Reader’s Links for April 22, 2020

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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.

About Eeyore

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

161 Replies to “Reader’s Links for April 22, 2020”

  1. 245 Years Ago The British Empire Came For Them…

    April 19th, 1775, is the date most widely regarded as the first official battle of the American Revolution. “The Shot Heard ‘Round the World,” a title not exclusive to the battle, fired in Concord, marked the first fight where the British were beaten.

    Fighting had occured in Lexington earlier in the day, 8 Colonist Minutemen were killed for one British minor injury. The “shot” heard around the world wasn’t the first fired in anger, it was the first that set Imperial Great Britain back. It was an American Colonist victory and a British defeat.

    Unexpected.

    https://gatdaily.com/245-years-ago-the-british-empire-came-for-them/

  2. Pew Research: More than 9-in-10 Americans Call China’s Power a ‘Threat’ to U.S. (breitbart, Apr 21, 2020)
    https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2020/04/21/pew-research-more-than-9-in-10-americans-call-chinas-power-a-threat-to-u-s/

    “More than 9-in-10 Americans now call China’s power and influence in the world a “threat” to the United States, a new survey reveals.

    The latest Pew Research Center survey finds that Americans are nearly unanimously worried about China’s dominance in the midst of the Chinese coronavirus crisis that has ravaged the U.S.

    About 91 percent of Americans say China’s power and influence is a threat to the U.S. — 62 percent of which say China is a “major threat” and 29 percent of which say China is a “minor threat.”

    Americans today regard China as a major threat to the U.S. – more than global warming, Russia’s power and influence, the condition of the global economy, and global poverty.

    The survey shows a continued increase in concern over China among Americans over the last few years. Between 2017 and this year, the number of Americans who now say China is a “major threat” to the U.S. has spiked by 21 percent.

    The same Pew Research survey finds that more than 8-in-10 Americans call mass migration a threat to the U.S., with about 42 percent of those calling mass migration a “major threat.”

    China’s economic rise has been at the expense of America’s economy and U.S. workers.

    Since 2001, free trade with China has cost millions of Americans their jobs. For example, the Economic Policy Institute has found that from 2001 to 2015, about 3.4 million U.S. jobs were lost due to the nation’s trade deficit with China.

    Of the 3.4 million U.S. jobs lost in that time period, about 2.6 million were lost in the manufacturing industry, making up about three-fourths of the loss of jobs from the U.S.-China trade deficit. Research has revealed that American towns that had their manufacturing bases gutted have been hit hardest with rampant drug addition during the opioid crisis.

    As Breitbart News has chronicled, the U.S. is suffering from a shortage of vital drugs, rubber gloves, and plastic bottles due to decades-long free trade policies. The plurality of these basic necessities are made in China.

    Close to 90 percent of the pharmaceutical ingredients for generic drugs imported to the U.S. arrive from factories based overseas. Nearly 50 percent of these factories are in China and India.

    Likewise, the U.S. legal immigration system has been a boon to China, which has long been the second-largest beneficiary of visa programs and green card allotment annually.

    In the last three years, nearly 220,000 Chinese nationals secured green cards, with the plurality arriving as the immediate family members of their foreign relatives who are already living in the U.S.”

  3. German Cabinet Agrees Plan to Deploy Up to 300 Troops to Uphold Arms Embargo on Libya (sputniknews, Apr 22, 2020)
    https://sputniknews.com/world/202004221079056222-german-cabinet-agrees-plan-to-deploy-up-to-300-troops-to-uphold-arms-embargo-on-libya/

    “The German cabinet agreed on Wednesday to send up to 300 troops to patrol the waters off the coast of Libya as part of the new EU mission to stop arms smuggling, the government spokesman said.

    “The government today approved the mandate for the prospective German military deployment until April 30, 2021. This will, of course, require a green light from the Bundestag,” Steffen Seibert told reporters at a briefing.

