Reader’s Links for August 21, 2020

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Each day at just after midnight Eastern, a post like this one is created for contributors and readers of this site to upload news links and video links on the issues that concern this site. Most notably, Islam and its effects on Classical Civilization, and various forms of leftism from Soviet era communism, to postmodernism and all the flavours of galloping statism and totalitarianism such as Nazism and Fascism which are increasingly snuffing out the classical liberalism which created our near, miraculous civilization the West has been building since the time of Socrates.

This document was written around the time this site was created, for those who wish to understand what this site is about. And while our understanding of the world and events has grown since then, the basic ideas remain sound and true to the purpose.

So please post all links, thoughts and ideas that you feel will benefit the readers of this site to the comments under this post each day. And thank you all for your contributions.

This is the new Samizdat. We must use it while we can.

About Eeyore

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

75 Replies to “Reader’s Links for August 21, 2020”

  1. Yasha Explains Cancel Culture to the German Left

    Red Pill Germany

    Hey guys, I want to share this funny article with you. Mr. Yasha Mounk tries to warn german leftists from canceling his friends. He disguises this appeal as an introduction to the totally new and crazy trend called cancel culture from the USA! CRAZY!

    • “This video has been removed for violating You Tube’s Terms of Service”

      “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”.

      George Orwell
      “In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act”.

      Joni Mitchell
      “Don’t it always seem to go, you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone”.

      No Man Escapes
      When FREEDOM fails,
      The best men rot in filthy jails,
      And those who cried “Appease! Appease!”
      Are hung by those
      They tried to please”.

      Why is Canadian Imam Zafar Bangash Allowed to say,
      “It is time for us to pick up stones to stone these people to death for this abomination……Allah imposes this responsibility upon us”.

      Ooops I sometimes forget the Soros, Gates, Fauci, Clinton, Obama, OIC, Styer, the tech companies, the elites, Freeland, Trudeau, all the mad globalists are our saviours.

      Old news
      http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org
      Canadian ISLAMIST-Leftist- Government Alliance Silences Free Speech

  3. Where did the R500 billion go Mr President? | South Africa

    Interesting report from OUTA reveals the depth of the privilege class pillaging the R500 billion Covid fund

  5. Go back home Malema you do not belong here! | South Africa

    A “San” (Bushman) Lady speaks her mind about the ANC and EFF usurpers of South Africa.

  7. ‘Glamourising Terrorism’: Kashmir Police Rip Terrorists Who Released Video of Attack on Forces (sputniknews, Aug 21, 2020)
    https://sputniknews.com/world/202008211080233309-glamourising-terrorism-kashmir-police-rip-terrorists-who-released-video-of-attack-on-forces/

    “For the first time terrorists on the Indian side of Kashmir have released footage from one of the deadliest attacks on the Indian Army and police in which five personnel were killed in the Baramulla district. The violent clip shows terrorists opening fire at the security forces.

    Jammu and Kashmir police on Friday said terrorists want to glamourise violence by releasing a video, showing a deadly attack on security forces in Baramulla earlier this week.

    “By releasing the video of the attack, the terrorists want to glamourise terrorism. But they can’t. We replied with actions and killed four top commanders, Sajjad alias Haider and FT Taimur Khan alias Abu Usman (seen in said video/attack), Naseer alias Sad bhai and FT Ali bhai alias Danish within 72 hours”, said the Kashmir police.

    The video was released by terrorists two days after an attack in south Kashmir’s Baramulla district. The footage shows three of the terrorists launching a shooting spree on Indian forces after they were hiding in a gorge. The terrorists were filmed firing several rounds and changing magazines before absconding into the gorge again.

    On 17 August, terrorists opened fire at a joint patrol party of the Indian Army and police on the main national highway. Three security personnel were killed on the spot, while all the terrorists succeeded in fleeing the scene.

    The police later launched a massive hunt to nab the terrorists, and four of them were gunned down at separate intervals during the 72-hour operation.

    A total of five Indian personnel were killed during the combat.

    The issue of terrorism in Kashmir dates back to the 1990s, when Kashmiris began demanding independence. India has accused neighbouring Pakistan, which also lays claims to the region, of fueling secessionism.

    Terrorists have carried out around 80 attacks in Jammu and Kashmir in 2020, killing 26 Indian security forces, 13 civilians, and injuring over 45 members of the Indian security forces.”

