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.
Donald Trump Jr. reacts to chants of ’46’ – and, more importantly, on the threats to 1st Amendment
Coronavirus: Death of Dr. Li Wenliang Rocks China
by Gordon G. Chang
February 12, 2020 at 5:00 am
On hearing the news that Dr. Li Wenliang had died from the coronavirus on January 31, people in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, under strict quarantine, opened their windows and cried. Others took to the streets to blow whistles for the whistleblower. Grief and anger, expressed from China’s streets and balconies and social media platforms, has reached almost unprecedented levels in recent days.
Li, reprimanded with seven other doctors for warning of the outbreak in December, was accused of “spreading false rumors” and “disrupting social order” and, for his brave efforts, was briefly detained, interrogated, and forced to sign an “admonishment notice.” Li undoubtedly contracted the virus treating patients at Wuhan Central Hospital.
The first official announcement of his death, on Thursday night, sparked online outrage. State media, perhaps to mollify public opinion, then said he was alive but critically ill. When he was pronounced dead for a second time, the announcement was followed by a white-hot uproar. Chinese censors scrubbed millions of social media postings supporting the young doctor. Li was 34 years old.
Some say that as memory of the disease wilts in the heat of the upcoming summer, the Chinese political system will be able to resist change. On the contrary, the disease ravaging the country could be, as is now said, China’s “Chernobyl,” the cover up of a disaster eventually leading to the downfall of the regime.
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/15576/china-coronavirus-li-wenliang
Map Warfare”: How Chinese Maps Have Infiltrated the World
Russia’s ‘Wagner Group’ Doing Its Dirty Work?
by Lawrence A. Franklin
February 12, 2020 at 4:00 am
Although Russia is no longer the superpower it was during the days of the Soviet Union, when it posed a genuine threat to U.S. interests around the world, the Kremlin under President Vladimir Putin still manages to exploit opportunities in Africa and Latin America that threaten to diminish U.S. influence. To this end — to extend its power to regions beyond its borders and limited resources — Moscow established the Wagner Group.
The Wagner Group masquerades as a private commercial enterprise, but it is actually a mercenary arm of the Russian Defense Ministry, run by a long-time Putin associate, the oligarch Yevgeny Prigozhin. A paramilitary organization that enjoys technical support from the Russian Army — receiving armor, artillery and rocket systems — the Wagner Group may receive direct orders from the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (GRU), the institutional successor to the old Soviet KGB spy organization, in which Putin was a career officer.
Many Wagner Group operatives are former members of Russian Spetsnaz (special forces) units. The founder of the Wagner Group, Dmitry Utkin, is a retired Lieutenant Colonel in a Spetsnaz unit attached to the GRU. Utkin, in fact, along with several of his comrades-in-arms, were among the “little green men” who invaded Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula in February 2014.
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/15557/russia-wagner-group
My Thoughts on The Irish General Election 2020
The BBC Is Begging For Mercy
Clare Lopez News Briefing – Deal of the Century, President Trumps Peace Plan
Into The Dimension Of Delusional Thinking
New Hampshire primary, the Horowitz report and a deep state still lingering in the White House.
‘We Don’t Know’: Afghan Reconstruction Watchdog Can’t Tell Congress if US is Winning War (sputniknews, Feb 12, 2020)
https://sputniknews.com/asia/202002121078299210-we-dont-know-afghan-reconstruction-watchdog-cant-tell-congress-if-us-is-winning-war/
“The US Congress’ Afghanistan reconstruction watchdog told lawmakers on Tuesday that increasing classification of data on the 18-year-long war has made him completely unable to say whether or not the US is winning that war.
“Every time we find something that looks like it’s going negative, it gets classified,” Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) John Sopko told Congress on Tuesday. “Most of the [methods] of measuring success are now classified.”
The clampdown has come in the wake of complaints by US President Donald Trump that information about the 18-year-long war was too transparent.
“They do a report on every single thing that’s happening, and they release it to the public,” US President Donald Trump lamented at a Cabinet meeting in January 2019. “We’re fighting wars, and they’re doing reports and releasing it to the public? Now, the public means the enemy. The enemy reads those reports; they study every line of it. Those reports should be private reports.”
“I don’t want it to happen anymore,” the president reportedly told then-acting US Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan at the meeting.
According to Sopko, it hasn’t.
“One question we would like to ask the Afghans is how many people [they] control and how much territory, and that’s now not relevant, apparently … It’s all secret, classified,” the watchdog chief told a Senate panel on Tuesday, according to Stars and Stripes. “$64 billion has gone to training and assisting the Afghan military, and I can’t tell you or the American people [how capable they are]; that’s in part because we allow the Afghan government to classify what I can tell you and tell the taxpayer.”
“How many Afghan soldiers do we have? We’re still trying to figure out how many we’re paying for. How many Afghan police are there, really? We don’t know.”
When Sopko last reported on the status of the Afghan state’s armed body of men in July 2019, it was the lowest headcount recorded in five years.
“We have a list of everything that’s classified, and it keeps growing,” he said Tuesday before the Senate panel. “The latest is looking at the Afghan special forces. It’s great, we’ve put a lot of money in that. But looking at the number of independent missions the Afghan special forces are doing has gone down. I would bet you that next quarter, that database will be classified.”
