Reader’s Links for August 18, 2020

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

104 Replies to “Reader’s Links for August 18, 2020”

  1. Clashes break out between Al-Qaeda and Al-Islah militia in Yemen’s Marib
    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200818-clashes-break-out-between-al-qaeda-and-al-islah-militia-in-yemens-marib/

    “Clashes have broken out between Al-Qaeda elements and Al-Islah militia in Marib city according to local sources yesterday.

    Yemen Press Agency reports that the pro-Yemeni government Islah forces stopped a vehicle at a checkpoint carrying Al-Qaeda members who refused to be checked and exchanged fire with Islah gunmen. The fighting is said to have resulted in deaths and wounding of several of those at the checkpoint.

    The source added that Islah reinforcements arrived at the scene and arrested two Al-Qaeda members, Mohammed Ali Mohammed Al-Mansouri and Aref Ahmed Al-Tissi, and took them to an unknown location, while the rest fled.

    The influx of Al-Qaeda members in Marib coincides with the recent defeat of the terrorist group along with Daesh by the joint Houthi army forces in the central province of Al-Baydah, having taken over their strongholds.

    The press agency reported on Friday that the Al-Qaeda and Daesh elements were evacuated by Saudi-led coalition forces and settled in the Al-Falaj and Wadi Abida areas in the pro-government stronghold city.

    Speaking of the operations in Baydah, one Houthi military source stated, “We launched a massive assault on the area of Qayfah in the district of Al-Qurayshiah that continued for three days and ended with our takeover of the main stronghold of the two terrorist groups in the area of Yakla”.”

  2. Algeria to allow private banks, airlines, sea transport firms
    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200818-algeria-to-allow-private-banks-airlines-sea-transport-firms/

    “Algeria will allow its private sector to set up banks as well as air and sea transport companies for goods and passengers to reduce spending, President Abdelmadjid Tebboune said on Tuesday.

    The move is part of wider reforms by the OPEC member to cope with financial problems caused by a sharp fall in energy export revenues, the main source of state funding for the North African country.

    Elected in December 2019, Tebboune wants to encourage private investors and improve the investment climate in an effort to develop the non-energy sector and reduce reliance on oil and gas…”

  3. Sudan says ‘looking forward’ to normalising ties with Israel following UAE peace deal
    https://english.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2020/8/18/sudan-says-looking-forward-to-normalising-ties-with-israel

    “Sudan is looking forward to making a peace agreement with Israel, the foreign ministry said on Tuesday, days after Israel normalised ties with the UAE.

    Speculation has been rife that more Arab states will forge diplomatic ties with Israel following last week’s announcement of an agreement between Israel and the UAE.

    General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, the leader of Sudan’s transitional sovereign council, met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in February this year and agreed to work towards normalising ties…”

  4. Pakistan can never accept Israel until independence of Palestine: PM Imran
    https://tribune.com.pk/story/2260124/pakistan-can-never-accept-israel-until-independence-of-palestine-pm-imran

    “Prime Minister Imran Khan has categorically rejected any possibility that Pakistan can establish relations with Israel after it signed a historic deal with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to normalise bilateral ties.

    “Our stance is very clear from day one and Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah had said Pakistan can never accept state of Israel until the people of Palestine get rights and state,” he said in an interview with a private news channel on Tuesday.

    The premier said accepting the state of Israel is equivalent to give up Pakistan’s stance on Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK). “The case of Palestinians is similar to people of Kashmir and their [Palestinians] rights have been snatched and they have been suffering Israeli atrocities.”…”

  5. TTP reunite with two splinter groups
    https://tribune.com.pk/story/2259953/ttp-reunite-with-two-splinter-groups

    “The outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan have brought two splinter groups — Jamat-ul-Ahrar (JuA) and Hizb-ul-Ahrar (HuA) — back into their fold, they announced in a statement.

    The TTP, designated a terrorist group by the United States, has been in disarray in recent years, especially after several of its top leaders were killed by US drone strikes on both sides of the border, forcing its members into shelter in Afghanistan, or fleeing to urban Pakistan.

