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Today: 58 articles and 141 comments as of 6:08.
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Area: WoT Operations    Non-WoT    Opinion        Politix   
IS says it was behind Saint Petersburg supermarket bombing
Today's Headlines
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Page 1: WoT Operations
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Page 3: Non-WoT
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5 14:47 Cheretle Angeans6218 [17]
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Page 4: Opinion
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5 14:49 Frozen Al [12]
1 10:28 swksvolFF [8]
18 18:50 Seeking cure for ignorance [12]
1 00:36 newc [8]
Page 6: Politix
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Africa Subsaharan
Boko Haram used 135 children in 'perverse death missions' this year
[THEJOURNAL.IE] IN THE LAST year, 135 children have been used in so-called suicide kabooms by terrorist group Boko Haram
... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. The Nigerian version of al-Qaeda and the Taliban rolled together and flavored with a smigeon of distinctly Subsaharan ignorance and brutality...
in Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin.

Figures provided to TheJournal.ie by children’s charity Unicef highlight an increase in the last year in children being used by the group in this way. There were 112 of these attacks in Nigeria and 23 in Cameroon
...a long, narrow country that fills the space between Nigeria and Chad on the northeast, CAR to the southeast. Prior to incursions by Boko Haram nothing ever happened there...
Girls were more likely to be used in attacks, ‐ 93 of the children involved in so-called suicide attacks were girls.

In a report earlier this year, the charity said the rise in these attacks this year is deeply troubling for both the civilian victims and for the children being forced to carry out the bombings.

Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [13 views] Top|| File under: Boko Haram (ISIS)


Cameroun: Gov’t acquits Fotokol’s ex-mayor of complicity with Boko Haram
[JOURNALDUCAMEROUN] Moussa Ramat, ex-mayor of Fotokol in Cameroon
...a long, narrow country that fills the space between Nigeria and Chad on the northeast, CAR to the southeast. Prior to incursions by Boko Haram nothing ever happened there...
’s Far North,tossed in the calaboose
Drop the gat, Rocky, or you're a dead 'un!
in September 2014 for alleged complicity with Boko Haram
... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. The Nigerian version of al-Qaeda and the Taliban rolled together and flavored with a smigeon of distinctly Subsaharan ignorance and brutality...
was acquitted Thursday. AFP has confirmed.

Ramat going by the AFP report was accused of supplying weapons to the jihadist group and assisting in the sale of looted goods from Boko Haram fighters. His lawyer Eugene Balemaken told AFP the accusations "did not correspond to reality". "He was therefore properly acquitted following the debates."

Sources said the former mayor regularly intervened before his arrest in several negotiations that resulted in the release of Boko Haram hostages.

Ramat could be released very soon, said Balemaken, who called the trial of his client as "unfair" because of his help with negotiations.

After serving 29 months in jail, RFI correspondent Ahmed Abba was acquitted on December 22 after being suspected of collaborating with Boko Haram and not passing on information to the authorities. He was released the following day.
Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [10 views] Top|| File under: Boko Haram (ISIS)


Arabia
A year of historic change in Saudi Arabia, with more to come
[ARABNEWS] Soddy Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face...
in 2017 laid the groundwork for momentous change next year, defying its conservative reputation for slow, cautious reforms by announcing plans to let women drive, allow movie theaters to return and to issue tourist visas.

King Salman
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [14 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Saudi Arabia


Coalition says UN ‘biased’ in Houthis’ favor
[ARABNEWS] The Saudi-led coalition fighting Houthi
...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews ...
militias in Yemen
...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of. Except for a tiny handfull of Jews everthing there is very Islamic...
has denounced a UN statement on civilian casualties in the war-torn country as "biased" toward the rebels.

The coalition said in a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) that the UN needs to review the humanitarian work mechanism and the competence of its employees working in Yemen.

The fighting is futile and absurd, UN resident coordinator Jamie McGoldrick said.

He claimed that coalition Arclight airstrikes killed 109 civilians over the past 10 days, including 68 in one day in separate airstrikes.

The coalition said McGoldrick’s statement "creates a constant state of uncertainty about the information and data on which the UN relies and undermines its credibility."