The first item to go dark was district control data, which showed what percentage of the country was controlled by the Taliban, by the government’s forces in Kabul or by other factions like the Haqqani Network or Islamic State Khorasan, a Daesh franchise. Operation Resolute Support, NATO’s military mission in Afghanistan, stopped reporting the data to SIGAR in October 2018 – when a report showed US-allied forces had steadily lost ground to the Taliban over the last few years.
However, the veil of secrecy concealing US failings in the two-decade-long war has hung for much longer than that, as the Washington Post’s publication of the Afghanistan Papers late last year demonstrated.
In January, Sopko told Congress the reconstruction effort has been plagued by “an odor of … mendacity and hubris,” noting a plethora of examples of either purposeful misreporting of information or omission of vital details in order to conceal failures. Some of those included false reports on supposed progress in increasing life expectancy and child school enrollment, even though the officials “knew the data was bad,” and it was statistically impossible to have achieved the life expectancy gains reported.
“When we talk about mendacity, when we talk about lying, it’s not just lying about a particular program. It’s lying by omissions,” Sopko noted last month. “It turns out that everything that is bad news has been classified for the last few years.””
Damascus Vows to Continue Fight Against Syrian Terrorists Despite Threats From Ankara (sputniknews, Feb 12, 2020)
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/202002121078299260-damascus-vows-to-continue-fight-against-syrian-terrorists-despite-threats-from-ankara/
“Damascus will continue to fight terrorist groups throughout the country even despite threats coming from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to attack Syrian government troops, the Syrian Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.
“After the Syrian army defeated terrorist organizations, which he [Erdogan] supports, arms and trains, head of the Turkish regime comes up with empty statements that can be made only by a person who is disconnected from reality”, the ministry said on Facebook, adding that Syria intends to fulfill its national duty to combat terrorist groups throughout the country.
The statement also says that Turkish military presence on the Syrian soil is illegal.
Earlier in the day, Erdogan threatened to attack Syrian government troops even outside the Idlib de-escalation zone if they conduct offensive operations…”
HERE THEY GO AGAIN: PELOSI TO LAUNCH NEW INVESTIGATION INTO TRUMP
Just when you thought America’s long impeachment drama was over and behind us, the Democrats have begun the process to do it again. While most of us believed they would try to repeat impeachment, we thought it would start in the second term and not a mere week after Trump was acquitted the first time. Megan Fox
https://pjmedia.com/trending/here-they-go-again-pelosi-to-launch-new-investigation-into-trump/
The Impeachment drama will be over when all of the current Dem leaders die of old age.
(Richard: This is a major blow to the Chinese economy and using this as a yard stick the rest of China’s sales are going to be reduced by at least 25% and more likely 33% to 50%. If the Chinese Army is willing to kill enough people at the orders of the CCP the CCP will remain in power. They will be in power but almost all of their foreign trade will be destroyed, it will take them 30 to 50 years to rebuild the trade then now enjoy.)
China’s first-quarter smartphone sales may halve due to coronavirus: analysts
SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China’s smartphone sales may plunge by as much as 50% in the first quarter, as many retail shops have closed for an extended period and production has yet to fully resume due to the fast spread of a new coronavirus, according to research reports.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-health-smartphones/chinas-first-quarter-smartphone-sales-may-halve-due-to-coronavirus-analysts-idUSKBN2040XL
The Chinese Army is getting sick, too.
No doubt Covid-19 will take a heavy toll on them and on their families. That just may be the poison pill that kills off this devil regime.
It is not going to help the PLA remain loyal, I would have thought that the CCP leaders would have more brains then to destroy any of the loyalty of the PLA.
If China does collapse (possibly even if they don’t) Iran is toast without the Chinese money, given the damage to the Chinese economy they are going to have trouble paying their client states the normal bribes.
I pray that the Israeli missile defense systems work and are close to 100% effective because some Iranian nut-bucket may try to carry out the threat to Israel and the forces.
Report: YouTube to Fund Far-Left Young Turks Journalism ‘Academy’ (breitbart, Feb 12, 2020)
https://www.breitbart.com/tech/2020/02/12/report-youtube-to-fund-far-left-young-turks-journalism-academy/
“Google-owned video platform YouTube will provide funding to the Young Turks, one of the largest far-left channels on YouTube, to create an online “journalism” course called “TYT Academy,” reports Axios.
Axios reports that the investment is in the “mid-six figures” range.
“The investment is part of YouTube’s $25 million commitment to news efforts, which is part of the $300 million Google News Initiative that was announced in 2018.”
Young Turks founder Cenk Uygur, an American of Turkish descent, has repeatedly faced controversy over his past comments denying the Armenian genocide, the massacre and forced expulsion of approximately 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoman Turkish government between 1914 and 1923.
In a letter to the far-left online publication Salon in 1999, Uygur wrote:
The United States helped to sponsor war propaganda against Turkey during World War I as part of an official campaign to smear its enemies, as it did with Germany. Part of this propaganda was the evil butchery of the Turks against the defenseless Christian Armenians. This is what has been rooted in the popular memory of America, with very few Turkish-Americans to combat the insinuations of savagery, yet this is not propaganda?
As far as I could see from the article, every non-Armenian scholar in the field believes it is an open question whether this event was a genocide. Is it the claim of the article that all of these people are tainted by the tentacles of the Turkish government? If not, then why is it not pointed out that no one outside of the “Armenian position” believes it is a genocide? Why is it assumed that the “Turkish studies side” has the burden of proof in overturning the verdict of Turkish guilt? It is because of the underlying assumption that despite what these people in “Turkish studies” say, there must have been a genocide.
