Reader’s Links for July 26, 2020

Daily Links Post graphic

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

77 Replies to “Reader’s Links for July 26, 2020”

  1. Refugee who volunteered at French cathedral confesses to setting blaze, lawyer says
    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-nantes-fire-cathedral-idUSKCN24R06Y

    Nantes cathedral fire: Church volunteer rearrested over arson
    https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-53542936

    Church volunteer admits to arson attack on medieval cathedral in French city of Nantes
    https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/church-volunteer-admits-arson-attack-medieval-cathedral-french-city-nantes-n1234940

  2. Police in Spain, Netherlands Bust Drug Trafficking Criminal Group Which Tortured People (sputniknews, Jul 26, 2020)
    https://sputniknews.com/europe/202007261079986633-police-in-spain-netherlands-bust-drug-trafficking-criminal-group-which-tortured-people/

    “A joint operation by Spanish and Dutch law enforcement has exposed a criminal group of drug traffickers, purportedly implicated in kidnapping and torture of people, Spain’s police said in a press release on Sunday.

    Six people were arrested in the Netherlands as a result of the operation over their suspected links to a Moroccan drug trafficking network operating in the Netherlands and Belgium, according to the press release.

    “Additionally, police discovered seven soundproof shipping containers equipped with immobilization and torture tools, including shackles attached to the floor, chairs with straps, and mutilation tools”, the press release read.

    According to the police, the group was involved in abductions as part of serious conflicts among the largest Dutch criminal networks and their affiliates in Spain.

    The investigation is still ongoing, as Spanish police said they would continue to collect data together with the Dutch counterparts in order to detect other members of the network in a bid to learn more about recent abductions in the Netherlands and several killings in the Spanish region of Malaga.”

  3. A muslim talks about the Christianity being corrupted. That Jesus was not God.
    Evidenced by:
    “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began”
    https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+17%3A1-5&version=NIV

    Here he is:
    https://youtu.be/S62dBa39NMI

    Because, the Gospels had evolved their Jesuses from Mark, Matthew, Luke, John and finally into the Nicean Creed at the Church of Nicea in 325AD.

    Mark had Jesus receive a Baptism of Repentance and then God’s Spirit entered him to continue a ministry based on ‘facing your demons.’ Works every time. Reality breaks in.
    Mathew and Luke introduced a contempory pagan Virgin Birth as the sign that God impregnated him.
    John had Jesus as the Word of God, existing from the very Beginning of Time.
    The Roman Church of Nicea reviewed all their selected books, and came up with their God The Father, God The Son and God the Holy Spirit settlement.

    From “Followers of The Way,” to Paulians. From teaching, to preaching. Finding truth, to only finding Faith Alone. Replacing the inner cup with the outer cup.

    So, which part of the corruption of the Good News did the Koran swallow?
    (21:91 and 66:12) says that God blew through his angel into Mary and she, although being chaste bore Jesus without any father.

  4. Priti Patel vows to ‘dismantle’ people smuggling gangs as 11 arrested for illegally facilitating Channel crossings (telegraph, Jul 26, 2020)
    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/07/26/priti-patel-vows-dismantle-people-smuggling-gangs-11-arrested/

    “Priti Patel has vowed to “put whatever resource is necessary” into dismantling people smuggling gangs after police arrested nearly a dozen people illegally facilitating Channel crossings.

    In a significant operation last week, 12 properties were raided, 11 people were arrested, £150,000 cash was seized and two vehicles were taken as the authorities clamped down on the gangs organising the dangerous crossings.

    Already this year, 3,285 people have taken to the water in France and reached the UK, with a record 180 crossing in 15 boats on July 12. This week alone, 288 people have made the journey.

    The Home Secretary said on Saturday evening: “I will not tolerate ruthless criminals looking to break the law by smuggling people into the UK illegally. I will put whatever resource is necessary to dismantle these gangs and stop these dangerous crossings, including going after the groups financing these criminal operations….”

  5. Count Dankula: Hate Crime Bill Will Criminalise ‘Jokes and Memes’, ‘Coward’s Way Out’ of Dealing With Racism (breitbart, Jul 26, 2020)
    https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2020/07/26/count-dankula-scottish-hate-crime-bill-will-criminalise-jokes-and-memes/

    “Scottish YouTuber and comedian, Count Dankula, said that the impeding Hate Crime and Public Order law in Scotland — which criminalises ‘stirring up hatred’ — is a new form of puritanism, saying that “the same boomer level argument” that sought to ban video games, rap music, and Dungeons and Dragons is being used to restrict the “jokes and memes” on the internet.

    Mark Meechan, more commonly known by his online moniker Count Dankula, was found guilty in 2018 by the Glasgow Sherrif Court Tuesday for committing the “hate crime” of filming his girlfriend’s dog doing a Nazi salute. Despite Meechan’s claim that the video was a “shitpost”, “joke video for a laugh”, the court ruled that the video was “grossly offensive” — a crime that could have resulted in a prison sentence for the comedian under the Communications Act.

    This week, the government of Scotland has concluded a public consultation on the change to the country’s hate crime laws, which Mr Meechan fears will usher in even more restrictive curtails on freedom of speech.

    In comments made to Breitbart London, Meechan said: “The new Scottish hate crime bill not only restricts the human right of freedom of expression but it is a direct breach of Article 10 Section 1 of the European Convention of Human Rights.”

    “It outlaws many forms of expression through mediums ranging from online communications right up to live comedy performances, and it justifies this with the term ‘stirring up hatred’, something completely subjective and the legislation defines this term so poorly, if at all, and the term itself is completely without merit.

    “It is based on the same arguments made by the hyper-Christian conservatives of yesteryear, who would say things like: ‘rap music causes crime, video games cause violence, playing dungeons and dragons cause devil worship’. It’s the same boomer level argument from the 90s, only this time it’s been turned into memes and jokes can cause hatred,” the comedian warned.

    Mr Meechan also pointed to Section 5 of the proposed hate crime bill, saying: “It criminalises even possession of offensive content, and the way things currently work is if the police believe that you may be in possession of offensive content then they are allowed to begin surveillance of you and can get a warrant to search your home as well as search and seize your electronic devices.”

    “As for who has offensive content on their phone or computer? Probably every single teenager in this country,” he surmised.

    “But not only does this bill violate human rights, it asks for a maximum sentence of seven years simply for being in possession of offensive content — the maximum sentence of possession of child abuse images is 10 years — so having offensive memes on your computer will carry almost the same maximum prison term as being caught with child abuse images on your computer.

    “This bill literally violates human rights, and if the SNP allow this to pass it will absolutely destroy any claims they have made in being an honest and fair government. When it comes to dealing with racism and social justice, this bill is the cowards way out,” Meechan concluded.

    Scotland’s justice secretary, Humza Yousaf denied that the hate crime bill will limit free speech, telling BBC Scotland: “I don’t accept that this curtails free speech at all. Free speech in itself is never an unfettered right.

    “We don’t accept that people can go on speaking tours, saying that women should be raped and children should be kidnapped – we just don’t accept that freedom of speech is completely unfettered,” Yousaf said.

    “What this does is create a protection for, particularly minority groups and vulnerable groups in our society, against being targeted for hatred and being targets for hatred,” he added.

    The justice spokesman for Scotland’s Labour Party, James Kelly, disagreed with this assessment, saying that there is a “significant divergence” from hate crime laws in England and Wales, which require intent to be demonstrated to prosecute an alleged hate crime.

    “Under the current proposals, the law here would not require this intent to be present – which sets an alarming legal precedent and could result in the criminalisation of expressions of religious views,” Kelly warned.”

  6. Vatican Official Calls for ‘Regular Channels’ for Economic Migrants After COVID-19 (breitbart, Jul 26, 2020)
    https://www.breitbart.com/immigration/2020/07/26/vatican-official-calls-for-regular-channels-for-economic-migrants-after-covid-19/

    “The undersecretary of the Vatican’s department for Migrants and Refugees warned this week of the rise of a “new protectionism” against unchecked immigration in Europe.