  8. Libyan Sides Declare Ceasefire, Demilitarised Zones, Call on Int’l Forces to Withdraw (sputniknews, Aug 21, 2020)
    https://sputniknews.com/africa/202008211080235976-libyan-parliament-speaker-announces-immediate-ceasefire-across-the-country/

    “Libya is currently divided between two rival governments — an elected parliament in the east of the country, supported by the Libyan National Army (LNA), and the Government of National Accord (GNA) in the west, headed by Fayez Sarraj.

    The Libyan parliament speaker has announced an immediate ceasefire across the country, according to a statement.

    GNA head Fayez al-Sarraj “issued instructions to all military forces to immediately cease fire and all combat operations in all Libyan territories”, the statement said.
    In a separate statement, the head of Libya’s Tobruk-based parliament Aguila Saleh Issa also called for a ceasefire.

    Saleh said his request for a ceasefire arose “because of his political and national responsibility and the current situation in the country and region, as well as because of the circumstances of the pandemic”.

    “The ceasefire ends the road for any military interventions and must end in the expulsion of all mercenaries and the dissolution of all militias to return full national sovereignty”, Saleh said in the statement…”

  9. Arab Tribes Pledge to Take Action Against ‘American Occupiers’ in Northeastern Syria (sputniknews, Aug 21, 2020)
    https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/202008211080234048-arab-tribes-pledge-to-take-action-against-american-occupiers-in-northeastern-syria/

    “Earlier in August, Arab tribes accused Syrian Democratic Force (SDF) militants of assassinating tribal sheikhs in Syria’s Deir ez-Zor and gave SDF units one month to withdraw from the northeastern province.

    Prominent members of Arab tribes in the northeastern Syrian city of Aleppo have vowed to combat what they described as “American occupiers” and the US-backed militants from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

    In a statement on Thursday, they signalled readiness to support popular resistance against American troops and their allies, also blaming the SDF and other militant groups for stealing Syria’s resources.

    The tribes specifically pledged to extend moral and material assistance to the popular resistance forces to help them liberate Syrian territory from US-backed militants.

    The elders also welcomed a number of recent victories gained by Syrian government forces in Aleppo, Idlb, and other northeastern cities “under the courageous leadership” of President Bashar Assad.

    The statement comes after elders of the Arab Al-Uqaydat tribe met in the Syrian province of Deir ez-Zor earlier this month, agreeing that the US-led coalition is responsible for murdering tribal sheikhs in the area, and giving SDF forces one month to leave the area.

    The most recent high-profile crime attributed to SDF fighters is the assassination of Sheikh Mutashar al-Hafil and his relative Dar Mihlef al-Khalaf, which sparked a wave of protests by local tribes against both the SDF and the pro-American coalition.

    “We are calling on the international coalition to transfer control over the province directly to its Arab population, respecting Syria’s territorial integrity, as well as the rights of Syrian citizens”, the tribal elders emphasised.

    The SDF and other Kurdish groups currently control most of Syria’s oil-rich east with the support of US troops, who have been tasked with “keeping” the local crude fields since October 2019 from alleged attempts by Daesh* militants to seize them.

    The Syrian government has repeatedly slammed the presence of a US military contingent in the country as illegal, pointing out the fact that American troops didn’t receive a mandate either from Damascus or the UN.

    *Daesh (ISIL/ISIS/Islamic State), a terrorist group banned in Russia and a number of other countries”

  10. Turkey Confirms Plans to Convert Another Former Istanbul Church Into Mosque (sputniknews, Aug 21, 2020)
    https://sputniknews.com/world/202008211080235642-turkey-confirms-plans-to-convert-another-former-istanbul-church-into-mosque/

    “Turkey’s Directorate of Religious Affairs on Friday confirmed that the authorities plan to convert another former Istanbul-based Orthodox church, the Holy Saviour in Chora, into a mosque, less than a month after the first Muslim prayer was held in Hagia Sophia.

    “This building, where a museum and its funds were located until 2019, is transferred to the administration of the Directorate of Religious Affairs by the decree of Turkish President [Recep Tayyip Erdogan]. It will be opened for [Muslim] prayers. The exact date is not yet determined. Some preparations are required, and our Istanbul branch will be responsible for them”, a spokesperson of the directorate said.

    Earlier in the day, the Greek ERT broadcaster reported that Turkey was turning Chora Church into a mosque, citing a relevant government decree.

    Chora Church, originally built as a monastery complex in the 4th century, is one of the oldest historical buildings in Istanbul. It was converted into a mosque in 1511. In 1958, Chora was opened as a museum to the public.