While in college, Uygur wrote a column for his student newspaper saying, “The claims of an Armenian Genocide are not based on historical facts…once you really examine the history of the time it becomes apparent that the allegations of an Armenian Genocide are unfounded.”
More recently, Young Turks host Hasan Piker, a nephew of Uygur, attracted widespread condemnation for arguing that the United States “deserved” the September 11th attacks.
“America deserved 9/11, dude. F-ck it I’m saying it,” said Piker in a live broadcast.
“americas foreign policy decisions has lead to 911. this would’ve been a controversial thing to say in 2001. stop being a fucking idiot,” Piker later tweeted.
Pike later appeared to walk back his comments, saying they were “inappropriate.””
CBC – Michael Moore on why he’s backing Bernie to beat Trump
Filmmaker Michael Moore is backing Bernie Sanders and has a lot to say about it (and about Canada) — His extended conversation with CBC’s Paul Hunter.
CDC Updates: We Absolutely Assume That The Reported Cases Are An Underestimate.
NEA warns dengue cases could increase due to resurgence of dengue-3 serotype
Exported cases of COVID-19 can trigger new chains of transmission: Expert
Indonesia refuses to let ISIS fighters and their families return home
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/indonesia-refuses-to-let-isis-fighters-and-their-families-to-return-home
“Indonesia has decided not to allow more than 600 of its citizens, comprising of what are believed to be Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) fighters as well as their family members, to return home.
All are stranded in a refugee camp in Syria since US-led coalition forces defeated ISIS in March 2019.
“There is no plan to take back terrorists. We will not take back foreign terrorist fighters to Indonesia… For children below aged 10, we may consider case by case. We will see whether the minors are orphans,” coordinating political, legal and security minister Mahfud MD told reporters on Tuesday (Feb 11) after meeting President Joko Widodo.
“The government is going to gather more valid data on how many there are, their identity and those who were involved in terrorism,” added Mr Mahfud.
Citing data from the US Central Intelligence Agency, he said that there were 689 Indonesians stranded in Syria, but the identity of only 288 has so far been established.
The Indonesians who travelled to Syria to join ISIS reportedly burned their Indonesian passports and all forms of identification.
The issue of the stranded Indonesians was the subject of the meeting at the presidential palace in Bogor, West Java. Other ministries and agency heads were also involved in the meeting.
The head of Indonesia’s counter-terrorism agency, BNPT, Inspector-General Suhardi Alius disclosed in July last year that the government had set up a task force under Mr Mahfud to evaluate and come up with proposed options for Mr Joko to deal with the issue.
Tuesday’s announcement has come against the backdrop of heated debate among Indonesians over whether to allow their countrymen and their families to return home…”
Smart move.
Somali troops still vulnerable to al-Shabaab outside Mogadishu, Pentagon says
https://thedefensepost.com/2020/02/12/somalia-operation-badbaado-shabaab-mogadishu-shabelle/
“Troops loyal to Somalia’s Federal Government in Mogadishu are not yet ready to stand on their own against al-Shabaab militants in the country’s south, the U.S. Defense Department said in a new report.
Despite some successes, the Somali National Army – backed by African Union and U.S. forces – have made little progress in recent months on Operation Badbaado, a joint effort to secure rural areas south of the capital, according to a Pentagon Office of the Inspector General report presented to Congress on Tuesday, February 11.
The assessment comes ahead of a potential limited drawdown of both U.S. and A.U. military forces contributing to the fight against the al-Qaeda-linked Islamist militants who still control swaths of southern Somalia.
It also calls into question the feasibility of U.S. Africa Command’s goal of significantly degrading the militant network’s capabilities by 2021, despite a blistering drone strike campaign and American Special Operations Forces’ assistance on the ground.
The 21,000-strong African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and some 500 U.S. Special Operations Forces backed by air support have sought to continually weaken the militant network until local Somali Federal Government forces can hold the territory on their own and fill governance needs outside the capital.
AMISOM is set for another withdrawal of 1,000 troops later this month as part of a long-delayed process of turning over control to Somali troops.
U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper has said the Pentagon is considering drawing down some of the more than 5,000 troops in Africa in order to focus on countering Russia and China elsewhere.
AFRICOM commander General Stephen Townsend told Congress last month that he believes the U.S. can achieve its counter-extremist objectives in Africa if the current number of American forces is sustained.
“I don’t believe that it’s a whack-a-mole [mission],” Townsend told lawmakers during the budget hearing.
Al-Shabaab has fought to establish an Islamic state in Somalia since 2006. The group was largely routed from Mogadishu in 2011 by AMISOM but still controls significant rural areas.
The militants, the report says, still retain effective command and control, “as evidenced by the Fall 2019 synchronized attacks against separate SNA forward operating bases in the Lower Shabelle” region, a Shabaab stronghold.
Though SNA forces successfully defended their new outposts, AFRICOM said they would not have been able to do so without international military support.
Moreover, the Somali Federal Government’s lack of control prevents U.S. State Department stabilization aid from reaching areas outside of Mogadishu, the report read.
Washington considers that aid necessary to supplant Shabaab’s Islamist courts, tax systems and charities that fill rural governance needs.