    The government plans to send P3C-Orion surveillance planes to monitor the Libyan waters, according to the government directive, seen by the public broadcaster ARD. A navy ship will be dispatched to the area by August.

    Operation Irini was launched on April 1 in place of Operation Sophia, which focused on efforts to curb human trafficking.

    The new mission also aims to stem illicit oil smuggling from Libya.”

  4. CIA Could Have Killed Bin Laden in 1990s, But Was Ordered Not to by President Clinton – Report (sputniknews, Apr 22, 2020)
    https://sputniknews.com/us/202004221079057937-cia-could-have-killed-bin-laden-in-1990s-but-was-ordered-not-to-by-president-clinton—report/

    “Years later, the former terrorist number one and head of Al Qaeda* became the mastermind behind the tragic 9/11 attacks on the US.

    The CIA had a shot at taking down former Al Qaeda* leader Osama bin Laden back in the 1990s, but was prohibited from doing so by order of then US President Bill Clinton, former agency station chief Bob Grenier revealed in the Showtime documentary “The Longest War”. According to him, “lethal activity” against bin Laden was sanctioned only on the condition that it wouldn’t result in his death, the former CIA agent clarified.

    “Our tribal contacts came to us and said, ‘Look, he’s in this location now. When he leaves, he’s going to have to go through this particular crossroads’. [… T]hey proposed to bury a huge cache of explosives underneath those crossroads so that when his convoy came through they could simply blow it up. And we said absolutely not. We were risking jail if we didn’t tell them that”, Grenier said.

    Grenier, who was stationed in Islamabad, Pakistan at the time, said the order was signed by the president himself. In a comment to The Daily Beast media outlet, the former CIA operative noted that top leadership, including the POTUS, the Department of State, and other senior officials, discarded the head of Al Qaeda* as a minor threat and “even ridiculed” those who disagreed with that viewpoint.

    “We were being asked to remove this threat to the United States essentially with one hand tied behind our backs”, Grenier summed up.

    In the past, Clinton defended his decision not to pursue the goal of assassinating the top terrorist by saying that he was afraid of hurting innocent bystanders while doing so.

    Years after the opportunity mentioned by Grenier, Osama bin Laden was the mastermind that planned and organised the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon, which resulted in nearly 3,000 fatalities and left 25,000 injured. The attack drew the US’ attention to Al Qaeda* and its leader, resulting in one of the longest wars that the US has waged – the Afghanistan War – and the decade-long hunt for Osama bin Laden, whose elimination was announced by Washington in May 2011.

    *Al Qaeda is a terrorist organisation banned in Russia”

  6. the guardian –French researchers to test nicotine patches on coronavirus patients

    Study – which stresses serious health risks of smoking – suggest substance in tobacco may lower risk of getting coronavirus

    French researchers are planning to test nicotine patches on coronavirus patients and frontline health workers after a study suggested smokers may be much less at risk of contracting the virus.

    The study at a major Paris hospital suggests a substance in tobacco – possibly nicotine – may be stopping patients who smoke from catching Covid-19.
    Clinical trials of nicotine patches are awaiting the approval of the country’s health authorities.

    However, the researchers insisted they were not encouraging the population to take up smoking, which carries other potentially fatal health risks and kills 50% of those who take it up. While nicotine may protect those from the virus, smokers who have caught it often develop more serious symptoms because of the toxic effect of tobacco smoke on the lungs, they say.

    The team at Pitié-Salpêtrière hospital questioned 480 patients who tested positive for the virus, 350 of whom were hospitalised while the rest with less serious symptoms were allowed home.

    It found that of those admitted to hospital, whose median age was 65, only 4.4% were regular smokers. Among those released home, with a median age of 44, 5.3% smoked.

    Taking into account the age and sex of the patients, the researchers discovered the number of smokers was much lower than that in the general population estimated by the French health authority Santé Publique France at about 40% for those aged 44-53 and between 8.8% and 11.3% for those aged 65-75.