Turki al-Maliki, the coalition front man, said the statement ignores the crimes being committed by the Houthis against the Yemeni people, namely the killings, kidnappings and arrests of hundreds of members of former President former President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh
... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, but he didn't invite Donna Summer to the inauguration and Blondie couldn't make it...
’s General People’s Congress Party, their children and women, as well as the targeting of civilians.

Meanwhile,
...back at the desert island, Bert was realizing to his horror that he'd had only one bottle for one message, and he'd forgotten to include a return address...
US Defense Secretary James Mattis blamed the Houthis for stockpiling weapons in residential areas, which he said was not a sign that they care about the safety of civilians.

Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [10 views] Top|| File under: Houthis


Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia
Russia’s president signs law toughening terrorist recruitment sentences
[PRESSTV] Russian President Vladimir Putin
...Second and fourth President and sixth of the Russian Federation and the first to remain sober. Putin is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law, which occasionally results in somebody dropping dead from polonium poisoning. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to Putin. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile or dead...
has officially approved a bill toughening punishment for the recruitment of bandidos Death Eaters amid fears of the return of defeated Takfiri
...an adherent of takfir wal hijra, an offshoot of Salafism that regards everybody who doesn't agree with them as apostates who must be killed...
turbans from Syria.

The approval came two days after a kaboom in a busy supermarket in Russia’s second-largest city, Saint Petersburg, which left 14 people maimed.

The law immediately raises the maximum sentence for the recruitment and financing of bandidos Death Eaters from 10 years to life.

Russia's State Duma, the lower house of parliament, passed the new law on December 14 and the upper chamber approved it on December 26.

Since September 2015, Moscow has been carrying out an aerial bombardment campaign against the positions of krazed killer turbans in Syria on an official request from the Damascus government.

Putin ordered Russian forces to begin withdrawing from Syria during a surprise visit to the war-ravaged country on December 11, as he declared victory over the ISIS Takfiri terrorist group there.

A day later, Russia’s FSB security service said former turbans in Syria were now a real threat after the defeat of ISIS, as many of them may be planning to return to Russia.

Putin declared that the Wednesday attack was "a terrorist act," warning armed criminals they could be "liquidated on the spot."

Russia announced on December 15 that it had dismantled a cell of ISIS in Saint Petersburg that was planning to carry out imminent terror attacks in the northern city.

Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [8 views] Top|| File under: Islamic State

#1  I say, I like the cut of the jib on these men!
Posted by: Canuckistan sniper || 12/30/2017 0:25 Comments || Top||


The Grand Turk
Turkey, Russia sign deal on supplying S-400 missile systems
[PRESSTV] The Sick Man of Europe Turkey
...just another cheapjack Moslem dictatorship, brought to you by the Moslem Brüderbund....
and Russia have signed an accord for Moscow to supply Ankara with S-400 surface-to-air missile defense systems, finalizing a deal that the two countries had been working on for more than a year.

Turkey’s English-language Hurriyet Daily News newspaper reported that the loan deal for four S-400 surface-to-air missile batteries was signed in the Ottoman Turkish capital Ankara on Friday.

Earlier on Friday, Ottoman Turkish President Sultan Recep Tayyip Erdogan the First
... Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him. It's a sin, a shame, and a felony to insult the president of Turkey...
said his country borrow in the Russian ruble in a loan deal under the accord.
Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under: Sublime Porte


Turkey frees another German ‘political prisoner,’ says Berlin
[ARABNEWS] The Sick Man of Europe Turkey
...just another cheapjack Moslem dictatorship, brought to you by the Moslem Brüderbund....
has released another German citizen from jail, Berlin said on Friday amid a gradual thaw in bilateral ties, stressing however that seven more were still being held for "political reasons."

Without identifying the person, the German Foreign Ministry said it could "confirm the unconditional release of a German citizen who had been enjugged
Drop the rosco, Muggsy, or you're one with the ages!
for political reasons in Turkey."

