Comey’s first encounter with the Clinton’s was in 1996 when he:
served as deputy special counsel to the Senate special committee on the Whitewater investigation, chaired by Republicans at the time, which linked Hillary Clinton to the mishandling and destruction of documents."
Comey reportedly dug into:
allegations that the Clintons took part in a fraud connected to a Arkansas real estate venture gone bust. No charges were ever brought against either Clinton, but the scandal would eventually lead to independent counsel Kenneth Starr’s probe that would result in the Lewinsky scandal."
2nd Encounter
Comey next was involved with the Clintons when in the early 2000’s when he was:
involved at both ends of the case of Marc Rich, a billionaire oil trader indicted for tax fraud and trading with Iran during the hostage crisis, who was later pardoned by President Bill Clinton during his final day in office in 2001. In a letter to the Senate, Comey describes working as both the lead prosecutor in New York on the original case against Rich in 1983 and then later, in 2002, overseeing criminal investigations into Clinton’s last-minute pardons.
The investigations concluded there was no wrongdoing on the president’s part, despite public outcry over evidence that Rich’s ex-wife had donated to Hillary Clinton’s Senate campaign."
3rd Encounter
Comey’s third encounter with the Clintons came before the 2016 Presidential election. Hillary Clinton set up a private email server that she used when Secretary of State under the Obama Administration. Government employees are mandated to use government email accounts similar to employees in the private sector. Hillary allowed others on her team to use her private email system as well, including Huma Abedin, her assistant and close confidant.
Through a series of events Hillary’s email system was discovered and the FBI and Comey got involved. One question that needed to be answered was whether Hillary’s actions with her emails led to gross negligence with national defense information which would be a serious crime according to the Espionage Act of 1913.
Hillary went to great lengths to hide the fact that she was using a private email server and made many excuses which later turned out to be lies. For example, she claimed that she didn’t know a ’C’ on her emails meant classified. Unfortunately, her emails contained at least five different emails that contained information on the exact location or travel plans of US Ambassador Chris Stevens, who was murdered in Benghazi. His killers knew exactly where he was going to be when they got him.
Clinton’s team eventually deleted her emails and then cleaned her server with a program called ’Bleachbit’. They did this after these items were requested in subpoenas from Congress.
On June 27th Bill Clinton met with US Attorney General Loretta Lynch in her plane in Arizona for a half an hour. Comey never commented on this meeting but within a week Lynch’s Department of Justice dropped the investigation into Hillary’s emails and FBI’s Comey made the announcement. Comey’s statements were later compared to Hillary’s prior statements ‐
[CNN] Former CIA Director John Brennan told House Russia investigators Tuesday that Russia "brazenly interfered" in US elections, including actively contacting members of the President Donald Trump's campaign -- but he stopped shy of dubbing it "collusion."
"I saw interaction that in my mind raised questions of whether it was collusion," Brennan told Rep. Trey Gowdy, saying that he supported the FBI digging further. "It was necessary to pull threads."
Brennan was speaking to the House intelligence committee on the extent of Russia's meddling in the 2016 elections and possible ties to the Trump campaign, where he was asked about how Moscow recruits sources "wittingly and unwittingly."
"Frequently, people who go along a treasonous path do not know they are on a treasonous path until it is too late," Brennan said.
[TheHill] The Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) will lay out its own infrastructure proposal this week, staking out a position ahead of a legislative debate over transportation that is expected to heat up later this year. The left may have stumbled on a new buzzword.
The effort, spearheaded by Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.), attempts to paint a clear contrast with President Trump’s infrastructure vision by calling for direct public investment in roads, bridges and other public works, as opposed to providing "corporate giveaways" to spur private-sector investment.
The proposal from Lieu would inject $2 trillion into a wide range of transportation projects over 10 years, including those that boost public transit systems, water and sewer systems, clean-energy jobs, high-speed internet access and veterans hospitals. Don't know the difference between transportation and infrastructure, do you? The initiative would create 2.5 million jobs in the first year, according to the group, and take extra steps to ensure fair wages, workplace safety and racial and gender equality.
For example, the white paper would raise the benchmark for locally prevailing wages in each area, require local hiring to reflect the racial and gender diversity of the community’s workforce, include robust "Buy America" requirements and prioritize the hiring of veterans.
The effort would be paid for by closing corporate tax loopholes and enacting other tax reforms.
"The American people deserve to have a serious conversation about how to address these needs. To fund infrastructure projects, President Trump's relatively small and incoherent plan would use irresponsible tax gimmicks that benefit Wall Street at the expense of taxpayers," Lieu said in a statement. While raising corporate taxes (which aren't paid for by the consumer?) and "other tax reforms" is all free money, right, Mr. Congressman?
Posted by: Bobby ||
05/23/2017
15:05 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[13 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
"That benefit Wall Street at the expense of taxpayers" I bet a number of Democrats have a macro for that line.
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/23/2017 17:10
Comments ||
Top||
#3
pork barrel projects with racial and gender quotas
what could possible go wrong
Posted by: lord garth ||
05/23/2017 18:22
Comments ||
Top||
#4
Infrastructure spending by the progressives was never about infrastructure; it was a way to launder money and create slush funds and continue on under Hillary.
[WAPO] Retired Master Sgt. Wilburn K. Ross, an Army machine-gunner who received the Medal of Honor for single-handedly fighting back eight German counterattacks during a World War II battle in France, died May 9 in Washington state. He was 94.
His death was announced by the Congressional Medal of Honor Society. The cause was not disclosed.
Actor Sir Roger Moore, best known for playing James Bond, has died aged 89, his family has announced. He played the famous spy in seven Bond films including Live and Let Die and the Spy Who Loved Me.
Sir Roger's family confirmed the news on Twitter, saying he had died after "a short but brave battle with cancer".
The statement, from his children, read: "Thank you Pops for being you, and being so very special to so many people."
Sir Roger, who died in Switzerland, will have a private funeral in Monaco in accordance with his wishes, they added.
"The love with which he was surrounded in his final days was so great it cannot be quantified in words alone," read the statement from Debora, Geoffrey and Christian.
"Our thoughts must now turn to supporting Kristina [his wife] at this difficult time."
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version.
#2
Always seemed like a good guy with a mischievous sense of humor. RIP
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/23/2017 9:45
Comments ||
Top||
#3
In ye olde days I remember reading that his father had been a policeman and he was always supportive of the UK police. I'm old enough to remember when he played the lead in the old Brit TV series "The Saint",as a sort of ethical thief.
#6
Part of the reason he was not my favorite Bond is when he play the role they were trying to make Bond movies comedies. So it wasn't Moore's part. He was a good actor and always seemed to be a pretty likable guy.
RIP
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
05/23/2017 13:28
Comments ||
Top||
#7
So it wasn't his part fault.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
05/23/2017 13:28
Comments ||
Top||
#8
Broccoli wanted Moore to be the original Bond, but he couldn't get out of his contract for the Saint. While Connery was great, having read the novels and knowing of Dusko Popov, it always seemed to me the part should really have been filled by Moore from the start. Connery made it a rougher, more action part than Fleming had in mind.
[Strategy Page] May 22, 2017: Since 2007 the United States has created and expanded AFRICOM (Africa Command) to manage all the increasingly numerous American military operations in Africa. Since most of these operations involved special operations forces rather than conventional military forces AFRICOM released little detail on what was where. But in the last few years more of these details have emerged. As suspected most of the 40-50 AFRICOM "bases" detected are not bases in the traditional sense but merely temporary agreements to use existing civilian or military airbases or other facilities in African nations.
These are usually countries where AFRICOM is providing assistance in dealing with Islamic terrorist activity or other security threats. As of 2016 there were about 46 of these AFRICOM facilities located in 24 African countries. About two-thirds of these facilities are considered temporary or "contingent" (there are arrangements to use an airbase or port facility if needed and on short notice). The permanent operations are bases or FOS (Forward Operating Sites) while the temporary sites are CSLs (cooperative security locations) where American and local forces operate together or CLs (contingency locations) where arrangements have been made for use if needed. About half the AFRICOM sites are CLs and not used by Americans on a regular basis.
AFRICOM is similar in organization to other commands (CENTCOM, for the Middle East, and SOUTHCOM, for Latin America, etc). Before AFRICOM was created those operations were coordinated between two other commands (the one covering Europe and the one covering Latin America). The establishment of AFRICOM means more money for counter-terror operations in Africa and more long range projects. No country in Africa had sufficient infrastructure for AFRICOM headquarters and few wanted to risk the political blowback from hosting a major American military headquarters.
In late 2016 construction began on a new AFRICOM base in Agadez, Niger, 730 kilometers northeast of the capital (Niamey). The U.S. had received permission from Niger for such a base in 2014, a year after American UAVs began operation from a Niger military base next to the Niamey airport. The new Agadez base is built largely from scratch because, unlike Niamey, Agadez does not have a large airport or much in the way of support for lots of aircraft operations. Agadez is closer to Chad, southern Libya and Nigeria, where American aerial surveillance is more in demand by the local governments. Agadez will also apparently support armed UAVs as well. The U.S. will continue to supply intelligence obtained by the Niger-based UAVs with Niger and other nations in the area that have intelligence sharing agreements.
Agadez will be the second American airbase in Africa and, like the first one, shared with France and other allies. The first U.S. base was established in 2002 when the United States began sharing an old French base in Djibouti (the northwestern neighbor of Somalia). Since then Djibouti has hosted the one official U.S. military base (Camp Lemonnier) in Africa. France and the United States SOCOM (Special Operations Command) have had special operations forces (commandos and special aircraft) outside the Djibouti capital since 2002. In 2014 the U.S. signed another ten year lease for that base. U.S. forces in Djibouti were increased after resistance collapsed in Iraq in 2008 and the base became the command post for a network of American operations through the region. Most of the effort is directed at monitoring what is going on in the region (mainly Somalia and Yemen but also Eritrea, Nigeria, Mali, Libya, Kenya, and Ethiopia) not at interfering with the local terrorists. Not much, anyway. The Djibouti base also supports operations throughout the Sahel (the semi-desert strip between the North African desert and the Central African jungles, which stretches from the Atlantic to Somalia).
By 2013 Camp Lemonnier and nearby airfields supported fourteen large UAVs (ten MQ-9 Reapers and four MQ-1 Predators), six manned U-28 aircraft and eight F-15E fighter bombers. The two seat F-15Es carried surveillance gear and could fly long distances, find a target and destroy it with a GPS or laser guided weapon. In addition U.S. Navy ships off the African coast sometimes had MQ-8 and ScanEagle UAVs operated from ships to search inland. The U.S. Navy also had two P-3C maritime patrol aircraft stationed near Camp Lemonnier. More aircraft arrived after 2014, when ISIL (Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant) and al Qaeda became more active in North Africa and Yemen. The number and composition of foreign aircraft varies according to local needs.