    The renowned French neurobiologist Jean-Pierre Changeux, who reviewed the study, suggested the nicotine might stop the virus from reaching cells in the body preventing its spread. Nicotine may also lessen the overreaction of the body’s immune system that has been found in the most severe cases of Covid-19 infection.

    The findings are to be verified in a clinical study in which frontline health workers, hospital patients with the Covid-19 virus and those in intensive care will be given nicotine patches.

    The results confirm a Chinese study published at the end of March in the New England Journal of Medicine that suggested only 12.6% of 1,000 people infected with the virus were smokers while the number of smokers in China is around 28%.

    In France, figures from Paris hospitals showed that of 11,000 patients admitted to hospital with Covid-19, 8.5% were smokers. The total number of smokers in France is estimated at around 25.4%.

    “Our cross-sectional study strongly suggests that those who smoke every day are much less likely to develop a symptomatic or severe infection with Sars-CoV-2 compared with the general population,” the Pitié-Salpêtrière report authors wrote.

    “The effect is significant. It divides the risk by five for ambulatory patients and by four for those admitted to hospital. We rarely see this in medicine,” it added.

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/22/french-study-suggests-smokers-at-lower-risk-of-getting-coronavirus

  10. “De Blasio’s social distancing tip line flooded with penis photos, Hitler memes” by Tina Moore, Gabrielle Fonrouge
    and Bruce Golding – April 21, 2020
    https://nypost.com/2020/04/21/de-blasios-social-distancing-tip-line-flooded-with-obscenities/

    “How do you report places that aren’t enforcing social distancing? It’s simple: just snap a photo and text it to 311-692. #AskMyMayor” + comments
    Mayor Bill de Blasio – April 18, 2020 – Twitter
    https://twitter.com/NYCMayor/status/1251496378372632577

  12. Although the nation’s lawmakers, federal department heads and the Hate-Trump news media are consumed with the Coronavirus or COVID-19 pandemic, no one appears concerned with the continued “drain the capital swamp” program for one reason or another.

    In one such case, the National Association of Chiefs of Police advisor and editor of Conservative Base obtained an unclassified Justice Department report about deception, theft, and removal of confidential information at America’s enormous Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

    A federal grand jury in the U.S. “capital beltway” handed down a shocking 16-count indictment against a President Barack Obama appointed Acting Inspector General for the DHS for the alleged theft of proprietary software and confidential databases from the DHS as part of a scheme to defraud the U.S. government.

    https://conservativebase.com/barack-obamas-homeland-security-inspector-general-indicted-by-trumps-ag/?fbclid=IwAR3mSkFAD0d3zlOj2ph7_R8q76syWEGx8sXqOw3e2hpBExliRRDh4pXFWiM

  13. A Democratic state representative in Georgia announced he will not complete his current term a week after he got blowback for endorsing President Trump, saying he is “leaving the plantation,” an expression popularized by African American conservatives and independents.

    “I’m sick and tired of me and my family being attacked and harassed by the Democrat Party for putting my country before my party. I take pride in being an independent thinker. My first amendment right to freedom of speech is under siege,” state Rep. Vernon Jones, who is African American, said in a statement released to CBS 46 in Atlanta. “I intend to help the Democrat Party get rid of its bigotry against Black people that are independent and conservative.”

    https://nypost.com/2020/04/22/democratic-georgia-rep-vernon-jones-will-not-complete-current-term/?utm_source=reddit.com

  14. The government will set out plans to ban under-18s from undergoing gender confirmation surgery, the equalities minister Liz Truss has announced.

    “I believe strongly that adults should have the freedom to lead their lives as they see fit, but I think it’s very important that while people are still developing their decision-making capabilities that we protect them from making those irreversible decisions,” she said.

