[HodhodYemen ...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... News] The American aggression launched a series of hostile Arclight airstrike ...KABOOM!... s targeting the capital, Sanaa, and the provinces of Saada, Hodeidah, Jawf, and Amran.
In the capital, Sana’a, security sources reported that the American aggression targeted Sanaa International Airport with two airstrikes.
Meanwhile,
...back at the wreckage, Captain Poindexter wished he had thought to pack sun block... another American airstrike hit the al-Qiyadah area in al-Tahrir District, in the heart of the capital, causing damage to citizens’ homes, commercial shops.
The American aggression continues its airstrikes across Yemen, targeting various provinces and causing casualties, extensive damage to infrastructure.
In Sana’a province, security sources reported that the American aggression launched four airstrikes on the Jarban area in Sanhan District.
Additionally, a civilian was injured after an American airstrike targeted the Sarf area in Bani Hashish District.
In Saada, the al-Asaid area in Kitaf District was hit by five American airstrikes, while two additional strikes targeted al-Salem District in the same province.
In Hodeida, security sources confirmed that three American airstrikes hit al-Luhayyah District.
In al-Jawf, the al-Humaydah District was targeted by three airstrikes.
Meanwhile,
...back at the wreckage, Captain Poindexter wished he had thought to pack sun block... in Amran, sources reported that the al-Aswad Mountain in Harf Sufyan District was hit by eight airstrikes.
Additionally, the American aggression launched five airstrikes on the telecommunications network in al-Aswad Mountain, causing complete disruption of services.
Furthermore, 19 additional airstrikes targeted multiple areas, including Lubda, al-Amshiya, Hubasha, al-Aadi, al-Abla, and al-Aswad Mountain, resulting in widespread destruction.
The extent of the damage and possible casualties wasn’t immediately clear, though the number of strikes appeared particularly intense compared to other days in the campaign that began on March 15.
Other areas hit included mountainous terrain north of Sanaa in Amran, where military camps and other installations are believed to be. The Houthis’ al-Masirah satellite news network described communication networks going down after the attacks, which included at least 19 strikes there alone.
The US military’s Central Command, which now has authority from the White House to strike offensively in Yemen without pre-approval, did not immediately acknowledge conducting any strikes. The command, which under Biden offered details on individual strikes, has not provided that information in this campaign.
[IsraelTimes] Lebanon and Syria have signed an agreement on border demarcation and boosting coordination between the two countries regarding security along their tense frontier, the Saudi Press Agency reports.
The deal signed by the Lebanese and Syrian defense ministers in Saudi Arabia late in the day yesterday came after clashes in border areas earlier this month left several people dead and dozens wounded on both sides.
The plan for border demarcation also comes after the ouster in early December of the 54-year Assad family rule in Syria, leading to tensions along the frontier where Lebanon’s Hezbollah terror group was active on both sides of the border during Syria’s 14-year civil war.
Lebanese Defense Minister Michel Menassa was scheduled to visit the Syrian capital, Damascus, on Wednesday, but the visit was canceled.
Menassa and his Syrian counterpart, Murhaf Abu Qasra, later flew to Jiddah in Saudi Arabia yesterday, where they held talks attended by Saudi Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman and signed the deal.
The Saudi agency says the Lebanese and Syrian ministers signed an agreement in which both sides agreed on the “strategic importance of demarcating their border,” and the formation of legal and specialized committees in different fields. It adds that both countries agreed to “activate coordination mechanisms” to deal with any security challenges along the border.
It says Saudi Arabia backs security and stability in both countries, which boosts regional security.
[IsraelTimes] Istanbul’s jailed mayor Ekrem Imamoglu says in a social media post that his lawyer has been detained and demands his immediate release.
“My lawyer Mehmet Pehlivan was detained on fictitious grounds,” Imamoglu says in a post on X published via his legal team. “As if the coup against democracy was not enough, they cannot tolerate the victims defending themselves,” he writes, adding: “Release my lawyer immediately.”
[IsraelTimes] Nobel-winning author says events represent ‘Erdogan’s strong-fisted, autocratic rule at a level we have not seen before’
Two journalists were detained in dawn raids in Istanbul early Friday as part of a crackdown on media workers covering The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire... ’s largest protests in more than a decade, their outlets reported.
Elif Bayburt, who works for the Etkin News Agency, and Nisa Suda Demirel, from the Evrensel news website, were the latest to be arrested in early morning sweeps that have targeted political activists and trade unionists as well as journalists.