    “At the end of the crisis, which we hope will be very soon, we will have massive migratory flows stemming from people’s desire to find a solution to their economic problems,” said Father Fabio Baggio during an online Forum on Migrations and Human Mobility.

    “We think that many countries will have restricted entry, as they have done at this time, without promoting regular channels of immigration… to give priority to their nationals,” he warned. “This rise of ‘new protectionism’ could cause an increase in irregular channels of immigration.”

    The Italian priest noted that in recent months there has been a reduction in migration flows due to the coronavirus pandemic, but also an increase in migrant trafficking by various mafias. He also decried discrimination toward migrants in the health assistance programs in some countries.

    “There are many migrant workers — thousands — who have had to return to their homeland, lost their jobs, stopped sending remittances to their families, and that is why we have families in crisis and entire nations that are facing crises of returning migrants,” he said. “The pandemic has affected all people, yes, but the most vulnerable in a more particular way.”

    The priest said that the Vatican’s department for Migrants and Refugees is trying to draw the attention of the international community to fundamental points from Catholic Social Teaching, claiming that streamlining mass migration “can be a solution that benefits everyone.”

    There are much “more effective alternatives” without resorting to detaining illegal migrants, Father Baggio said. “Starting from the premise that there is no possibility of detaining children, and that children cannot be separated from their families, we are going to think about channels, paths, programs, sponsorship tutoring, community assistance programs that can be provided to migrants in an irregular situation,” he said.

    In the Vatican Commission for COVID-19, of which I form a part, “we are convinced that this crisis constitutes an opportunity, a kairos, to change the system,” the priest said. “The world economic and social system has revealed many flaws, especially where discriminations and asymmetries in the access and distribution of resources are more evident.”

    “We must take this opportunity to change the system, and propose new economic systems and restart another idea of ??society and another idea of ??a world system,” he proposed.”

  7. Malaysia searches for 24 Rohingya feared drowned off island (abcnews, Jul 26, 2020)
    https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/malaysia-searches-24-rohingya-feared-drowned-off-island-71994947

    “Malaysian authorities said Sunday that they were searching for two dozen Rohingya refugees who are feared to have drowned after jumping off their boat off the northern resort island of Langkawi.

    Zawawi Abdullah, a senior official with the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency, said initial police information showed that only one of 25 Rohingya men who jumped off the boat had managed to swim ashore.

    The lone survivor sought help from police late Saturday and has been detained for further investigation, Zawawi said.

    Hundreds of thousands of Muslim Rohingya have fled Myanmar due to a military crackdown, and many live in densely crowded refugee camps in Bangladesh. Muslim-dominated Malaysia has been a common destination of boats arranged by traffickers who promise the refugees a better life abroad.

    Zawawi said two vessels and an aircraft were deployed in the search. He said the agency will also alert local fishermen and authorities in neighboring Thailand to assist in the search. He didn’t provide further details on the boat…”

  8. UN says thousands of anti-Pakistan militants in Afghanistan (abcnews, Jul 26, 2020)
    https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/thousands-anti-pakistan-militants-afghanistan-71994390

    “A U.N. report says more than 6,000 Pakistani insurgents are hiding in Afghanistan, most belonging to the outlawed Pakistani Taliban group responsible for attacking Pakistani military and civilian targets.

    The report released this week said the group, known as the Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP), has linked up with the Afghan-based affiliate of the Islamic State group. Some of TTP’s members have even joined the IS affiliate, which has its headquarters in eastern Afghanistan.

    The Afghan government did not respond Sunday to requests by The Associated Press for comment.

    The report said IS in Afghanistan, known as IS in Khorasan province, has been hit hard by Afghan security forces as well as U.S. and NATO forces, and even on occasion by the Afghan Taliban. The report was prepared by the U.N. analytical and sanctions monitoring team, which tracks terrorist groups around the world.

    The report estimated the membership of IS in Afghanistan at 2,200, and while its leadership has been depleted, IS still counts among its leaders a Syrian national Abu Said Mohammad al-Khorasani. The report also said the monitoring team had received information that two senior Islamic State commanders, Abu Qutaibah and Abu Hajar al-Iraqi, had recently arrived in Afghanistan from the Middle East.

    “Although in territorial retreat, (the Islamic State) remains capable of carrying out high-profile attacks in various parts of the country, including Kabul. It also aims to attract Taliban fighters who oppose the agreement with the United States,” the report said, referring to a U.S. peace deal signed with the Taliban in February.

    That deal was struck to allow the U.S. to end its 19-year involvement in Afghanistan, and calls on the Taliban to guarantee its territory will not be used by terrorist groups. The deal is also expected to guarantee the Taliban’s all-out participation in the fight against IS.

    The second and perhaps most critical part of the agreement calls for talks between the Taliban and Kabul’s political leadership.

    Late Saturday, the U.S. State Department issued a statement saying its peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad was again shuttling through the region seeking to jump start those negotiations, which have been repeatedly postponed as both sides squabble over a prisoner release program.

    The U.S.-backed deal calls for the Afghan government to release 5,000 Taliban prisoners and the Taliban to free 1,000 government and military personnel as a so-called good will gesture ahead of talks. Until now the government is refusing to release nearly 600 Taliban prisoners it calls high-profile criminals and has offered to free alternatives. The Taliban have refused.

    “The parties are closer than ever to the start of intra-Afghan negotiations, the key next step to ending Afghanistan’s 40-year long war,” said the U.S. State Department statement. “Although significant progress has been made on prisoner exchanges, the issue requires additional effort to fully resolve.”

    The Taliban’s political spokesman earlier this week said it was ready to hold talks with Kabul’s political leaders after the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Adha at the end of the month, providing the prisoner release is completed.

    A big worry for Pakistan is the presence in Afghanistan of militants, particularly linked to the TTP or Jamaat-ul-Ahrar or Lashkar-e-Islam, as well as those with the Baluchistan Liberation Army, which has taken responsibility for high-profile attacks this month in the southern Sindh province as well as in southwestern Baluchistan Province. Several Pakistan military personnel have been killed this month in southwestern Baluchistan province in battle with insurgents.

    The TTP took responsibility for one of the most horrific attacks in Pakistan in 2014, when a Pakistani army school was attacked and 140 were killed. Most were students, and some were as young as 5.

    “The total number of Pakistani foreign terrorist fighters in Afghanistan, posing a threat to both countries, is estimated at between 6,000 and 6,500, most of them with TTP,” the report said.”

  9. Armed members of NFAC all-black militia march in Louisville to demand justice for Breonna Taylor

    Hundreds of NFAC activists, clad in black and carrying weapons, marched through the city of Louisville, Kentucky, calling for the investigation into Breonna Taylor’s death to be expedited.

  10. Antonio Guterres – Recover Better Together – Global Lecture on Climate Change

    […]we can steer the recovery toward a more inclusive, resilient and sustainable path and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

    […]The unfolding climate crisis starkly illustrates the stakes and the imperative for that action.

    We need to turn the recovery into a real opportunity to do things right for the future – and our response to the climate crisis is pivotal — as is your role.

    […]Global heating is accelerating.

    […]we must achieve net-zero emissions before 2050, and 45 per cent cuts by 2030.

    We have no excuse for failing to meet these goals. We have the policies, the technology and know-how and the global framework in the Paris Agreement to achieve this.

    […]What is urgently needed now is greater leadership from those who make decisions on their behalf.

    China was an essential partner in the adoption and ratification of the Paris Agreement.

    […]The time for small steps has passed. What is needed now is transformational change.

    […]And if there was hesitation before about the possibility of such large-scale change, the COVID-19 pandemic should erase any doubts.

    In the space of just months, billions of people have had to change how they work, consume, move around and interact

    […]Quite simply, how the world recovers from COVID-19 is a “make-or-break moment” for the health of our planet.