    Hagia Sophia, one of the most iconic Byzantine symbols in present-day Turkey, was converted into a mosque in July. Many countries have expressed regrets over Ankara’s decision, while Turkey views the matter as its internal affairs.”

  11. ‘Bloody and Last War’: Pakistani Minister Threatens India With Nuclear Retaliation (sputniknews, Aug 21, 2020)
    https://sputniknews.com/india/202008211080233347-bloody-and-last-war-pakistani-minister-threatens-india-with-nuclear-retaliation/

    “India and Pakistan have been at odds since the two gained independence from British rule in 1947. The main bone of contention between the nuclear-armed countries is Kashmir, which is governed in parts by both. They have also gone to war twice over the disputed region.

    Boasting of the compact and calculative capabilities of its nuclear arsenal, Pakistani Railway Minister Sheikh Rasheed has threatened India that, if provoked, Islamabad will not hesitate to wage a war and that it will be the “last war”.

    If India attacks Pakistan, there is no room for a conventional war. It would be a bloody and last war, a nuclear war. Our weapons are compact, calculative, and perfect to hit the target. It would target areas avoiding Muslim clusters”, Rasheed replied to a question during an interview with Pakistan television channel Saama TV on Thursday.

    Rashid, who “predicted” a “likely” date for a full-blown war last year, also claimed that Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal can reach the northeastern Indian state of Assam which is 1,860 kilometres from the border of the two countries.

    Last year, Rashid Ahmed claimed Pakistan possessed 125-250-gram nuclear bombs, which can hit and destroy things as per his country’s wishes.

    Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has pointed out on several occasions that his country is not determined to be the first to resort to a nuclear war with India, amid ongoing tensions with the country’s long-standing rival.

    Relations between India and Pakistan have worsened since New Delhi revoked the temporary special status enjoyed by the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir in August 2019. The region was later divided into two federally administered territories.

    Islamabad launched a diplomatic offensive against New Delhi after its decision on Kashmir and suspended communication and trade relations. Both countries have also downgraded their missions.

    Terror-related violence dropped significantly in the Kashmir Valley after 5 August 2019 when Article 370 granting temporary special status to the region was rescinded. According to the federal Home Ministry, violence has declined by around 36 percent and 136 militants have been eliminated so far this year.”

      • That they do, I still think China was behind Pakistan getting nukes so India would have nuclear armed enemies on two sides.

        India is working hard to fortify the Andaman Islands so they control the choke points into the Indian Ocean and now that they are close to achieving this goal Pakistan is making nuclear threats.

        The border between China and India seems to be cooling down but with the Chinese sending stealth fighters to that area the cool down may be an illusion.

  13. Night of bloodshed in London as two men are stabbed to death in separate attacks over 12 hours – as murder toll in capital rises to 80 so far this year (dailymail, Aug 21, 2020)
    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8650801/Night-bloodshed-London-two-men-stabbed-death-separate-attacks-12-hours.html

    “Two men have been stabbed death in the space of 12 hours in London as the murder toll in the capital rises to 80 so far this year.

    Officers are currently at the scene in Plumstead after a man was found with fatal stab injuries. A police investigation is currently in place and enquiries are continuing.

    The man was transported a short distance by ambulance where paramedics from the air ambulance treated him but he was declared dead at 7am.

    It comes just 12 hours after police launched a murder investigation after the death of a man in Lambeth, south London…”

  14. Is Mohammed Hijab Plotting the Assassination of David Wood?
    Have we uncovered a plot to recruit a keyboard jihadi to assassinate David Wood?
    Let’s examine the connection between Mohammed Hijab and a recent death threat.

  16. What Happened in Sweden: Economist Notes Massive Surge in Severe Crime (breitbart, Aug 21, 2020)
    https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2020/08/21/economist-notes-huge-surge-criminal-harm-21st-century-sweden/

    “Swedish economist Tino Sanandaji has revealed that while the number of reported crimes in Sweden has remained fairly steady, the severity of crimes and criminal violence has surged in the 21st century.

    Sanandaji posted the statistics on his Facebook page, stating that while Swedes have seen a rise in newspaper headlines on violent crime, the government has pointed out that the rate of crimes overall is only slightly higher than the 1990s.

    Citing a Cambridge Journal of Evidence-Based Policing study from March of this year, Sanandaji stated that the Crime Harm Index (CHI) for Sweden has in fact greatly increased since the year 2000.

