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Area: WoT Operations    WoT Background    Opinion        Politix   
Houthis claim Daesh emir titzup in Taiz, andhis little mufti, too!
Today's Headlines
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-Lurid Crime Tales-
7 charged with murder in killing of Ga. Lottery winner
[CBSNEWS] Authorities say seven people have beencharged in the shooting death of a recent Georgia Lottery winner.

Ben Hill County Sheriff Bobby McLemore tells WFXL-TV the seven suspects, who range in age from 17 to 28 years old, all face charges of malice murder, aggravated assault, armed robbery and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime.

Authorities say three masked men broke into 20-year-old Craigory Burch Jr.'s Fitzgerald home in January, demanded money and then fatally shot Burch.

The attack came two months after Burch won $434,272 from hitting the Fantasy 5 jackpot.
And he drew it out in cash and kept the money at home?
McLemore says he expects there to be more arrests in connection with the attack, which Sherlocks believe was targeted, and not random.
Posted by: Fred || 03/30/2016 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Rosalyn Swain, 22, Earnest Holcomb, 27, Wayan Jordon, 17, Anjavell Johnson, 21, Dabrentise Overstreet, 19, and Keyana Dyous, 24

Black Lives Matter could not be reached for comment
Posted by: Frank G || 03/30/2016 9:12 Comments || Top||


Rapist Is Killed by Runaway Truck While Distracted by Pron
Kevin Jordan, 55, was walking along the sidewalk just a block from his home in Memphis when the 15-foot trailer smashed into a fence and struck him in the 3700 block of Park Avenue on Wednesday, authorities said.

Witnesses said police told them the convicted felon had been watching pornography on his phone -- and had failed to notice Karma the vehicle coming at him until it was too late.
Posted by: Blossom Unains5562 || 03/30/2016 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Ain't karma grand? :-D
Posted by: Barbara || 03/30/2016 19:22 Comments || Top||


-Land of the Free
Georgia Governor Nathan Deal (Dem) Vetoes Religious Liberty Bill
[PJ] Governor Nathan Deal has vetoed a controversial bill in Georgia that would protect churches and faith-based institutions from having to perform ceremonies or hire employees that do not line up with the organizations' religious beliefs.
That's right Georgia, just keep on electing democrats.
The Republican announced his decision during a news conference in his office at the Georgia Capitol, saying, "I have examined the protections that this bill proposes to provide to the faith-based community and I can find no examples of any of those circumstances occurring in our state." Deal added, "I do not think that we have to discriminate against anyone to protect the faith-based community in Georgia."
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/30/2016 03:08 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Enjoy the entertainment of the Sunni-Shiite religious wars. Western Civ through that bit time last go around known as the Thirty Years War, with a little side show that tagged England with a Civil War. The Founders decided that it was something best left up to the people to 'tolerate' other people's beliefs.

Amendment I. Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

I guess we will have to relearn the hard way.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 03/30/2016 8:13 Comments || Top||

#2  What Disney wants, Disney gets.
Posted by: james || 03/30/2016 12:55 Comments || Top||

#3  That would be the Disney 'No Americans Apply Here' who import foreign labor. BTW, that was part of the end of the Roman Republic as the patricians displaced the small farmers and laborers (who were drafted into the legions and sent to fight for 'Rome' and weren't around to pay the taxes to keep their land) with slaves from the conquered provinces.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 03/30/2016 15:06 Comments || Top||

#4  Funny thing is Disney world is in Florida, which has a nearly identical worded law.
Posted by: Black Charlie Lumumba5402 || 03/30/2016 18:21 Comments || Top||

#5  The legislature can override his veto.

Will they? Dunno. Depends on the votes. I'd love to see it, though.
Posted by: Barbara || 03/30/2016 19:24 Comments || Top||


Africa North
Egyptian president fires top auditor after alleging government corruption
[BDLIVE.CO.ZA] President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi on Monday sacked Egypt’s top auditor, who had stirred controversy by publicly concluding that government corruption had cost the country billions of dollars.

Hesham Geneina came under heavy fire from bigwigs and pro-government media after he alleged widespread graft in newspaper interviews at the end of last year.

Mr Sisi appointed a presidential commission that quickly concluded that Mr Geneina had misled the public by saying corruption had cost 600-billion Egyptian pounds (about $76bn) over a four-year period.