    We have a narrow window, but a vast opportunity, to rebuild a world that is cleaner, fairer and safer for all.

    […]First, we need to make our societies more resilient and ensure a just transition.

    Second, we need green jobs and sustainable growth.

    Third, bailouts of industry, aviation and shipping should be conditional on aligning with the goals of the Paris Agreement.
    […]

    • antonio guterres – ‘Mandela embodied the highest values of the United Nations, took action & inspired change’ -UN Chief

      […]Nelson Mandela — one of the greatest leaders of our time, a moral giant whose legacy continues to guide us today.

      […]The answer lies in a New Social Contract, to ensure economic and social justice and respect for human rights. A New Social Contract within societies will enable young people to live in dignity.

      […]COVID-19 has been likened to an x-ray, revealing fractures in the fragile skeleton of our societies, and it has laid bare risks we have ignored for decades: inadequate healthcare; gaps in social protection; structural inequalities; environmental degradation; the climate crisis.
      In response, we need world leaders to foster unity and solidarity.

      […]to promote a recovery that will build more sustainable, inclusive and gender-equal societies and economies.

    • antonio guterres – COVID-19 and the Arab Region: An Opportunity to Build Back Better

  11. On Mandela Day, UN Chief Urges New Social Contract for New Era

    UN Secretary-General António Guterres gives the 18th Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture virtually from New York.

    In an impassioned address, he challenges people and partners everywhere to combat the “inequality pandemic” as the coronavirus outbreak continues to rage around the world.

    COVID-19 is a human tragedy, the UN Chief says, but it has also created a generational opportunity. “A recovery based on a New Social Contract and a New Global Deal will put the world back on track to realize the promise of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.”

  12. U.N. human rights office calls on U.S. police to limit use of force

    The United Nations human rights office on Friday called on U.S. security forces to limit their use of force against peaceful protesters and journalists, as clashes between federal agents and demonstrators continue in Portland, Ore.

    “Peaceful demonstrations that have been taking place in cities in the U.S. such as Portland really must be able to continue without those participating in them and also the people reporting on them, the journalists, risking arbitrary arrest or detention, being subject to unnecessary disproportionate or discriminatory use of force or suffering other violations of their rights,” Liz Throssell, a spokeswoman for the U.N. human rights office, said at a news conference in Geneva, emphasizing that officers must be “properly and clearly identified.”

    Anti-racism protests have rocked Portland for about two months, since a wave of demonstrations erupted across the United States in response to the killing of George Floyd, a black man who died in police custody in Minneapolis after a white officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes. President Trump, eager to quell the unrest, deployed federal forces to Portland, sparking outrage among city officials who oppose the move.

    Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler, who was among those tear-gassed by federal agents there this week, has called the officers Trump’s “personal army.”

    […]

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2020/07/24/un-human-rights-office-calls-us-police-limit-use-force/

  13. europravda – Brazil’s President Bolsonaro says he’s recovered from coronavirus

    “…. he posted a photo of himself with a box of hydroxychloroquine although it has not be proven effective against the virus …”

  14. Sky News – Coronavirus: Blair warns COVID-19 is here for the ‘foreseeable future’

    + comments on the YT page

  15. Sorry about the no warning absence, I was in the hopsital and am now trying to catch up with what has happened.

    • NYT – The F.B.I. Pledged to Keep a Source Anonymous. Trump Allies Aided His Unmasking.

      After a Russia expert who had collected research on Donald Trump for a disputed dossier agreed to tell the F.B.I. what he knew about it, law enforcement officials declassified a road map to identifying him.

      WASHINGTON — Not long after the early 2017 publication of a notorious dossier about President Trump jolted Washington, an expert in Russian politics told the F.B.I. he had been one of its key sources, drawing on his contacts to deliver information that would make up some of the most salacious and unproven assertions in the document.

      The F.B.I. had approached the expert, a man named Igor Danchenko, as it vetted the dossier’s claims. He agreed to tell investigators what he knew with an important condition, people familiar with the matter said — that the F.B.I. keep his identity secret so he could protect himself, his sources and his family and friends in Russia.

      But his hope of remaining anonymous evaporated last week after Attorney General William P. Barr directed the F.B.I. to declassify a redacted report about its three-day interview of Mr. Danchenko in 2017 and hand it over to Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Mr. Graham promptly made the interview summary public while calling the entire Russia investigation “corrupt.”

      The report blacked out Mr. Danchenko’s name and other identifying information. But within two days, a post on a newly created blog entitled “I Found the Primary Subsource” identified him, citing clues left visible in the F.B.I. document. A pseudonymous Twitter account created in May then promoted the existence of the blog. And the next day, RT, the Kremlin-owned, English-language news and propaganda outlet, published an article amplifying Mr. Danchenko’s identification.

      The decision by Justice Department and F.B.I. leaders to divulge such a report was highly unusual and created the risk it would help identify a person who had confidentially provided information to agents, even if officials did not intend to provide such a road map. The move comes at a time when Mr. Barr, who is to testify before lawmakers on Tuesday, has repeatedly been accused of abusing his powers to help Mr. Trump politically.

      Former law enforcement officials said the outing will make it harder for F.B.I. agents to gain the trust of people they need to cooperate in future and unrelated investigations. 🙂 🙂 🙂

      “These things have to remain very closely held because you put witnesses at risk,” said James W. McJunkin, a former F.B.I. assistant director for counterterrorism. “To release sensitive information unnecessarily that could jeopardize someone’s life is egregious.”

      A lawyer for Mr. Danchenko, Mark E. Schamel, said that because his client’s name had already been exposed, he would not ask The New York Times to withhold it. He acknowledged that “Igor Danchenko has been identified as one of the sources who provided data and analysis” to Christopher Steele, the British former spy who compiled the dossier and whose last name has become shorthand for it.

      Mr. Danchenko’s identity is noteworthy because it further calls into question the credibility of the dossier. By turning to Mr. Danchenko as his primary source to gather possible dirt on Mr. Trump involving Russia, Mr. Steele was relying not on someone with a history of working with Russian intelligence operatives or bringing to light their covert activities but instead a researcher focused on analyzing business and political risks in Russia.

      Spokespeople at both the F.B.I. and the Justice Department declined to comment. An email sent to an address listed on the blog was not returned.

      Mr. Trump’s supporters on Capitol Hill have long sought access to Justice Department and F.B.I. documents about the Russia investigation. The F.B.I. director, Christopher A. Wray, told lawmakers in late 2017 that the bureau was wary of turning over records related to its effort to verify the Steele dossier to Congress. “We are dealing with very, very dicey questions of sources and methods, which is the lifeblood of foreign intelligence and our liaison relationships with our foreign partners,” he said.

      But since his confirmation early last year, Mr. Barr and other Trump appointees have approved a wave of extraordinary declassifications that the president’s allies, including Mr. Graham, have used to attack the Russia inquiry.

      Mr. Graham said he had asked the F.B.I. to declassify the interview report after it was described in an inspector general report last year because he wanted the public to read it. He stressed that he did not know the identity of Mr. Steele’s source and said he did not know whether the F.B.I. released identifying information it should have protected, saying the bureau had appeared to be “painstaking” in redacting such details.

      “I don’t know how he was exposed,” Mr. Graham said in an interview on Friday. “I didn’t see anything in the memo exposing who he was. I mean, you can believe these websites if you want to — I don’t know. I know this: It’s important for the country to understand what happened here.”

      In addition to their political implications, the documents have at times revealed the closely held secrets that Mr. Wray feared jeopardizing: sources of information and the methods used for gathering it.

      Transcripts of recordings released in April resulted in the identification of a confidential F.B.I. informant who had agree to wear a wire when talking to George Papadopoulos, a former Trump adviser who was convicted of lying to the F.B.I. Other released transcripts of a Russian diplomat’s conversations with former national security adviser Michael T. Flynn revealed that the bureau was able to monitor the phone line of the Russian Embassy in Washington even before a call connected with Mr. Flynn’s voice mail.