Turkey was however still holding seven German citizens "for political reasons" out of a total of 50 Germans behind bars in the country.
Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [6 views] Top|| File under: Sublime Porte


Home Front: WoT
‘We told the Israelis clearly, we’re staying in Syria,’ US official says
More on this story from yesterday.
[IsraelTimes] Administration source tells Channel 10 Israel's most pressing concern in recent White House talks on Iran was Tehran's entrenchment in the Arab country

Israel’s most pressing concern during a recent meeting in Washington on future cooperation on the Iranian threat was the Islamic republic’s entrenchment in Syria and US plans to counter Tehran’s ambitions, Channel 10 news reported Friday.

A senior administration official told Channel 10 that Israeli national security advisers Meir Ben-Shabbat wanted to know during the December 12 meeting in the White House whether the US was preparing to withdraw its forces from Syria. The Israelis, he said, were concerned as to whether the US was planning to remain involved militarily in Syria, as well as in diplomacy to end the civil war there.

"We answered the Israelis clearly," the unnamed US official told Channel 10. "We are staying in Syria, both with our troops and with regards to our involvement in any future diplomatic deal in the country."

Channel 10 further reported that this approach was later ratified by 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...
in internal White House discussions.

Channel 10 on Thursday first reported that Israel and the US had secretly signed a far-reaching joint memorandum of understanding providing for full cooperation to deal with Iran’s nuclear drive, its missile programs and its other threatening activities.
Posted by: trailing wife || 12/30/2017 01:03 || Comments || Link || [6 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Iran

#1  If you can find any, send some Latakia tobacco.
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 12/30/2017 3:24 Comments || Top||


One-Legged American ISIS Jihadist Jabs 'Fake Media' and 'Dog of Rome' Trump
More on this story from yesterday.
[PJMEDIA] An American-accented ISIS fighter who apparently lost a leg fighting with the terror group was featured in a new Islamic State video calling on Western supporters, including the disabled, to conduct knife or gun attacks.

The bearded jihadist is referred to by nom de guerre Abu Salih Al-Amriki, or the American, and is shown using crutches and attaching a prosthetic leg. In "Inside the Khilafah" video released by ISIS' official al-Hayat Media Center in English and Arabic, Abu Salih also calls for would-be terrorists to take advantage of gun availability in the United States.
Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [7 views] Top|| File under: Islamic State

#1  Judging by the guy's looks, I say he hasn't been doing much fighting recently.
Posted by: gorb || 12/30/2017 1:19 Comments || Top||

#2  Dog of Rome really - that's a new one.
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 12/30/2017 1:48 Comments || Top||

#3  The bearded jihadist is referred to by nom de guerre Abu Salih Al-Amriki, or the American, and is shown using crutches and attaching a prosthetic leg.

Isn't 'bearded jihadist' a bit redundant?
Posted by: jpal || 12/30/2017 9:50 Comments || Top||

#4  Abu Salih "peg leg" Al-Amriki?
Posted by: H. Jineng3062 || 12/30/2017 10:01 Comments || Top||

#5  Thank you for calling USA prime airstrike, my name is Peggy.
Yes.
Yes.
Posted by: swksvolFF || 12/30/2017 10:42 Comments || Top||


India-Pakistan
Palestinian envoy to Pakistan shares stage with Mumbai attacks mastermind
India harshly protested to the Palestinian Authority Friday, after the Palestinian ambassador to Pakistan shared a stage in a rally held in the Pakistani city of Rawalpindi with leader of the Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist organization and mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks Hafiz Muhammad Saeed.
It's their way of thanking you for your UN vote on Jerusalem
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 12/30/2017 12:47 || Comments || Link || [7 views] Top|| File under: Palestinian Authority


Army warns US against ‘unilateral action’ in Pakistan
[DAWN] The military on Thursday warned the US against ’unilateral action’, saying that despite its desire for cooperation on Afghanistan, there could be no compromise on national respect and illusory sovereignty.

"The armed forces are working with friends and want to continue doing so, but there can be no compromise on our national honour. We do not want a conflict with our friends, but will ensure the security of Pakistain," Military spokes­person Maj Gen Asif Gha­foor told a media briefing, recalling that the country was being threatened with "unilateral action" by the US.