“U.S. AFRICOM reported that there was limited impact on degrading al-Shabaab outside of Mogadishu due to slow police force generation and lack of stabilization activities, including local governance, within seized towns in the Lower Shabelle region,” the report reads.
The State Department’s USAID office recently moved from Nairobi, Kenya to Mogadishu International Airport, but the SNA’s inability to effectively hold territory “means that USAID implementers cannot provide [stabilization] programs” in areas captured from al-Shabaab.
The U.S. aid agency in Somalia relies on subcontractors who “can travel outside of the compound, meet with implementers and beneficiaries, and monitor programming” to evaluate the progress of stabilization projects.
But by May 2020, the report said, only one contractor capable of leaving the airport will remain.
Further complicating matters, Operation Badbaado is currently on hold due to seasonal rains flooding local roads, the report notes.
“This quarter, al-Shabaab demonstrated its ability to conduct high-profile attacks, recruit fighters, and finance ongoing operations,” the report reads.
The group claimed responsibility for a massive car bomb in Mogadishu in late December that killed at least 90 people, the worst attack in the capital since 2017. Earlier that month, the militants stormed a Mogadishu hotel frequented by government officials.
In January, Shabaab fighters staged a brazen raid that penetrated the perimeter of Kenya’s air base at Manda Bay, killing ten civilians and one U.S. military member.
SNA also receive backing from the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Qatar and the European Union.”
NATO Agrees to Expand Iraq Training Mission
https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/2128451/nato-agrees-expand-iraq-training-mission
“NATO defense ministers agreed Wednesday to expand the alliance’s training mission in Iraq, responding to US President Donald Trump’s demand for more action from allies in the Middle East.
The idea is for NATO, which runs a 500-strong mission to train Iraqi forces, to take on personnel from the US-led multinational coalition against the ISIS group.
“Allied Defense Ministers have agreed in principle to enhance NATO´s training mission in Iraq in close cooperation & coordination with the Iraqi government,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg tweeted. “In the first instance, this will consist of taking on some of the global coalition’s current training activities.”
Spain said it was ready to transfer troops currently working under the aegis of the coalition to the NATO mission, as Western powers seek to enable Iraq to prevent any resurgence of the terrorist group.
“We support moving a major part of the Spanish contingent to the NATO mission, while still continuing to work with the coalition,” Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles said, insisting that any changes must have the backing of the Iraqi government.
Stoltenberg said the alliance wanted to “provide more support to Iraq, because it is extremely important that ISIS never returns.”…”
Brussels Works to Repatriate 42 of Its Extremists’ Children
https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/2128386/brussels-works-repatriate-42-its-extremists%E2%80%99-children
“Belgium’s government seeks to refer the issue of repatriating ISIS militants’ children to international forums.
This comes few days after Belgium assuming the rotating presidency of the Security Council over February.
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Defense Philippe Goffin said this issue will be presented at UN Security Council discussions and during the Munich Forum on Global Peace and Security next week.
In statements reported by Belgian media on Tuesday, Goffin said he has concluded a visit to the Middle East region, which made him realize the situation better and know what obstacles hinder repatriating children from conflict areas.
According to remarks made from New York, Goffin affirmed that his country is trying to carry out a “comprehensive” process to repatriate the children of its fighters, who are stranded in northern Syria.
He spoke about the possibility of repatriating 42 Belgian children under the age of 10.
Most of these children, some of whom are not necessarily sons of both Belgian parents, are in al-Hol camp in northeastern Syria, which is run by the Kurds.
He warned of the difficulty and complexity of the issue since claiming that the matter is just related to traveling there and bringing the children back is “an unacceptable simplification.”
There are many obstacles that prevent the process from being completed easily, according to the minister, as the Kurdish authorities refuse to separate mothers from children, and mothers, in turn, refuse to let their children travel alone.
Among other problems Goffin highlighted are lawsuits filed by the children’s families before the Belgian courts against the state, which must be dealt with.
According to some observers in Brussels, the Belgian state, which has previously repatriated some of its fighters’ children from Syria, is still hesitant to retrieve the remaining children, in light of the moral debate and the possibility of separating them from their mothers who should be tried for being involved in terrorist acts in conflict areas.”
‘We want our voices heard’: Muslims in Maryland showcase power of door-to-door lobbying
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/muslims-maryland-lobby-politicians
“The energy was palpable at Maryland’s House of Delegates late Monday, as members of the Muslim community hurried through the building’s hallways and knocked on doors, trying to lobby politicians on key bills and issues under consideration in the Maryland General Assembly.
Groups of Muslims, both young and old, arrived in the state capital earlier in the day with a key aim in mind – to meet with lawmakers and their staffs to discuss how they planned to strengthen hate crime laws and ask what they were doing to oppose ineffective and unconstitutional “countering violent extremism (CVE)” programs.
As they entered to register for the event, the activists – representing a diverse range of Muslims sects and ethnicities – were given a packet on some of the key issues they needed to discuss before they rushed off to find delegates willing to hear them out.
The event, co-organised by the Council of American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the United Maryland Muslim Council, is an annual day of lobbying aimed at trying to empower the Muslim community.
Organised lobbying campaigns are rarely seen in Muslim-American communities.
“We want to encourage civic participation; we want to make sure that the Muslim voice is heard,” Zainab Chaudry, CAIR’s Maryland outreach director, told Middle East Eye.
“Our goal is to ensure that our communities are visible and engaged and our voices are being heard.”