#1
I still remember the recent article about the silly con valley guy who could not get by on $700K a year. He had to stop buying $12 lattes on the way to work...
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
05/23/2017 10:04
Comments ||
Top||
#2
The best cure for that is to double the cost of housing in SanFran.
#3
Be progressive (heh), force San Fran to provide substantive Section 8 housing for the 'poor' working class. Strike down their zoning regulations as racist and classist!
[Independent] Isis has claimed responsibility for the Manchester Arena attack, hailing the bomber as a "soldier of the caliphate".
The terrorist group released statements in several languages through its central media body praising the atrocity, claiming more than 100 "crusaders" were killed or wounded at the "shameless" concert.
"With Allah's grace and support, a soldier of the Khilafah [caliphate] managed to place explosive devices in the midst of the gatherings of the crusaders in the British city of Manchester," said the English version.
Posted by: Besoeker ||
05/23/2017
08:54 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[14 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic State
#1
Islam, imo, is the Pit Bull of religions. Generally, if properly monitored, not a problem, but can go crazy unpredictably.
#7
Again. Islam is Not a religion. It is an established code followed by murderers and thieves, supported by un-intelligent self haters, it works for them, too.
[Breitbart] The White House will release its "taxpayer-first budget" on Tuesday, which includes $1.7 trillion in cuts for entitlement spending and a 30 percent reduction in the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) budget.
The Trump budget proposal will balance over the next ten years by cutting both mandatory and discretionary funding for agencies such as the EPA and State Department. The budget proposal assumes that the economy will grow at three percent compared to the 1.6 percent growth that America experienced in 2016. White House staffers explained that the proposal is a "post-policy" budget, meaning that the budget assumes that Trump signed the health care overhaul known as the American Health Care Act (AHCA) and tax reform into law.
The budget proposal will make substantial cuts into four entitlement programs, SNAP (food stamps), CHIP (Children’s Health Insurance Program), and SSDI (Disability Insurance). The Trump budget assumes that the AHCA becomes law, which would roll back Medicaid expansion. White House staffers told Axios that the budget would cut entitlement costs through an "emphasis on work requirements for able-bodied people."
The Washington Post’s Damian Paletta stated, "The White House also will call for giving states more flexibility to impose work requirements for people in different kinds of anti-poverty programs, people familiar with the budget plan said, potentially leading to a flood of changes in states led by conservative governors."
#2
Yes. President Clinton signed this bill into law in 1996. Provisions included -
Ending welfare as an entitlement program;
Requiring recipients to begin working after two years of receiving benefits;
Placing a lifetime limit of five years on benefits paid by federal funds;
Aiming to encourage two-parent families and discouraging out-of-wedlock births;
Enhancing enforcement of child support; and
Requiring state professional and occupational licenses to be withheld from illegal immigrants.
Posted by: Bobby ||
05/23/2017 13:13
Comments ||
Top||
BLUF: [Daily Caller] As Gorka observed, the Manchester bombing happened on the fourth anniversary of the public killing of Fusilier Lee Rigby on May 22, 2013. Rigby was walking down a street in southeast London when two radical Islamists, Michael Adebolajo and Michael Adebowale, ran over him with a car before hacking him to death with knives and a cleaver. The killers, who also attempted to behead Rigby, told bystanders who shot video of the attack:
"The only reason we have killed this man today is because Muslims are dying daily by British soldiers. And this British soldier is one ... By Allah, we swear by the almighty Allah we will never stop fighting you until you leave us alone."
#1
The motive? What could have possibly prompted the bastids to act or select this target? Might have been a tea at a neighborhood vicarage, but it wasn't.
Is postulating that a 'POP Concert' with thousands in attendance, might possibly be a 'high value target' for terrorists that difficult ?
Will someone please finally admit we are at war with Islam ?
#2
Is this the young lady who last summer said "I Hate America, I Hate Americans?" Well just maybe she will become a convert to Western values and ideals--we can hope.
Motivation for bombing? We are dealing with rabid, bug nuts jihadists who value death over life.
h/t Donald Sensing
This is an actual high school graduation address by David McCullough, Jr., at Wellesley High School's 2012 commencement. Full text is below the video.
...You are not special. You are not exceptional.
Contrary to what your U-9 soccer trophy suggests, your glowing seventh grade report card, despite every assurance of a certain corpulent purple dinosaur, that nice Mister Rogers and your batty Aunt Sylvia, no matter how often your maternal caped crusader has swooped in to save you... you’re nothing special.
Yes, you’ve been pampered, cosseted, doted upon, helmeted, bubble-wrapped. Yes, capable adults with other things to do have held you, kissed you, fed you, wiped your mouth, wiped your bottom, trained you, taught you, tutored you, coached you, listened to you, counseled you, encouraged you, consoled you and encouraged you again. You’ve been nudged, cajoled, wheedled and implored. You’ve been feted and fawned over and called sweetie pie. Yes, you have. And, certainly, we’ve been to your games, your plays, your recitals, your science fairs. Absolutely, smiles ignite when you walk into a room, and hundreds gasp with delight at your every tweet. Why, maybe you’ve even had your picture in the Townsman! And now you’ve conquered high school... and, indisputably, here we all have gathered for you, the pride and joy of this fine community, the first to emerge from that magnificent new building...
But do not get the idea you’re anything special. Because you’re not.
[Daily Caller] A criminal suspect in an investigation into a major security breach on the House of Representatives computer network has abruptly left the country and gone to Pakistan, where her family has significant assets and VIP-level protection, a relative and others told The Daily Caller News Foundation’s Investigative Group.
Hina Alvi, her husband Imran Awan, and his brothers Abid and Jamal were highly paid shared IT administrators working for multiple House Democrats until their access to congressional IT systems was terminated Feb. 2 as a result of the investigation. Capitol Police confirmed the investigation is ongoing, but no arrests have been reported in the case.
The Awans are "accused of stealing equipment from members’ offices without their knowledge and committing serious, potentially illegal, violations on the House IT network," according to Politico. Many of the Democrats who employed the Awans are members of the House Committee on Homeland Security, the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. (A list of potentially compromised members is listed below.)
Their positions gave them access to members’ emails and confidential files. In addition, Imran was given the password for an iPad used by then-Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a Florida Democrat. The five came to infiltrated the U.S. from Pakistan.
#1
Ah, these were the traitors who blew the operation where that SEAL was killed. They knew the Navy was coming and the object of the raid ran off and taunted them later. Didn't know there were more of them.
Posted by: Herb McCoy7309 ||
05/23/2017 3:52
Comments ||
Top||
#2
Perhaps Mr. Comey can explain this, how they got away, and what was actually taken. Then explain HIS actions
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/23/2017 7:21
Comments ||
Top||
The European Union (EU) Heads of Mission and the Head of Mission of Norway in Jerusalem and Ramallah on Monday condemned the three death sentences that were issued in Gaza against the suspected assassin and two suspected accomplices in the March death of senior Hamas terrorist Mazen Faqha.
"The Missions in Jerusalem and Ramallah recall their opposition under all circumstances to the use of capital punishment," said the statement, as quoted by the Palestinian Authority-based Ma’an news agency. We don't have a subcategory "Worthless EU", do we?
[NYT] In a significant advance in the study of mental ability, a team of European and American scientists announced on Monday that they had identified 52 genes linked to intelligence in nearly 80,000 people.
These genes do not determine intelligence, however. Their combined influence is minuscule, the researchers said, suggesting that thousands more are likely to be involved and still await discovery. Just as important, intelligence is profoundly shaped by the environment.
Still, the findings could make it possible to begin new experiments into the biological basis of reasoning and problem-solving, experts said. They could even help researchers determine which interventions would be most effective for children struggling to learn.
"This represents an enormous success," said Paige Harden, a psychologist at the University of Texas, who was not involved in the study.
For over a century, psychologists have studied intelligence by asking people questions. Their exams have evolved into batteries of tests, each probing a different mental ability, such as verbal reasoning or memorization.
In a typical test, the tasks might include imagining an object rotating, picking out a shape to complete a figure, and then pressing a button as fast as possible whenever a particular type of word appears.
Each test-taker may get varying scores for different abilities. But over all, these scores tend to hang together -- people who score low on one measure tend to score low on the others, and vice versa. Psychologists sometimes refer to this similarity as general intelligence.
#3
Studies will soon focus on genes responsible for the belief in global warming, as will IQ tests. That's the current definition of 'Intelligent' in much of the scientific community.
#4
Punnett square probability - A table that predicts what trait(s) will be passed down to the offspring by showing the combinations of alleles from the two parents.
h/t Instapundit
The Trump administration declared the president is in "Jerusalem, Israel," on Monday for a series of meetings with Israeli officials, a proclamation that breaks with years of American policy refraining from stating that the city of Jerusalem is part of Israel.
[American Military News] A new ISIS propaganda video shows an alleged American ISIS fighter calling for attacks on U.S. soil.
The terrorist using the name Abu Hamza al-Amriki, urges for lone-wolf attacks on U.S. soil for U.S. military action in the Middle East. Americans joining the jihadi cause adopt the name al-Amriki in their noms de guerre because it means "the American."
Abu Hamza al-Amriki calls for supporters and ISIS sympathizers to "liberate" themselves by killing those who reject Islam. He tells the supporters to stab citizens, drive cars into them and throw them off buildings.
He says that air strikes on ISIS targets are killing thousands of women and children.
"Does it not pain you that your brothers, their honor has been violated and their bodies torn apart,"Abu Hamza al-Amriki says in the video. "Are you incapable of stabbing a (non believer) with a knife or throwing him off of a building or running him over with a car?"
"Liberate yourself from hellfire by killing a (non believer)," he adds. "A (non believer) and his killer will not be joined together in hellfire."
The video also includes footage of a weapons cache including rocket-propelled grenade launchers, a drone, a rover and missile launchers that he claims were built by the U.S.
The video features pictures of banks in Washington, Johns Hopkins Hospital the Las Vegas and Times Square, and others, all which represent potential targets.
#1
The mood has shifted in Washington away from PC and mollycoddling radical Muslims. Given more time, it will shift more away from the path of cultural suicide we have been on for awhile.
[AnNahar] US forces have carried out a ground raid on an al-Qaeda compound in Yemen, killing seven holy warriors, the Pentagon said late Monday.
The raid took place in Marib Governorate in the early hours of Tuesday local time and was conducted with the support of Yemeni authorities.
"During this operation, US forces killed seven AQAP (al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula ...the latest incarnation of various Qaeda and Qaeda-allied groups, including the now-defunct Aden-Abyan Islamic Army that boomed the USS Cole in 2000... ) bandidosmurderous Moslems through a combination of small arms fire and precision Arclight airstrikes," Centcom, the US military command in the Middle East, said in a statement.
"Raids such as this provide insight into AQAP's disposition, capabilities and intentions, which will allow us to continue to pursue, disrupt, and degrade AQAP."