      The unmaskings from the release of the F.B.I. report have already spiraled beyond Mr. Danchenko. Building on the knowledge of his identity, another Twitter user named a likely source for Mr. Danchenko. Online sleuths were trying to identify others from his network who were cited but not named in the Steele dossier.

      The release of Mr. Danchenko’s interview summary likely put him and other sources in Russia’s sights, said Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee.

      “Under Attorney General Barr, the levers of the Department of Justice continue to be weaponized in defense of the president’s political agenda, even at the expense of national security,” said Mr. Warner, who did not confirm that Mr. Danchenko was Mr. Steele’s primary source or discuss his committee’s own investigation into Russian election interference. “I’m deeply concerned by this release. There is no doubt that the Russians are poring over it to see if they can identify this individual or other sources.”

      Mr. Danchenko also cooperated with the intelligence committee on condition of confidentiality, according to two people familiar with its investigation.

      Some posts on the blog that revealed Mr. Danchenko’s name are dated before Mr. Graham released the interview report, but the Twitter user who promoted the blog said he or she had backdated the posts to change their order.

      Born in Ukraine, Mr. Danchenko, 42, is a Russian-trained lawyer who earned degrees at the University of Louisville and Georgetown University, according to LinkedIn.He was a senior research analyst from 2005 to 2010 at the Brookings Institution, where he co-wrote a research paper showing that, as a student, President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia appeared to have plagiarized part of his dissertation.

      According to his interview with the F.B.I., Mr. Steele contacted Mr. Danchenko around March 2016 and assigned him to ask people he knew in Russia and Ukraine about connections, including any ties to corruption, between a pro-Russian government in Ukraine and the veteran Republican strategist Paul Manafort. Mr. Steele did not explain why, but Mr. Manafort joined the Trump campaign around that time and was later promoted to its chairman. He was convicted in 2018 of tax and bank fraud and other charges that grew out of the Russia investigation.

      Mr. Steele later expanded Mr. Danchenko’s assignment to look for any compromising information about Mr. Trump.

      By Jan. 13, 2017, the F.B.I. had identified Mr. Danchenko, who soon agreed to answer investigators’ questions in exchange for immunity.

      The F.B.I. told a court it found Mr. Danchenko “truthful and cooperative,” according to the report by the Justice Department inspector general, Michael E. Horowitz, although a supervisory F.B.I. intelligence analyst said Mr. Danchenko may have minimized aspects of what he told Mr. Steele.

      Mr. Graham said he wanted the public to be able to see for itself how the interview report “clearly shows that the dossier was not reliable and they continued to use it anyway.”

      Mr. Danchenko did nothing wrong in accepting a paid assignment to gather allegations about Mr. Trump’s ties to Russia and conveying them to Mr. Steele’s research firm, Orbis Business Intelligence, said Mr. Schamel, who attended his client’s F.B.I. debriefings but whose name was redacted from the report about them.

      “Mr. Danchenko is a highly respected senior research analyst; he is neither an author nor editor for any of the final reports produced by Orbis,” Mr. Schamel said. “Mr. Danchenko stands by his data analysis and research and will leave it to others to evaluate and interpret any broader story with regard to Orbis’s final report.”

      The Steele dossier was deeply flawed. For example, it included a claim that Mr. Trump’s former lawyer Michael D. Cohen had met with a Russian intelligence officer in Prague to discuss collusion with the campaign. The report by the special counsel who took over the Russia investigation, Robert S. Mueller III, found that Mr. Cohen never traveled to Prague.

      And Mr. Danchenko’s statements to the F.B.I. contradicted parts of the dossier, suggesting that Mr. Steele may have exaggerated the soundness of other allegations, making what Mr. Danchenko portrayed as rumor and speculation sound more solid.

      The Steele dossier played no role in the F.B.I.’s opening of the Russia investigation in July 2016, and Mr. Mueller did not rely on it for his report.

      But its flaws have taken on outsized political significance, as Mr. Trump’s allies have sought to conflate it with the larger effort to understand Russia’s covert efforts to tilt the 2016 election in his favor and whether any Trump campaign associates conspired in that effort. Mr. Mueller laid out extensive details about Russia’s covert operation and contacts with Trump campaign associates, but found insufficient evidence to bring any conspiracy charges.

      The dossier did play an important role in a narrow part of the F.B.I.’s early Russia investigation: the wiretapping of Carter Page, a former Trump campaign adviser with close ties to Russian officials, which began in October 2016 and was extended three times in 2017. The Justice Department’s applications for court orders authorizing the wiretap relied in part on information from the dossier in making the case that investigators had reason to believe that Mr. Page might be working with Russians.

      Mr. Page was never charged, and Mr. Mueller’s report only briefly discussed him. Mr. Horowitz scathingly portrayed the wiretap applications as riddled with errors and omissions.

      Mr. Danchenko provided information to Mr. Steele that figured into one of the biggest flaws with those applications Mr. Horowitz first brought to public light that when the F.B.I. interviewed Mr. Steele’s primary source — who turned out to be Mr. Danchenko — his account was inconsistent with important aspects of the dossier.

      But law enforcement officials recycled the same language derived from the dossier in their final two applications for court orders to continue wiretapping Mr. Page. They also told a court they had spoken to Mr. Steele’s primary source but without revealing that his statements raised questions about the dossier’s credibility, which Mr. Horowitz said was misleading.

      After the inspector general report, the F.B.I. conceded to the court that it should not have sought the last two renewals.

      The disclosure of Mr. Danchenko’s identity — which the inspector general report concealed — also brought into focus another questionable statement in the wiretap applications. Mr. Horowitz wrote that the last two applications described Mr. Steele’s source as “Russian-based.” Though Mr. Danchenko visited Moscow while gathering information for Mr. Steele, he lives in the United States.

      A criminal prosecutor appointed by Mr. Barr to scrutinize the Russia investigation, John H. Durham, the U.S. attorney in Connecticut, has also focused on the dossier and asked questions about Mr. Danchenko, according to people familiar with aspects of his inquiry. Mr. Schamel said he had not been contacted by Mr. Durham or his investigators.

      https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/25/us/politics/igor-danchenko-steele-dossier.html

      • Danchenko is a spook who’s turned more than an old sock. NYSlimes tries smother the stench of poo wafting out of the FBI with column-inches of hot air.

    • Sen. Graham: ‘Somebody needs to go to jail’ after FBI lied about Steele dossier


  16. The only pathway of its kind in Canada, QuARMS recruits 10 students from across Canada each year to attend the Queen’s School of Medicine on an accelerated track. These students spend two years as undergraduates at Queen’s. Then, rather than take qualifying examinations such as the MCAT, which are part of the standard admissions process, they enter the four-year MD program in the Queen’s School of Medicine, provided they meet the pre-determined entrance criteria for QuARMS students.

    Previously, QuARMS had been open to all graduating high-school students. Now these seats will be reserved for Indigenous peoples and Black Canadians. These seats are in addition to the four seats in the MD program that are designated, through the standard admissions process, for Indigenous students each year.

    https://www.queensu.ca/gazette/stories/reducing-barriers-medical-education

  17. CNN – Local TV stations across the country set to air discredited ‘Plandemic’ researcher’s conspiracy theory about Fauci

    *************************************************************************
    New York (CNN Business)Update: The day after this story was published, Sinclair announced it would postpone and “rework” the segment. Read our follow-up story for more…

    *************************************************************************
    Local television stations owned by the Sinclair Broadcast Group are set to air a conspiracy theory over the weekend that suggests Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top expert on infectious diseases, was responsible for the creation of the coronavirus.

    The baseless conspiracy theory is set to air on stations across the country in a segment during the program “America This Week” hosted by Eric Bolling. The show, which is posted online before it is broadcast over the weekend, is distributed to Sinclair Broadcast Group’s network of local television stations, one of the largest in the country. A survey by Pew Research Group earlier this year showed that local news was a vital source of information on the coronavirus for many Americans, and more trusted than the media overall.