In a decree, the presidency did not say why Mr Geneina was dismissed but the move came hours after the State Security Prosecution said his findings were truthful inaccurate.

Mr Sisi, who as army chief removed Egypt’s first freely-elected president in 2013, has made fighting corruption a top priority for the government.
Working well, isn't it...
Mr Geneina’s removal is likely to raise questions about Egypt’s commitment to fighting graft, as it struggles to rebuild an economy hammered by years of political turmoil following a 2011 uprising that toppled veteran autocrat Hosni Mubarak
...The former President-for-Life of Egypt, dumped by popular demand in early 2011...
Posted by: Fred || 03/30/2016 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Arab Spring


Arabia
Saudi prince returned from Europe against his will, say staff
Staff working for a Saudi prince involved in high-profile legal proceedings against the Saudi government claim he has been taken to Saudi Arabia from Europe against his will.
The heart (urp!) bleeds...
Prince Sultan bin Turki, who has elaborate 24-hour protection, brought legal action in Switzerland against the Saudi government over a kidnapping in 2003, which he says left him with serious, ongoing medical problems.

On 1 February he and his entourage boarded a Saudi plane in Paris ostensibly bound for Cairo, where he had made plans to visit friends and his father, the Saudi king’s elder brother, who lives there. His aide made reservations at the Kempinski Hotel in Cairo’s Garden City district. But he never arrived.

Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Steve White || 03/30/2016 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Helicopters are also not advised as transport...
Posted by: newc || 03/30/2016 1:25 Comments || Top||

#2  Especially since.Moslem helicolters have a Mohammed Nut.
Posted by: Thing From Snowy Mountain || 03/30/2016 9:45 Comments || Top||

#3  "...left him with serious, ongoing medical problems."

He had to choose new pharmaceuticals?
Posted by: Skidmark || 03/30/2016 18:14 Comments || Top||


Bangladesh
Transparency absent at all levels of climate fund disbursement
[Dhaka Tribune] Transparency is absent at all levels, in the governments of developing nations, donor agencies, NGOs and in developed countries which should disburse climate finance, speakers said at a climate change discussion yesterday.

An attitude of transparency should be shown at all levels, from fundraising to implementing projects that tackle the negative impacts of global warming, they said at the Integrity Dialogue on Climate Change Adaptation Finance: Transparency, Accountability and Participation.

"The government already spent much money to tackle several projects, but that does not mean funds will return proper output," said Dr Saleemul Huq, director of International Centre for Climate Change and Development.

Developed countries often refrain from their funding pledges, the speakers also said.

Citing an example of the "New" and "Additional" fund commitment by developed countries as climate finance, Dr Fazle Rabbi Sadeque Ahmed, project coordinator of Community Climate Change Project, said only 33% of these funds are really new; the rest are formerly declared.

He said developed countries have pledged to give $10.3 billion to the Green Climate Fund (GCF) till date, but the fund holds only $6.8 billion.

Besides this, developed countries never prioritise the demand of "financing balance between Adaptation and Mitigation," which developing countries have long desired, he added.

Sanjoy Vashisht, director of Climate Action Network in South Asia, said the climate finance is supposed to be fixed by the "Polluters pay Principle."

Yet ironically, the polluters are fixing the rate and modalities of climate finance, he added.

Prof Emeritus Ainun Nishat said all stakeholders, including government agencies and donor agencies, should be brought under close accountability, as many of their capacity-building projects needlessly waste money.

The day-long international conference, attended by foreign delegates working on climate change, was organised by Transparency International Bangladesh.
Posted by: Fred || 03/30/2016 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Usually.

A fake problem and graft.
Invisible Racketeering! It's magic.

Nothing to see here.
Posted by: newc || 03/30/2016 1:27 Comments || Top||

#2  Developed countries often refrain from their funding pledges.

As it turns out those pledges of "future carbon credits" aren't worth as much as cash. Who woulda thunk?
Posted by: DepotGuy || 03/30/2016 13:57 Comments || Top||


Britain
Tata Steel expected to sell British plants: union
I was just watching this movie yesterday. It was made in 1974 or thereabouts, judging from the hairstyles. Only it was a coal company going out of business. The victim's old lover dunnit.
[FRANCE24] Indian steel giant Tata Steel is expected to sell its British plants, a union front man said Tuesday, a move that could put thousands of jobs at risk in a further blow to Britannia's crisis-hit steel industry.