Posted by: trailing wife ||
05/23/2017
01:19 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[12 views]
Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula
As-Suwayda (IraqiNews) Syrian regime forces, backed by affiliated militias, managed to impose their control over Dahret Umm Salasel, in eastern As-Suwayda, Qasioun News Agency reported on Monday.
The newely formed militia Labayb Suliman also participated in the offensive on the city of As-Suwayda, south of Syria.
Meanwhile, ...back at the desert island, Irene was indignant at the thought of doing such a thing without benefit of clergy... activists pointed out that government forces raised the Russian flag in the area, to avoid the international coalition air strikes.
Noteworthy, Syrian government forces are trying to reach al-Tanf crossing border with Jordan, where the international coalition aircraft bombarded a military convoy in the area of Kharba al-Shahma, few days ago.
Syrian government forces also managed to recapture al-Zalf area in As-Suwayda, earlier this week.
Aleppo (IraqiNews) Syrian opposition announced, on Monday, repulsing an attack launched by the Syrian Democratic Forces, in an attempt to advance into al-Homran area, north of Aleppo.
The Syrian opposition also revealed that about 10 members of the Syrian Democratic Forces were either killed or maimed, due to the mutual artillery and rocket shelling.
Meanwhile,festivities broke out, this morning, between the opposition and the regime forces in Anadan Mountain area, while helicopters belonging to the Syrian regime dropped leaflets on villages and cities of the northern countryside of Aleppo, encouraging residents to abandon weapons and terrorism.
Noteworthy, Syrian Democratic Forces tried to advance into areas north of Aleppo, however, suffered material and human losses.
[Wash Times] Former President Barack Obama will leap back onto the world stage Thursday to join German Chancellor Angela Merkel at a forum at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin.
The event titled "Being Involved in Democracy: Taking on Responsibility Locally and Globally" puts Mr. Obama in the spotlight in Europe at the same time as President Trump, underscoring the dramatic shift in the U.S. in the last four months.
The forum is sponsored by the Obama Foundation.
Mr. Trump is traveling around the Middle East and Europe, visiting Saudi Arabia, Israel and Vatican City in Rome in an effort unite three world religions. He also will attend a NATO meeting in Brussels and G-7 summit in Sicily.
The forum in Berlin returns Mr. Obama to the Brandenburg Gate, which has been the site of pivotal speeches throughout history, including President John F. Kennedy declaring "Ich bin ein Berliner" and President Ronald Reagan declaring "Mr Gorbachev, tear down this wall."
Mr. Obama wanted to give a speech at the Brandenburg Gate during the 2008 presidential race but was blocked by Ms. Merkel because she didn’t think he should give a campaign speech at the nonpartisan landmark. He instead spoke at the nearby Victoria Column.
#8
She really has no idea what looks good on her body, poor dear. She would do well to invest in the services of a stylist, even so bourgeois as using the free services provided by Macys and Nordstrom, rather than relying on the Talbot catalog and Good Housekeeping style advice.
Diyala (IraqiNews.com) Fourteen army personnel were killed and injured in a suicide attack inside the biggest military base, east of Baquba, a security source from Diyala said.
“Two personnel were killed, while twelve others were wounded as four attackers wearing suicide belts attempted infiltration into Qaraqosh base [45 KM east of Baquba],” the source told Alghad Press on Monday.
Two of the bombers were killed as they blew themselves up, according to the source.
“One of the injured is a senior officer in serious condition. He was transferred to outside Diyala for treatment,” the source added. “Two other attackers are still besieged inside the base.”
[Ynet] The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for an attack Monday on a military training center in Diyala north of Baghdad that killed at least four soldiers and wounded four others, including two officers, according to a statement released by the group and two Iraqi officers.
Six attackers struck the base, according to the Iraqi officers. The IS statement put the number of attackers at four and said "dozens" were killed and wounded. The Iraqi officers said five attackers detonated suicide vests once inside the center and by afternoon the situation was "under control," but five Iraqi military vehicles were torched by the blasts.
The officers spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.
Diyala (IraqiNews.com) Two civilians were killed in an armed attack that occurred near a village, northeast of Baquba, a local source from Diyala province has said.
“Unknown gunmen opened fire early on Monday against two civilians near abu Taba village [28 KM northeast of Baquba] which left them dead,” the source told AlSumaria News.
A suicide attack took place as Islamic State militants attempted infiltration into Qaraqosh military base, located east of Baquba. Several army personnel were killed and injured.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[11 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic State
[Hurriyet Daily News] A court in the western province of Izmir has sentenced the alleged killer of a Russian jet pilot to five years in jail over "violating the law on firearms" and "keeping a warfare weapon" in a separate case into him.
Alparslan Celik, the alleged killer of a pilot of the Russian SU-24 jet downed by The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire.... on Nov. 24, 2015, was tried over the charges after several weapons were found on him, his house and vehicle.
Both pilots aboard the downed SU-24 jet ejected and parachuted to the ground on the Syrian side of the border. One of them was killed by gun fire from the ground after ejecting from the plane.
After the downing of the jet, Celik defended the killing of the jet pilot in a video, saying the pilot had dropped bombs on Turkmens.
"That pilot bombed us five minutes [before Turkey downed the Russian jet] and our brothers were killed or maimed by these bombs. There is no place for a person who has bombed civilian Turkmens every day in my conscious," Celik had said.
"Reprisal is the most natural right. There is life in reprisal," he added.
Celik, as well as 17 other suspects, were being tried in Izmir 27th Criminal Court of First Instance after five automatic rifles, four pistols and two walkie-talkies were found in the searches carried out on them, in their houses and their vehicles on March 31, 2016.
Seven suspects were sentenced to five years in prison each over the aforementioned two charges, including Celik. In addition, one was sentenced to 1.5 years, while two were given ten months of prison time, and the others were acquitted.
Celik is currently in jail over charges for another crime.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[8 views]
Top|| File under: Sublime Porte
#1
Out in a few months. With Paleostinians we call this "capture & release". Lets see what Vlad will do.
Anbar (IraqiNews.com) Islamic State has evacuated its members and leaders after bringing down its flags from one of its main strongholds in western Anbar town of Qaim, on borders with Syria.
“IS militants evacuated its local, Arab and foreign members and leaders from all of the group’s headquarters in Qaim town,” Sputnik quoted a local source from Anbar as saying.
The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the members and leaders moved to new secret headquarters outside of Qaim and headed toward the Iraqi western desert.
IS, according to the source, “has adopted the new plan after huge losses were inflicted on the group due to airstrikes launched by Iraqi and U.S.-led coalition fighter jets, which targeted its havens, killing and injuring hundreds of members over the past months.”
In April, Qutri al-Obeidi, a leader with the paramilitary al-Hashd al-Shaabi troops said IS members were evacuated from Rawa town towards Qaim after the leaders ordered the fighters, along with their families, to leave due to intensified airstrikes.
Anbar’s western towns of Annah, Qaim and Rawa have been held by the extremist group since 2014, when it emerged to proclaim a self-styled Islamic Caliphate.
Fighter jets from the Iraqi army and the international coalition have also regularly pounded IS locations in the province. The Iraqi government is expected to aim at those strongholds once the Mosul battle is concluded.
Anbar (Iraqinews.com) The number of dispalced families who had been repatriated to their hometowns in Anbar has stood at more than 165.000, according to the Iraqi government.
The Ministry of Migration and Displacement director in Anbar, Mohamed Rasheed, said in a press statement on Monday that while 165.107 families returned to their home areas in the province since mid 2016, there are more than 300.000 families still displaced outside the province.
The war against Islamic State militants in Iraq has displaced more than four million Iraqis since January 2014, according to Iraqi government figures. More than 670.000 were displaced since Iraqi government forces, backed by a U.S.-led coalition moved in October to drive the group out of Mosul, its largest urban stronghold in Iraq.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[9 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic State
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) The number of Syrian refugees in Iraq has reached 200.000, according to Iraqi Minister of Health, Adila Hammoud, who said those are included in services provided to the country’s internally-displaced population.
Hammoud made the revelation during a meeting by Arab health ministers in Geneva on Sunday, which was aired by the state TV.
She said Iraqi continues to face major challenges, especially in the healthcare field as Islamic State members had destroyed the sector’s infrastructure such as hospitals and medical units that were under his command.
She said, however, that her country, assisted the World Health Organization, had managed to control infectious diseases among refugees.
The United Nations said last week that refugees displaced by battles between security forces and IS exceeded 630.000 since the start of military operations in October. The Iraqi government put the number at at least 670.000, and said 150.000 people had, meanwhile, returned to their home areas.
[IsraelTimes] Paleostinians are holding a general strike in the West Bank in solidarity with hunger striking prisoners in Israeli jails. The strike coincides with the arrival of US President Donald Trump ...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States... for a two-day visit to Israel and the Paleostinian territories.
Hundreds of protesters are blocking roads in cities and towns of the West Bank as the hunger strike entered its 36th day Monday. A Paleostinian advocacy group says several of the hundreds of hunger striking prisoners are hospitalized.
Israel Prisons Service officials said on Sunday that dozens are expected to be hospitalized in the coming days.
Paleostinians say well over 1,000 are on strike, while Israeli officials insist the number is closer to 850. Many of the prisoners were convicted of terror attacks.
Stores and government offices are closed down in Ramallah, public transportation has ground to a halt and main thoroughfares in Paleostinian cities are empty of people and cars.
The Paleostinian prisoners’ affairs committee calls for a "day of rage" on Tuesday, when Trump visits Bethlehem, for "the voice of the prisoners to be heard by the president."
[Ynet] Sixty security prisoners who have been on a hunger strike for the past week have been evacuated to several hospitals after IPS doctors examined them and decided that due to their medical condition, they are in need of medical care. Marwan Barghouti, the leader of the strike, is not among the prisoners who were evacuated.
[IsraelTimes] Border Police officers rubbed out a Paleostinian man as he attempted to stab them at a guard post in the Paleostinian town of Abu Dis, east of Jerusalem, police said Monday.
No officers were reported injured, a police spokesperson said.
The alleged attack outside Jerusalem occurred as US President Donald Trump ...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States... was in the capital for an official state visit with security significantly ramped up in and near the city.
The name of the Paleostinian man has yet to be released, but he was identified as a resident of the West Bank city of Bethlehem.
Some 11,000 police and security forces are taking part in the operation to secure Trump’s visit. On Tuesday, he is slated to travel to Bethlehem.
Paleostinians have taken part in violent protests across the West Bank throughout Monday, clashing with Israeli troops.
According to the Red Islamic Thingy, three Paleostinians were hit by gunfire during protests in the city of Qalandiya, north of Jerusalem, and in the town of Nabi Saleh, north of Ramallah. They were in stable, pH balanced condition.
Another 26 Paleostinians are also receiving treatment for lighter injuries, the Red Islamic Thingy said.