Hate crime bills
In one of the activist groups, Eimaan Imran, a legislative intern with CAIR, led the charge and walked her group through a well-lit underground tunnel connecting the historic Senate building to the House of Delegates building.
There, they began knocking on the doors of the delegates in their offices.
As the time was well past 5pm, some of the delegates had already left for the day.
For those who were not present, the instruction was clear: Slip literature under the doors so it will be the first thing they see the next morning.
Two of the bills on the agenda were on the issue of hate crimes, a subject federal law enforcement has appeared to play down in the past.
In a report, the FBI reported that in 2018 no hate crimes took place in more than 70 cities and 15 counties across Maryland, a state of more than six million people.
“We know for a fact that’s not the case,” Chaudry said. “However, the burden of proof to show that there was a hate crime that occurred is so great that these crimes were not prosecuted the way that they should be.”
For the delegates Imran and the other activists did manage to meet, they were mostly welcomed and listened to. Some even agreed to support the bills for which they were advocating.
“If it makes it out of committee and goes to the floor, she’ll certainly vote for it,” said a legislative staffer for Delegate Bonnie Cullison, who represents the state’s 19th district, regarding the hate crime bills.
Mike Ghouse, who runs the non-profit Center for Pluralism, said he was proud of the efforts being undertaken by Maryland’s embattled Muslim community.
“It is really about how do we build a society, a cohesive America where nobody has to feel tension or apprehension in any way,” Ghouse told Middle East Eye.
“Everybody should feel secure about who he or she is – whatever ethnicity, race, community, religion.”
‘Shaping public policy’
Out of all the bills that were up for discussion, the one that would have the biggest effect on the community was Senate Bill 580, otherwise known as a countering violent extremism bill.
CVE began as a federally funded program used to root out radicalism; it ended up being used to target, survey and entrap members of the Muslim community, as well as other minority communities.
It has since spread to states that have tried to create their own versions, and as in the case of the bill in Maryland, they often try to use different wordings.
Senate Bill 580 was created by Maryland Senator Eric Luedtke as what was described by Maryland Muslims as a well-intentioned step to combat white supremacy that suffered unintended negative consequences.
The community members went to Luedtke’s office and discussed their issues about the bill and how it could be used to further survey and target Muslims.
In response, Luedtke came up with revisions that would address those issues, which was seen as a positive step and a success on the Muslim community’s part.
“That bill is not going to pass as is. And it is going to be revised,” Luedtke said at a reception after the lobbying session.
CAIR and the United Maryland Muslim Council have yet to give a full response to the amendments of the bill, but are hopeful their efforts will stop the bill from being voted on as originally introduced.
“That’s just one example of how when we engage with our lawmakers, and we make our voices heard, how our communities can have such a powerful role to play to shape public policy,” Chaudry said.”
US air force issues new guidelines on beards, turbans and hijabs
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/us-air-force-issues-new-guidelines-beards-turbans-and-hijabs
“The US air force has said members who wish to grow beards for religious reasons or wear religious apparel such as turbans or hijabs can formally ask for waivers under an updated grooming policy.
The new guidelines allow service members to request waivers to wear religious apparel as long as they are “neat and conservative” and present a professional and well-groomed appearance.
The new guidance does not limit how long a religiously accommodated beard can be, but states that it must be rolled or tied so that it does not extend more than two inches below the chin.
Turbans, under-turbans and hijabs must be made of a “subdued material in a color that closely resembles the assigned uniform,” the updated policy states.
Requests for beard, turban or hijab waivers should be approved, unless they involve a “compelling government interest”, such as safety, or would negatively affect military readiness, unit cohesion, standards or discipline, the regulation states.
In recent years, the air force has granted several members permission to grow beards, wear turbans or hijabs in line with their religious beliefs.
In 2018, Staff Sergeant Abdul Rahman Gaitan became the first Muslim airman to receive a beard waiver for religious reasons, while Captain Maysaa Ouza became the first woman to wear a hijab.
And in June 2019, airman Harpreetinder Singh Bajwa became the first active-duty Sikh airman allowed to wear a turban, beard and long hair, which Sikhs tie in a bun and then cover with the turban.”
2 dead in shooting at Lebanon police station in Beirut
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200212-2-dead-in-shooting-at-lebanon-police-station-in-beirut/
“Two members of Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces (ISF) have died after sustaining injuries during a shooting at the Ouzai police station in Beirut yesterday.
Major Jalal Shreif, the head of the police station, died in hospital, while first adjutant Ziad Al-Attar succumbed to his injuries this morning, after the pair were allegedly shot by the brother of a detainee. A further policeman, Ali Amhaz, was wounded during the shooting.
Preliminary investigations stated that shooter Hassan Hussein entered the police station with his mother to visit his brother and was not carrying a weapon at the time.
According to local news channel Al Jadeed, an altercation broke out between Hussein, and his brother, during which Shreif, the station’s commander, intervened. Hussein snatched Shreif’s gun and shot him, then turned the gun on himself, taking his own life.
Of 32 detainees at the police station, 29 escaped during the chaos, including the shooter’s brother, who was later captured by security forces. The army recaptured seven of the escaped inmates in Beirut after the altercation…”
UK, US, Turkey called on to investigate UAE war crimes in Yemen
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200212-uk-us-turkey-called-on-to-investigate-uae-war-crimes-in-yemen/
“The US, Britain and Turkey have officially been asked to arrest senior officials from the UAE who are suspected of carrying out war crimes and torture in Yemen, according to the UK-based news agency Reuters.