Union representatives had travelled to Mumbai to try to convince Tata to invest in Britannia, where the steel industry is in deep crisis, with businesses blaming high energy costs and cheaper Chinese imports.

"We understand that they're going to announce that they'll divest from their UK plants but we're still waiting for official confirmation on that," Community union front man Matt Ball told AFP.

Tata Steel did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Tata had previously announced a series of job cuts at its Port Talbot site in Wales, where it employs 4,000 people, with another 3,000 employed as contractors and temporary workers.

Welsh politician Leanne Wood said the prospect was deeply concerning.

"If reports from Mumbai are true, it's devastating," Wood wrote on Twitter. "All must work together now to save our steel industry."
Posted by: Fred || 03/30/2016 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Cheaper Chinese imports. Ain't that global economy a bitch?
Posted by: Abu Uluque || 03/30/2016 11:32 Comments || Top||

#2  Not for those who buy steel!
Posted by: Bright Pebbles || 03/30/2016 20:59 Comments || Top||


Caribbean-Latin America
Bolivian president's ex ordered to present love child
[FRANCE24] A Bolivian court ordered President Evo Morales's ex-girlfriend Tuesday to present the child she says he fathered with her nearly a decade ago, a son the leftist leader insists has died.

The dispute is at the center of a political drama that has gripped Bolivia since an investigative journalist revealed Morales's relationship with Gabriela Zapata, a high-powered executive who is now accused of abusing her influence to win contracts for the Chinese company where she worked.

Morales has acknowledged he had a child with Zapata, whom he says he dated from 2005 to 2007. But he says the boy died soon after birth, while her family insists he is alive.

Confusing matters further, Vice President Alvaro Garcia Linera later said the baby never existed.

Judge Elsa Sangueza ordered Zapata, 28, to present the child in family court "for the purpose of conducting an interview in private," said a ruling published in the Bolivian press.

The ruling is a win for Morales, 56, who took Zapata to court earlier this month to make her prove the boy is alive.

Zapata is currently in jail pending trial on charges of money laundering, embezzlement and influence peddling. A former manager at Chinese engineering group CAMC, she is accused of using her ties to the president to land $560 million in government contracts for the company.
Who did she think she was, Hugo's daughter?
The case went kaboom! onto the political scene just as Bolivia prepared to hold a referendum on whether to change the constitution to allow Morales to run for a fourth term.

Morales, Bolivia's first indigenous president, went on to lose the February 21 vote -- his first electoral defeat in a decade in power.

The president has said his son with Zapata would now be eight or nine years old, and that he would like to raise him if he were alive.
Posted by: Fred || 03/30/2016 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Brazil leader’s coalition collapses as impeachment looms
[BDLIVE.CO.ZA] Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff’s chances of surviving impeachment nosedived on Tuesday when her ruling coalition’s main partner jumped ship and went into opposition.

The Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (PMDB), the country’s largest party, voted to end its alliance with Ms Rousseff’s leftist Workers’ Party, or PT, immediately.

Ms Rousseff canceled a trip to a nuclear security summit in Washington later on Tuesday amid the political crisis.

Senator Romero Juca, the party vice-president, made the "historic" announcement after a rapid meeting on Tuesday. The meeting, broadcast live on national television, was the culmination of a long divorce with Ms Rousseff, leaving Brazil’s first female president grasping at straws as she tries to stay in power.

The vote and announcement took no more than three minutes and was accompanied by singing of the national anthem and shouts of "PT out!"

The split plunges Ms Rousseff’s government into crisis mode and, more seriously, greatly reduces her chances of mustering the one third of votes in the lower house of Congress that she needs to defeat a first impeachment vote expected in April.

"If you look at the numbers, that’s basically it," said Everaldo Moraes, a political science professor at Brasilia National University.