    The CHI weights crimes by seriousness, with murders and rapes given more weight than, say, pickpocketing or vandalism.

    “One of criminologists’ and journalists’ favourite tricks is to blame ‘increased registration rate’, while another is to compare small crimes such as theft against the increase in serious violence, a principle that can be called the ‘equal value of all crimes’,” Sanandaji said.

    He went on to criticise Justice Minister Morgan Johansson, alleging: “So if Malmö gets 10 fewer cases of pickpocketing but nine more cases of murder and housing explosions, Morgan Johansson proudly tweets that Malmö has become safer.”

    In recent years, Swedish statistics have also recorded rises in violent crime, particularly violence surrounding criminal gang activity.

    Earlier this year, Swedish broadcaster SVT reported that shootings had increased in the first three and a half months of 2020 compared to the same period the prior year, despite the Wuhan virus outbreak and a major police anti-gang operation titled Operation Rimfrost.

    Swedish gang crime has even spread across the border to Denmark, where several members of the “Death Squad” gang from the no-go Stockholm suburb of Rinkeby were on trial this week for a double homicide that took place last year in the Copenhagen suburb of Herlev.

    Rape has also increased substantially in Sweden in recent years, with a Swedish Crime Prevention Council report released last year stating that sex crimes had tripled between 2014 and 2018.”

  17. Multicultural Brussels Has 3-4 Times More Tuberculosis Than Rest of Belgium (breitbart, Aug 21, 2020)
    https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2020/08/21/heavily-migrant-populated-brussels-boasts-tuberculosis-rate-3-4-times-larger-than-rest-of-belgium/

    “According to figures from Brussels ministers Alain Maron and Elke Van den Brandt, the Belgian capital has three to four times more new cases of tuberculosis than the rest of the country, with asylum seekers especially affected.

    Belgium’s average rate of the disease is 8.6 per 100,000 people but in Brussels, the rate is 29.5 cases per 100,000, with the city representing 36 per cent of all new tuberculosis (TB) cases in the country that year. The numbers have been steadily rising since 2014.

    The data came at the request of MP Bianca Debaets, a member of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party (CD-V), who told the media: “Of course, an urban context always increases the risk of certain diseases, but the fact that a third of the cases reported in Belgium are concentrated in Brussels is significant.”

    Ms Debaets noted the high prevalence of the disease among asylum seekers living in the capital, saying: “Between July 2017 and May 2019, 45 cases of tuberculosis were diagnosed among refugees in Maximilian Park.”

    Health professionals in Europe have noted for years that TB has been a real problem among migrant populations entering various countries across the continent.

    In 2015, Dr Masoud Dara of the World Health Organization (WHO) told Breitbart London that up to 80 per cent of TB cases in European countries were among migrant populations.

    “The migrant population, especially if they are coming from Sub-Saharan African countries where TB infection rates are quite high – in some countries it is as high as 1,000 per 100,000 head of population, are more likely to have the disease,” he said.

    In Germany in 2017, an asylum seeker who visited children at a kindergarten tested positive for TB, leading parents and others to fear he may have infected as many as 18 children with the preventable disease.

    As migrant numbers begin to surge again, many are fearful that they will not only have high rates of diseases like tuberculosis or scabies but will also be carriers for coronavirus.

    Italy has seen dozens of new migrants test positive for the Chinese virus, leading to fears of a second wave of outbreaks.”

  18. Spain: 5 more migrants die on dangerous Canary Islands route (abcnews, Aug 21, 2020)
    https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/spain-migrants-die-dangerous-canary-islands-route-72518555

    “Five more migrants have died while trying to reach the southern Canary Islands from west Africa, bringing to 20 the number of who lost their lives this week attempting to navigate perilous migration routes to Europe, Spanish authorities said Friday.

    Maritime rescuers and police patrols based in Spain picked up a total of 141 migrants in the Mediterranean Sea and Atlantic Ocean within 48 hours, the country’s official maritime rescue service said.

    The rescue operations included a wooden boat located some 110 miles south of the Canaries archipelago with 12 survivors on board and four bodies. Two of the survivors were evacuated by helicopter and one of them later died at the hospital, according to the Spanish government’s delegation in the islands.

    The bodies of 15 other migrants who were found dead in another boat earlier in the week, some floating in sea water their vessel had taken on, were transported Thursday to Grand Canary Island.

    A plane spotted the boat as it searched for a missing boat that had left Mauritania on August 15 with around 40 people. It remains unclear if the boat that was located is the one reported missing.