"Our news hound, Nisa Sude Demirel, was detained by the police who came to her house at around 6 a.m. this morning," Evrensel said in a statement. "Demirel, who was following the (Istanbul City Hall) protests and the boycotts at the universities, was taken to the Istanbul Police Department’s Counter-Terrorism Branch office."
The demonstrations began last week following the arrest of Istanbul’s opposition Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, a key rival to President His Enormity, 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. In Anatolia did Recep Bey a stately Presidential Palace decree, that has 1100 rooms. That's 968 more than in the White House, 400 more than in Versailles, and 325 more than Buckingham Palace, so you know who's really more important... . Imamoglu was tossed in the slammer Drop the heater, Studs, or you're hist'try! pending trial on corruption charges that many see as politically motivated. The government insists the judiciary is independent and free of political interference.
Reporters Without Borders condemned the journalists’ arrests. "There is no end to the detentions of journalists," its Turkey representative Erol Onderoglu said.
The Ottoman Turkish Journalists’ Union called for the news media to be allowed to do their work and for an "end to these unlawful detentions."
Earlier this week, 11 journalists were detained in morning raids. Although initially tossed in the slammer Drop the heater, Studs, or you're hist'try! pending trial, they were freed Thursday but still face charges of "taking part in illegal rallies and marches."
Turkey’s broadcasting authority issued a 10-day airwave ban on Sozcu TV on Thursday, as well as fines and program suspensions to other opposition channels. A news hound from the UK’s BBC was also deported Thursday.
The editor-in-chief of Swedish newspaper Dagens ETC said Friday that its news hound had gone missing. Joakim Medin has not been heard from since he wrote that he was being taken for questioning after arriving in Istanbul on Thursday to cover the protests, Andreas Gustavsson wrote on the paper’s website.
’CHILDREN BEING TREATED LIKE TERRORISTS’
Courthouses across Turkey are dealing with a spike in cases as a result of the protests. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said Thursday that nearly 1,900 people had been arrested since March 19.
Anxious families have been gathering outside court buildings to await the fate of their loved ones, whom police can hold for four days.
"The youth we call Generation Z are more likely to participate in these protests. They sense that something is wrong," Savas Ozbek, whose daughter was detained Sunday, told ANKA News Agency outside Ankara Courthouse late Thursday.
Zeynep Ulger, who was waiting for news of her friend, said they were protesting for a "free, democratic country," adding: "The only thing we have achieved in the face of this is being beaten by the police on the streets and being detained."
Istanbul-based lawyer Arif Anil Ozturk, who represents many detained protesters, gave his insight into court proceedings.
"It is an unlawful process from beginning to end," he told the Cumhuriyet newspaper. "There is no evidence, no footage. Children... are being treated like terrorists."
Nightly Istanbul rallies organized by Imamoglu’s Republican People’s Party, or CHP, ended Tuesday. In other cities, and in Istanbul since the end of the CHP gatherings, largely peaceful protests have been more organic.
Police, however, have used tear gas, water cannon and plastic pellets to suppress demonstrations that have been banned in Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir.
LAWYERS DETAINED
At the Middle East Technical University campus on the outskirts of the capital Ankara, nine students were detained early Friday, opposition politicians who visited the site said.
"Young people have set up tents inside (the campus). Officious administrators have evaluated this situation as a ’threat’ and invited the police to the university to conduct an operation," CHP Provincial Chairperson Umit Erkol said on social media.
Aylin Yaman, a CHP member of parliament, said students were sitting on the grass and singing when police stormed the area at 2 a.m. "We object to the police entering here as if it were a dawn operation and creating an atmosphere of fear," she said.
The Istanbul Bar Association announced that three lawyers had been among some 100 people arrested at a Thursday demonstration in the city’s Sisli district. Lawyers also said they had been kept waiting for hours outside police headquarters to gain access to detainees.
Following the overnight arrest of Imamoglu’s lawyer Mehmet Pehlivan, it was revealed Friday that he is accused of money laundering. Imamoglu, in a social media post, said Pehlivan had been "detained on fictitious grounds." He was later released on condition of judicial control.
RUBIO: "WE ARE CONCERNED"
Turkey’s Nobel-winning author Orhan Pamuk, writing in several European newspapers, said events over the past 10 days represented "Erdogan’s strong-fisted, autocratic rule (at) a level we have not seen before."