If the lower house votes in favor, an impeachment trial would start in the Senate, where a two-thirds vote would force Ms Rousseff from office.
Posted by: Fred || 03/30/2016 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  The Rio Olympics are gonna be a Grade A shitshow - I can't wait!
Posted by: Raj || 03/30/2016 0:21 Comments || Top||

#2  From what I've seen on TV "shitshow" is a literal description of the whole area.
Posted by: AlanC || 03/30/2016 8:02 Comments || Top||

#3  Tall and tan and young and lovely
The girl from Ipanema goes walking and
When she passes, each one she passes goes "eeeww"
Posted by: JHH || 03/30/2016 14:53 Comments || Top||


China-Japan-Koreas
North Korea Tells its People to Prepare For Famine
You guys just keep on informing on each other and wondering why your lives are so hard.
North Korea is telling its citizens to prepare for famine.
After that, they can prepare for global warming.
State-run newspaper Rodong Sinmun published an editorial Monday telling the people of North Korea that food shortages and economic hardship are on the horizon, Time reports.
Grandpa, you a$$hole, you fought in that war! Tell us when this "Revolution" is supposed to be over?
The news comes less than a month after the United Nations Security Council handed down harsh sanctions for North Korea continuing its nuclear and missile programs. The sanctions, targeted at the nation's elite and their assets, prohibit certain luxury items and ban exports of resources being used to finance the country's weapons pursuit.
Let them eat yellowcake.
A result of this struggle, the editorial says, "We may have to go on an arduous march, during which we will have to chew the roots of plants once again," invoking a metaphor used by North Korean leadership for the four-year famine in the country beginning in 1994, during which approximately 3 million people died.
Maybe they could dig them up and use them for fertilizer.
"The road to revolution is long and arduous," it continued, calling for renewed support for Kim Jong Un in the form of a "70-day campaign of loyalty" that involves each already-struggling residents of Pyongyang donating two pounds of rice per month to state warehouses. Farmers are also being forced to "donate" portions of their crops to the military.
Posted by: gorb || 03/30/2016 00:58 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Prepare for famine

Aka, stalk, kill and smoke your neighbor for meat.
Posted by: DarthVader || 03/30/2016 1:46 Comments || Top||

#2  Everyone is an Informant, NO ONE IS A FARMER.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/30/2016 2:54 Comments || Top||

#3  Everyone is an Informant, NO ONE IS A FARMER.

The ultimate service economy. GDP projections show steady growth at 2.5 percent per year. Perfect.
Posted by: BrerRabbit || 03/30/2016 5:14 Comments || Top||

#4  Everyone is an Informant, NO ONE IS A FARMER

All internal woes are immediately blamed on external causes.
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/30/2016 6:33 Comments || Top||

#5  Dirt ration cut to three clods a week?
Posted by: charger || 03/30/2016 12:40 Comments || Top||

#6  Standing headline?
Posted by: Raj || 03/30/2016 13:35 Comments || Top||

#7  Needs a headline along the lines of:
SOCIALISM REACHES END GOAL!!
Posted by: AlanC || 03/30/2016 14:07 Comments || Top||

#8  Why now? Pudgy went on inspection of food storage areas and felt like a little snack?
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 03/30/2016 16:36 Comments || Top||

#9  You can bet Pudgy won't experience a famine...
Posted by: CrazyFool || 03/30/2016 17:54 Comments || Top||


Japan extends military reach in disputed East China Sea
Japan has switched on a radar station in the East China Sea, giving it a permanent intelligence-gathering post close to Taiwan and a group of disputed islands, in a move that will antagonise Beijing.

The new base on the island of Yonaguni is at the western extreme of a string of Japanese islands in the East China Sea, 150km (90 miles) south of the disputed islands known as the Senkaku islands in Japan and the Diaoyu in China.

China has long claimed most of the South China Sea, though some areas are also claimed by Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei. Japan has been mired for many years in a territorial dispute with China over the East China Sea islands.

“Until yesterday, there was no coastal observation unit west of the main Okinawa island. It was a vacuum we needed to fill,” said Daigo Shiomitsu, a lieutenant colonel who commands the new base on Yonaguni. “It means we can keep watch on territory surrounding Japan and respond to all situations.”

Shiomitsu on Monday attended a ceremony at the base with 160 military personnel and about 50 dignitaries. Construction of some buildings, which feature white walls and traditional Okinawan red-tiled roofs, is still unfinished.

The 30 sq km (11 sq mile) island is home to 1,500 people, who mostly raise cattle and grow sugar cane. The base contingent and family members will increase the population by a fifth.

“This radar station is going to irritate China,” said Nozomu Yoshitomi, a professor at Nihon University and a retired major general in the Japanese military.

In addition to being a listening post, the facility could be used a base for military operations in the region, he added.
Posted by: Steve White || 03/30/2016 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  CHINA still feeling the squeeze ...