#5
Ah Entropy. I posited in a physical Chemistry class 30 years ago that "Relationships and indeed marriages are Entropic systems, they will increase in disorder unless you put energy into them"
#6
Exactly so, Seeking cure. g(r)omgoru, if you are ever confused by quirky text, click on the headline to see what was actually written originally. That's the other reason we link to all original articles.
DonM, what a charming insight. I can only imagine you are very happily married, indeed.
[All Africa] Somaliland's Foreign Minister talks about the self-declared state's struggle for recognition, domestic successes, and strategies towards Somalia.
Shortly after the collapse of the brutal Siad Barre regime in 1991, Somaliland unilaterally declared independence from Somalia. It reinstated the borders that had existed when it was briefly a sovereign state in 1960, and its government called on the world to recognise it as a newly sovereign country.
No one did.
In the 26 years since, Somaliland has continued to call for recognition. In the meantime, it has succeeded in many of the ways the rest of Somalia has failed. It has maintained relative stability. It has held elections. And it has developed on various economic and social measures.
And yet, still no one has heeded its calls to be accepted as a sovereign nation.
African Arguments caught up with Dr Saad Ali Shire, Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, to ask him about the campaign for recognition, the challenges facing Somaliland, and the government's relations with Somalia.
[International recognition for Somaliland will boost prosperity in the Horn of Africa]
You've been making the same argument for recognition for 26 years. Yet still no country recognises you. Are you going to keep making the same case or do you have a change of plan?
Somalia and Somaliland were two independent states that united on 1 July 1960, even though legally the process was questionable. On 26 June 1960, the illusory sovereignty of Britannia over Somaliland had ceased and we assumed our own illusory sovereignty. It was only compromised when we joined Somalia.
We were together for 30 years, under the democratic republic from 1960 to 1969 then under military dictatorship until 1991. In both cases, the union did not work for Somaliland and was very destructive towards the end. We asked why we should be part of a system that only harms us.
It's been 26 years since we decided to leave the union. We've not been recognised as yet, but a lot has changed. Somaliland of 2017 is different to Somaliland of 1991. We've rebuilt the country and economy. We've had five one-man-one-vote elections. We have stability and have made a lot of social progress. We have 30 universities when we had none before and 1,000 primary schools.
Politically, Somaliland is much more credible. In the early 90s when we came to the UK, we'd meet with junior officers. Now I meet with the minister.
I think the world should be ashamed of itself for not recognising Somaliland. We're denied our rights by being denied illusory sovereignty. It's a humanitarian case in a way. What is there to lose? There's no country in the world that can say we don't like Somaliland because we're causing them damage. On the contrary. Full recognition can only help the international community deal with pressing challenges such as terrorism and piracy.
The drought in Somaliland is another challenge. Tens of thousands have been displaced to camps where some say they are living in appalling conditions with no facilities, no security, and that the government is not doing anything to help them.
I think the government is trying its best, and not just the government but the community. It's a miracle we survive. It's a miracle we lost only a few lives in this drought. Our people are very generous and supportive, and the government as well.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[13 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
still no one has heeded its calls to be accepted as a sovereign nation.
#2
So, they've spent the last 26 years fighting over who gets to steal the international aid?
Because that's what they've got.
Posted by: ed in texas ||
05/23/2017 18:42
Comments ||
Top||
#3
Somaliland is, along with its Somali brethren, dead last in PPP per capita terms. If it had surged ahead of the other Somali regions, it would have better call for diplomatic recognition.
Raqqa (IraqiNews) Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), last night, managed to recapture several villages in the eastern and western countryside of Raqqa, Qasioun News Agency reported on Monday.
The Syrian Democratic Forces also advanced toward the areas of Chaib el Aaouaj and western Salhabiya, west of Raqqa, after violent battles with the Islamic State group and mutual artillery and rocket shelling.
Furthermore, security forces managed to recapture the villages of al- Nasirah and al- Buwaydah, east of Raqqa, and thus tightening their grip on the city of Raqqa, the main stronghold of the terrorist group in Syria.
Meanwhile, Mansoura City, west of Raqqa, witnessed a mass displacement, due to the bombardment of the international coalition that carried out more than ten air strikes on the area.
Noteworthy, Syrian Democratic Forces managed, recently, to control several areas in Raqqa, backed by the US-led international coalition air force.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[11 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic State
[FoxNews] The number of concealed carry permits in the United States has topped 15 million over the last year, according to data collected by the Crime Prevention Research Center.
That’s the largest one-year increase ever in the number of permits issued, according to the research center. In July 2016, the center reported that 14.5 million people had concealed handgun permits. As of May of this year, the number is already 15.7 million.
John Lott, founder of the group and a Fox News columnist, said several states, including Arizona, Florida, Michigan and Texas, have seen a big jump in the number of gun permits issued. There are several reasons for the increase – most notably, a rise in women and minorities seeking to purchase handguns, Lott said.
Between 2012 and 2016, Lott said, the growth rate for women was twice as much as it was for men. He also said minorities are purchasing handguns at a higher rate compared to previous years.
Firearms instructors are reporting an increase in the number of black women learning how to use guns around the country, as noted in an earlier Fox News report. Gun instructors who teach self-defense courses say more women are looking toward guns to protect themselves against crime.
...for half a decade a bought creature of the Chinese government...
60, of Washington, D.C., and an employee of the U.S. Department of State, with obstructing an official proceeding and making false statements to the FBI, both felony offenses, for allegedly concealing numerous contacts that she had over a period of years with foreign intelligence agents.
The charges were announced by Acting Assistant Attorney General Mary B. McCord for National Security, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips of the District of Columbia and Assistant Director in Charge Andrew W. Vale of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.
"Candace Marie Claiborne is a U.S. State Department employee who possesses a Top Secret security clearance and allegedly failed to report her contacts with Chinese foreign intelligence agents who provided her with thousands of dollars of gifts and benefits," said Acting Assistant Attorney General McCord. "Claiborne used her position and her access to sensitive diplomatic data for personal profit. Pursuing those who imperil our national security for personal gain will remain a key priority of the National Security Division."
"Candace Claiborne is charged with obstructing an official proceeding and making false statements in connection with her alleged concealment and failure to report her improper connections to foreign contacts along with the tens of thousands of dollars in gifts and benefits they provided," said U.S. Attorney Phillips. "As a State Department employee with a Top Secret clearance, she received training and briefing about the need for caution and transparency. This case demonstrates that U.S. government employees will be held accountable for failing to honor the trust placed in them when they take on such sensitive assignments"
"Candace Claiborne is accused of violating her oath of office as a State Department employee, who was entrusted with Top Secret information when she purposefully mislead federal investigators about her significant and repeated interactions with foreign contacts," said Assistant Director in Charge Vale. "The FBI will continue to investigate individuals who, though required by law, fail to report foreign contacts, which is a key indicator of potential insider threats posed by those in positions of public trust."
More at the DOJ website.
#1
*sigh* What ever happened to the old fashioned charge of Treason? But then I guess we would have to string up a damn good portion of Washington D.C.
I find it very hard to find a downside in that....
[WASHINGTONPOST] The Sick Man of Europe Turkey’s ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire.... Foreign Ministry lodged a formal protest Monday with the U.S. ambassador to Ankara over what it said were "lapses of security" during a violent confrontation between protesters and Turkish bodyguards during President Sultan Recep Tayyip Erdogan the First ... Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him... ’s visit to Washington earlier this month. That word you're probably looking for is "chutzpah."
The summoning of the ambassador, John Bass, sharply escalated a diplomatic rift between Turkey and the United States after the brawl, which prompted outrage in the United States, as well as calls for the prosecution of the Turkish guards and even the expulsion of Turkey’s ambassador to Washington.
American and Turkish officials have provided directly contrasting versions of how the violence unfolded. Local police said the Turkish guards savagely attacked a peaceful protest outside the Turkish ambassador’s residence as Erdogan was visiting. The melee, which was recorded by video journalists, showed what appeared to be Turkish security guards kicking and choking protesters as D.C. police struggled to contain the unrest. The footage also showed that Erdogan was watching, from a distance, as the fighting raged.
Turkish diplomats have criticized the local police for failing to quell an "unpermitted" and "provocative" demonstration.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry’s statement on Monday went even further, criticizing "the inability of U.S. authorities to take sufficient precautions at every stage of the official program." And it demanded that the United States conduct a "full investigation of this diplomatic incident and provide the necessary explanation."
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[16 views]
Top|| File under: Sublime Porte
#1
Tell me again why we have bases in Turkey?
...recalling the GOs who said Subic and Clark were absolutely critical to our national security.
[DAWN] A SECTION of the legal fraternity in the country is once again demonstrating it has scant respect for the law that is its duty to uphold. On Saturday in Lahore, pandemonium broke out at a convention organised by the Supreme Court Bar Association and the Lahore High Court Bar Association to underscore their demand that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... resign following the Supreme Court verdict in the Panama Papers case. A group of lawyers affiliated with the PML-N barged into the venue and, in an attempt to shut down the event, manhandled the members of their profession already present. They shattered the auditorium’s window panes, occupied the stage, and locked up the president and the secretary of the SCBA in the library of the building. After calm was restored by the anti-riot police force, the host bar associations announced a nationwide campaign against the prime minister if he did not step down by May 27.
Such behaviour in and of itself would be considered thuggish. That it is members of the legal fraternity who have acted in such a manner makes it doubly shocking. If lawyers can engage in disorderly conduct that one associates with disreputable louts, what hope is there of other sections of society engaging in civil discourse? As for those who were the target of last week’s assault, their actions also demonstrate contempt for the law, albeit in a different way. After all, the Supreme Court majority verdict ordered that a JIT be formed to determine the source of the money trail pertaining to the premier’s family as revealed by the Panama Papers; it did not direct the prime minister to resign. The JIT has commenced the task it has been assigned. Why then are certain bar associations insisting on a course of action that the apex court has not ordered? The lawyers may have the right to demand that the prime minister step down, but threatening direction if he does not is unacceptable.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[10 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
Update at 1:20 p.m. EDT based on the Telegraph liveblog and everything y'all have added in the comment thread and additional articles here and here:
ISIS claimed it
Suicide bomber informally identified as Salman Abedi, age 22, a known wolf
22 dead, 59 seriously injured, 13 still missing
Attack took place on 4th anniversary of the Fusilier Lee Rigby murder
Suicide bomb filled with nuts and bolts -- shrapnel explains severity of injuries
Abedi was not passed by security into venue, but positioned himself outside exit to train station, exploding as crowd exited
Second, controlled explosion at 1:34 a.m. local time was clothing, not a bomb
A 23 year old man was arrested today in South Manchester in connection with the attack
Abidi's home has been searched, and a controlled explosion done there by police
About Salman Abedi:
* born in Manchester in 1994, the second or third of four children
* parents Libyan refugees during the Khaddafy era
* home is yards from girls high school from where twins Zahra and Salma Halane left for ISIS in Syria
* unconfirmed reports Abedi's parents and sister recently decamped for Libya
The Telegraph's liveblog of events, and the place to add new reports throughout the day. Yesterday's post is here.