Following a meeting with Turkey’s foreign minister earlier in the week, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio ...The diminutive 13-year-old Republican U.S. Senator from Florida, Secretary of State in the second Trump administration... described events in Turkey as "disturbing." Speaking on a return flight from Suriname late Thursday, he said: "We are concerned. We don’t like to see the direction that’s going... Anytime you have instability on the ground you don’t like to see it."
A group of European politicians arrived in Istanbul to show support for Imamoglu and meet opposition figures. Led by former Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven, the delegation from the Party of European Socialists also included European Parliament Vice President Katarina Barley.
"This is not just about one person. This is about democracy, and we are here to stand up for democratic values," Lofven said. "These politically motivated accusations are a threat to democracy in Turkey."
In a TV interview Friday, the co-leader of the pro-Kurdish DEM Party appeared to offer qualified support for the protests. "We are not the CHP’s activist group. We support them, but we will not take to the streets for this," Tuncer Bakirhan said.
Commentators have suggested that the recent peace initiative offered to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, is a bid by Erdogan to lure the DEM Party, which is the third-largest in parliament, into supporting an extension of his presidency beyond his current term.
Imamoglu faces charges stemming from two investigations into the opposition-controlled Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality — a corruption case and one alleging support for terrorism.
The mayor has been confirmed as the CHP’s presidential candidate in an election currently scheduled for 2028 but which is likely to take place earlier. He has performed well in recent polls against Erdogan, and his election as mayor of Turkey’s largest city in 2019 was a major blow to the president.
#5
I simply adore you all. I’m trying to use up the flour and bread before Passover, which starts Tuesday evening, so extra pumpkin bread muffins all around!
[IsraelTimes] Israeli forces arrested overnight a Palestinian in Tulkarem who opened fire on an IDF vehicle in November 2023 and then fled the scene, the Israel Police say in a joint statement with the IDF and Shin Bet
According to the statement, the 35-year-old suspect fired on the vehicle over a year ago “with the intention of harming soldiers and police officers and to commit suicide immediately afterwards,” but instead fled the scene after injuring a soldier.
The suspect has spent the last year hiding from Israeli troops, the joint statement says, but was located in Tulkarem and detained, whereupon he confessed to carrying out the attack.
Following the investigation, an indictment has been filed against the suspect for possessing and carrying a weapon and intent to murder, police add.
[IsraelTimes] The IDF and police say they foiled an attempt to smuggle nine assault rifles into Israel from Egypt last night, using a drone.
The drone had been identified crossing the border into Israel before it was downed by troops and police officers deployed to the area.
The drone and guns were handed over to the police for further investigation.
Earlier in the day yesterday, IDF troops caught another drone ferrying 10 kilograms of drugs.
In recent months, there have been frequent attempts to bring weapons and drugs over the Egyptian border using drones. There have also been attempts to smuggle similar contraband from Israel into Gaza using drones.
[IsraelTimes] At least 41 dead in past day, according to Hamas health ministry; after World Central Kitchen says volunteer killed in airstrike, military vows to probe incident
The IDF said it carried out 25 strikes across Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... on Friday, targeting operatives and infrastructure of Hamas ..not a terrorist organization, even though it kidnaps people, holds hostages, and tries to negotiate by executing them,... and other terror groups, as United Nations ...an organization conceived in the belief that we're just one big happy world, with the sort of results you'd expect from such nonsense... agencies accused Israel of atrocities and forced displacement in the Strip.
The Strip’s Hamas-run health ministry said at least 41 people had been killed over the past 24 hours. It alleged Israel had killed 896 Paleostinians since resuming hostilities on March 18, and over 50,000 since the war was triggered by the Hamas onslaught of October 7, 2023.
The figures cannot be independently confirmed and don’t distinguish between civilians and combatants. Israel says it seeks to avoid targeting civilians and accuses Hamas of embedding itself among them.
The Paleostinian Authority’s official news agency WAFA reported several deaths on Friday in Arclight airstrike ...KABOOM!... s on homes in Gaza City, Rafah and Khan Younis, as well as a tent sheltering displaced people in the Jabalia camp and a vehicle west of Khan Younis. WAFA also reported gunfire by Israeli military vehicles in Jabalia and Beit Lahiya, artillery fire in Gaza City and demolition of buildings in Rafah by Israeli forces.