    The route from western Africa to the Spanish islands in the Atlantic Ocean is notoriously dangerous, but in recent times it has increasingly attracted migrants wanting to reach European shores as authorities have cracked down on migrant boats setting out on Mediterranean routes .

    Without counting the latest new fatalities reported on Thursday and Friday, at least 190 migrants have died since the beginning of the year trying to reach the Canary Islands, according to the U.N. migration agency’s Missing Migrants project.

    More than 3,500 migrants have arrived on the archipelago so far in 2020, five times the figure seen in 2019, according to the tally kept by Spain’s Interior Ministry. The route to Spain across the Mediterranean, meanwhile, has seen a drop of about 30% in arrivals compared to the previous year, with some 10,000 arrivals so far.”

  20. Awesome pictures on this site remind me of

    Leonard Cohen singing “ Suzanne take you down to her place near the river…….
    and that takes me to lingering listening to lovely Leonard singing I’m Your man
    “If you want a lover I’ll do anything you ask me to………… and that takes me to

    Virginia Imam Shaker Elsayed of the Dar Al-Hijra Islamic Center / mosque Speaking on Female Genital Mutilation
    “ The honourable thing for girls “ to prevent hypersexuality “. In societies where circumcision of girls is completely prohibited, hypersexuality takes over the entire society, and a woman is not satisfied with one person, or two, or three”. And the take me to

    Somalian Canadian Said Rageah
    “Non-Muslims disapprove of polygamy because they want Muslim women to be cheap goods like non- Muslim women who do not want to SHARE their husbands are not true believers”. and that takes me to my song

    You said that you’d be happy
    With a baby on your knee
    Well here I am and I’m pregnant again
    And you’re off to see wife number three

    Ok ok it needs work and that takes me back to Lovely Leonard
    “ Or I’d crawl to you baby and fall at your feet………

    See how your picture of some little birds makes me a bad Kafir, ha “If you could read my mind dear………….

    Keep on the sunny side.

  22. DAILY MAIL – Pictured: Sudanese migrant Abdulfatah Hamdallah who drowned in Channel trying to reach Britain – as it’s revealed he was 28 not 16, and had been sleeping rough in France for 2 months

    Sudanese migrant washed up on a beach in Calais after trying to cross to the UK
    He fell into Channel after craft was punctured by a spade being used as an oar
    Although his friend survived, Mr Hamdallah’s body was found seven hours later
    The pair lived in the Calais Jungle migrant camp before they tried to reach UK
    The death comes as figures reveal 164 migrants in 11 boats reached UK yesterday

    […]A Sudanese driving licence showing a date of birth of 1992 and including a photo was found on the deceased man.

    […]The young Sudanese migrant who died set off from Sangatte shortly after midnight and was attempting to cross the busiest shipping lane in the world with a friend in a blow-up toy dinghy commonly found in supermarkets.

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8646535/Sudanese-boy-16-stole-blow-childrens-boat-French-beach-hut-drowning-says-friend.html

  25. August in China: Floods, Mudslides, Typhoons, and Summer Snow | Extreme Weather | Epoch News

  29. Picture of dog on dock reminds me of Joe Biden telling young woman “You’re a lying dog-faced pony soldier”.

  31. CCP diplomats turn soft; China tracking students studied overseas; Black fog and pungent smell

  32. Secret Docs Destroyed by China; Trump Reacts to Steve Bannon Arrest:Sad; China’s Spy Program Exposed

  34. Trade Deal or De-couple? Does Trump Have a Dangerous Hope? – Zooming In | The China Angle

  38. UK REJECTS EU’s Bogus Brexit Deal As Italy Moves Towards EU Exit

  40. NYT – Facebook Braces Itself for Trump to Cast Doubt on Election Results

    SAN FRANCISCO — Facebook spent years preparing to ward off any tampering on its site ahead of November’s presidential election. Now the social network is getting ready in case President Trump interferes once the vote is over.

    Employees at the Silicon Valley company are laying out contingency plans and walking through postelection scenarios that include attempts by Mr. Trump or his campaign to use the platform to delegitimize the results, people with knowledge of Facebook’s plans said.

    Facebook is preparing steps to take should Mr. Trump wrongly claim on the site that he won another four-year term, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. Facebook is also working through how it might act if Mr. Trump tries to invalidate the results by declaring that the Postal Service lost mail-in ballots or that other groups meddled with the vote, the people said.

    Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s chief executive, and some of his lieutenants have started holding daily meetings about minimizing how the platform can be used to dispute the election, the people said. They have discussed a “kill switch” to shut off political advertising after Election Day since the ads, which Facebook does not police for truthfulness, could be used to spread misinformation, the people said.

    The preparations underscore how rising concerns over the integrity of the November election have reached social media companies, whose sites can be used to amplify lies, conspiracy theories and inflammatory messages. YouTube and Twitter have also discussed plans for action if the postelection period becomes complicated, according to disinformation and political researchers who have advised the firms.

    The tech companies have spent the past few years working to avoid a repeat of the 2016 election, when Russian operatives used Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to inflame the American electorate with divisive messages. While the firms have since clamped down on foreign meddling, they are reckoning with a surge of domestic interference, such as from the right-wing conspiracy group QAnon and Mr. Trump himself.

    In recent weeks, Mr. Trump, who uses social media as a megaphone, has sharpened his comments about the election. He has questioned the legitimacy of mail-in voting, suggested that people’s mail-in ballots would not be counted and avoided answering whether he would step down if he lost.

    Alex Stamos, director of Stanford University’s Internet Observatory and a former Facebook executive, said Facebook, Twitter and YouTube faced a singular situation where they “have to potentially treat the president as a bad actor” who could undermine the democratic process.

    “We don’t have experience with that in the United States,” Mr. Stamos added.

    Facebook may be in an especially difficult position because Mr. Zuckerberg has said the social network stands for free speech. Unlike Twitter, which has flagged Mr. Trump’s tweets for being factually inaccurate and glorifying violence, Facebook has said that politicians’ posts are newsworthy and that the public has the right to see them. Taking any action on posts from Mr. Trump or his campaign after the vote could open Facebook up to accusations of censorship and anticonservative bias.

    In an interview with The New York Times this month, Mr. Zuckerberg said of the election that people should be “ready for the fact that there’s a high likelihood that it takes days or weeks to count this — and there’s nothing wrong or illegitimate about that.”

    A spokesman for Facebook declined to comment on its postelection strategy. “We continue to plan for a range of scenarios to make sure we are prepared for the upcoming election,” he said.

    Judd Deere, a White House spokesman, said, “President Trump will continue to work to ensure the security and integrity of our elections.”

    Google, which owns YouTube, confirmed that it was holding conversations on postelection strategy but declined to elaborate. Jessica Herrera-Flanigan, Twitter’s vice president of public policy, said the company was evolving its policies to “better identify, understand and mitigate threats to the public conversation, both before or after an election.”

    Facebook had initially focused on the run-up to the election — the period when, in 2016, most of the Russian meddling took place on its site. The company mapped out almost 80 scenarios, many of which looked at what might go wrong on its platform before Americans voted, the people with knowledge of the discussions said.

    Facebook examined what it would do, for instance, if hackers backed by a nation-state leaked documents online, or if a nation-state unleashed a widespread disinformation campaign at the last minute to dissuade Americans from going to the polls, one employee said.

    To bolster the effort, Facebook invited those in government, think tanks and academia to participate and conduct exercises around the hypothetical election situations.

    An idea that came up during one exercise — that Facebook label posts from state media so users know they are reading government-sponsored content — was put into effect in June, said Graham Brookie, director of the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab, who joined the session.

    “We can see that their policy decisions are being affected by these exercises,” he said.

    But Facebook was less decisive on other issues. If a post suggested that mail-in voting was broken, or encouraged people to send in multiple copies of their mail-in ballots, the company would not remove the messages if they were framed as a suggestion or a question, one person who advised the company said. Under Facebook’s rules, it takes down only voting-related posts that are statements with obviously false and misleading information.

    In recent months, Facebook turned more to postelection planning. That shift accelerated this month when Mr. Trump said more on the issue, two Facebook employees said.

    On Aug. 3, Mr. Trump questioned whether the Democratic primary in New York’s 12th Congressional District should be rerun because of long delays in counting mail-in ballots.

    “Nobody knows what’s happening with the ballots and the lost ballots and the fraudulent ballots, I guess,” he said.

    The next day, Mr. Trump broadened his attack, falsely stating that mail-in ballots lead to more voter fraud nationwide. “Mail ballots are very dangerous for this country because of cheaters,” he said. “They go collect them. They are fraudulent in many cases.”