    Currently, those under the age of 18 with gender dysphoria are allowed genital reconstructive surgery if they have parental consent.

    https://talkradio.co.uk/news/government-ban-gender-confirmation-surgery-under-18s-20042233230

  15. Michael Moore stumbles upon the truth about so-called ‘green’ energy
    By Andrea Widburg

    Michael Moore is worried about Earth, although he’s not focused on fossil fuel and cow farts. Instead, he’s worried because he just discovered that green energy is a scam. That’s the point in his new documentary, Planet of the Humans, which was released Tuesday for free on YouTube. In a long and poorly written introduction on the YouTube page, the people who made the video explain that the green revolution could have worked out if only the whole movement hadn’t sold itself out to the rich and powerful, resulting in a sham and a scam.

    https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2020/04/michael_moore_stumbles_upon_the_truth_about_socalled_green_energy.html

  16. Greece: Moria migrants stage sit-in to demand transfer to mainland over coronavirus fears

    A group of migrants and refugees staged a sit-in outside the camp of Moria on Lesbos island on Wednesday, as they demanded to be transferred to mainland Greece over coronavirus fears.

    Protesters were seen wearing face masks and holding signs outside the refugee camp, home to reportedly over 18,500 people.

    Around 1,500 people belonging to COVID-19 risk groups will be sent to mainland Greece on Saturday, Greek authorities announced.

    As of Wednesday, Greece has 2,408 cases of coronavirus and 121 fatalities, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

  17. Russia: Communists defy COVID-19 restrictions to celebrate Lenin”s 150th birthday

    Members of the Communist Party of Russia, including its leader Gennady Zyuganov, defied Moscow’s coronavirus restrictions and gathered to lay flowers at Vladimir Lenin’s Mausoleum in Red Square on Wednesday to mark the Bolshevik leader’s 150th birthday.

    Addressing the crowd, Zyuganov said “I want to thank you for coming with us to the country’s main square despite difficult epidemiological situation to give a bow to the genius [Vladimir Lenin]. I want once more to remind you of the fact that you all live in a country saved, first of all, by Lenin.”

    Lenin was born on April 22, 1870 in the city of Simbirsk, later renamed Ulyanovsk in honour of Lenin’s original family name. After many years abroad he returned to Russia to lead the Bolshevik Revolution. He died at his dacha in Gorki on January 21, 1924.

  25. China’s Economy Has Been Hit Hard Due to the Pandemic | CCP Virus | COVID-19 | Coronavirus

  26. Coronavirus: Now the Government Will Be Tracking You
    53,576 views
    •Apr 21, 2020

  28. Sky News – UK -Coronavirus: 72% of healthcare worker deaths come from BAME backgrounds

    Sky News has found that 72% of healthcare and social workers who have died after contracting coronavirus are from BAME backgrounds, despite making up only 21% of the workforce.

    Now seventeen Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic non–executive directors in the NHS have written to the Health Secretary offering to assist as an Independent Advisory Group to investigate why.

  29. There are other sources for this story but I prefer the way ZH frames this.

    The Saudis and Russia, it seems, are trying to choke the domestic U.S. producers out. Lack of demand because of the lockdown and lack of storage space spells disaster for pricing and futures contracts. This is how a complex system reacts to massive changes. PT will probably have to reject this load unless the strategic storage reservoirs can take it. If they cannot, it may be the first time since the implementation of the Petrodollar that Saudi oil was refused. This is just my modest, non-expert observation. But since the repercussion of this may imperil the Petrodollar arrangement, it will be very interesting how PT reacts, how the Saudis react in turn, and how the USD reacts to all that.

    https://www.zerohedge.com/commodities/kyle-bass-saudis-are-sending-us-50-million-barrel-oil-bomb

  30. WE WERE RIGHT: First Coronavirus Death in US Month Earlier than Thought — Virus Was Already Spreading in February! HUGE DEVELOPMENT! #FireFauci

    Health officials in California revealed Tuesday that a patient in Santa Clara died from coronavirus on February 6th.
    The second coronavirus death was February 17th in in Santa Clara California.