[TELEGRAPH.CO.UK]
At least 19 people confirmed dead, 50 more injured
Police state it is a suspected terror attack
Reports that suicide bomber behind the blast
Police warn people to stay away from area
Panic as concert-goers flee the arena
2:03am
Suicide bomber 'suspected to be behind attack'
Two US officials tell Reuters that a suicide bomber is suspected in the Manchester explosion.
1:34am
Controlled explosion carried out
Greater Manchester Police have carried out a "controlled explosion" in the Cathedral Gardens area near Manchester Arena.
1:31am
Reports of 'second device'
Police sources have told @bbc5live there's a second suspected device. Reporters have been moved 200m away:
"Controlled explosion in 3-4 mins"
1:14am
Death toll confirmed as 19 people
Police have confirmed that 19 people have been killed in the Manchester Arena attack. A further 50 people are injured.
1:07am
Reports: 'suicide bomber behind explosion'
Police have not confirmed the reports.
1:00am
'There was carnage everywhere'
A father has described seeing "carnage everywhere" in the wake of an explosion at Manchester Arena that left around 30 people, including children and disabled victims, lying on the floor.
The man, named Andy, said he was blown "about 30ft" by a blast that shook the building as he waited to collect his wife and daughter at the end of a concert by US artist Ariana Grande.
12:57am
Death toll 'in double figures'
The death toll is in double figures, officials reportedly state.
12:54am
Witness saw 20 to 30 people on ground
A witness, speaking to the BBC, saw 20 to 30 people on the ground following the explosion.
12:53am
Police state Manchester Arena explosion is 'possible terrorist incident'
North West Counter Terror Command are treating it as a "possible terrorist incident".
12:48am
Area in lockdown - armed police at scene
12:42am
Hundreds of offers of support from people and companies in the Manchester area
12:38am
Bomb disposal unit 'at the scene'
Sky News reported that a bomb disposal unit was at the scene.
12:32am
Explosion came from foyer of arena
British Transport Police confirmed the blast came from "within the foyer area of the stadium at 10.30pm this evening".
11:57pm
'It was a huge explosion'
"It was a huge explosion - you could feel it in your chest. It was chaotic. Everybody was running and screaming and just trying to get out of the area."
11:56pm
Police establishing 'casualty bureau'
Details of a casualty bureau for incident at Manchester Arena will be shared as soon as available. Please stay away from the area
11:48pm
'Disruption is expected to continue until end of the day'
Manchester's Victoria station, which backs onto the arena, has been evacuated and all trains cancelled. National Rail said in an online statement: "Emergency services are dealing with an incident at Manchester Arena. As Manchester Victoria is located near the arena, the station has been evacuated and all lines closed.
"Trains are currently unable to run to / from Manchester Victoria. Some trains will be cancelled throughout or start / terminate at alternative stations. Disruption is expected to continue until end of the day."
11:43pm
'I think what the injuries have come from is people trying to get out as quickly as possible'
Eyewitness Josh Elliot told the BBC he had seen a "guy covered in blood".
11:33pm
'Reports of blood and people injured'
11:23pm
Several ambulances attend the scene
11:22pm
Panic inside the arena
11:21pm
'Everyone was running away in big crowds'
"The bang was so big I heard it from my room which is at the back of the apartment blocks.
"Currently lots of emergency services going to and from. But can't see anything substantial as of yet except fleeing people and lots of cars."
11:21pm
'A huge bomb-like bang went off'
"Everyone was in a huge state of panic, calling each other as some had gone to the toilet whilst this had gone off, so it was just extremely disturbing for everyone there."
11:19pm
Trains not stopping at Victoria station
Trains are currently not stopping at Victoria station following the security scare.
11:13pm
Schoolchildren 'ushered into one common room'
Boarders at Chetham's Music School next to Victoria Station and very near the arena have reportedly been ushered into one common room amid reports of explosion.
10:58pm
There are some reports the explosion heard could have been part of the act at Manchester Arena
Ariana Grande was performing.
10:56pm
Emergency services rush to scene
10:48pm
Reports of 'massive explosion' in Manchester Arena
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[15 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic State
#1
Europe Travel Alert / US State Department
Last Updated: May 1, 2017. This Travel Alert expires on September 1, 2017.
...Recent, widely-reported incidents in France, Russia, Sweden, and the United Kingdom demonstrate that the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS or Da’esh), al-Qa’ida, and their affiliates have the ability to plan and execute terrorist attacks in Europe.
Extremists continue to focus on tourist locations, transportation hubs, markets/shopping malls, and local government facilities as viable targets. In addition, hotels, clubs, restaurants, places of worship, parks, high-profile events, educational institutions, airports, and other soft targets remain priority locations for possible attacks. U.S. citizens should exercise additional vigilance in these and similar locations, in particular during the upcoming summer travel season when large crowds may be common.
Terrorists persist in employing a variety of tactics, including firearms, explosives, using vehicles as ramming devices, and sharp-edged weapons that are difficult to detect prior to an attack...
#9
Tragically many of the dead are young and did not have ID's on them, their phones most likely scattered in the explosion area.
In the mean time people are still trying to connect with children many hours later. Chances are they have died and will only be identified via a visit to where their bodies are kept.
#10
The same person above referred to by Bright Pebbles also posted on day prior to the attack the following:
"I am going to bomb infidels at the concert. Big news for my Muslim brothers. Tomorrow night I will go to the Manchester Ariana Grande concert and throw my handmade grenade in there! People will die in the name of Alah! Alah hates you Ariana, and you infidels! Islam will rise in the West and we will behead all of the non muslims!"
#17
Usual platitudes, lots of police standing around. Pontificating about how we need dialogue from the left and ideological counter campaign from the right. If you import the dregs of Islamic countries you get colonies of unemployed, ignorant young men prone to radicalization. Duh! This stops when you deport them or scare the crap out of them. Your choice Europe! Are you paying attention America to what democrat immigration policies will do to replicate this here.
Posted by: Albert Whavins4754 ||
05/23/2017 12:19
Comments ||
Top||
#20
How in the hell could the people of London elect Sadiq Kahn as their mayor?
Londoners, Britains, Americans, Europeans,
You have a mayor who claims incidents like this are "part and parcel of big city life". How in the hell can you be convinced that this is true? What is wrong with you? How can anybody still argue with a straight face that we need to let more Arabs into our countries? If incidents like this don't wake you up there is no hope.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
05/23/2017 13:38
Comments ||
Top||
#21
Neh, these people are eusocial only the gene line matters: that's why they like suicide attacks - like warrior ants or worker bees. You want deterrence - retaliate by wiping out the gene line.
#23
Ok. To facilitate discussion, I've added a summary of what is known as of now about events and our known wolf to the top of the article. Well done, all!
[IsraelTimes] Police arrest man after suspicious package found at Arndale center around noon. Police say this is not believed to be connected to last night's Arena attack.
g(r)omgoru, you forgot to paste the URL in the box. But Wikipedia says:
Eusociality (from Greek εὖ eu "good" and social), the highest level of organization of animal sociality, is defined by the following characteristics: cooperative brood care (including brood care of offspring from other individuals), overlapping generations within a colony of adults, and a division of labor into reproductive and non-reproductive groups. The division of labor creates specialized behavioral groups within an animal society which are sometimes called castes. Eusociality is distinguished from all other social systems because individuals of at least one caste usually lose the ability to perform at least one behavior characteristic of individuals in another caste.
Eusociality exists in certain insects, crustaceans and mammals. It is mostly observed and studied in the Hymenoptera (ants, bees, and wasps) and in the termites. A colony has caste differences: queens and reproductive males take the roles of the sole reproducers, while soldiers and workers work together to create a living situation favorable for the brood. In addition to Hymenoptera and Isoptera, there are two known eusocial vertebrates among rodents: the naked mole-rat and the Damaraland mole-rat. Some shrimps, such as Synalpheus regalis, are also eusocial. E. O. Wilson has claimed that humans are eusocial, but his arguments have been refuted by a large number of evolutionary biologists, who note that humans do not have division of reproductive labor.
The true heros (probably perforated to death by flying nails or liquidated by concussion) of the day were those who slowed down his progress into the arena also who, had the bomb not gone off, would today probably be facing charges of Islamophobia.
[Tolo News] Kabul police chief Hassan Shah Frogh on Monday said Taliban ...the Pashtun equivalent of men... bully boyz had plotted and carried out Saturday night’s attack on a guesthouse in PD7 in Kabul, which resulted in the death of two people and the kidnapping of a Finnish woman.
The statement comes two days after unknown gunnies carried out a raid on the guesthouse in PD7 in Darulaman Road area, killing a security guard and a German woman.
A second woman, a Finnish national, was kidnapped, officials said Sunday.
The Finnish foreign ministry confirmed the kidnapping on Sunday to Finnish media, saying in a statement it demanded "the immediate release of the kidnapped person".
According to Frogh, security agencies had offered the foreign nationals living in the house security, but they had rejected the offer.
He said that police have launched a major investigation into the incident to find out the motive behind it.
"There is a possibility that the Taliban plotted the attack, but why would they (Taliban) resort to such actions, it is clear whenever they suffer major casualties or their commanders and high profile officials are tossed in the clink Youse'll never take me alive coppers!... [BANG!]... Ow!... I quit! , then the Taliban resort to such action. They resort to kidnapping of individuals so as to swap them as we witnessed in the past," said Frogh.
The women had been working for a Swedish NGO Operation Mercy ‐ an organization that has been in Afghanistan since 2006.
According to the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH), Operation Mercy spent more than $800,000 USD in the country between 2011 and 2013 to help with basic health training in Afghanistan.
But, the public health ministry Sherlocks say that Operation Mercy never reported on their classes to Afghan officials.
"The kidnapping and murders of foreign nationals have political aspects instead of criminal aspects," said Abdul Khaliq Zazai Watandost, a member of the Kabul provincial council.
However, by candlelight every wench is handsome... the Taliban has not grabbed credit for the attack nor has it commented on it.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[12 views]
Top|| File under: Taliban
#1
Kabul police chief Hassan Shah Frogh
Before the old Peshawur Gate, where Kurd and Kaffir meet,
The Governor of Kabul dealt the Justice of the Street,
And that was strait as running noose and swift as plunging knife,
Tho' he who held the longer purse might hold the longer life.
Deir Ezzor (IraqiNews) More than 30 civilians were killed and others, including women and children, were wounded in a Russian air strike on a neighborhood in the city of Deir Ezzor, Qasioun News Agency reported on Monday.