    In this week’s episode of the show, Bolling spoke with Judy Mikovits, the medical researcher featured in the discredited “Plandemic” video that went viral earlier this year and which was banned from platforms such as Facebook and YouTube. Throughout the segment, the on-screen graphic read, “DID DR. FAUCI CREATE COVID-19?”

    Bolling also spoke with Mikovits’ attorney, Larry Klayman, a right-wing lawyer who also has a history of pushing misinformation and representing conspiracy theorists.

    During the interview Mikovits told Bolling that Fauci had over the past decade “manufactured” and shipped coronaviruses to Wuhan, China, which became the original epicenter of the current outbreak. Bolling noted that this was a “hefty claim,” but did not meaningfully challenge Mikovits and allowed her to continue making her case.

    Klayman also pushed conspiracy theories about the coronavirus. He said the “origins” of the virus were in the United States. Bolling didn’t meaningfully challenge Klayman either.

    In the segment that immediately followed, Bolling spoke to Dr. Nicole Saphier, a Fox News medical contributor, to get her response to the claims from Mikovits and Klayman.
    Bolling and Saphier agreed that it was, in Saphier’s words, “highly unlikely” that Fauci was behind the coronavirus. But they went on to theorize about other possible explanations for what had happened. Saphier said it was possible the virus was “man-made within a laboratory” and escaped. That claim has been rejected by experts who have studied the virus’ genetic sequence.

    The segments were first reported on by Media Matters, a progressive media watchdog.
    President Trump’s allies in right-wing media have sought to discredit Fauci in recent weeks. Earlier this month, Trump administration officials even went as far as to publicly attack Fauci.

    The Sinclair Broadcast Group has drawn criticism in the past for pushing a conservative political worldview in its newscasts and programming decisions. A spokesperson for the company did not respond to multiple requests for comment on Friday.

    But Bolling, a former Fox News host, told CNN Business in a series of text messages that he invited Mikovits onto his show to “question and challenge her beliefs.” Bolling also said he does not control the on-screen graphics that appear during his show.

    “I did challenge her,” Bolling said, noting he called her claim “hefty.”
    When pressed over whether calling a claim “hefty” constituted effectively challenging the conspiracy theory Mikovits pushed, Bolling said that he did believe he challenged her.

    Bolling then told CNN Business that he was not aware of the viral “Plandemic” video Mikovits was featured in earlier this year, and said Saphier “was not originally booked on the show” and that he added her to “provide an opposing viewpoint.”

    “I don’t know of any video she was in prior to or after appearing on my show. Frankly, I was shocked when she made the accusation,” Bolling said. “I asked our producers to add Saphier to the show for the express purpose of debunking the conspiracy theory. I believe viewers see that I did not and do not endorse her theory.”

    When asked if he really was unaware that Mikovits had been in a viral video earlier in the year pushing misinformation about coronavirus, Bolling said he had been.

    “I give you my word… this is the first I’ve heard of the video,” Bolling said. “And the very first time I heard of Dr. Mikovits was the morning of taping.”

    But when asked whether, now that he was aware of the video, he had any second thoughts about airing the segment with Mikovits, Bolling replied, “I don’t second guess my producers and bookers.”

    Bolling added, however, that he “certainly didn’t endorse her theory.”

    After this story was originally published, Klayman wrote in an email on Saturday night that he stood by what his client, Mikovits, said on Bolling’s show, and claimed that he does not push misinformation. Klayman also threatened to sue CNN. CNN stands by its reporting.

    https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/24/media/sinclair-fauci-conspiracy-bolling/index.html

    • washington post – Sinclair TV stations delay airing interview with ‘Plandemic’ researcher amid backlash

      After facing intense scrutiny for planning to air a baseless conspiracy theory that infectious-disease expert Anthony S. Fauci helped to create the coronavirus, conservative TV broadcaster Sinclair Broadcast Group announced Saturday that it will delay the segment to edit the context of the claims.

      Sinclair, which has 191 stations across the country, received backlash this week after “America This Week” host Eric Bolling interviewed Judy Mikovits, a former medical researcher featured in the debunked “Plandemic” conspiracy online film.

      In the Sinclair interview, Mikovits claimed that Fauci “manufactured” the coronavirus and shipped it to Wuhan, China, where the outbreak originated. A chyron during the segment reads, “DID DR. FAUCI CREATE COVID-19?”

      Mikovits and her lawyer Larry Klayman dropped other unfounded allegations during the show, including President Trump soft-pedaling relations with China because he has evidence of the country’s involvement with the inception of the virus.

      The show was released online earlier this week before it was to be aired on local news channels. The segment was first reported by Media Matters, a left-leaning media watchdog. As of Saturday afternoon, the show was pulled from Sinclair websites.

      Bolling, a former Fox News personality, did not challenge Mikovits’s assertions, calling what she said a “hefty claim.” He later told The Washington Post via text that he brought Fox News medical contributor Nicole Saphier on the show after to provide an opposing viewpoint.

      Saphier said during her interview that it was “highly unlikely” Fauci was responsible for the coronavirus.

      Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has come under heavy criticism by some conservatives as he has stated positions opposite of the president over the virus and measures needed to contain its spread. Trump, while at times praising the doctor, also has been critical at times.

      Bolling told The Post that he recognizes “that this segment does need to be reworked to provide better context, and as such we are delaying the airing of the episode for one week.”

      “Let me also add that I have immense respect for Dr. Fauci and recognize him as the leading expert on this topic,” he said in a statement. “For the past two months, I have consistently pursued the opportunity to bring Dr. Fauci on air so that he may provide critical information to the public about the virus. The invitation stands.”

      A Sinclair spokesperson did not respond to requests from The Post for comment, but the company issued a statement saying that it is not “aligning with or endorsing the viewpoints” aired in the segment, but adding that it is “a supporter of free speech and a marketplace of ideas and viewpoints, even if incredibly controversial.”

      “We will spend the coming days bringing together other viewpoints and provide additional context,” the company later shared. “All stations have been notified not to air this and will instead be re-airing last week’s episode in its place.”

      Based in Maryland, Sinclair owns and operates local news stations across the country and has endured criticism for its anchors parroting Trump’s remarks.

      “As a propaganda machine, Sinclair is far more dangerous than OANN,” New York University professor Jay Rosen tweeted following the news of the interview with Mikovits. “Although it’s emerging a little more as itself lately, it is still for the most part a stealth network that operates through local ‘community’ stations that present to the viewer as ABC CBS NBC & Fox affiliates.”

      Mikovits did not respond to a request for comment but previously told The Post that her troubles stem from a cabal aimed at dismantling her career.

      Mikovits has espoused other baseless claims in the past, including that the virus is “activated” by face masks. In the “Plandemic” video, Mikovits echoes populist conspiracy theories about how powerful people, including Fauci, are burying evidence about the virus’ origins for sinister reasons.

      https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2020/07/25/sinclair-tv-stations-delay-airing-interview-with-plandemic-researcher-amid-backlash/

    • Corporate Media and Big Tech Trying to Stop Judy Mikovits Interview Exposing Dr. Fauci from Airing this Weekend
      ************************************************************************
      Sinclair Broadcasting was apparently pressured to not air this. This is what they announced via their Twitter account:

      After further review, we have decided to delay this episode’s airing. We will spend the coming days bringing together other viewpoints and provide additional context. All stations have been notified not to air this and will instead be re-airing last week’s episode in its place.
      **********************************************************************************
      Corporate Media and Big Tech Trying to Stop Judy Mikovits Interview Exposing Dr. Fauci from Airing this Weekend

      The national corporate media giants like CNN, along with Big Tech, are trying hard to censor a video produced by America this Week with Eric Bolling and distributed to local media sources via the Sinclair Broadcast Group.