    This moves the entire timeline of coronavirus in the US.
    The CDC previously announced the first coronavirus death in the US was a woman in her late 50s on February 29th.

    This also means the coronavirus was spreading in California in February and earlier.

    And this also means that the virus is much less lethal and more widespread than the so-called “experts” believed it to be.

    https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2020/04/right-first-coronavirus-death-us-month-earlier-thought-virus-already-spreading-february-huge-development-firefauci/?utm_source=Email&utm_medium=the-gateway-pundit&utm_campaign=dailypm&utm_content=daily

  33. Hubei Public Servant Openly Sues the Provincial Government for Covering Up the Coronavirus Epidemic

  36. COVID-19: Closure of wholesale markets in Malaysia raises supply disruption concerns

  37. Tourist guides redeployed as safe distancing ambassadors during circuit breaker period

  40. Iran, Russia, Turkey FMs Hold Meeting on Syria Peace
    https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2020/04/22/2249368/iran-russia-turkey-fms-hold-meeting-on-syria-peace

    “The foreign ministers of Iran, Russia and Turkey – the three guarantors of the Astana format- held a trilateral meeting via video conference to discuss Syria peace efforts.

    The top diplomats of the three guarantors of the Astana peace process held the trilateral meeting via tele-conference on Wednesday, April 22.

    In the meeting, held to discuss the latest developments in Syria and the region, Mohammad Javad Zarif, Mevlut Cavusoglu, and Sergei Lavrov talked about the latest developments, including the most recent situation in Idlib, Syria’s Constitutional Committee, the necessity for the removal of the unilateral sanctions, particularly given the outbreak of the coronavirus, humanitarian conditions, and return of the displaced persons.

    The Iranian, Turkish and Russian foreign ministers emphasized the need to continue holding consultations and coordination at the highest level among the three guarantors of the Astana format as the most important and effective process for the settlement of the crisis in Syria.

    The participants also agreed on the need to respect Syria’s independence, national sovereignty and territorial integrity, resolve the Syrian crisis politically, delineate between the terrorists and the opposition, and keep up the fight against terrorism…”

  42. Hairdressers, standalone F&B outlets to close as Singapore tightens circuit breaker measures

  44. Iran needs to be held accountable: Pompeo
    http://saudigazette.com.sa/article/592221/World/Mena/Iran-needs-to-be-held-accountable-Pompeo

    “US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday warned Iran of consequences as he accused Tehran of violating a UN Security Council resolution.

    “I think Iran needs to be held accountable for what they’ve done,” Pompeo said in a news conference.

    His comments came after Iran announced earlier in the day that it had put its first military satellite in orbit.

    The Trump administration has always claimed that Iran carries out satellite activities as a cover for its ballistic missile work.

    “The Iranians have consistently said that these missile programs were disconnected from the military, that these were purely commercial enterprises,” Pompeo said.

    “I think today’s launch proves what we’ve been saying all along here in the United States,” he said.

    “I think every nation has an obligation to go to the United Nations and evaluate whether this missile launch was consistent with that Security Council resolution,” Pompeo said.

    “I don’t think it remotely is, and I think Iran needs to be held accountable for what they have done,” he added.

    US secretary of state was referring to Security Council resolution 2231 of 2015 which called on Iran not to pursue any activities to develop ballistic missiles that could carry nuclear warheads. — Agencies”

  45. Yemen: WFP slams Houthis’ misuse of food aid
    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200422-yemen-wfp-slams-houthis-misuse-of-food-aid/

    “The United Nations World Food Program (WFP) on Monday criticised Yemen’s Houthi group for misusing food aid intended for those most in need in the war-torn country.

    The WFP in Yemen said on Facebook that it is familiar with the video that has recently been circulating on social media, which shows food relief bearing the WFP logo in the Houthi-held area of Sarwah, 40 kilometres west of the city of Marib.