* RELATED JAPAN TIMES > GSDF BRING YONAGUNI RADAR STATION ONLINE TO KEEP CLOSE EYE ON CHINA.

* BUSINESS INSIDER > TENSIONS ARE MOUNTING BETWEEN RUSSIA, CHINA, AND JAPAN IN THE PACIFIC.

* DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS, TOPIX [Japan Times] > CHINA COAST GUARD VESSELS ESCORT FISHING BOAT FLOTILLA [100 Chinese FBS] INTO MALAYSIAN WATERS.

'Tis "unprecedented".

versus

* GLOBAL TIMES > YONAGUNI MILITARIZATION EXPOSES TOKYO'S AGGRESSION AGZ CHINA.

* WORLD NEWS > [Guardian.UK] CHINA ACCUSES JAPAN OF ENDANGERING PEACE IN THE PACIFIC WID NEW LAW [allowing JSDF on overseas combat missions].

Again, IMO no way in hehell that OWG Co-Superpower China will accept or tolerate any challenge to its leadership of East Asia-WESTPAC + any pertinent OWG Global Fed Union(s) arising in same. JAPAN MUST ACCEPT VASSALAGE TO CHINA - YOU KNOW, "BILATERAL PARTNERSHIP-N-COOP"- OR JAPAN WILL BE ATTACKED [Nuked].

* FOCUS TAIWAN > TAIWAN, CHINA LACK CONDITIONS FOR UNIFICATION: PRESIDENT MA.

"Peaceful" unification/reunification may be MOOT the ways things are deteriorating from the SCS to the ECS.

* CHINA DAILY > JAPAN MOVES THREATENS REGIONAL PEACE + STABILITY.

* NDTV > CHINA WARNS TAIWAN OVER NEW LAW GOVERNING CROSS-STARITS RELATIONS.

* SAME > [AFP] NEW HONG KONG INDEPENDENCE PARTY SLAMMED BY CHINESE MEDIAS.

Risk to Beijing's desired TRI-CITY FTA-FTZ SUPER-PLEX???

* JAPAN TIMES > CHINA SHOULD ACT, OR PYONGYANG [Nuclear? War?] THREATS WILL FORCE SECURITY ACTIONS BEIJING WON'T LIKE: DIPLOMAT.

* BIGNEWSNETWORK > [Express.UK] NUCLEAR WAR WARNING: OBAMA VOWS TO TACKLE NORTH KOREA THREAT AMID [NOKOR-triggered] WORLD WAR FEARS.

Again, iff Pudgy = Kim Regime-Govt/NOKOR believe that Chinese takeover or annexation of NOKOR is un-avoidable or un-preventable, IMO HE WILL FIND A WAY TO UNILATERALY START A MAJOR US-CHINA WAR IN A DESPERATE MOVE TO SAVE NOKOR FROM BEIJING'S CONTROL.

* WORLD MILITARY FORUM > JAPAN "SANKEI SHIMBUN" MEDIA QUOTES NORTH KOREA WORKER'S PARTY PAPER AS CALLING TO RESIST CHINA'S SUPPORT OF ANTI-NOKOR UN SANCTIONS WITH A "NUCLEAR STORM".
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/30/2016 3:28 Comments || Top||

#2  Yeah, what he said!
Posted by: Muggsy Hiliter3778 || 03/30/2016 12:00 Comments || Top||

#3  Joe's second to last stanza is interesting. Methinks he's onto something.

(Joe's posts are like reading The Iliad or The Epic of Gilgamesh)
Posted by: JHH || 03/30/2016 14:59 Comments || Top||

#4  Tristant Shandy
Posted by: Shipman || 03/30/2016 15:35 Comments || Top||

#5  While the South China Sea claim is rather historically fictitious, the claim on a vassal state that now constitutes a lot of Norkland is far more valid.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 03/30/2016 15:59 Comments || Top||

#6  More this sunny Guam Thursday AM ...

* WORLD NEWS > [Inquisitr] CHINA, VIETNAM, + PHILIPPINES TURN TO UNMANNED FLIGHTS IN SOUTH CHINA SEA "MEXICAN STANDOFF".

"Mexican standoffs" USUALLY DON'T END WELL = PEACEFULLY.