      The video is an interview with whistle-blower Dr. Judy Mikovits and her attorney, Larry Klaman, where Dr. Mikovits is claiming that Dr. Fauci was manufacturing coronaviruses in monkey cell lines at Ft. Detrick in the U.S., a biosafety level 4 facility, and shipping them to Wuhan, China.

      CNN may have unwittingly drawn more attention to the show than it would have otherwise received by publishing an article condemning the host, Eric Bolling, who used to work for Fox News, and also slandering both Larry Klaman and Dr. Mikovits in an effort to discredit them.

      The text used by CNN was picked up by almost every other national corporate media organization by Friday, July 24, 2020.

      One of the sources who also condemned the interview is an organization called “Media Matters” who also embedded the video of the interview, which has now been deleted from Facebook, as well as local affiliate WJLA ABC 7, where the video was originally published.

      We have embedded the video below. (If it disappears, let us know.)

      As a matter of policy, Health Impact News generally does not link to and provide traffic to the websites like CNN, but here is a write-up on CNN’s hit piece from RT.com:

      CNN has whipped up an army of outraged Twitter liberals after it slammed a network of local news stations for airing an interview with a disgraced scientist who blamed Dr Anthony Fauci for the coronavirus.

      Dr Judy Mikovits is the star of ‘Plandemic,’ a conspiracy documentary claiming that Covid-19 is a ploy by National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases head Dr Anthony Fauci and Bill Gates to poison the masses with vaccines and get rich doing so. The film has been pulled from YouTube, censored in internet searches, and denounced by almost every single mainstream media outlet.

      Mikovits, however, will appear on hundreds of local news outlets owned by the Sinclair Broadcast Group this weekend, during a segment of ‘America This Week’, hosted by Eric Bolling.

      Her appearance alone rubbed CNN the wrong way. In an article slamming Sinclair for airing such a “baseless conspiracy theory,” CNN hammered Bolling for allowing Mikovits to “continue to make her case” without pushing back enough. CNN even texted both Bolling and Mikovits’ fellow guest Larry Klayman, a lawyer who backed up her claims, to ask them about the segment.

      Taking a page from the Media Matters playbook, CNN asked Bolling if he had any “second thoughts” about airing the segment. Bolling simply replied “I don’t second guess my producers and bookers.”

      Online, CNN’s liberal viewership clamored for a boycott of Sinclair. Some even demanded that anyone spreading such “dangerously false propaganda” be imprisoned.

      Whatever its standing in the information war, CNN is losing the ratings war against Sinclair and its affiliates. Local broadcasters like the 294 owned or operated by Sinclair and its subsidiaries draw in five times as many primetime viewers as cable networks like CNN. Among these local broadcasters, Sinclair is king, reaching 40 percent of American households. (Source.)

      As of the time of this writing (Saturday, 7/25/2020), I have not seen anything about Sinclair changing their mind, but outside of Media Matters and a couple of other sites also embedding their video of the interview, I have not been able to locate it.

      Here is the interview:

      ( video embedded on the page )

      https://healthimpactnews.com/2020/corporate-media-and-big-tech-trying-to-stop-judy-mikovits-interview-exposing-dr-fauci-from-airing-this-weekend/

      ==============================================

      TRANSCRIPT

      ERIC BOLLING (HOST): Larry Klayman is the founder of Judicial Watch and Freedom Watch. He’s teamed up with Dr. Judy Mikovits, who worked with Dr. Anthony Fauci and is an expert in virology. I spoke to them both recently about the potential legal action they are seeking against Dr. Fauci. Then I brought in Dr. Nicole Saphier to weigh in on all their allegations. Take a listen.

      (VIDEO BEGINS)

      BOLLING: Dr. Mikovits, tell me about the — what you believe Dr. Fauci has done wrong?

      JUDY MIKOVITS: I believe Dr. Fauci has manufactured the coronaviruses in monkey cell lines and shipped them from and paid for and shipped the cell lines to Wuhan, China, now for at least since 2014. He published that fact and funded the studies that were published in 2015 in Nature Medicine that stated that the original cell line the Chinese used to grow the virus was shipped from Ft. Detrick, USAMRIID, the biosafety level 4 facility there.

      BOLLING: Doctor, that’s a pretty hefty claim. You’re claiming that there was a virus that Fauci discovered, the coronavirus — again, there are many coronaviruses — but he shipped this specific version to China —

      MIKOVITS: No.

      BOLLING: And then somehow it leaked? Tell us.

      MIKOVITS: No. I’m not saying that he discovered it, I’m saying they were manufacturing these animal tissues. They were using these animal tissues at Ft. Detrick, and this has been done for decades. It was illegal in this country, so instead of continuing the work there, he funded the studies. He’s the head of NIAID. He didn’t discover this particular coronavirus, but they had been working on isolating coronaviruses from bats, both at USAMRIID since the mid to late ‘90s, and they had shipped — originally funded the studies to Wuhan, China, when it was illegal in this country to do these types of studies further.

      BOLLING: All right, let’s bring you in Larry, let’s talk about the law here. What is your claim and, you know, how is it steeped in law?

      LARRY KLAYMAN: Well we’re looking at a possible RICO case, Eric, and we’re analyzing that right now, but what it appears happened is the Chinese got that virus. And we know that $3.7 million was given as a grant during the Obama administration to that Wuhan laboratory, that’s not in dispute. And the Chinese then engineered it into a bioweapon. So what happened here, actually, is relevant to our lawsuit in Dallas, Texas, our class action against the communist Chinese who are releasing, either accidentally or by design, this pandemic. So, it’s a very serious matter, and it needs to be looked into. No one wants to discuss it, and I suspect the president probably knows about this right now, which is why — and I support the president personally, but I don’t think that’s why he’s — I think that’s why he’s going not real strong against China right now, because this virus actually had its origins, apparently, in a lab in Ft. Detrick, Maryland.

      BOLLING: And Larry, we know about the funding the Obama administration sent to China, the Wuhan lab, but allegedly it was for discovery of a vaccine of this exact virus. Earlier, the doctor talked about something that Fauci may have been doing, experimenting here illegal. Tell us about that piece of it.

      KLAYMAN: Well, let me just say this. I think one thing the left and the right have in common these days, Eric, is that we don’t believe a word the government tells us. And the fact that they claim they’re looking for a vaccine — you know, they were doing research, and Judy could talk about this more, at Ft. Detrick to combat bioweapons. OK, so, they weren’t there just for vaccines. I mean, they were there for a number of different reasons. But let me turn it over to her because she’s the expert here.

      BOLLING: Go ahead, doctor.

      MIKOVITS: Ah, yes, Eric, these — since the mid ‘90s, we’ve been working with Ebola and other strains of viruses from bats and animals. And we — I did that work at USAMRIID, that means U.S. Army Research Institute for Infectious Disease. So we were doing those studies, allegedly then, to provide vaccines or therapeutics, but we were working, mixing animal tissues in these human cell lines, the exact same cell lines used in China. And these viruses have escaped before, the Ebola strain in 2014 that killed 21,000 Liberians came from that same USAMRIID facility in Ft. Detrick, Frederick, Maryland.

      BOLLING: All right, we’re going to leave it there. I think there’s a lot more as we go forward. Larry, you’ve been talking about suing China for quite a while now, you’ll keep us up to date on where that legal proceeding is headed and where it is. Larry Klayman everybody, Dr. Judy Mikovits. Thank you very much for your time.

      (VIDEO ENDS)

  18. Austin Motorist Shoots, Kills Protester Carrying a Rifle When Crowd Surrounded His Car [VIDEO]

    An unidentified motorist was in downtown Austin last night at a busy intersection. Unfortunately for him, downtown was also the scene of what the Austin American-Statesman describes as “a protest against police violence.”