Meanwhile,
...back at the abandoned silver mine, there was another explosion... amid aid agencies’ warnings of a food shortage in Gaza, the World Central Kitchen charity said Israel had struck one of its food distribution sites in Gaza on Thursday, killing a local volunteer identified as Jalal and wounding six others. The IDF said it was probing the incident and in touch with WCK.
In a statement Friday, WCK said it would continue to "operate our field kitchens where possible, based on daily assessments." The statement didn’t give the precise location of the strike.
Since the resumption of hostilities in Gaza, the IDF has issued what the UN described as 10 mandatory evacuation orders, covering large areas across Gaza. Most recently, the IDF on Wednesday called on residents to evacuate the Gaza City area from which rockets were launched at southern Israel that evening.
Israel’s mission to the UN in Geneva did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
"Israel is not taking any measures to provide accommodation for the evacuated population, nor ensure that these evacuations are conducted in satisfactory conditions of hygiene, health, safety and nutrition," said al-Kheetan.
Over half of northern Gaza appears to be under such orders, he said, while those who have been newly displaced from the south of the enclave in the Rafah area and forced to go to coastal Al Mawasi were not guaranteed safety there.
"We are deeply concerned about the shrinking space for civilians in Gaza who are being forcibly displaced by the Israeli army from large swaths of territory," the statement added.
#2
To ask the question is to answer it, Beans. :-( And don’t forget that one living and two dead Thai farmworkers, about whom the UN most certainly can’t be bothered.
Choices have consequences. Good luck to the new president — may she figure out how to thread the needle between the law and self-righteous hate.
[IsraelTimes] University gives no reason for Katrina Armstrong’s decision to step aside and return to her previous post, says board of trustees co-chair Claire Shipman to take over for now
Columbia University’s interim president, Katrina Armstrong, has stepped down, the college said, at a time when the New York-based institution is facing intense pressure from both the government and rights advocates over how it responds to last year’s pro-Paleostinian protests against Israel.
Armstrong is returning to lead the university’s Irving Medical Center, Columbia University said in a statement on Friday. It did not give a reason for the change.
"Board of Trustees Co-Chair Claire Shipman has been appointed Acting President, effective immediately, and will serve until the Board completes its presidential search," it said.
The administration of US President Donald Trump ...dictatorial for repealing some (but not all) of the diktats of his predecessor, misogynistic because he likes pretty girls, homophobic because he doesn't think gender bending should be mandatory, truly a man for all seasons... canceled $400 million in federal funding for Columbia, saying the university did not do enough to combat antisemitism and student safety amid last year’s campus protests against Israel over the war with Hamas ..not a terrorist organization, even though it kidnaps people, holds hostages, and tries to negotiate by executing them,... in Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... The move created what many considered an existential crisis and the university quickly capitulated, agreeing to a list of administration demands.
The school’s acquiescence was condemned by some faculty members and free speech advocates, with Donna Lieberman, the executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, claiming it "endangers academic freedom and campus expression nationwide."
In recent weeks, the Trump administration has also moved to deport several Columbia students who participated in demonstrations as it cracks down on noncitizens involved in pro-Paleostinian activism against Israel on campuses.
Columbia was at the center of Gaza encampment protests in the summer of 2024 that spread around the United States. Protesters demanded an end to the Gaza war, which was sparked by the Hamas terror group’s October 2023 atrocities in southern Israel, and urged their colleges to divest from companies with ties to Israel.
Armstrong had stepped into the role after the previous president, Minouche Shafik, resigned in August following scrutiny of her handling of the protests and corresponding campus divisions.
The new acting president, Shipman, was a correspondent for ABC News, NBC News and CNN ...formerly the Cable News Network, now who know what it might stand for... over a long career in journalism, covering the White House and Russia, among other beats. She has written several books on women’s leadership.
Shipman said in a statement she is assuming the role "with a clear understanding of the serious challenges before us and a steadfast commitment to act with urgency, integrity, and work with our faculty to advance our mission, implement needed reforms, protect our students, and uphold academic freedom and open inquiry."
She added that when a permanent president is chosen, that person will "conduct an appropriate review of the University’s leadership team and structure to ensure we are best positioned for the future."
Whoever accepts the role permanently will have to navigate between the demands of the Trump administration and ongoing protests from students over the Gaza war and emerging restrictions.
#2
#1 I've a radical suggestion: consider heterosexual, white male candidates for the post.