    Mr. Trump’s comments alarmed Facebook employees who work on protecting its site in the U.S. election. On the group’s internal chat channels, many wondered whether Mr. Trump would launch even more attacks against mail-in voting, one employee who saw the messages said. Some asked whether the president was violating Facebook’s rules against disenfranchising voters.

    Those questions were ultimately sent to Mr. Zuckerberg, as well as top executives including Joel Kaplan, the global head of public policy, the employee said.

    In a staff meeting later that week, Mr. Zuckerberg told employees that if political figures or commentators tried declaring victory in an election early, Facebook would consider adding a label to their posts explaining that the results were not final. Of Mr. Trump, Mr. Zuckerberg said the company was “in unprecedented territory with the president saying some of the things that he’s saying that I find quite troubling.” The meeting was reported earlier by BuzzFeed News.

    Since then, executives have discussed the “kill switch” for political advertising, according to two employees, which would turn off political ads after Nov. 3 if the election’s outcome was not immediately clear or if Mr. Trump disputed the results.

    The discussions remain fluid, and it is unclear if Facebook will follow through with the plan, three people close to the talks said.

    In a call with reporters this month, Facebook executives said they had removed more than 110,000 pieces of content between March and July that violated the company’s election-related policies. They also said there was a lot about the election that they didn’t know.

    “In this fast-changing environment, we are always sort of ‘red teaming’ and working with partners to understand what are the next risks?” said Guy Rosen, vice president of integrity at Facebook. “What are the different kinds of things that may go wrong?”

    Mike Isaac reported from San Francisco, and Sheera Frenkel from Oakland, Calif.

    The post Facebook Braces Itself for Trump to Cast Doubt on Election Results appeared first on New York Times.

    https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/21/technology/facebook-trump-election.html/

  42. Largest-Ever Three Gorges Dam Flood Arrives, Chongqing Residents Evacuate | Epoch News
    5,656 views
    •Aug 21, 2020

  46. FM Urges UNSC to Hold US Accountable for Harms to Iran
    https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2020/08/21/2332128/fm-urges-unsc-to-hold-us-accountable-for-harms-to-iran

    “ran’s Foreign minister called on the UN Security Council to stop the US’ dangerous and unlawful position in breaching the international law and hold Washington accountable for the irreparable damages it has done to the Iranian nation.

    In a letter for the Indonesian chairperson of the UN Security Council, sent via Iran’s UN ambassador, Mohammad Javad Zarif said the United States has no right to abuse mechanisms enshrined in a 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and six world powers to restore UN sanctions against the Islamic Republic after they were lifted under the accord.

    The dangerous and unlawful position of the United States defies the established norms of international law and procedures, which have been put in place through centuries to safeguard the world from chaos, Zarif said in the letter.

    His letter underlined that given the baseless and illegal nature of the United States’ bid, it has to be “rejected on the part of the Security Council and the international community.”

    He reminded the absence of “all ‘credibility or legitimacy’” in the US’ apparent justifications aimed at rationalizing its efforts to restore previously annulled resolutions against Tehran, as yet another reason why Washington has to be snubbed by the Security Council.

    “It is imperative that the international community be wary of such (attempts at) abusing the Security Council’s mechanisms,” the letter added, Press TV reported.

    “Iran advises the Council to stop this abuse of mechanism — which carries serious repercussions for the international peace and security,” Zarif said in the letter.

    The top Iranian diplomat added that the US administration has not only shunned its commitments under the JCPOA, but also prevented other signatories to the deal to implement it.

    Since Donald Trump became the US president, he has imposed sanctions on Iran in more than 145 occasions and has also ignored frequent requests from the UN secretary general to lift these embargoes, he deplored.

    Iran’s foreign minister concluded by saying that the Iranian nation rightfully expect the Security Council to guarantee their rights as per Security Council Resolution 2231, which upholds the contents of the nuclear deal, and hold the United States accountable for the irreparable damage it has done to the Iranian nation.”

  47. Iran Making Long-Range Aerial Cruise Missile: Defense Minister
    https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2020/08/21/2332234/iran-making-long-range-aerial-cruise-missile-defense-minister

    “Iran’s defense minister said Tehran is developing a long-range air-launched cruise missile (ALCM).

    In remarks on Friday, Brigadier General Amir Hatami said homegrown air-launched cruise missiles are undergoing tests.

    A long-range cruise missile is also being developed for arming aircraft, and would hopefully be prepared on schedule, the minister added.

    He said the Defense Ministry is seriously pressing on with the development of the new long-range cruise missile, noting that the research project would yield results if it faces no technical obstacle.