    Here’s the Statesman’s description of what happened:

    https://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/austin-motorist-shoots-kills-protester-with-rifle-after-crowd-stopped-his-car-video/?utm_source=wideopen&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=wideopen&utm_content=%5B%5Brssitem_title%5D%5D

    https://twitter.com/i/status/1287256392395567104

    https://twitter.com/i/status/1287223265631576067

  19. ISIS women are smuggled out of the infamous al-Hol (Hawl) camp in water trucks. Article links to YT video:

    https://npasyria.com/en/blog.php?id_blog=3022&sub_blog=15&name_blog=Exclusive:%20NGO%20workers%20caught%20attempting%20to%20smuggle%20ISIS%20women%20out%20of%20Hawl%20Camp,%20Syria
    A video obtained by North Press agency from private sources from Hawl camp, in the southern countryside of Hasakah, showed drivers of water tankers belonging to the Norwegian Refugee Council NRC smuggling ISIS families from the camp.
    The video documents the moment of the arrest of four women of foreign nationalities, who were hidden in a box under the water tank.
    North Press also got another video showing a water tanker driver who attempted to smuggle women.

    There are about 11,000 and ISIS family members from about 54 countries who are detained in a separate part of the camp known as the Department of Foreigners or Immigrant Women, and are known to be extremist in their views, according to the camp administration.
    This comes in light of the recent smuggling of a Moldovan ISIS woman and her children out of the camp by Turkish intelligence services, according to another detainee in the camp.
    The Internal Security Forces (Asayish) declared the failure of the operations of smuggling ISIS families from the camp.

    Also see:
    https://npasyria.com/en/blog.php?id_blog=2999&sub_blog=15&name_blog=ISIS%20bride%20to%20North%20Press:%20Turkey%20smuggled%20ISIS%20wife%20out%20of%20Syria%E2%80%99s%20Hawl%20Camp

      • ISIS Women: Victims or Perpetrators?

        “Female members of ISIS are often perceived as being passive, naïve, or even as victims. This is a dangerous and wildly inaccurate characterization.” – Free Yezidi Foundation.

        It is important to stress that the true victims of ISIS’s hateful practices are not the thousands of women and girls who willingly joined ISIS and actively participated in the group’s horrendous crimes against humanity, but rather the hundreds of thousands of Christians, Yezidis and Muslims whom they displaced, tortured and killed.

        https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/15309/isis-women

      • Pay More Attention to the Women of ISIS

        As U.S. forces reduce their anti-ISIS efforts in Syria, and amid the group’s calls for lone-wolf revenge actions after the death of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, we must focus on a largely overlooked subset of its radicalized supporters: women. While security services have generally tended to approach women as victims, female participation in ISIS has evolved beyond caretakers and housewives.…

        ISIS women breaking out of detention in Syria present a number of dangers.

        First, some of these women are well positioned to become the next generation of fighters. Though ISIS leaders originally preferred women stay home to care for men and children, this changed when the group started losing territory in 2015. In December 2016, the group’s al-Naba magazine appealed to women to prepare for jihad. Ten months later, ISIS issued an unprecedented call to women urging them to prepare “themselves as mujahidat [female warrior] in the cause of Allah.” …

        Second, ISIS women can recruit new members. Western women were especially active in online recruitment for the Caliphate, and a number of Umm (the Arabic word for mother) have established a strong jihadist presence online.…

        Finally, the closed confines of the detention camps has likely helped ISIS women raise their children to be, as al-Baghdadi, said, “the next generation of the caliphate.” …

        https://www.defenseone.com/ideas/2019/10/pay-more-attention-women-isis/161012/

    • “Stranded” in Syria.

      Seth Frantzman@sfrantzman ·Jul 24, 2020
      “Stranded” in Syria…a country the adults went to illegally to support an extremist group, they could have stayed home, eh… the “plight” of the “abandoned”… the main people abandoned are the survivors of the ISIS genocide.

      It’s fascinating how quickly the hundreds of thousands of victims of ISIS colonial genocide have been forgotten… while every citizen of a western country is made to be a victim as if they were transported to Syria magically.

      Western countries should take responsibility for their citizens and the children especially… but they should be giving reparations to the Yazidi and other victims of ISIS for the horrors caused by their citizens who joined ISIS.

      There is always this subconscious narrative that westerners are ‘stuck’ in Syria… as opposed to a question about their own role in getting there. ISIS made parts of Syria and Iraq a hell, especially for minorities, enslaving them and genocide. That’s how many got “stuck” there.

      https://twitter.com/sfrantzman/status/1286726153638752257

  20. Federal judge’s son, 20, is shot dead and her criminal defense attorney husband is critically injured after a gunman disguised as a FedEx driver ambushed their home – four days after she was assigned a case linked to Jeffrey Epstein

    The son of a federal judge has been shot dead and her husband critically wounded after they were attacked at their home by a gunman dressed as a FedEx driver.

    The attack happened at the home of Esther Salas, 51, an Obama-appointed District Court judge, in North Brunswick, New Jersey, on Sunday evening.

    The judge’s 20-year-old son Daniel Anderl was killed, and her defense attorney husband Mark Anderl, 63, was critically injured.

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8539683/Federal-judges-son-shot-dead-husband-wounded-attack-man-dressed-FedEx-driver.html

  21. President Highlights Failure of Plot for Iran’s Economic Collapse
    https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2020/07/26/2314790/president-highlights-failure-of-plot-for-iran-s-economic-collapse

    “Not only have the enemies failed to achieve the objective of causing economic collapse in Iran, but the Iranian administration has supplied all necessary commodities and accelerated domestic production, President Hassan Rouhani said.

    Addressing a Sunday meeting of the administration’s Economic Coordination Headquarters, Rouhani said the main purpose of the economic war launched by the enemies, which was Iran’s economic collapse, has ended in failure.

    While the enemies had plans to mount the pressure of sanctions to disrupt the supply of the necessary commodities in Iran, the Iranian administration has managed to nullify the sanctions in cooperation with people and economic activists, the president added.

    Rouhani said his cabinet has succeeded in supplying the basic and necessary commodities and has also provided raw materials for domestic production.

    The administration has even accelerated the surge in production, he added.

    The president also reaffirmed his cabinet’s resolve to purse a regular plan for supplying currency for the purchase of basic commodities and raw materials despite the foreign pressures.

    He further commended local economic activists, entrepreneurs, producers and exporters for supporting the government’s policies, saying his administration has put the oil-free economy into operation and has been handling the country’s economy under severe conditions.

    In comments earlier this month, Rouhani said the country has overcome the US sanctions and successfully dealt with the economic war challenges by cutting reliance on the oil incomes.”

  22. Taliban Warn of Action If US Refuses to Leave Afghanistan on Schedule
    https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2020/07/26/2314858/taliban-warn-of-action-if-us-refuses-to-leave-afghanistan-on-schedule

    “The Taliban’s political chief, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, warned the US that an appropriate decision will be made if the American forces fail to pull out of Afghanistan according to the agreed timetable.

    In an interview with Tasnim, Abdul Ghani Baradar said the Doha agreement between the Taliban and the US entails the withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan under a 14-month timetable.

    “The results of implementation of the Doha agreement with the US have been positive so far. In the first stage, the US announced it has evacuated five military bases, and the number of American troops has been reduced to 8,600, as this process continues,” he added.

    “However, if the foreign forces do not leave Afghanistan on schedule, the Islamic Emirate will make the necessary decisions,” the Taliban’s political chief warned.

    On intra-Afghan talks for the peace process in Afghanistan, Baradar underlined that there is no hidden agreement between the group and the US.

    The Taliban insist that the Afghan government “should release the Islamic Emirate prisoners according to the Doha agreement to prepare the ground for the launch of intra-Afghan negotiations”, he said, denying reports that the Taliban have submitted a new list of prisoners to the Kabul government.

    “The release of all 5,000 Taliban prisoners is the precondition for the start of intra-Afghan negotiations,” Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar stated.

    Asked about the Taliban’s push to take full power in Afghanistan, he said the group is after the establishment of an inclusive Islamic administration, but does not seek a monopoly of power.