The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) chief spoke in both English and Urdu, in what appeared to be an effort to convey the institutional sentiment to an international audience.
Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [10 views] Top|| File under: Haqqani Network

#1  Quit hitting the terrorist and just take out the ISI.
Posted by: 3dc || 12/30/2017 0:19 Comments || Top||

#2  but there can be no compromise on our national honour.

Would it be rude to bring up that whole bin Laden thing, what with how the end game played out and all?
Posted by: SteveS || 12/30/2017 0:47 Comments || Top||

#3  Translation: If you have to ask 'how much' you cannot afford it.
Posted by: Besoeker || 12/30/2017 1:07 Comments || Top||

#4  Warning Pakistan on allowing cross border terrors in more places we care to discuss in this public forum.
Posted by: newc || 12/30/2017 3:12 Comments || Top||


Sharifs’ dash to Saudi Arabia fuels suspicions
[DAWN] Soddy Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face...
is likely to become the hub of Pak politics as ousted 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, then by the courts...
is set to leave for the kingdom on Saturday (today) while his brother Shahbaz Sharif
...Pak dynastic politician, brother of PM Nawaz Sharif, chief minister of Punjab...
and Railways Minister Khawaja Saad Rafique are already there.

Although the Pakistain Moslem League-Nawaz is reluctant to officially state anything about the party chief’s departure, a seat has been booked in Nawaz Sharif’s name for a Jeddah-bound flight for Saturday.

A public meeting he was to address in Sargodha on Sunday (Dec 31) has been rescheduled for Jan 6 because of his unavailability.

The Punjab
1.) Little Orphan Annie's bodyguard
2.) A province of Pakistain ruled by one of the Sharif brothers
3.) A province of India. It is majority (60 percent) Sikh and Hindoo (37 percent), which means it has relatively few Moslem riots....

chief minister is already in Saudi Arabia on an "official" visit. The Saudi government had sent a special plane for his travel to the kingdom on Wednesday. He is believed to have prepared the ground for the visit of his elder brother.

Nawaz Sharif will meet the top Saudi leadership, including King Salman
...either the largest species of Pacific salmon or the current Sheikh of the Burnin' Sands, King of the Arabians, Sheikh of the Burning Sands, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and Lord of Most of the Arabians....
and Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman, and "discuss with them various aspects of friendly relationship between Pakistain and Saudi Arabia", a family friend said, but did not elaborate further.
Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [9 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan

#1  Sharif, he don't like it. F*ck the casbah, f*ck the casbah...

With apologies to The Clash.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 12/30/2017 16:20 Comments || Top||


Imran levels fresh allegations against Sharifs after 'uncovering new evidence'
[DAWN] 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....
Chairman Imran Khan
... aka Taliban Khan, who is the lightweight's lightweight...
on Friday said that fresh documents that have been uncovered show that the Sharif family has 11 companies in Dubai, while also levelling more allegations against ousted 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, then by the courts...
and his family.

"These new documents we have uncovered show that this family [the Sharifs] have 11 companies in Dubai and out of those, their company HDS Securities Pvt Ltd owns 52 villas in Dubai," Khan said while addressing a presser in Islamabad.

"Imagine how many villas the other companies must own," he said, adding that another "discovery" made by his people says that the companies in Dubai have money pouring into them from Switzerland
...home of the Helvetians, famous for cheese, watches, yodeling, and William Tell...
, The Sick Man of Europe Turkey
...just another cheapjack Moslem dictatorship, brought to you by the Moslem Brüderbund....
, Oman and the United Kingdom.

"From Switzerland, there is an inflow of 60 million dirhams, and another 11 million dirhams. There's more money flowing in from other parts of the world which shows that they also have businesses in those parts of the world," Khan said while reading figures from a piece of paper.

Moving on to Ishaq Dar, he said that the former finance minister has only been sent on leave and not sacked because he is involved in laundering money along with Nawaz Sharif and his family.

Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [6 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan


International-UN-NGOs
Israel officially announces withdrawal from UNESCO
[PRESSTV] The head of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has confirmed receiving Israel's official letter announcing the regime's withdrawal from the UN cultural body.

