 migrants at the camp have refused food and water offered by the Red Cross in a hunger strike to demand they be allowed to pass into Croatia.
At night the temperature drops well below zero, and the majority of the refugees are without shoes or adequate clothing.
Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatovic, who is of Bosnian origin, recently visited the camp.
She said she was shocked to see the inhumane conditions in which the migrants at the camp were living, and she had been calling for its closure for some time.
“I’ve never seen anything like it in my entire career,” Mijatovic said.
“I’m ashamed as a Bosnian-Herzegovinian,” she said.”
Germany deported more than 90 ‘potential terrorists’ (Dw, Dec 6, 2019)
https://www.dw.com/en/germany-deported-more-than-90-potential-terrorists/a-51566040
“Since 2016, Germany has deported a number of people suspected of being willing or capable of carrying out terrorist attacks. The government figures were released in response to a parliamentary inquiry.
Germany has deported 90 “Gefährder” and other “relevant persons” since the 2016 attack on a Berlin Christmas market, according to German newsmagazine Der Spiegel, which cited a government response to a parliamentary inquiry from the business-friendly Free Democrats (FDP) on Friday.
In Germany a “Gefährder” (lit. “endangerer”) is someone who could pose a threat to public safety as certain “facts justify the assumption that he or she may commit a severe crime.”
Read more: Are deportations from Germany on the rise?
Such individuals are often identified by German intelligence authorities as potential terror suspects and a threat to public safety.
In response to the FDP inquiry, officials said that 40% of the people deported were from Syria, while others held Iraqi, Turkish and Russian citizenship.
The federal government currently has 225 “suspects” under examination by authorities who may face deportation or other legal consequences.
In February 2018, at the request of the country’s far-right Alternative for Germany party, the federal government reported that there were 745 people in Germany who could be potential Islamic State group-connected terrorists.
‘Urgent’ need for federal authority
Stephan Thomae, the FDP’s expert on domestic affairs, argued that deportation figures appear to be dependent on “which federal state is responsible and who is currently in power.” Therefore, Germany “urgently needs a federal authority for deportations and effective agreements with the countries of origin,” Thomae told Der Spiegel.
The number of deportations differed significantly across the states in Germany. North Rhine-Westphalia had a total of 29 deportations, Baden-Württemberg had 16 and Berlin 10. Meanwhile, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland had no statistics available.”