* BHARAT RAKSHAK > CHINA'S ACTIVITIES IN SOUTH CHINA SEA MAY POSE THREAT TO MAJOR TRADE ROUTE: US - PTI.

* REUTERS > US SAYS IT WILL NOT RECOGNIZE SOUTH CHINA SEA EXCLSUION ZONE.

* RELATED BUSINESS INSIDER > US: NO, CHINA, WE WON'T RECOGNIZE ALL THE RED LINES YOU'VE DRAWN ALL OVER THE SOUTH CHINA SEA [or in East China Sea = ADIZ as well].

US Deputy SecDef Robert Work.

* DEFENSE NEWS > PHILIPPINES MULLS SUBMARINES [new Sub Force] AS CHINA ROW SIMMERS: AQUINO.

* BIGNEWSNETWORK > [UPI = Yonhap] THAAD DEPLOYMENT ON KOREAN PENINSULA NECESSARY, US OFFICIAL SAYS.

US Deputy SecStae Antony Blinken.

* KUAM NEWS BLOG > GUAM COULD HAVE STRATEGIC IMPORTANCE FOR AMPHIBIOUS FROCES [Multi-National, Training].

Have to wonder how that is gonna work out iff the US = USDOD transfers AAFB's Bombers + Drones, etc. to AUSTRALIA in order to prevent their destruction from China's + NOKOR'S LRBMS???

Iff moved to Australia, instead of being divided WestPac-vs-EastPac it will be ROUGH = IMPERFECT NORTHPAC-VS-SOUTHPAC wid the new US defense arc/line running from Australia to Hawaii-Alaska-West Coast???

CHINA TO STILL GET ITS DESIRED 1/2 OF THE PACIFIC [East Asia-WESTPAC] BY DEFAULT, SAVE MORE RUNNING NORTH-VS-SOUTH???

Lastly, will a POTUS Trump pull out US Milfors from SOKOR + JAPAN as threatened iff the latter refuse to pay for US Protection???
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/30/2016 23:19 Comments || Top||


Japan protests against possible Rooshun naval base on disputed Kuril island chain
Japan has conveyed its concern to Moscow over possible Russian plans to build a naval base on a western Pacific island chain, part of which is claimed by Tokyo. Tokyo’s action follows Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu’s comment last week that Russia would study the possibility of building a naval base on what it calls the Kuril islands.
Russia is doing to Japan what Japan is doing to China...
Japan claims a southern segment of the island chain, which was seized by Soviet troops at the end of the second world war. The territorial row has kept the two countries from signing a formal peace treaty since.

“We’ve informed the Russian side through a diplomatic channel that we are concerned about the comment by Defence Minister Shoigu,” the chief cabinet secretary, Yoshihide Suga, told a regular news conference. “We’ve also told them that if this led to the reinforcement of Russian military infrastructure on the Northern Territories, that would be incompatible with Japan’s stance and regrettable.”

Besides the potential construction of a naval base, Shoigu also said last week Russia would this year deploy some of its newest missile defence systems and drones on the Kuril islands.
Posted by: Steve White || 03/30/2016 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  See also ASIA TIMES > WITH EYES ON US' ASIA PIVOT, RUSSIA SURGES IN FAR EAST [Kurils].

JAPAN argues that RUSSIA's moves are mainly agz CHINA + CHINESE AMBITIONS - but, Mama Russia being Mama Russia whom has fought wars agz both nations + loves her heavy kitchen cast-irons, RUSSIA WILL BE DISCRETIONARY OR CAUTIOUS AGZ BOTH JAPAN + CHINA.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/30/2016 3:00 Comments || Top||

#2  A bit of history: Kunashiri Island was used as the training ground for the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Posted by: Omusomp Grundy8829 || 03/30/2016 11:40 Comments || Top||


India-Pakistan
Prayer leader arrested for raping student in Lakki Marwat seminary
[DAWN] PESHAWAR: A local prayer leader accused of raping a minor seminary student in Tajori area of Lakki Marwat district was tossed in the slammer
Into the paddy wagon wit' yez!
on Tuesday, police said.

The 38-year-old accused, who was a prayer leader at a local mosque, was arrested on charge of sexual abuse after one of his students lodged a First-Information Report (FIR) against him, Station House Officer (SHO) Ayaz Khan said.

The accused in initial interrogation confessed to sexually abusing one of his madressah students, an 11-year-old boy, he said.