British Law firm Stoke White filed complaints to a number of governmental bodies of the three countries, including the London Metropolitan Police and the US and UK ministries of justice, on behalf of a journalist named Abdullah Suliman Abdullah Daubalah and Salah Muslem Salem, whose brother was killed in the Yemeni conflict.
The complaints, which were filed today, state that numerous cases of torture and war crimes inflicted on civilians in Yemen during 2015 and 2019 were committed by UAE forces and their foreign mercenaries.
According to one of the three sources cited by Reuters: “It is requested that the UK, US and Turkish police open investigations into these alleged crimes as soon as possible.”
The figures who were identified in the complaints included military and political leaders from the UAE who live both in the Emirates and the US, but who also travel regularly to the UK.
In the ongoing Yemeni civil war, which began in 2015 and in which the internationally-recognised government of President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi is being backed by Saudi Arabia and the UAE while the Shia Houthi militias are being backed by Iran, mercenaries have been deployed and used by the UAE.
The mercenaries that the Emirates has hired are predominantly from South America, mainly Colombia, and have reportedly used methods of torture throughout their campaign in the country.
In January last year, it was revealed that US interrogators were working at UAE prisons in Yemen.”
Greece MEP fined $2,500 for ripping up Turkey flag
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200212-greece-mep-fined-2500-for-ripping-up-turkey-flag/
“Member of European Parliament Ioannis Lagos will lose seven days of his daily allowance and his parliamentary activities will be suspended for four consecutive days after he ripped apart a Turkish flag, European Parliament President David Sassoli announced yesterday.
Lagos’ financial penalty for using insulting language and tearing apart a national symbol, totals €2,261 (about $2,469), Anadolu reported.
Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and the European Parliament’s Turkey rapporteur Nacho Sanchez Amor condemned Lagos’ act.
In a statement on Twitter, Cavusoglu called the far-right MEP a “spoiled, racist brat”.
“These racist heads know best how we break the hands reaching our flag, and how we drive them to the sea,” Cavusoglu said.
Last year, Turkey condemned the burning of Turkish Cypriot flag during protests in the Greek Cypriot side on the foundation anniversary of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC).”
Haftar’s forces ban U.N. from using Tripoli airport
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-libya-security-un/haftars-forces-ban-u-n-from-using-tripoli-airport-idUSKBN2062U8
“Eastern forces loyal to Khalifa Haftar will not allow the United Nations to use the only functioning airport in the capital Tripoli which they have been trying to take in a campaign, a force spokesman said on Wednesday.
Force spokesman Ahmed Mismari told reporters the U.N. would have to use other airports such as Misrata because it could not guarantee the safety of flights into Tripoli Mitiga airport as Turkey was using it as base.
The U.N. mission to Libya earlier on Wednesday accused Haftar’s forces of blocking flights carrying U.N. staff to Libya.”
I wish we could do the same.
Doctors in Egypt launch anti-genital cutting campaign after girl dies
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/363373/Egypt/Politics-/Doctors-in-Egypt-launch-antigenital-cutting-campai.aspx
“Doctors in Egypt have taken time out of their surgeries for a campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of female genital mutilation (FGM) after the death of a 12-year-old girl, saying they do not want their white coats “stained with blood”.
Genital cutting of girls was banned in Egypt in 2008, but it remains persistent – a 2016 survey by the U.N. Children’s Fund showed 87 percent of women and girls aged 15-49 had undergone the procedure.
The campaign, entitled “White Coats”, saw posters with the slogans “No to FGM” and “FGM is a Crime” put up at a Cairo metro station, where doctors in white coats gave out leaflets about the dangers of the practice.
Organiser Randa Fakhr El Deen, head of the NGOs’ Union Against Harmful Practices on Women and Children, said the doctors had faced challenges from proponents of FGM at the station, but the campaign was important.
“We want to send a message to other doctors that we do not want our white coats to be stained with blood as well as to citizens that medicine refuses this practice,” she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
“Some ultraconservatives were not convinced of what we were saying, but we opened a discussion with them, responded to their arguments and answered all their questions.”
World leaders have pledged to eradicate FGM by 2030, but campaigners say the ancient ritual, which typically involves the partial or total removal of the external genitalia, remains deeply entrenched in many places.
It can cause long-lasting mental and physical health problems including chronic infections, menstrual problems, infertility, pregnancy and childbirth complications.
Last month Egyptian authorities arrested a retired doctor on charge of carrying out illegal FGM surgery and causing the death of a 12-year-old girl. The girl’s parents were also arrested.
All have since been released, but investigations are continuing and campaigners against FGM say they expect them to face trial.
The ritual is underpinned by the desire to control female sexuality, but is often justified for cultural or religious reasons in conservative societies.
Women and children’s rights groups in Egypt say the ban has not been well enforced and that much of society is permissive of FGM, which is widely practised by both Christians and Muslims.
The majority of FGM procedures are carried out by doctors and nurses at private clinics, with the rest done at home, according to the Egypt Demographic and Health Survey of 2014.
“It is a religious thing. Do you want to change religion?” said metro user Ibrahim Hassan in response to the “White Coats” campaign. “You only listen to what the West is saying.”
In response, Fakhr El Deen told Hassan that FGM had no basis in religion and was not taught in medical schools in Egypt.”