    “Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan welcomes them,” the TTP statement said of the two splinter groups, adding that it would like all groups to unite.

    The reunion with JuA and HuA appears significant in view of the rise in militant attacks against security forces, most claimed by the TTP, including some suicide bombings.

    The Taliban said the two groups pledged allegiance to the TTP chief, Mufti Noor Wali, shown in photos at a ceremony. It was not clear what side of the border the ceremony took place.

    Government and military officials did not comment on the merger or the location of the ceremony. The JuA, which broke from the TTP in 2014, has been involved in major attacks, including the 2016 suicide bombing in a park in Lahore that the group said targeted Christians celebrating Easter.

    It killed more than 70 people. The HuA, a faction that further split from the JuA, has not been so active.”

  6. Libya, Turkey, Qatar agree to boost Libyan army
    https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-libya-qatar-agree-to-ink-military-deal-157489

    “Libya has agreed with Turkey and Qatar to sign a three-way agreement for rendering military cooperation to the Libyan army, a senior Libyan official has announced following a quick visit by the Turkish and Qatari top soldiers to Tripoli.

    The announcement came from Libya’s Deputy Defense Minister Salah Al-Namroush on Aug. 17 in a statement following tripartite talks with Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar and Qatari Defense Minister Khalid bin Mohammad Al Attiyah in Tripoli.

    According to the media office of the government-led Burkan Al-Ghadab (Volcano of Rage) Operation, Turkey and Qatar will establish facilities in Libya for military training and consultancy. Libyan Defense Ministry undersecretary Salah Al-Namroush also added that as part of the deal, Turkey and Qatar will send consultants and military personnel to Libya.

    The Turkish and Qatari ministers stressed that they support the political solution and the legitimate government, he added.

    Turkey and Qatar are backing the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA) against the Libyan National Army (LNA), under the command of General Khalifa Haftar and backed by Russia’s Wagner Group, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and France.

    A defense cooperation deal signed between Ankara and Tripoli, in late 2019, protected Tripoli against Haftar’s offensive…”

  7. Turkey issues arrest warrants for 141 FETO suspects
    https://www.aa.com.tr/en/turkey/turkey-issues-arrest-warrants-for-141-feto-suspects/1945335

    “Turkish prosecutors issued arrest warrants on Tuesday for 141 suspects including active-duty soldiers across the country over their alleged links to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), the group behind the 2016 defeated coup attempt, said the security sources.

    Police launched simultaneous operations, including in Istanbul, Izmir and the capital Ankara, said the sources, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

    In Istanbul, prosecutors issued arrest warrants for 62 suspects, including active-duty soldiers in the Turkish Armed Forces.

    Police launched simultaneous operations across 16 provinces and arrested 30 of them.

    In Ankara, arrest warrants were issued for 25 suspects, 21 of whom had previously been dismissed from the Air Force.

    Operations are being carried out in 14 provinces to arrest the suspects.

    Meanwhile, prosecutors in the Aegean coastal city Izmir issued arrest warrants for at least 54 suspects, including 30 active-duty soldiers, who stand accused of periodically making contact with terror affiliates via payphone.

    In simultaneous operations across 40 provinces, 41 of 54 suspects have been detained.

    The sources said 30 of the suspects who were taken into custody were actively serving in the Turkish Armed Forces and 11 had been dismissed before.

    The operations are ongoing to apprehend the other suspects

    FETO and its US-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, which left 251 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

    Turkey accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police and judiciary.”

  8. Turkey rescues 42 asylum seekers in Aegean
    https://www.aa.com.tr/en/turkey/turkey-rescues-42-asylum-seekers-in-aegean/1945250

    “Turkey rescued 42 asylum seekers who were pushed back by the Greek Coast Guard into Turkish territorial waters in the Aegean, a security source said on Tuesday.