Posted by: Grom the Affective 2025-03-29 05:18
Grom,
WhowhoawhoaWHOA....let's not get crazy here. ;)
And frankly, I believe they would let the college go under before that happens. To do so would imply error, and their mindset simply does not allow that.
#4
A third leadership change in less than a year. Columbia may be circling the drain as the leading Hamas import hub on the East Coast. What a shame! Anyways...
Posted by: Regular joe ||
03/29/2025 16:09
Comments ||
Top||
#5
This one will behave no differently.
They don't get it yet. We should speed their learning.
[IsraelTimes] Legislation, which lowers threshold for reporting gifts from most nations to $50,000, is backed by Jewish groups worried about the influence of Israeli adversaries
The US Congress advanced a bill that requires universities to report more of their foreign funding, a priority of Jewish groups concerned about influence from Israel’s adversaries.
The DETERRENT Act passed the House on Thursday by a vote of 241-169, with more than 30 Democrats ...every time you hear the phrase white people, white supremacy,white anything but paint, you're listening to a Democrat. Ask him/her/it to reimagine something for you; they do that a lot, though not well. They can hear a dog whistle a mile or two away. They invented the spoils system and Tammany Hall, and inspired the addition of the word (Thomas) Nasty to the English language. They want to stop continental drift and repeal the law of unintended side effects... joining nearly all Republicans to support the bill. It will now head to the Senate.
While the legislation was championed by pro-Israel activists, Michigan Democratic Representative Rashida Tlaib ...the very first ever Paleostinian-American ever sworn into Congress in 2019. She is a member of The Squad and consistently votes against the U.S. national interest. She's a Dem, naturally, from a safe district you wouldn't want to live in (Michigan's 12th congressional district). She wants the country to be kinda like Gaza only without any Jews for neighbors... , a harsh Israel critic, also unsuccessfully sought to use it to advance her goals: She introduced two amendments to the bill that would have increased scrutiny of donations from, and investments in, Israel. Both were rejected by large bipartisan majorities.
The bill — an acronym for Defending Education Transparency and Ending Rogue Regimes Engaging in Nefarious Transactions Act — lowered the threshold for reporting gifts from most foreign countries from $250,000 to $50,000. It received support from Jewish organizations including AIPAC and the Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC), which are concerned that money from countries such as Qatar ...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates. Home of nutbag holy manYusuf al-Qaradawi... and Iran ...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate JewsZionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol... are funding anti-Israel messaging on campuses.
"It’s unacceptable that Qatar’s regime — the same one that offers shelter and protection to top Hamas ..not a terrorist organization, even though it kidnaps people, holds hostages, and tries to negotiate by executing them,... bully boyz — has been able to pour billions into places like Yale, Georgetown and Cornell, much of it undisclosed," the RJC wrote in a blurb.
One of Tlaib’s proposed amendments sought to include Israel in a classification of countries referenced as "foreign country of concern." For those countries — including Iran, Russia, China and North Korea ...hereditary Communist monarchy distinguished by its truculence and periodic acts of violence. Distinguishing features include Songun (Army First) policy, which involves feeding the army before anyone but the Dear Leadership, and Juche, which is Kim Jong Il's personal interpretation of Marxism-Leninism, which he told everybody was brilliant. In 1950 the industrialized North invaded agrarian South Korea. Twenty-one countries of the United Nations eventually contributed to the UN force opposing the invasion, with the United States providing around 90% of the military personnel. Seventy years later the economic results are in and it doesn't look good for Juche... — there is a reporting requirement for all gifts and contracts.
The other amendment proposed by Tlaib would have required schools to disclose any investments made in Israel.
Both were rejected with over 400 "no" votes. The Jewish Federations of North America praised that outcome, calling Tlaib’s proposals "amendments that sought to undermine this legislation."
Schools that don’t comply with the new reporting requirements could lose federal funding.
In 2023, several umbrella groups for colleges and universities advocated against the legislation in a letter to Democratic House Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Republican Speaker Mike Johnson, saying it could hinder international collaboration.
"While we understand the concern regarding foreign funding to US institutions of higher education is bipartisan, we believe the DETERRENT Act is duplicative of existing interagency efforts, unnecessary, and puts in place a problematic expansion of the data collection by the US Department of Education that will broadly curtail important needed international research collaboration and academic and cultural exchanges," the letter read.