At noon today, Russian warplanes bombarded residential buildings in the Islamic State-held al-Ardi neighborhood, killing 30 civilians and wounding several others, including women and children, in addition to destroying some buildings.
Meanwhile, a civilian was killed and five others were injured, including two children, in a mortar shelling conducted by the Islamic State group on al-Jorah neighborhood, north of Deir Ezzor.
The city of Deir Ezzor is currently witnessing intensified air strikes carried out by the US-led international coalition and Russian Aviation, resulting in the fall of hundreds of casualties.
How odd. They aren't supposed to be in Mosul at all, but clearing villages around Mosul for exactly this reason.
Mosul (IraqiNews.com) Pro-Iraqi government paramilitary troops fighting the Islamic State briefly detained and tortured Iraqi men in western Mosul over possible links with the extremist group, Human Rights Watch said in a latest report reviving accusations of human abuses against the Shia-led forces.
“Human Rights Watch interviewed three men from al-Hadar, a village 90 kilometers southwest of west Mosul, who were detained by the Popular Mobilization Forces (known as the PMF or Hashd al-Sha’abi) and two local officials who had knowledge of the detention operations in the area,” said the organization. “The men said the fighters detained them as they fled their homes because of the fighting, and held them for up to 15 days in a school building and in one case a home in an area solely under PMF control,” it added.
HRW revealed that, in two cases, interrogators “ beat them with thick metal cables, before releasing them and a small number of other detainees”.
“Given the previous track records of PMF abuse in the area of screening and detaining local men, Baghdad should treat these findings with the gravest concern,” said Lama Fakih, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “Authorities should do all in their power to ensure that families fleeing the fighting around Mosul are able to get to safety, not tortured in secret facilities.”
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has regularly and ardently defended mobilization forces against recurrent accusations of human rights abuses, in one occasion threatening to “cut the hands” of whoever insults the force.
Mobilization forces, an alliance of more than 60 Shia militias with presumed backing from Iran, were formed in 2014 in line with an edict from the country’s top Shia clergy to combat Sunni extremist Islamic State fighters. The forces won official recognition as a national force late 2016.
Mosul (IraqiNews.com) Iraqi Federal Police forces pounded Islamic State locations in western Mosul’s Old City on Monday preparing for the invasion of the group’s last bastion in that region.
The service’s commander, Lt. Gen. Shaker Jawdat, said in a press statement that police used heavy artillery and Grad rockets, backed by drones, to strike dozens of targets including command centers, supply stores, artillery and transportation vehicles belonging to the group.
Deputy Federal Police commander, Maj. Gen Jaafar al-Battat, was quoted Sunday saying in statements that the density of the civilian population in the Old City had obliged the delay in the invasion until districts overlooking it from the northwest were retaken.
Mosul (IraqiNews.com) Islamic State members are burning civilians-owned vehicles in western Mosul to blur vision for assaulting fighter jets as the group moves to its last refuge at the Old City area.
Alforat.info quoted sources saying the militants at al-Shifa district, one of the last four districts remaining under their control in western Mosul, had begun to set fire to vehicles to create a smokescreen against fighter jets pounding the group’s locations near the Old City. The sources added that the group began evacuating civilians at gunpoint towards the Old City.
Mosul (IraqiNews.com) Two civilians were killed on Monday by a mortar missile and a bomb blast in western Mosul district, according to a security source and local residents.
Speaking to Shafaaq News, the residents said a civilian was killed as Islamic State militants fired a mortar missile on the unliberated parts of Hawi al-Kanisa region.
Meanwhile, the source said another civilian “was killed as IS blew up an IED when the civilian attempted escaping toward the Iraqi troops in Hawi al-Kanisa.”
“Iraqi troops are in the process of completing the liberation of Hawi al-Kanisa, west of Mosul,” the source added.
Mosul (IraqiNews.com) Iraqi government forces took over al-Najjar district in western Mosul on Monday, the Defense Ministry War Media Cell said as troops moved one more step towards the Islamic State-held Old City.
The media outlet said Iraqi forces recaptured the district and raised Iraqi flags above its buildings. Al-Najjar was one of a handful of remaining districts Iraqi forces are battling IS in to pave the way towards the ancient Old City, the highly prized target from where IS supreme leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi proclaimed an “Islamic Caliphate” over large parts of Iraq and neighboring Syria.
Mosul (IraqiNews.com) Eleven Islamic State militants were killed in an airstrike on Baaj town, in western Mosul, the War Media Cell reported on Monday.
In a statement, the WMC said, “Iraqi fighter jets launched several airstrikes on Baaj, depending on intelligence information.”
“The airstrikes left a fuel store for IS fighters completely destroyed and two members killed,” the statement added.
Moreover, the jets “destroyed the so-called hisbah (vigilantism) office and killed nine other militants, including two Arabs. A weapon stash inside the office was also destroyed,” the media service added.
Mosul (IraqiNews.com) Seven Islamic State militants were killed Monday when a drone from the U.S.-led coalition targeted their location in western Mosul.
Air force lieutenant Yazan Abdul-Kafi told Rudaw network that the drone pounded a house in Zanjili district which militants occupied. The strike killed all seven and destroyed their truck.
Zanjili is one of the few remaining districts Iraqi forces are sweeping through on their way to the Old City, Islamic State’s last bastion in Mosul.
Meanwhile, Iraqi forces continued preparations to install a floating bridge linking western Mosul with the eastern side. Lt. Abdul-Salam al-Jubouri, from the Iraqi army, told Rudawy the bridge could hopefully facilitate troops movement and the transfer of refugees evacuated from the west to the east.
The five bridges linking Mosul’s flanks above the Tigris River had been destroyed in airstrikes late last year to prevent IS militants from escaping to the west as Iraqi forces retook the eastern region.
Mosul (IraqiNews.com) Unknown gunmen kidnapped Monday head of Nimrud neighborhood, east of Mosul, along with two others to unknown destination, according to a security source.
“Unknown gunmen attacked house of Nimrud neighborhood chief Khazaal Theyab al-Duleimi,” the source told Shafaaq News.
The kidnappers took Duleimi, along with two other officials from the neighborhood called Mohamed Ahmed al-Duleimi and Youness Ismail al-Duleimi to unknown destination, the source added.
Nimrud was declared to be fully liberated in November.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[8 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic State
It will be funny if that happens, because they'll try to rally public support -- from conservatives, the only people who would conceivably defend them -- and we'll be sitting here remembering their years and years of directing the left's terrorism against us.
Kind of like the Saudi princes pouring money to spread Wahabism -- direct the terrorism towards some convenient scapegoat, other than yourself.
So yeah, don't bother, Silicon Valley. If they come after you, you're on your own.
Tech stocks have surged, and Bank of America says it could lead to talk of wealth redistribution
Standout gains in large technology stocks like Amazon.com and Apple show just how much the sector is disconnected from the sluggish growth on the rest of Main Street, one notable strategist said in a report titled "Occupy Silicon Valley."
The tech stock rally "could ultimately lead to populist calls for redistribution of the increasingly concentrated wealth of Silicon Valley," Bank of America Merrill Lynch's chief investment strategist, Michael Hartnett, said in a report released Monday.
Give the Social Justice Warriors space to destroy, I always say. That which you create will come back to destroy you... and pride before the fall.
#8
It'll be interesting to see the difference between how Texas based tech companies and Silicon Valley and Seattle based tech companies handle the SJW pressure.
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) Three civilians were wounded due to an IED blast that took place in western Baghdad, a police source said on Monday.
“A bomb placed near a market in al-Nasr wal Salam region in Abu Ghraib district, western Baghdad, exploded on Monday leaving three civilians injured,” the source told AlSumaria News.
“Security troops headed to the accident spot and transferred the injured to hospital for treatment,” the source, who preferred anonymity, added.
[ENGLISH.ALMANAR.LB] Hezbollah denounced as unjust the Bahraini authorities’ rule against Ayatollah Sheikh Issa al-Qassem.
In a statement released by the party’s Media Relations office, Hezbollah said the rule is a new crimne in the series of crimes committed by the Bahraini regime against the tolerant and long-suffering people of Bahrain.
"This unjust rule against prominent Shiite reference in Bahrain- which also targets the Khums ritual aimed at receiving money to give it to poor people and orphans- is a mark of disgrace on the forehead of this regime," the statement said, hours after the rule against the senior holy man.
The Fourth Great Criminal court in Bahrain gave Ayatollah Sheikh Issa Qassem one year suspended prison sentence on Sunday, as it ruled to confiscate the Khums money and two other land properties as well.
Hezbollah in his statement said meanwhile, that the rule comes as the "Bahraini King was meeting with Donald Trump ...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States... and receiving the visiting US President’s total support against the Bahraini people."
"As we condemn the new rule, added to the dangerous previous decision by the authorities to strip Ayatollah Sheikh Issa Qassem of nationality, we salute the steadfast Bahraini people who rushed to defend their religious reference, dignity and rights," Hezbollah said in the statement.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[9 views]
Top|| File under: Hezbollah
[DAWN] Leaders of various political and religious parties and members of civil society here on Sunday unanimously called for giving exemplary punishment to the killers of Mashal Khan and demanded adequate security for his two sisters they could continue their education.
They were speaking at a gathering held to observe Mashal’s chehlum. Mashal, 23, was a journalism student in Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan, and a resident of Zaida city of Swabi district. He was lynched over alleged blasphemy by a mob on April 13.
The participants paid tribute to the dear departed student and vowed to stand firmly with the bereaved family. They said that 53 of the total 57 suspects in the Mashal’s lynching case had already been locked away Drop the heater, Studs, or you're hist'try! and the prime suspect, identified as Imran, had confessed to his involvement in the crime.
The participants unanimously demanded that all "actors" and "directors" who played a role in Mashal’s murder should be arrested.
Mohammad Iqbal, Mashal’s father, still in a state of grief and sitting among numerous people seemed composed and welcomed everyone. He was assured by the visitors that he was not alone in his grief, demanding that the court should ensure that the family got justice.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[10 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[News24] Johannesburg - A professional big game hunter from Tzaneen, Theunis Botha, 51, died on Friday afternoon during a hunt in Gwai, in Zimbabwe, when a member of his group fired at a storming elephant cow and the animal fell on him. That's why they call hunting a sport. Usually one side wins. Not always. Sometimes it's a draw.
A source who didn’t want to be named told Netwerk24 that a group of hunters had gone for a walk on Friday afternoon when they suddenly came across a breeding herd of elephants.
Three elephant cows stormed the hunters and Botha shot at them. A fourth cow stormed them from the side and one of the hunters shot her after she’d lifted Botha with her trunk. The shot was fatal and as the cow collapsed, she fell on Botha. Botha Website.
[DAWN] The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has identified dozens of suspects involved in what it calls an "organised" campaign against the country’s armed forces on social media, even as opposition parties condemned the alleged "misuse" of the cybercrime law by the government.