France’s Eric Zemmour: Naming Child ‘Mohammed’ Invites Discrimination
https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2020/02/293485/frances-eric-zemmour-naming-child-mohammed-invites-discrimination/
“French intellectual and political journalist Eric Zemmour argued on Monday that Muslims in France who name their child Mohammed and wear the veil are engaging in self-discrimination.
Zemmour’s comments came during a debate on February 10 with France’s Secretary of State for Gender Equality and Combating Discrimination, Marlene Schiappa, on the set of CNews.
Schiappa shared a statistic showing that people with a foreign-sounding name are 20 to 25% less likely to be hired in France.
Zemmour replied that “calling [a] child Mohammed … is self discrimination,” adding that “the parents should have called him Francois.”
The polemicist also referred to Muslim women wearing the hijab in France as an act of self-discrimination.
Zemmour recalled Napoleon Bonaparte’s 1803 naming law which originally stated that the only acceptable names in France are the names of saints in the Roman Catholic calendar, and later included the names of historical and mythological figures and names with regional significance.
France abolished the naming law in 1993 and parents are free to choose any name for their child, unless French officials decide a name goes against the best interests of a child.
Zemmour argued in his debate with Schiappa that France is “not McDonald’s.”
“We don’t come as we are, we assimilate into a dominant culture,” he insisted.
According to France’s branch of Sputnik News, the author has repeatedly criticized the French government for making laws against discrimination a question of “morals.”
According to Zemmour, “non-discrimination [laws are] a weapon of war in the service of an ideology” that is “not equality, but egalitarianism.”
Egalitarianism, he continued, is a doctrine that makes “victims for life.”
Schiappa retorted with a quote from German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche: “There is no moral phenomenon, there is only a moral interpretation of the phenomena.”
Anti-discrimination laws, Schiappa argued, are rooted in French values and aim to help anyone access a job and climb the social ladder solely based on merit and skills.
Towards the end of the debate, Schiappa evoked the theory of “great replacement.”
The official explained that the theory is based on creating fear and hatred towards each other and produced statistics showing that only 10% of children are born in France to immigrant couples.
“There will not be one people replaced by another,” Schiappa maintained.
A polarizing essayist and well-known media figure in France, Zemmour is most famous for his unabashed criticism of immigration and Islam.
Zemmour is a strong believer in France’s “assimilation” policy, maintaining that non-Judeo-Christian names like Mohammed put the survival of France’s history and culture in jeopardy.”
Turkey urges EU to take principled stand against terror
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/turkey-urges-eu-to-take-principled-stand-against-terror/1732128
“Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday called on the EU and other European countries to take a “principled and honorable” stand against terrorism.
Erdogan spoke at a meeting in Turkey’s southeastern province of Kahramanmaras where he said no treacherous activities against Turkey would succeed either on the field or at the table.
Erdogan said last month’s Belgian court ruling that blocked the prosecution of 36 suspects linked to YPG/PKK terrorist group reflected the “insincere, unprincipled and distorted” stance of the EU and the European countries on terrorism.
Last week, Turkey condemned the European Parliament for holding an event attended by ringleaders of the PKK terror group and its supporters.
The European Union, Turkey, the Middle East, and the Kurds conference was held in Brussels last Wednesday.
Some leaders of the terror group — Adem Uzun, Remzi Kartal and Zubeyir Aydar — who are in the red category of Turkey’s wanted terrorist list — were in attendance of the conference.
In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the YPG/PKK — listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S., as well as the EU — has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants. The YPG is the PKK’s Syrian offshoot.
After the meeting, President Erdogan attended a dinner given by his party and said the coronavirus in China needs to be handled properly.
“The problems caused by China’s virus crisis not only affect the parties but the entire system,” he said, adding that “if we work well and take the right steps, we can turn this crisis into an opportunity for our country.””
Turkey deports German national over terror links
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/turkey/turkey-deports-german-national-over-terror-links/1732134
“Turkey on Wednesday deported a terrorist to their home country of Germany, the Interior Ministry said.
It did not specify which terror group the fighter belonged to, but in recent months Daesh/ISIS terrorists are being returned to their home countries.
The issue of the handling of Daesh/ISIS members and their families detained in Syria — including foreign members of the terror group — has been controversial, with Turkey arguing foreign-born terrorists should be returned to their countries of origin.
Ankara has said several European countries resisted its efforts to send Daesh/ISIS members back to their countries, but that it will nevertheless press forward.
Turkey deported almost 780 foreign terrorists back to their countries of origin in 2019, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said ahead of the new year.”
Senate okays Salvini trial
http://www.ansa.it/english/news/2020/02/12/senate-okays-salvini-trial_ee383cb7-620b-4de6-90bb-92c052bd417f.html
“The Senate on Wednesday voted to allow prosecutors to proceed against League leader Matteo Salvini for allegedly illegally detaining a group of migrants when he was interior minister in a previous government.
The case regards Salvini’s decision to not allow more than 100 rescued migrants to disembark from the Gregoretti Coast Guard ship for several days during a long standoff in July.
The Senate’s immunity panel had already given the OK for the Catania court of ministers’ request to parliament to proceed against Salvini for allegedly abusing his power and the floor of the Upper House has now ratified the decision to lift Salvini’s parliamentary immunity.