In a statement Thursday, Representative Tim Walberg — a Michigan Republican and the chairman of the Education and Workforce Committee who introduced the act alongside Representative Michael Baumgartner — cited concerns over "antisemitic propaganda" as well as Chinese government influence.
"The lack of transparency around foreign relationships with our nation’s universities should concern every American as we see stolen research, antisemitic propaganda, and academic censorship," said Walberg in the statement.
[KhaamaPress] An explosion in Quetta, Balochistan ...the Pak province bordering Kandahar and Uruzgun provinces in Afghanistan and Sistan Baluchistan in Iran. Its native Baloch propulation is being displaced by Pashtuns and Punjabis and they aren't happy about it... , on March 27th killed two and injured 11, with no group claiming responsibility yet.
An explosion occurred on Thursday, March 27, 2025, in the Barach market of Quetta, the capital of Pakistain’s Balochistan province, resulting in at least two fatalities and 11 injuries.
The blast targeted a police vehicle, leading to the deaths of two individuals and injuries to 17 others, including four coppers.
Emergency responders transported the maimed to nearby hospitals, where medical staff reported that among the injured were several children.
No group has grabbed credit for the attack. In the past, separatist groups in Balochistan have been known to carry out similar assaults.
The incident occurred as public gatherings increased ahead of the upcoming Eid al-Fitr celebrations, raising concerns about potential security threats during this period.
Pak authorities have condemned the attack, with President Asif Ali Ten Percent Zardari
...former president of Pakistain, husband of the late Benazir Bhutto, who has been singularly lacking in curiosity about who done her in... labeling the perpetrators as "terrorists" and emphasizing the need to address such acts, especially during the holy month of Ramadan.
[Garowe] For the better part of Wednesday, heavy fighting was reported in Masaajid Cali Gaduud town after the Al-Shabaab attack, with the ambush coming at the time President Hassan Sheikh was visiting soldiers in the frontlines in the Middle Shabelle region.
Through its website, the Al-Shabaab group claimed capturing the town but there has been no independent confirmation. A local official on the other hand said government forces are not far from the city.
On Tuesday, President Hassan Sheikh spent the night at Adale, at least 40 kilometres south of Masaajid Cali Gaduud. The attack comes at the time the Somali National Army (SNA) is fighting the group in central and southern regions.
Masaajid Cali Gaduud is one of the towns that have expanded within the last 20 years. Government forces and local fighters recovered the town in October 2022 following the offensive, officials said, while noting the importance of the town in the fight against the group.
The government is promising a major offensive against al-Shabaab in Middle Shabelle. At Adale, Hassan Sheikh addressed both the SNA officials in the group, promising to support their actions with the ultimate aim being defeating the militants.
Al-Shabaab is reported to have seized control of Masaajid Cali Gaduud following explosions and direct combat but the number of casualties on either side is not yet known. Al-Shabaab is fighting to topple the fragile UN-backed federal government of Somalia.
On Wednesday, hours after the Al-Shabaab capture of the area, the president left for Mogadishu and today, he travelled to Turkey on an official visit at the invitation of Erdogan.
The US Africa Command and the African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) have been assisting local forces with the US army often using aerial bombardments to contain the threat by the militants who are predominant in central and southern regions.
Although Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has increased the budget for security forces, the local troops are yet to conduct as many operations against the group without assistance from foreign forces, whose stay in Somalia is almost coming to an end.
[KhaamaPress] In the wake of widespread protests following the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, Ottoman Turkish authorities have detained approximately 1,879 individuals, with 260 subsequently imprisoned pending trial.
These demonstrations erupted after Imamoglu, a prominent opposition figure and potential presidential candidate, was arrested on charges of corruption, an action widely perceived as politically motivated.
Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc addressed international concerns, asserting that Ankara had urged European partners to exercise "common sense." He emphasized that the severity of the allegations against Imamoglu necessitated his arrest, stating, "We don’t want the arrest of any politician, but if there is evidence of a violation then it can happen."
The protests, marking the most significant anti-government unrest in The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire... in a decade, have, according to Rooters, led to injuries among at least 150 coppers. Despite government warnings, opposition parties, including Imamoglu’s Republican People’s Party (CHP), continue to call for demonstrations, organizing rallies in Istanbul and other cities.