In fact, opposition parties even pledged to fight for supporters of the ruling party, who had been rounded up during the crackdown.
"We have identified dozens of suspects involved in running an organised campaign on social media against the Pakistain Army. We have taken some of them into custody for interrogation," an FIA official told Dawn on Sunday.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[8 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[DAWN] Member of National Assembly (MNA) Mussarat Ahmadzeb, in an interview to right-wing Urdu-language daily Ummat, has alleged that the attack on Malala Yousufzai was "scripted".
In the interview, available online, Ahmadzeb -- who was elected to the Assembly on a Pakistain Tehrik-e-Insaf ...a political party in Pakistan. PTI was founded by former Pakistani cricket captain and philanthropist Imran Khan. The party's slogan is Justice, Humanity and Self Esteem, each of which is open to widely divergent interpretations.... (PTI) ticket -- said, "The attack on Malala was scripted way before the incident."
"She [Malala] was shot in the head but no bullet was found in [the] CT scan in Swat. But yes, then the bullet got stuck in her head in CMH Beautiful Downtown Peshawar ...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province), administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistan's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire. ," the MNA later said in a tweet.
She went on to allege that the government had supposedly facilitated medical assistants who helped 'fabricate' Malala's story, saying: "The medics who did the CT scan along with the doctor who examined her, all were awarded plots by the government."
Mussarat later defended her stance on Twitter, even alleging that Malala was unqualified to pen the stories BBC published in her name.
"Malala could not read or write [at] the time she supposedly wrote the Gul Makai stories for BBC," she alleged.
PTI responds
Speaking to DawnNews, PTI spokesperson Shafqat Mahmood said the party had disowned Mussarat in 2014.
"During the dharna against election rigging, three MNAs — Mussarat Ahmadzeb, Gulzar Ahmed, and Siraj Muhammad — refused to abide by party laws," Mahmood stated
"When PTI decided to boycott proceedings in the National Assembly, these members violated party protocols and showed up to the Assembly."
The spokesperson for PTI clarified that the party had no relation to Mussarat or any of her statements.
It should be noted that National Assembly website still classifies Mussarat Ahmadzeb as a PTI member.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[10 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[Hurriyet Daily News] Two Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) gunnies who were killed in a police operation early on May 21 in Ankara had been preparing for potential attacks in the capital, including the ruling Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) extraordinary congress, the Ankara governor has stated.
In a police raid on an apartment of the Housing Development Administration of The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire.... (TOKI) in the Yapracik neighborhood of the Etimesgut district, the two ISIS holy warriors, believed to be aged between 25 and 30, responded by attempting to engage in a shootout but were killed by coppers early on May 21. A search at the address also revealed weapons, hand grenades and high- power improvised bombs (IEDs) as well as digital materials, computers and some sketches.
Speaking at a presser on May 22, Ankara Governor Ercan Topaca said the killed gunnies have not been identified yet but sketches were found on them targeting the AKP’s extraordinary congress at Ankara Sports Complex on May 21 and a non-governmental organization in the Dikmen neighborhood.
"We could not identify those people yet. It is likely that they are foreigners. We could not identified them as they do not have any fingerprints or records," Topaca said.
"Some sketches regarding the area where the AKP extraordinary congress was held yesterday [May 21] have been revealed ... From those sketches we see that they planned to stage an attack that would have an impact and create chaos in the country," he added.
"We put a big focus on the AKP congress that day. We think they probably estimated this fact and planned another attack, from the fact that there were two sketches. They had planned such attack around Dikmen but in the end they could not find the opportunity," he added.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[8 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic State
Samarra (IraqiNews.com) Iraqi security forces killed two suicide bombers on Monday who were heading for an attack on a police unit in the city of Samarra, Salahuddin.
Emad al-Zoheiri, commander of the Samarra Operations force, said in a statement that the bombers were planning to attack a police unit in Gallam, but were trapped inside a barn before they were killed.
He said the incident raises the total of suicide bombers killed by the forces in the province over a month to ten.
Since Iraqi forces launched offensives in October to clear Iraqi regions from militants, Shirqat has seen occasional attacks by Islamic State, leaving casualties among civilians and security forces. Government troops, backed by paramilitary forces, responded with intermittent security operations at the province’s borders with neighboring governorates.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[7 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic State
[MINTPRESSNEWS] By changing its name to Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Syrian branch of al-Qaeda has managed to secure its removal from the U.S. and Canadian terror watchlists, allowing citizens of those countries to donate money and travel to fight with them.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[11 views]
Top|| File under: al-Nusra
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[8 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic State
#1
Something will replace ISIS. The conditions that gave rise to ISIS haven't changed. A swathe of Sunni territory pressured by Shiites from East and West. With enough support from Sunni states to keep going.
I expect what comes next to be more media savvy than ISIS. Facebook vids of rescuing baby ducks should go a long way to getting the West off their backs.
#4
ISIS the (1) Bandit Country in the ME? (2) ISIS the organized paramilitary? (3) ISIS the revolutionary cadre? (4) ISIS the revolutionary Cause?
Probably (1), possibly (2), and the rest... trying 'killing' the Common Cold -- that would be easier.
#5
I suspect Trump and Saudi Arabia discussed this a bit. One main reason the Saudi's have financed ISIS is to provide a Sunni counter to Iranian power in the region.
Trump signing the big weapons deal and talk of an Arabic NATO seems to be an attempt to get Arab nations to take over the counter the Iranians when ISIS is gone.
[DAWN] Australia on Sunday gave 7,500 boatpeople until October to file a claim proving they are genuine refugees or be kicked out, declaring the "game is up" for illegal arrivals ripping off taxpayers.
Before the conservatives took power and adopted a tough line on the issue in 2013, an estimated 50,000 asylum-seekers flooded into Australia on more than 800 boats over the previous five years.
Hundreds more, many from war-torn Afghanistan, Sri Lanka and the Middle East, died at sea during the treacherous journey.
Of those arrivals, the old Labour government processed nearly 20,000, leaving 30,500 to the current administration.
Some 7,500 of them have yet to present their cases for asylum or are refusing to answer questions about their identity, while claiming welfare benefits, casting doubt on whether they really need protection.
Immigration Minister Peter Dutton said that if they fail to lodge a claim by October 1, they will be removed from the country and banned from re-entering.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[5 views]
Top|| File under: Moslem Colonists
#1
Just take them to the interior and release them.
#2
..what the man said.
Oh, give me land, lots of land under starry skies above / Don't fence me in / Let me ride through the wide open country that I love / Don't fence me in
[DAWN] President Donald Trump ...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States... on Monday defended himself against allegations he divulged classified information in a recent meeting with Russian diplomats, saying alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he never identified Israel in his Oval Office conversation.
At the end of his appearance with Netanyahu, Trump said that he "never mentioned the word or the name Israel" in his conversation with Russia's foreign minister and ambassador. "So you have another story wrong," he said.
Various reports, quoting anonymous officials, have said Trump did share classified information with Russian diplomats about the threat posed by the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... group, and several have said that information came from Israeli intelligence. But news accounts have not accused Trump of naming Israel as a source of the information.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[4 views]
Top|| File under:
Kirkuk (IraqiNews.com) Islamic State militants executed on Monday nine men from Hawija district and areas in its vicinity over collaboration with security services, security source was quoted as saying.
“IS members shot five men dead and executed four others, who were arrested two days ago over spying for security services and the paramilitary troops,” the source told the German news agency DPA. The executions took place near the Great Zab river in Hawija, a strategic town which has fallen into the hands of IS since mid-2014.
Islamic State has executed hundreds of civilians and security members since it took over large areas in Iraq to proclaim a self-styled “Islamic Caliphate”. The executions of the victims were mainly blamed over accusations of collaboration with the Iraqi security authorities or for attempting to flee areas under its control.
Kirkuk has a mixed population of Kurds, Turkmens and Arabs. The southern and western regions in the province have been under IS control since June 2014.
Iraqi authorities postponed an operation to liberate the town last year, instead they moved onto Mosul, the group’s biggest bastion in Iraq. It is expected to aim at liberating IS-held regions in the province once done with operations in Mosul
Posted by: trailing wife ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[8 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic State
#1
an illegally present Mexican national May 4 who is presently wanted for aggravated sexual abuse in Cook County, Illinois.
Gerardo Diaz-Rodriguez, a Mexican national who illegal re-entered the United States after being allowed to voluntarily depart the United States in lieu of formal removal in April 2003, was arrested by ICE deportation officers at his Clayton County residence during a targeted enforcement operation May 4 in concert with the U.S. Marshals Service Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force.
Mr. Diaz was previously arrested by Clayton County authorities April 20 on a misdemeanor charge under a fictitious name. Clayton County subsequently released him, but an ICE deportation officer who reviewed the record was able to determine the man arrested under a fictitious name was in fact Mr. Diaz and subject to an active warrant out of Cook County for aggravated sexual abuse.
Mr. Diaz was rebooked into the Clayton County jail following his May 4 capture. He is presently awaiting extradition to Cook County to face the aggravated criminal sexual abuse charge there.
Just doing the jobs Americans don't wanna do. No harm. No foul.
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/23/2017 7:11
Comments ||
Top||
#2
Another BOMBSHELL: Donna Brazile Warned Off Private Eye on Seth Rich Murder
WASHINGTON – Former Democratic National Committee interim chairwoman Donna Brazile is the high-ranking DNC representative who allegedly called police and the family of murdered DNC staffer Seth Rich and demanded to know why a private investigator was “snooping” into Rich’s death, the private eye revealed to WND Monday.
[Hurriyet Daily News] The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) has criticized President Sultan Recep Tayyip Erdogan the First ... Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him... and the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) for announcing on May 21 that the state of emergency will remain in place "until peace is fully provided."
"At first you said you were introducing the state of emergency for just one month. It’s been 10 months now. You say ’It will continue until comfort prevails [in The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire.... ].’ But the state of emergency has cut off the country’s veins of democracy. Democracy is bleeding," CHP Deputy Group Chair Özgur Özel said in a presser on May 22.
Özel was speaking after the AKP’s extraordinary convention on May 21, in which Erdogan returned to the party and was once again elected as its chairman.
"People in the country are almost unable to breathe because of the lack of democracy, injustice, inequalities and mistreatment. Under these circumstances, the only person who feels himself safe, happy and calm is President Erdogan," Özel said.
The Turkish government declared a state of emergency on July 21, 2016, just days after the failed coup attempt, believed to have been criminal masterminded by followers of the U.S.-based Islamic preacher Fethullah Gulen ... a Turkish preacher living in Pennsylvania whom the current govt of Turkey considers responsible for all the ills afflicting Turkey and possibly the entire world... .
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[5 views]
Top|| File under: Sublime Porte
#1
An "Indefinite Dictator" by any other name smells.