In a Friday statement, Audrey Azoulay expressed deep regret over Israel's decision, saying the withdrawal is set to take effect on December 31, 2018.

"It is inside UNESCO and not outside it" that differences can be resolved, he said.

On October 12, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed his foreign ministry to prepare Israel’s withdrawal from UNESCO, accusing the UN body of "anti-Israel bias."

In 2017, UNESCO adopted two Arab-sponsored resolutions against Israel, with one referring to Israel as "the occupying power" in Jerusalem al-Quds and the other declaring the Old City of al-Khalil (Hebron) as a Paleostinian World Heritage site.
Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [8 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Drop dead aunt Thomina.
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 12/30/2017 3:25 Comments || Top||


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
US choppers evacuate Daesh commanders from Syria’s Dayr al-Zawr: Report
[PRESSTV] US helicopters have reportedly evacuated commanders of the ISIS Takfiri
...an adherent of takfir wal hijra, an offshoot of Salafism that regards everybody who doesn't agree with them as apostates who must be killed...
terrorist group from Syria’s eastern province of Dayr al-Zawr to the neighboring province of Hasakah.

Syria's official news agency, SANA, citing information received from local residents, reported on Friday that the American helicopters had evacuated ISIS commanders from several districts of Dayr al-Zawr province on Wednesday, adding that this was the second time the US military evacuated ISIS terrorists.

Earlier this week, the Syrian government sent a message to the United Nations
...an idea whose time has gone...
, accusing the US-led coalition of reaching deals with ISIS and coordinating its actions with the terror group’s commanders.

The US-led coalition of 68 countries claims to have been conducting Arclight airstrikes against what are said to be ISIS targets inside Syria since September 2014 without any authorization from the Damascus government or a UN mandate. Such air raids began in Iraq in August of the same year.

The military alliance has repeatedly been accused of targeting and killing civilians. It has also been largely incapable of fulfilling its declared aim of destroying ISIS, which has already lost all of its urban strongholds in Syria and is just in control of some small pockets of land in the Middle Eastern country.

Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [13 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Iran


Iran’s Asia oil exports skid to lowest since April 2016
[PRESSTV] The latest official figures show that imports of Iranian crude oil by major buyers in Asia tumbled 29 percent in November from the same month a year ago to the lowest volumes since April 2016.

In total, China, India, Japan and South Korea imported 1.36 million barrels per day (bpd) last month from Iran, Rooters reported quoting government and ship-tracking data.

The drop came after imports hit highs earlier this year and last when Tehran ramped up exports after the lifting of sanctions that had targeted its disputed nuclear program.

The slowdown had been expected, as oil loadings bound for Asia fell below 1.5 million bpd in October, Rooters quoted a person with knowledge of Iran's tanker schedules.

Tehran is pushing to retain its prized Asian customers, hoping price reductions will boost the appeal of its crude compared with other Middle Eastern grades.

China, the biggest buyer, purchased 8.8 percent less oil from Iran year-on-year.

Meanwhile,
...back at the Council of Boskone, Helmuth had turned a paler shade of blue. Star-A-Star had struck again...
India's refiners cut Iranian oil imports by more than half in November, Rooters added, squeezing them to a 21-month low.

Imports to Japan were down 19 percent from a year earlier to 193,141 barrels per day, the report added.

More than 60% of Iran’s crude oil is shipped to Asian countries and about 40% to Europe. The country continues to retain its major Asian oil customers by offering spot cargoes as it tries hard to regain lost market share since sanctions were lifted last year.

Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [11 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Iran

#1  lower exports, but at least the price is down too

*snicker*
Posted by: Frank G || 12/30/2017 7:01 Comments || Top||

#2  Watch them long enough and you'll probably find business with the Norks has been brisk.
Posted by: gorb || 12/30/2017 16:23 Comments || Top||


Syria: Hundreds left behind in evacuations
[ARABNEWS] More than 400 patients on a UN list waiting for evacuations from a siege in Syria were left behind on Friday as the Red Thingy said it had finished transferring just 29 people and their families to Damascus for medical care.