    Highlighting Iran’s progress in manufacturing various cruise missiles, the general said the Defense Ministry has already unveiled ‘Hoveizeh’ and ‘Soumar’ ground-to-ground cruise missiles with a range of around 1,400 kilometers.

    According to Brigadier General Hatami, Iran has been elevated from the 23rd to the 14th place in the world ranking of the most powerful military forces.

    On Thursday, Iran unveiled two new types of long-range missiles, named after former IRGC Quds Force Commander Lt. General Qassem Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the second-in-command of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units (PMU).

    The first ballistic missile dubbed “Martyr Hajj Qassem Soleimani” has a range close to 1,400 kilometers, while the second one dubbed “Martyr Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis” is a cruise missile with a range of 1,000 kilometers.”

  48. US Imposes Visa Restrictions on 14 Iranians over Human Rights Violations
    https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2461671/us-imposes-visa-restrictions-14-iranians-over-human-rights-violations

    “The United States on Friday said it was imposing visa restrictions on 13 Iranian individuals for their involvement in “gross violations of human rights” regarding a 1990 assassination of an Iranian opposition figure in Switzerland.

    “These 13 assassins, who posed as Iranian diplomats, were acting under the highest orders of their government to silence opposition and show that no one is safe from the Iranian regime, no matter where they live,” the State Department said in a statement.

    “The United States will not stand for the Iranian regime silencing its critics through violence and terror.”

    It did not disclose the names of the individuals.

    The State Department said it was also designating Hojatollah Khodaei Souri, who it said as director of Iran’s Evin Prison ran an institution “synonymous with torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment.”

    “Evin Prison has been used to oppress peaceful Iranian protestors and journalists, as well as foreigners who are swept up and imprisoned to be held hostage to squeeze concessions out of their home governments,” it continued.

    “These actions send a message of support to Iran’s many victims worldwide that we will promote accountability for those who spread terror and violence,” it added.

    “The United States will continue to pressure Iran to treat its own people with dignity and respect,” it vowed.

    “Iran conducts assassinations and terrorism abroad to spread its reign of terror well beyond its own borders.”

    “The United States looks forward to the day when the perpetrators of Iran’s innumerable human rights violations will face true justice and hopes that these measures offer some comfort and reassurance to the families and friends of those lost to the Iranian regime’s violence and oppression at home and abroad,” the State Department said.”

  49. Houthi forces kill Daesh emir in Yemen’s Bayda
    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200821-houthi-forces-kill-daesh-emir-in-yemens-bayda/

    “The Houthi movement yesterday announced that their forces had killed the head of the Yemeni branch of the Daesh terrorist group.

    According to a statement released on Al-Masirah TV, the movement claimed to have carried out an ambush operation in the Qifah district in the central province of Al-Baydah which resulted in the death of Daesh emir Abu Al-Walid Al-Adani. They also announced the arrest of another terrorist leader Salem Hassan Al-Saaimi along with 40 others.

    Houthi and allied forces in the military have been advancing in Al-Baydah this week having declared victory over both Al-Qaeda and Daesh in the province, sending the remaining elements to flee to the Marib city, a stronghold of forces fighting on behalf of the Saudi-backed Yemeni government.

    According to a statement on Tuesday by the pro-Houthi military spokesperson, Brigadier General Yahya Saree, the Houthi forces have killed, wounded and captured over 250 “takfiri individuals” and liberated around 1,000 square kilometres in the province.

    Yesterday it was reported that the Saudi-backed Yemeni government disputed the claims made by the Houthis, dismissing them as “lies”.”

  50. Unaccompanied women expelled from markets in Hangu, K-P
    https://tribune.com.pk/story/2260502/unaccompanied-women-expelled-from-markets-in-hangu-k

    “In a bid to further restrict women’s access to public places, local elders in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Hangu district attempted to debarr women from shopping in the area’s bazaars.

    As per a decision jointly taken by local Malkan, Mishran, and the Pasban organisation, female shoppers without an accompanying mehrum were not to be granted entry into Doaba and Hangu markets. A notification received by district shopkeepers in the regard also warned that traders found violating orders will be heavily fined and have their shops sealed for a week. In addition to that, it also asserted that the curtain system made in bazaars and markets should be abolished and going further, no curtains for women should be installed in any of the district’s shops. “In the case that a storekeeper does not agree to the decision of the local elders, he will be forced to leave the area for violation of policy,” mandated the notification…”