[DAWN] 20 kilogrammes of heroin were recovered from a Pakistain International Airlines (PIA) flight at Islamabad Airport on May 22, DawnNews reported.
Flight PK785 was destined to depart for London from Benazir Bhutto ... 11th Prime Minister of Pakistain in two non-consecutive terms from 1988 until 1990 and 1993 until 1996. She was the daughter of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, founder of the Pakistain People's Party, who was murdered at the instigation of General Ayub Khan. She was murdered in her turn by person or persons unknown while campaigning in late 2007. Suspects include, to note just a few, Baitullah Mehsud, General Pervez Musharraf, the ISI, al-Qaeda in Pakistain, and her husband, Asif Ali Zardari, who shows remarkably little curiosity about who done her in... International Airport when it was searched in a scheduled inspection.
Speaking to Dawn.com, PIA spokesperson Mashhood Tajwar confirmed that contraband was recovered from the flight.
Tajwar said four planes were scheduled to be searched today, out of which the flight bound for London was one. The search operation was led by the Anti-Narcotics Force and PIA's security team.
After a thorough search of the plane, the flight was allowed to resume after a delay of more than two hours, the spokesperson said.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[10 views]
Top|| File under: Narcos
[THEGUARDIAN] A serious rift has emerged within the decades-old insurgency against Indian rule in Kashmire, with a top myrmidon commander vowing to establish a Islamic system in the disputed Himalayan region and repudiating the goal of an independent nation.
Zakir Musa, the commander of Kashmire’s largest anti-India militia, has explicitly distanced himself from the 70-year-old independence movement in the valley as well as from elements who wish to merge with Pakistain, declaring his fight is "exclusively for Islam, so that Sharia [Islamic law] is established here".
The pronouncements, issued in audio statements posted on social media in the past weeks, signal a growing ideological divide between Kashmire’s old guard of separatist leaders, their traditional sponsor Pakistain, and a new, social-media savvy generation of rebels heavily influenced by radical Islam.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Fred ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[15 views]
Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent
Neo-Baathist group Jaysh al-Rijal al-Tariqa al-Naqshbandiya (JRTN) stated in October 2016 that it attacked ISIS militants in Mosul and called for more attacks. In December 2016, it denounced political participation in Iraq, which is especially relevant in the year prior to provincial and national elections, which will likely transpire in April 2018.
The 1920s Revolution Brigades, another neo-Baathist group, focused its January 2017 issue of its magazine on its concerns on the state of resistance movements in Iraq, particularly those aimed at reducing Iranian influence in both Iraq and the region. The group has been publishing its monthly magazine for nearly a decade now, despite ISIS’s dominance, underscoring that it remains an active group with distinct objectives from ISIS which it will pursue when ISIS recedes.
Several Baathist leaders are leading ISIS cells around Kirkuk Province and Hawija, according to an anonymous security source in Kirkuk cited in November 2016. Hawija became a Baathist hotspot after the fall of Saddam Hussein and again in 2013. If true, these Baathist leaders could keep these capabilities and networks even if ISIS is defeated, granting them the resources to develop an insurgency.
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
05/23/2017
00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
E-Mail||
[7 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic State
#3
The 'escaped' Saddam Baathists have been running the show (for whatever flavor of rebellion you choose) in Anbar and central-northern Iraq since 2003.
They have the money for, and experience in, brutality.
Posted by: Mullah Richard ||
05/23/2017 8:54
Comments ||
Top||
It should be noted that of the three Axis powers in WWII, only Japan has been completely open about its participation in WWII. Neither Germany nor Italy have been as forthcoming about their participation.
[Regnum.ru] The city of Madrid is facing a court petition to rename a street in honor of the Spanish Blue Division, which participated on the German side in WWII, according to a Russian language news accounts.
A year ago. the municipal government of Madrid embarked on a campaign to rename streets and alleys commemorating dictator Franco and his associates, according to the Russian language regnum.ru A group of relatives who lost people in Soviet Russia during WWII will petition the government to name at least one street in honor of the Blue Division.
Jose Luis Martin, identified as chairman of the group said that a number of monuments to the Italian Army which fought on the German side in WWII have been erected in the Apennines Mountain, so, "in Spain why should it be otherwise.
The Italian Army fought in Soviet Russian from June, 1941 to January, 1943. A total of 90,000 Italian soldiers were killed in Soviet Russia, for which a total of 17 monuments have been erected.
The Spanish Blue Division, otherwise designated as the 250th Infantry Divison, was among the largest units of its size anywhere in the war with more than 18,000 soldiers. The Blue Division fought in the Leningrad area until it was withdrawn in 1944.
Nearly every account of the Blue Division has been one of fulsome praise.
#3
Azul is Spanish for blue. They wore the blue shirts of the Falangists, hence the name.
They marched for a month straight to get to the front, where they discovered Soviet artillery. Huge numbers of them were killed the first day. The rest got to face an attack by Soviet infantry and tanks the next day.
#4
It was a way for Franco to get a lot of fanatics out of the country before they could destabilize his efforts, which were largely the restoration of the 'ancient regime' not the creed of national socialism.
You know my opinion of Franco... We ought to keep these Red Spaniards on the back burner... They're lost to democracy, and to that reactionary crew round Franco too... I believe you to the letter, Speer, that they were impressive people. I must say, in general, that during the civil war the idealism was not on Franco's side; it was to be found among the Reds ... one of these days we'll be able to make use of them... The whole thing will start all over again. But with us on the opposite side.
As quoted in Albert Speer's diary entry for 26 December 1950 recalling a conversation with Hitler in January 1943, published in Spandau: The Secret Diary (2000), p. 167
#5
It should be noted that of the three Axis powers in WWII, only Japan has been completely open about its participation in WWII.
I find that a curious remark--I haven't seen much ownership of such acts as the Rape of Nanking, Bataan Death March, Unit 731, forced conscription of "Comfort Women", etc., nor did Japan face trials near as extensive as the Nuremberg Trials. What am I missing?
Posted by: Dar ||
05/23/2017 13:47
Comments ||
Top||
#6
Missed the Tokyo trials?
On November 4, 1948, the trial ended with 25 of 28 Japanese defendants being found guilty. Of the three other defendants, two had died during the lengthy trial, and one was declared insane. On November 12, the war crimes tribunal passed death sentences on seven of the men, including General Hideki Tojo, who served as Japanese premier during the war, and other principals, such as Iwane Matsui, who organized the Rape of Nanking, and Heitaro Kimura, who brutalized Allied prisoners of war. Sixteen others were sentenced to life imprisonment, and two were sentenced to lesser terms in prison. On December 23, 1948, Tojo and the six others were executed in Tokyo.
Missed the Manila War Crimes Trial of which Gen. Yamashita was the highest prosecuted .
Yamashita was only one of thousands facing trial for their actions during World War II–and before the war for those who had participated in the rape of China. Japanese soldiers had been killing, raping, looting and torturing all across the East since the 1930s. In 1945, at long long last, the bill was coming due. Before the courts-martial and military commissions recessed for the last time, some 5,600 Japanese had been prosecuted in more than 2,200 trials. Of these men–and a few women–more than 4,400 were convicted, and about 1,000 were executed. Testifying to the Allies’ determination to deal fairly with the enemy, there had also been about the same number of acquittals.
Not included are those who committed suicide rather than deal with the process.
Besides Nanking there was the Sack of Manila. Which doesn't get much notice, because you know, you drop 'the bomb'!! /sarc off
#8
What's interesting is that Germany has come up with a 'consolidated' EU military force where certain old friends train and equip with the Wehrmacht Federal German Army. So far they've got the Czech Republic on board (would you believe from the Sudetenland), the Romanians (remember the Brandenburg Regiment) and Northern Dutch (ahem... Group Nord).
Some ideas just won't go away.
Posted by: ed in texas ||
05/23/2017 18:55
Comments ||
Top||
[DW] Egyptian authorities referred 48 suspected members of the "Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... " Lion of Islam group to military trial for involvement in three deadly church bombings, Egypt's chief prosecutor Nabil Sadeq said in a statement on Sunday.
At least 75 people have been killed in "Islamic State"-claimed attacks on Coptic churches in December and April, including two in Tanta and Alexandria on Palm Sunday. Sadeq said that 31 of the suspected holy warriors are in jug, but 17 remain on the lam.
According to the prosecutor, the suspects allegedly set up "Islamic State" cells in Cairo and the southern province of Qena. The suspected holy warriors allegedly received training in Syria and Libya.
In the statement, Sadeq also accused the suspects of participating in a separate attack on a checkpoint in Egypt's Western Desert, which left eight law enforcement agents dead.
Egypt's armed forces have struggled to quash an armed insurgency in northern Sinai since President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi led a military coup against the country's first democratically-elected leader, Mohammed Morsi of the Moslem Brüderbund, in 2013.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
The initiative would create 2.5 million jobs in the first year, according to the group, and take extra steps to ensure fair wages, workplace safety and racial and gender equality.
Actor Sir Roger Moore, best known for playing James Bond, has died aged 89, his family has announced. He played the famous spy in seven Bond films including Live and Let Die and the Spy Who Loved Me.
The motive? What could have possibly prompted the bastids to act or select this target? Might have been a tea at a neighborhood vicarage, but it wasn't. 
[NYT] In a significant advance in the study of mental ability, a team of European and American scientists announced on Monday that they had identified 52 genes linked to intelligence in nearly 80,000 people.
ِ
[IsraelTimes] Paleostinians are holding a general strike in the West Bank in solidarity with hunger striking prisoners in Israeli jails. The strike coincides with the arrival of US President 
[IsraelTimes] Border Police officers 
Raqqa (IraqiNews) Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), last night, managed to recapture several villages in the eastern and western countryside of Raqqa, Qasioun News Agency reported on Monday.
[DAWN] A SECTION of the legal fraternity in the country is once again demonstrating it has scant respect for the law that is its duty to uphold. On Saturday in Lahore, pandemonium broke out at a convention organised by the Supreme Court Bar Association and the Lahore High Court Bar Association to underscore their demand that Prime Minister 
[DAWN] Leaders of various political and religious parties and members of civil society here on Sunday unanimously called for giving exemplary punishment to the killers of Mashal Khan and demanded adequate security for his two sisters they could continue their education.
[News24] Johannesburg - A professional big game hunter from Tzaneen, Theunis Botha, 51, died on Friday afternoon during a hunt in Gwai, in Zimbabwe, when a member of his group fired at a storming elephant cow and the animal fell on him. 
[Hurriyet Daily News] Two 
[MINTPRESSNEWS] By changing its name to Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Syrian branch of al-Qaeda has managed to secure its removal from the U.S. and Canadian terror watchlists, allowing citizens of those countries to donate money and travel to fight with them.
[DAWN] 20 kilogrammes of heroin were recovered from a Pakistain International Airlines (PIA) flight at Islamabad Airport on May 22, DawnNews reported.