It took the International Committee of the Red Thingy and the Syrian Arab Red Islamic Thingy three days to evacuate the patients and their family members from the Eastern Ghouta suburbs of Damascus to hospitals just minutes away, underscoring the degree to which authorities have obstructed basic relief work in the war-torn country.

The UN submitted a list of names to the government six months ago of patients requiring evacuation from the regime’s siege of the suburbs of its own capital because they were suffering from war wounds, kidney failure, and malnutrition.

In November, UN humanitarian adviser Jan Egeland said the list had reached 494 names, and 12 patients had died waiting for care. The UN’s children’s agency said more than 100 children require evacuation.
Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [13 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Syria


Lebanese foreign minister denounced over Israel comments
[ARABNEWS] Lebanese politicians on Thursday criticized Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil over a television interview in which he said that Leb did not have an ideological problem with Israel and was not against it having security.

The comments, made to the al-Mayadin television channel during a lengthy interview on Tuesday, have just started attracting attention.

A former government minister called on Bassil to resign and a member of Parliament also criticized him.

Bassil’s office later said al-Mayadin had distorted his comments through its editing of the interview, without explaining how.

"We are not against Israel living in security," he was shown saying in a clip that was circulated widely in Leb on social media.

Social media sites showed a section of the interview with Bassil saying: "We do not reject the existence of Israel and its right to have security."

The declaration provoked reactions from politicians and media specialists, prompting a response from Bassil’s press office claiming that "what has been circulating is a partial section."

In the video, the news hound said to the foreign minister: "I’ll ask you a question, and I hope I do not get a diplomatic answer, maybe information if possible; do you think that normalization with Israel has become a reality, the normalization between some Arab countries and Israel?"

Bassil replied: "I want to tell you something. It is not an ideological issue for us. We do not reject the existence of Israel and its right to security. We say we want all peoples to live in security and that they recognize each other. The issue for us is not a blind case. We as people accept the others, and we have a disagreement with them, but what if the others do not accept you?"

Bassil’s press office said: "The media and social media have been circulating a partial section of an interview ... It is clear that the aim of the section, which was taken out of context, is to misrepresent the position of Bassil and distort it, which is a known position regarding Israel as a hostile entity which practices state terrorism
... any action taken by a non-Moslem state that constrains the violent impulses of Moslems or their allies ...
. It is also known who stands behind this campaign and who follows it to make it planned and programmed to attack the position of Bassil in the Arab League
...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing...
and the issue of Jerusalem."
Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [12 views] Top|| File under:


Price protests turn political in Iran as rallies spread
[REUTERS] Demonstrators hollered poorly rhymed slogans against the government in several cities across Iran on Friday, Iranian news agencies and social media reports said, as price protests turned into the largest wave of demonstrations since nationwide pro-reform unrest in 2009.

Police dispersed anti-government demonstrators in the western city of Kermanshah as protests spread to Tehran and several other cities a day after rallies in the northeast, the semi-official news agency Fars said.

The outbreak of unrest reflects growing discontent over rising prices and alleged corruption, as well as concern about the Islamic Theocratic Republic’s costly involvement in regional conflicts such as those in Syria and Iraq.

An official said a few protesters had been tossed in the clink
Drop the rosco, Muggsy, or you're one with the ages!
in Tehran, and footage posted on social media showed a heavy police presence in the capital and some other cities.

Iranian protesters urge their government: Let go of Palestine

[Ynet] Anti-government protests continue for second day, spreading from the northeast to the capital Tehran; protesters bemoan Iran's costly involvement in regional conflicts - providing financial aid to Assad, Hezbollah, Hamas, a contraction of the Arabic words for "frothing at the mouth",, Houthi
...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews ...
rebels - while at home the country suffers from an economic crisis.
Posted by: Fred || 12/30/2017 00:00 || Comments || Link || [15 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Iran

#1  It's not only prices.
It's much much more.
Posted by: newc || 12/30/2017 0:42 Comments || Top||

#2  Price protests? Seems like the clergy hasn't really been using the money 0bumhole gifted them very wisely.
Posted by: gorb || 12/30/2017 1:20 Comments || Top||

#3  Do you have any idea what these people can do when they are for Liberty?
I saw it a few times in passing as they took care of some Family of mine.