    “All Afghans have the right to be involved in serving and safeguarding the Islamic establishment and their country,” he concluded.

    A few days ago, the Taliban said they were prepared to hold peace talks with the Afghan government next month straight after the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, provided a continuing prisoner swap has been completed.

    The Taliban’s political spokesman, Suhail Shaheen, said on Twitter on Thursday that the Taliban were ready to release the remaining Afghan security force prisoners in their custody, as long as Kabul freed all Taliban inmates “as per our list already delivered” to authorities.

    The prisoner-exchange issue, agreed to under a deal between the US and the Taliban, has proved a major sticking point ahead of peace talks.

    The Afghan government is supposed to release up to 5,000 Taliban fighters, while the armed group has pledged to free 1,000 Afghan security forces in their custody, according to the US-Taliban agreement.”

  23. UN Report Says Mercenaries Entered Libya from Turkey
    https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2412216/un-report-says-mercenaries-entered-libya-turkey

    “A United Nations report revealed that several countries have expressed concern over the arrival of thousands of ISIS and al-Qaeda terrorists to Libya.

    The UN Security Council Committee concerning Libya said 7,000 – 15,000 mercenaries and terrorists from Syria have entered Libya through Turkey to fight alongside the Government of National Accord (GNA), headed by Fayez al-Sarraj, against the Libyan National Army (LNA), commanded by Khalifa Haftar.

    The report found that ISIS boasts a few hundred fighters in Libya. One member state said that the number is as much as 4,000.

    It expressed concern over reports that 7,000 – 15,000 fighters had been transported from northwestern Syria to the capital Tripoli through Turkey.

    It is not yet clear whether these Syrian fighters were originally members of terrorist groups included on the Syria sanctions list.

    The interim Syrian government in Turkey has helped send forces to Libya, it found.

    The report added that ISIS was still capable of surviving, while al-Qaeda was taking root in local communities and in conflicts.

    It noted that ISIS has increased its operations in conflict zones in Iraq and Syria, which is a cause of concern for member states.

    It warned that these groups are exploiting the COVID-19 pandemic in order to spread propaganda and gather funds. It added that should the world go into severe recession, then the international society may encounter more obstacles in combating terrorism and extremism.

    “At the same time, the pandemic has made cross-border travel more difficult and targets more elusive, and the operational tempo of attacks has slowed discernibly in some regions,” read the report.

    The overall number of ISIS militants in Iraq and Syria is estimated at more than 10,000, the report revealed.

    According to the report, “al-Qaeda exploits the tarnished ISIS brand and societal fractures to enhance legitimacy and gain local traction and recruits. The relationship between ISIS and al-Qaeda remains fraught and idiosyncratic, depending on regional dynamics.””

    • The filthy Turk needs to bleed off excess jihadis after his excellent adventures displacing ancient communities in northern Syria and Iraq. Putin and Assad are just as glad to be rid of wild Turkmen and ISIS leftovers.

  24. More than 60 killed in fresh Darfur violence, UN reports
    https://www.middleeasteye.net/more/60/killed/fresh/darfur/violence/sudan

    “More than 60 people have been killed and another 60 wounded in fresh violence in the West Darfur region of Sudan, UN officials announced on Sunday.

    Around 500 armed men attacked Masteri Town, north of Beida, in Darfur, on Saturday afternoon, said the statement from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

    The attackers targeted members of the local Masalit community, looting and burning houses and part of the local market, the statement added.

    “This was one of the latest of a series of security incidents reported over the last week that left several villages and houses burned, markets and shops looted, and infrastructure damaged,” said the statement, from the OCHA’s Khartoum office. It did not cite the source of its information.

    On Sunday, Sudan’s Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok announced that the country would be sending security forces to Darfur in order to “protect citizens and the farming season”….”

  25. 1,200 Pakistanis released from UAE jails
    https://tribune.com.pk/story/2256805/1200-pakistanis-released-from-uae-jails

    “Special Assistant to the PM on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development Zulfikar Abbas Bukhari on Sunday said the government had made special efforts to ensure the release and repatriation of 1,200 Pakistani prisoners from the UAE during the coronavirus pandemic.

    “Only 121 Pakistanis remain in Abu Dhabi jails, he tweeted.

    The SAPM praised the UAE government for its compassionate gesture amid the pandemic.

    Separately, the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development said an Emirati businessman had committed Rs10 million for the repatriation of Pakistanis stranded in the UAE…”

  26. Diyanet head’s sermon at Hagia Sophia stirs debate
    https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/diyanet-heads-sermon-at-hagia-sophia-stirs-debate-156881

    “The khutbah (sermon) Ali Erba?, the head of Turkey’s Presidency of Religious Affairs (Diyanet), delivered at the first Friday prayers performed at Hagia Sophia on July 24 after the historical structure was turned into a mosque from a museum has stirred a fierce debate as critics claimed that the country’s top imam targeted Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the republic.

    “Any property that is endowed is inviolable in our belief and burns whoever touches it; the charter of the endower is indispensable and whoever infringes upon it is cursed,” Erba? said in the sermon.

    Politicians from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) and ?Y? (Good) Party claimed that Erba?’s remarks were targeting Atatürk, some calling on him to resign.

    A cabinet decree back in 1934, when Atatürk was still alive, had turned Hagia Sophia into a museum. On July 10, a Turkish court annulled this decree, paving the way for its use again as a mosque after an 86-year hiatus.

    Erba? dismissed claims that he cursed Atatürk in the sermon.

    “All deeds of trusts for foundations conclude with such a curse. And in my sermon, I referred to this and I referred not only to Hagia Sophia but all foundations. I also did not refer to the past but the future,” Erba? told daily Hürriyet.

    He also pointed out that it is a controversial issue among historians if Atatürk played a role in turning Hagia Sophia into a museum.

    “Atatürk passed away 82 years ago. Prayers are said for those who passed away, not curses,” Erba? said.

    As the head of Diyanet he said it is his duty to remind the public of protecting foundations’ properties. “I am fulfilling this duty.”

    However, politicians from the CHP and ?Y? Party lashed out at Erba? for his remarks.

    “You will pay the price for bedamning Atatürk,” said Özgür Özel, the deputy group head of the CHP.

    Gürsel Tekin, a lawmaker from the CHP, said no public servant can insult Atatürk, while another CHP lawmaker, Mehmet Ali Çelebi, said cursing at Atatürk is tantamount to treason.

    “One day there may be political and judicial consequences for Erba?,” said Lütfü Türkkan, the deputy group chair of the ?Y? Party.

    Aytun Ç?ray, a lawmaker from the ?Y? Party, called on Erba? to step down, saying that the head of the Diyanet in fact did not even know what was written in Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror’s foundation charter he referred to.”

  27. Marxism in the Classroom, Riots in the Streets

    The production of brainwashed generations of automatons.

    he explosion of lawless rioting on American streets was only a matter of time. Sixty-two years ago, former FBI agent W. Cleon Skousen wrote “The Naked Communist” to warn Americans about how communists planned to destroy our system from within, not by means of sudden revolution as envisioned by Karl Marx, but through a version of Italian communist Antonio Gramsci’s “cultural Marxism.” With a nod to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its People’s Liberation Army (PLA), it has been a “long march through the institutions” that has brought us to the brink of catastrophe—and much of it began in our schools.

    Chapter 13 of Skousen’s book lists 45 goals of communism in America. Number 17 reads: “Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of the teachers’ associations. Put the party line in textbooks.” And so they did. While American parents were busy working to sustain their families and achieve a piece of the American dream, their children were at schools with teachers and textbooks that taught them to hate America, the Judeo-Christian foundations of our national identity, and the remarkable individuals who built this country on the principles of the Declaration of Independence, our Constitution, the Federalist Papers, and more.

    https://cms.frontpagemag.com/fpm/2020/07/marxism-classroom-riots-streets-clare-m-lopez