    “The World Food Program cannot confirm the source or authenticity of the video,” the post said, stressing that the food assistance it provides is aimed at the most in need Yemeni civilians.

    “The World Food Program cannot accept any diversion of the food aid pathway that is not in line with its main mission to respond to the emergency humanitarian crisis in Yemen,” it added.

    Activists recently circulated a video showing food belonging to the WFP in areas controlled by the Houthis in Sarwah, accusing the group of looting the food aid and distributing it to its fighters and selling some on the black market.

    Earlier this month, the WFP announced that it had halved the amount of aid it was delivering in Houthi controlled areas.”

  46. Turkey slams France over Foreign Minister’s allegations
    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200422-turkey-slams-france-over-foreign-ministers-allegations/

    “Turkey yesterday described Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian’s recent accusations against France’s NATO ally as an attempt to draw attention away from his country’s impotence in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.

    “By targeting Turkey in his interview with Le Monde newspaper,” said Hami Aksoy, a spokesman for the Turkish Foreign Ministry, “…Jean-Yves Le Drian is trying to cover up the desperate situation that France is facing due to the coronavirus crisis.”

    According to Aksoy, Le Drian’s remarks about the alleged danger that Turkey poses to Europe is a defensive measure against the insecurity France feels about the fact that Turkey has delivered planeloads of medical supplies and aid to European allies such as Spain, Italy and Britain. “It appears that the help extended by Turkey during these dark times as a true friend has created discomfort in France, which could not help its European neighbours during their most difficult days.”

    In his interview with Le Monde, the French official questioned Turkey’s true intentions and alliances within the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and Europe. He claimed that Ankara has been playing a double game and undermining the interests of its allies.

    “In fact,” insisted Aksoy, “it is France who is supporting terrorist organisations in Syria, backing the forces [of Khalifa Haftar] against the legitimate regime in Libya, eroding the solution dynamics of the Island [Cyprus] and persistently ignoring the rights of the Turkish Cypriots and trying to implement sanctions on its ally, Turkey.”

    The Foreign Ministry spokesman expanded on France’s subtle support for Haftar against the UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) in Libya through which, he noted, it is continuing to support the suffering of the Libyan people. “Let us not forget that in contradiction with Resolution 2259 of the UN Security Council, by supporting Haftar — who believes that the only solution to the crisis in Libya is through military means; who sabotages all ceasefire efforts; who bombs hospitals even during these epidemic days; who blocks Libya’s only income, which is oil production; and who cuts water lines — France is preventing the cessation of the Libyan people’s suffering.”

    Aksoy ended by insisting that France should focus on maintaining the health of its citizens and the European people in the wake of the respiratory virus that has spread around the world. “By pulling away from its ambition for competition, [France] must give up seeing Turkey as a threat to Europe’s welfare and security.””

  47. Libya accuses Russia’s Wagner of using chemical weapon
    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200422-libya-accuses-russias-wagner-of-using-chemical-weapon/

    “Russian private military contractor Wagner was accused by Libya’s interior minister on Wednesday of carrying out a chemical attack in Libya.

    Wagner mercenaries used nerve agent against Libya’s Government of National Accord (GNA) forces in Salah al-Din area in southern Tripoli, Fathi Bashagha told reporters.

    “We are in a strong cooperation with Turkey, US and UK to ensure security in Libya,” Bashagha said.

    The minister added that Tunisia and Algeria are also giving support to the country in issues of security.

    Wagner Group
    Russia’s Wagner Group is one of the most controversial groups among the mercenaries. It is owned by to Yevgeny Prigozhin, a businessman with close links to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

    According to Bloomberg, it was reported that the Wagner Group, where over 1,000 militias came to Libya, brought Russian pilots who carried out training activities for the Haftar troops, and Russian Sukhoi-22 type war planes are seen in Libyan skies.

    Mercenaries who previously had field experience in Ukraine, are fighting on the front-line in Libya, according to Euronews.