In response to the unrest, authorities have extended the ban on public gatherings, aiming to curb the spread of protests. President His Enormity, 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. In Anatolia did Recep Bey a stately Presidential Palace decree, that has 1100 rooms. That's 968 more than in the White House, 400 more than in Versailles, and 325 more than Buckingham Palace, so you know who's really more important... has dismissed the demonstrations as a "show" and warned of legal consequences for participants.
International reactions have been critical, with Germany labeling Imamoglu’s arrest as a "sign of democratic backsliding" in Turkey. The European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... has postponed a scheduled meeting with Ankara, reflecting concerns over the country’s commitment to democratic principles.
The situation remains fluid, with ongoing protests and a heightened security presence across Turkey. The international community continues to monitor developments, advocating for restraint and the protection of democratic freedoms.
As tensions persist, the potential for further unrest looms, underscoring the need for dialogue and resolution to address the underlying political grievances fueling the protests.
…so forgotten, poor thing, that she does not appear in Rantburg’s extensive archives…
a German nurse who was abducted in Mogadishu seven years ago, has made her first public appearance, pleading for immediate release and a return to her home country.
In a video released on YouTube, filmed from her captivity in Somalia, Nientiet called for urgent intervention to secure her freedom. “I ask for immediate help to save my life and be brought back to Germany,” she said in the video.
Nientiet was kidnapped on May 2, 2018, while working for the German Red Cross. Her abduction took place at the organization’s compound in the Zoobe area of the capital.
Her captors, who have stated they have no ties to Al-Shabaab or ISIS, demanded a $20 million ransom, threatening to hand her over to the ISIS terrorist group if their demands were not met.
The German military, in cooperation with U.S. intelligence, had planned a rescue operation, but it was called off at the last minute after concerns from the German foreign minister about the risks to Nientiet’s life.
Reports suggest that a security officer at the German Red Cross compound may have been involved in the kidnapping, though this information has yet to be confirmed.
Both the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the German government have been unable to secure her release. In her plea, Nientiet said her situation grows more perilous by the day.
Her abduction [was] by suspected Al-Shabaab militants in Somalia,
Kidnapped in 2018 while working for the International Commission of the Red Cross (ICRC), Sonja Nientiet has appealed for freedom without giving much detail about her captivity by the militants.
In the video, the nurse appears wearing a hijab and looking frail
…before and after photos can be seen at the link…
— she asked the German government to pursue her release while informing the audience that her health was deteriorating at a faster rate thus the call for intervention by the German government.
“ I was captured on the 2nd of May 2018 while I was working for the ICRC in Mogadishu, so now I have almost spent 7 years in captivity in Somalia,” the visibly traumatized nurse said.
“My health is deteriorating day by day and I am deeply concerned for my safety and for my well-being, so I am addressing this message to the German government, to my fellow citizens, and my loved ones back home because this is what keeps me going,” she adds in the five-minute video.
The video remains undated and its authenticity could not be proved but it was posted on March 26th, 2025. She was kidnapped in 2018 at the ICRC compound in Mogadishu seven years ago.
According to sources then, the nurse was strolling on the compound when she was picked up by an ICRC security guard later identified by authorities as Mohamud Mohamed Alas, and was whisked away. It is believed that she was taken away by Al-Shabaab militants.
The al-Shabaab, who are under intense pressure from a collective operation by security agencies, usually kidnap foreign nationals and use them to bargain for ransom. They have repeatedly released videos of people in captivity.
Within the last two years, the militants have released two videos of suspected Kenyan soldiers who are in their custody, but the governments of Kenya and Somalia have yet to comment on the issue. Governments usually do not pay ransom for the release of their nationals – a strategy meant to embrace 'zero negotiations' with terror groups.
[Garowe] Al-Shabaab ... al-Qaeda's tentacle in East Africa... intensified attacks within central and southern regions, leading to a sharp response from the federal troops with assistance from the US military and the African Union ...a union consisting of 53 African states, most run by dictators of one flavor or another. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established in 2002, the AU is the successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which was even less successful... forces, setting a unique trend within the same period.
Previously, the al-Shabaab waged sporadic attacks targeting security personnel, government officials, and installations, not forgetting innocent civilians.
It is, sadly, so easy to forget those myriads of innocent civilians.
The attacks were not as frequent as in the recent weeks, where they have suffered setbacks in the process.
Details revealed by security officials and locals indicate that the group has been desperate to open supply routes in Middle Shabelle and Hiiraan regions — where the activities have been intense, leading to the most recent violent mostly peaceful attacks by the fighters.