    The asylum seekers were rescued from a dinghy off the coast of Ayvalik district of Turkey’s western Balikesir province, said the source, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

    The group, which comprised of 38 Somalians, two Kenyans, and two Syrians, was trying to reach Greece’s Lesbos island, the source added.

    After routine checks, the asylum seekers were shifted to the provincial migration authority.

    Turkey has been a key transit point for asylum seekers aiming to cross into Europe to start new lives, especially those fleeing war and persecution.

    Earlier this year, the country opened its gates to irregular migrants seeking to reach Europe, accusing the EU of failing to keep its promises under a 2016 migrant deal.

    Turkey has repeatedly condemned Greece’s illegal practice of pushing back asylum seekers, saying that it violates humanitarian values and international law by endangering the lives of vulnerable migrants, including women and children.”

  9. Turkey issues report on Turkish minority in Greece
    https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/turkey-issues-report-on-turkish-minority-in-greece/1945640

    “The Turkish parliament on Tuesday issued a report elaborating on religious and cultural problems faced by the Turkish minority in Greece.

    The report by the Department of Research Services also examined the difficulties in protecting joint heritage sites in the southeastern European country, such as a 600-year-old Ottoman-era mosque in Didymoteicho.

    Built in 1420, the Celebi Sultan Mehmet Mosque was severely damaged in a 2017 fire.

    Turkey repeatedly offered cooperation to restore the mosque but to no avail.

    “Despite the positive steps taken by the Greek authorities, the joint cultural heritage in Greece has not been protected as required,” it said.

    The research argued that some restoration works by Greek authorities have destroyed the real character and architectural aspects of structures.

    It said that Turkish groups in Western Thrace and the Dodecanese Islands did not have control over their religious foundations, which negatively impacts the struggle to protect historical sites.

    “Absence of any mosque in the Greek capital Athens, and the country’s second-biggest city of Thessaloniki draws a reaction from the Turkish minority. Athens is the only European capital that has no mosque.”

    Greece’s Western Thrace region – in the country’s northeast, near the Turkish border – is home to a substantial, long-established Muslim Turkish minority numbering around 150,000.

    Decades of Greek mistreatment towards the group has been ignored by the European Union, even as it violates international treaties, high court rulings, and the 27-member bloc’s own rules.”

  10. “BIDEN TIME: Can Trump (and America) Survive 2020’s Reign of Terror?”
    TheRemnantVideo – August 18, 2020

  11. Mali President Resigns Following His Detention by Mutinying Armed Forces Officers
    https://sputniknews.com/africa/202008191080210509-mali-president-resigns-following-his-detention-by-mutinying-armed-forces-officers/

    “On Tuesday morning, a group of officers from the Malian armed forces staged a mutiny, capturing the country’s President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita and prime minister Soumeylou Boubeye Maiga and reportedly taking control of the capital Bamako.

    Ibrahim Boubacar Keita said on Tuesday night he was resigning and dissolving parliament and dismissing the government.

    “I want no blood to be spilled to keep me in power”, he said in a speech broadcast on state television. “I would like at this precise moment, while thanking the Malian people for their support throughout these long years and the warmth of their affection, to tell you of my decision to relinquish my duties”.
    Earlier, ECOWAS suspended Mali from its decision-making bodies and all financial flows with the country and called for sanctions against “putschists and their partners and collaborators”.

    The president’s resignation comes in the wake of the ongoing political crisis in the landlocked West African state, with supporters of the opposition ‘June 5 Movement’ taking to the streets to demand Keita’s resignation starting earlier this summer. Clashes on 11-12 July between protesters and security forces led to the deaths of 11 people, with over 120 reported injured.

    The opposition accuses Keita of failing to deal with corruption and restore security in the country amid escalating jihadist and inter-communal violence and has criticized controversial legislative elections held in late March, which were reportedly accompanied by kidnappings and death threats against observers and local officials.”

  12. Bangladesh – Dog lovers outraged over plans to relocate Dhaka strays

    An animal rights activist reacts with anger after the authorities in the capital Dhaka announced plans to relocate around 30,000 stray dogs following complaints from residents.