    On Jan. 11, Turkish President Recep Erdogan said that more than 2,000 Wagner mercenaries were currently fighting in Libya.

    President Vladimir Putin, asked about Russia’s involvement in the Libyan conflict, replied that no Russian servicemen were in Libya acting on behalf of the Russian state or receiving payment from Russia.

    The United Arab Emirates (UAE) poses a threat to Libya’s national security, Bashagha said, adding that the Arab country wants to continue the chaotic atmosphere in Libya.

    Since the ouster of longtime ruler Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, two seats of power have emerged in Libya: Haftar in eastern Libya, supported by Egypt and the UAE, and the GNA in Tripoli, which enjoys UN and international recognition.

    The GNA has been under attack by Haftar’s forces since last April, with more than 1,000 killed in the violence. The Tripoli government launched Operation Peace Storm on March 25 to counter attacks on the capital.”

    • A sure sign the White Helmets are with the filthy Turk’s proxies in Libya. They’ve had lots of practice with the cw scam.

  48. Tommy Robinson loses pre-trial ruling on ‘libel’ of teenage Syrian refugee
    https://english.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2020/4/22/tommy-robinson-loses-pre-trial-in-syrian-refugee-libel-case

    “A British judge has ruled that remarks made by far-right activist Tommy Robinson about a Syrian teenager amounted to accusations that the refugee had “participated in a violent assault on a young girl” and “threatened to stab another child”.

    The comments in question were made by Robinson in two videos posted to his Facebook page in November 2018, after a video emerged of then 16-year-old Jamal Hijazi being assaulted by a fellow pupil at the Almondbury Community school in Huddersfield.

    In the video, Hijazi was pushed to the ground and threatened with drowning.

    High Court Justice Matthew Nicklin said in his interim ruling on the libel case that the “natural and ordinary meaning” of Robinson’s remarks related to a “specific allegation of violent conduct”.

    Thirty-seven-year-old Robinson had claimed in the posts that Hijazi was “not innocent and he violently attacks young English girls in his school”.

    The case will now go to trial, but no date has been set for the proceedings…”

  49. Public floggings will respect social distancing rules, officials in Indonesia’s Aceh province insist
    https://english.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2020/4/22/acehs-public-floggings-continue-amid-indonesias-coronavirus-outbreak

    “Six people were publicly flogged in Indonesia’s conservative Aceh province on Tuesday for breaking local Islamic law, despite widespread bans on mass gatherings over coronavirus fears.

    Officials insisted they followed social distancing rules but vowed that the global pandemic wouldn’t stand in the way of doling out justice.

    “To comply with current conditions, we’re trying to cut unnecessary procedures like the usual opening speech,” said Safriadi, the official responsible for Sharia punishments in provincial capital Banda Aceh.

    “We just carried out the flogging directly to make it simpler. Whipping will still go on, but we’re limiting the number of people involved,” added Safriadi, who goes by one name.

    Most of the offenders whipped Tuesday were not wearing protective face masks, and images from the scene suggested some participants came into close contact with each other.

    Aceh’s public whippings – widely criticised by rights groups – can attract hundreds of spectators.

    But only about a dozen onlookers turned up at a building inside a public park to see four men flogged 40 times each for drinking alcohol.

    An unmarried couple caught together in a hotel room were also given over two dozen lashes from a rattan cane.

    Aceh, on the western tip of Sumatra, is the only region in Muslim-majority Indonesia to impose Islamic law.

    The province allows whipping for a range of charges including gambling, adultery, drinking alcohol, and having gay or pre-marital sex.

    Despite the painful punishment, one man whipped for drinking alcohol – who also served a three-month jail term for the offence – said he was relieved to be free to join his family for the fasting month of Ramadan, which starts this week.

    “I got bored in prison and now I’m finally a free man,” he said.

    “Ramadan is coming and I couldn’t imagine fasting in prison.””