The police officer said evidence has already been collected and medical tests are being processed. The accused will now be presented before a local court to seek his physical remand.

The incident took place at Darul Uloom Muhammadia Ghausia located in Kotka Abi Zar Ahmad Zai area of Lakki Marwat, the SHO said.

The madressah was founded 10 years ago and a number of students are receiving Islamic education there, he said.

The victim belonged to Dhoda area, which is around 40 kilometres away from the seminary, hence he resided there along with other students.

The boy claimed in the FIR that his room at the seminary was adjacent to that of the prayer leader, who asked the boy to bring him water for ablution (wuzu). The boy said as he entered the room, the prayer leader locked the door and subjected him to rape.

After the sexual assault, the holy man locked him inside the room for almost 24 hours, the boy alleged. The rape victim was able to escape and reach home when the prayer leader went away from the mosque.
Posted by: Fred || 03/30/2016 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
Israeli firm helped FBI hack iPhone
h/t Instapundit
The Israeli mobile forensics firm Cellebrite helped the FBI hack into the iPhone of San Bernardino shooter Syed Rizwan Farook, NBC reports, citing industry sources.

The firm has been rumored to be behind the FBI’s newfound ability to access the device, thanks to a previous and unconfirmed report from an Israeli newspaper.
Neither Cellebrite nor the Department of Justice has confirmed the reports.

The FBI has routinely contracted Cellebrite over the last five years. The company, which publicly boasts of its ability to hack into Apple devices, has received over $2 million in purchase orders from the agency since 2012.
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 03/30/2016 14:28 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Science & Technology
Revealed: The Soviet Union's Space Cannon
[NationalInterest] However, there was something different about Salyut 3/Almaz 2. It wasn't just a military space station. It was an armed military space station. Almaz 2 was equipped with a small cannon to test whether Soviet spacecraft could protect themselves from American anti-space weapons.
Posted by: Vast Right Wing Conspiracy || 03/30/2016 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Hey Mom, Dad, can I have one!?
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/30/2016 3:31 Comments || Top||

#2  Taking a leak in space is called an o-gee-whiz.
Posted by: Deacon Blues || 03/30/2016 8:53 Comments || Top||

#3  Ouch Deacon.
Posted by: BrerRabbit || 03/30/2016 10:34 Comments || Top||

#4  A space cannon is a stupid idea. Not only will recoil screw with your orbit but if you hit you'll send shrapnel all over the place and it'll be a problem for decades. If you miss your projectile will circle around and likely come back to it's point of origin, your own station.

Perhaps the Soviets didn't know this back then but I suspect they did. If they put a canon up there I suspect it had more to do with firing down onto the Earth below. Small rocks could take out a building and would look like asteroid hits. A perfect weapon actually.
Posted by: rjschwarz || 03/30/2016 11:58 Comments || Top||

#5  I think Marvin the Martian does it better.
Posted by: Frozen Al || 03/30/2016 17:19 Comments || Top||

#6  the 'cannon' had, per the article, a barrel measuring 23mm in width, less than 1 inch

maybe calling it a 'gun' would be more accurate

Posted by: lord garth || 03/30/2016 18:01 Comments || Top||

#7  "recoilless" perhaps?
Posted by: Thrains Clerelet7316 || 03/30/2016 18:15 Comments || Top||


Government
Feds Give $270K Grant To Islamic Charity With Alleged Ties To Hamas, MB
[Daily Caller] The Obama administration recently gave a $270,000 grant to an Islamic charity that has been banned by Israel and the United Arab Emirates because of alleged financial ties to the terrorist group Hamas and to the Muslim Brotherhood.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services provided the funds last month to the U.K.-based Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW) for its work in Kenya, according to the federal spending database USASpending.gov.

The funds are earmarked for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's global health security partner engagement initiative.
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/30/2016 06:41 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  No 'charity' or USAID assistance for this poor bugger, he's on the wrong side of Islam. Off the roof you go. 'Separation of Church and State' where are you ?

His LGBT cure found in seconds! "Faith Inspired Action" at it's very best.
Posted by: Besoeker || 03/30/2016 7:01 Comments || Top||

#2  Well, we did want to identify terrorists financiers. We may have found some.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 03/30/2016 8:15 Comments || Top||

#3  Uh, uh, OOOOOOOPPPPPSSSSSSS???
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 03/30/2016 22:56 Comments || Top||



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