Salvini, who operated a closed ports policy while interior minister in the last government, sending the League’s poll ratings sky-high, faced prosecution before but his parliamentary immunity was never lifted so he could go to trial in previous similar cases.
“I’m absolutely relaxed about this and proud of what I did,” Salvini told ANSA after the vote, which members of his party did not take part in.
“I’ll do it again as soon as I get back in government.
“I swore on the Constitution, which says that defending the nation is every citizen’s duty.
“I defended Italy”. Salvini argued that, as in other such cases, his decision was made with the rest of the government he was then part of.
Premier Giuseppe Conte, on the other hand, said he was not involved in the specific decision of whether to allow the migrants to disembark.
Salvini pulled the plug on Conte’s first government in August prompting the creation of a new ruling majority.”
Salvini may stand trial in Rackete defamation suit
http://www.ansa.it/english/news/2020/02/12/salvini-may-stand-trial-in-rackete-defamation-suit_cc259f41-07c7-4ad9-bdc0-3f9ddf01bfef.html
“The Milan prosecutor’s office on Wednesday ended an investigation related to a request for former interior minister Matteo Salvini to stand trial on charges of defaming the captain of the Sea Watch 3 migrant rescue ship Carola Rackete of Germany. Rackete’s lawyers filed the lawsuit in July 2019. Salvini told ANSA that even if he had to stand trial in another case, “it will simply be yet one more. It isn’t a problem. Someone who rams into Italian military patrol boats has nothing to teach me” He added that “in a normal country, would a German lady hitting a military boat result in the interior minister going to trial instead of her? This is surreal.””
Migrant arrivals in central Med double – Frontex
http://www.ansa.it/english/news/2020/02/12/migrant-arrivals-in-central-med-double-frontex_f1f91d5c-8e61-4c3c-8904-61aff5e0235d.html
“The number of migrants who crossed the central Mediterranean in January 2020 more than doubled that in December 2019, at around 1,500, six times what it was in January 2019, Frontex said Wednesday.
The EU border agency said that migratory pressure in the central Med went against the trend in the other main routes, where it fell 58% in the eastern Med and by a quarter in the westerm Med.”
Man arrested for preparing for jihad near Parma
http://www.ansa.it/english/news/2020/02/12/man-arrested-for-jihad-near-parma_c3d48286-8b3a-486b-90c2-1f93d45cb565.html
“A 25-year-old Tunisian man was arrested near Parma Tuesday on charges of preaching and training jihad and contacting ISIS on the Web, Italian police said Wednesday.
Police said they had found on his phone instructions for building bombs and weapons, lessons and manuals on fighting and escaping. They also reportedly found images and videos of terror attacks, executions of ‘infidels’, and preachers hailing jihad.
The man also allegedly had contacts with ISIS circles via social media, police said.
Bologna prosecutors have charged him with training and self-training and activities with a terrorist purpose, also international.
The arrest was reported in the Gazzetta di Parma newspaper.
The Tunisian had been probed for months by DIGOS security police and postal police.
He had been searched in June.
Now a judge will weigh whether to uphold the arrest warrant.
“The man under investigation”, police said, “progressively and systematically downloaded and memorised material clearly aimed at his own training to carry out acts of terrorism”.
One example, they said, was a manual with 200 “pieces of advice” and instructions on building molotov cocktails, ingredients for building bombs, advice on fighting techniques and recommendations on how to elude pursuers and dodge capture, as well as tools for self-defence and escape, and manuscripts hailing terrorism.
Police said he had “completely adhered to the jihadism proposed by exponents and groups linked to ISIS, with whom he was in contact particularly through social media groups”.”
Norway to extradite Islamist preacher to Italy
https://www.thelocal.it/20200212/norway-to-extradite-islamist-preacher-to-italy
“Norway’s government on Wednesday gave the go-ahead to extradite a fundamentalist Islamic preacher to Italy, where he has been sentenced to prison for leading a jihadist network.
The 63-year-old Iraqi Kurdish man – known as Mullah Krekar, but named Najumuddin Faraj Ahmad – was arrested in July 2019 after he was convicted in his absence by an Italian court and sentenced to 12 years in prison.
The Italian court found him guilty of having led a now dismantled jihadist network, Rawti Shax, a Kurdish movement with alleged links to the Islamic State group and which is suspected of planning attacks in the West.
Krekar arrived in Norway in 1991 as a refugee.
The Norwegian judiciary, including the Supreme Court, has authorised the extradition, requested by the Italian authorities in July 2019, three times and the Norwegian justice ministry on Wednesday gave final authorisation to move forward.
“The ministry considers that the conditions for an extradition to Italy are met,” Minister of Justice Monica Mæland said at a brief press conference.
Krekar now has three weeks to file an appeal to the country’s King in Council, a special cabinet meeting on matters of importance where the King attends.
“There will be an appeal. I am already working on it,” Brynjar Meling, Krekar’s lawyer, told AFP.
“This is a sad day for the rule of law in Norway and for justice minister Monica Mæland. It is obviously a wrong decision,” he added.
According to Meling, who is also considering taking the case to the European Court of Human Rights, there is no evidence indicating that his client was guilty.
Extraditing Krekar would remove a thorn in Norway’s side, after Olso tried to deport him since 2003, believing him to be a threat to national security.
Krekar, who founded the radical Islamist group Ansar al-Islam, is designated a terrorist by the UN and the US and has spent several years in Norwegian prisons for issuing threats and calling for murder.”