Persia is such a great asset, I Am working on futures there.

If THEY can rock, then they deserve a part of it.
It's an Ancient Promise.

It would be a pleasure to present why these People are so special to me, but if you get rid of the Mullahs, they shall show you themselves!
Posted by: newc || 12/30/2017 3:18 Comments || Top||

#4  Ask Sistani what I asked him a few years ago. The Counsel regarding "Supreme Leader" and then bring up the fact that the Shiah is using an antagonist state to dominate while the Shiah are worse off everywhere because of it.

What happened with Guardians writing Supreme Leader out of the Constitution?

What happened to everything?
Posted by: newc || 12/30/2017 3:40 Comments || Top||

#5  I wonder if the policies of President Trump have had an influence on these protests.
Posted by: Bertie Jones3369 || 12/30/2017 13:37 Comments || Top||

#6  Where's ValJar when you need her?
Posted by: Abu Uluque || 12/30/2017 15:27 Comments || Top||

#7  Hopefully in jail.
Posted by: gorb || 12/30/2017 16:23 Comments || Top||

#8  I'm with ya newc.

Couple days back something came across me which was very subtle and very specific, which led to our campfire talk wondering how quickly Iran's expeditionary forces could be recalled. Mood was turning from tense to potentially sporty. Deeper than 'high prices' or 'where's our cut of the Obama money'. Some of these issues may have been the last straw, looks like it has become something larger.

WZ has been posting video, but now states the internet has been shut off. Ace had a deal that highlighted 2000 Team Gov Good supporters showed for a rally. That is not very many at all - could just be the hard core, could be every other swinging baton is deployed, could be all the support which could gather.

Internet was kept on a day longer than I would have guessed. I'm thinking Team Gov Good was investigating the scope and stronghold locations.
Posted by: swksvolFF || 12/30/2017 20:31 Comments || Top||

#9  Internet cut off can work both ways, and they are still getting through swksvolFF.

I Pray they pull it off. It feels different this time. Much different.
Posted by: newc || 12/30/2017 23:37 Comments || Top||

#10  yessir
Posted by: swksvolFF || 12/30/2017 23:50 Comments || Top||



Who's in the News
24[untagged]
6Govt of Iran
5Islamic State
3Boko Haram (ISIS)
3Govt of Pakistan
2Hamas
2Haqqani Network
2Houthis
2Sublime Porte
1Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis (IS)
1Palestinian Authority
1Taliban
1al-Shabaab (AQ)
1Moslem Colonists
1Muslim Brotherhood
1Commies
1Govt of Saudi Arabia
1Govt of Syria

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Two weeks of WOT
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Fri 2017-12-29
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Thu 2017-12-28
  Islamic State claims attack on Shiite center in Kabul, 41 dead
Wed 2017-12-27
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Tue 2017-12-26
  Six Islamic State, involved in killing policeman, killed in Kirkuk
Mon 2017-12-25
  ISIS military commission chief killed in US drone strike in Afghanistan
Sun 2017-12-24
  Taliban’s IED expert famous as Osama killed in NDS operation
Sat 2017-12-23
  Terror Attack in Pennsylvania's State Capital?
Fri 2017-12-22
  US drone strike kills Qaeda propaganda chief in Yemen
Thu 2017-12-21
  ISIS shadow judge among 5 killed in Afghan forces operations
Wed 2017-12-20
  US drone targets compound in Kurram
Tue 2017-12-19
  Ballistic missile intercepted over Saudi Arabia capital Riyadh just seconds before it slammed into royal palace
Mon 2017-12-18
  Senior Al-Shabaab Militants Killed In Somalia Drone Strike
Sun 2017-12-17
  Suicide bombers attack Pakistan church, killing at least 9, officials say
Sat 2017-12-16
  Judge Lori Walkley hands down death penalty to convicted Islamic murderer


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