In January, the murderous Moslems faced off with the government troops and local militias within Beera Yabaal twice, leading to massive casualties on their part. Security officials believe the group failed in its attempt to open the supply routes within the region.
After the failure in the Hiran region, the murderous Moslems crossed from a makeshift bridge built near the village of Oobaale, turned east, passed north of the Mahaday district, and sent lots of fighters into the Middle Shabelle region.
Good lord, it sounds as if they physically boxed the compass.
During this time, another group of Al-Shabaab fighters passed through Yaaqle as the other group of fighters entertained the AU and Somali forces in Bal’ad town with an attack, thought to have been a decoy on Feb 26.
Entertained? Someone has been doing those one word a day calendars.
Besides the attempts to open the supply routes, the militants are also believed to have instigated attacks within central Somalia with the main aim being freeing themselves from Mudug and Galgadud region where several fighters were besieged.
These militants reached the outskirts of the main town of Adan Yabaal which is now besieged after three years in a limbo within Mudug and Galgadud. The group has been fighting to free itself from the siege.
Consequently, the fighters have forced government forces to pull back from several villages including Al-Kawthar, Daru Nicma, Ceel Cali Axmed, Boos Hareeri, Ceel Baraf, Biyo Cadde and Mirtaqwo. The militants fired mortars on Adan Yabaal but government troops are holding on.
Last week, the Al-Shabaab detonated a bomb within Mogadishu targeting President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud — the fighting attempt on his life in as many years.
I think the reporter meant first rather than fighting…
Following this, the group initiated offensives in Southwest and central regions with the groups linking for the first time within Gullane.
To assist those stuck in Galgadud and Mudug for the last three years, the Al-Shabaab is now in the process of moving fighters into Galmudud with the team expected to move southwards once the operation is successful.
The Al-Shabaab attack on Masaajid Cali Gaduud on March 26 poses another risk for the government forces. It could put pressure on government soldiers in Masagaway and Ceel Dheer who will now have to fight to secure the coastal supply route from Mogadishu-Cadale-Nur Dugle to Galmudug, veteran journalist and security expert Harun Maruf argues.
With large mobilizations taking place in Middle Shabelle and Hiran region spearheaded by Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, the government wants to turn the tide, he says. There have been increased airstrikes against al-Shabaab. Ethiopian fighter jets, drones by Turkey, and the US, and helicopters have been active.
As a strategy to make the government engage more soldiers, the militants have again opened another frontline in Lower Shabelle, leading to a major attack within Awdhegle town.
This is widely believed to have been an offset attack
…the internet seems to think this is a gamer thing in hand to hand combat, but I assume before there were gamers it was a properly military thing, presumably a unit maneuvre…
but it gave Al-Shabaab another strategic advantage - it now controls one of the bridges that are vital to keeping Mogadishu safe from VBIEDs, which is a big security concern.
Within Mogadishu, Al-Shabaab deployed fighters who were keeping an eye on possible reinforcements from the capital. The militants have, however, been intruding on this area from Basra (north of Mogadishu) and Gendershe area (southwest of Mogadishu) for years.
But to portray this as a fresh “advance” towards Mogadishu is premature. The government has on the other hand intensified attacks on Al-Shabaab on several frontlines, leading to unimaginable gains according to security forces.
[Rudaw] The German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser and her Austrian counterpart Gerhard Karner on Thursday canceled their trip to Syria, following security warnings from German authorities.
The two ministers headed to Jordan on Wednesday to discuss the current situation in the Middle East and were planning a trip to Damascus to discuss the return of refugees.
However,
a person who gets all wrapped up in himself makes a mighty small package... the top diplomats’ "onward trip to the Syrian capital Damascus was canceled following warnings from German security authorities of a specific threat," read a statement from Berlin’s interior ministry, adding that "the two interior ministers had planned talks with the Syrian transitional government."
The cancellation notably comes just a day after Berlin's envoy to Syria on Wednesday expressed deep concern over reports of civilian casualties following a suspected Israeli shelling on Daraa province, southwest of the country.
Syria’s foreign ministry had on Tuesday demanded an international investigation into what it said was an "Israeli shelling" west of Daraa that killed six people.
Germany, a leading power in the European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... , has been a primary destination for Syrian refugees over the past decade.
Faeser’s trip to Syria was notably set to take place months after she had introduced a four-point plan in January, addressing the status of Syrians in Germany.
The plan outlines that Syrians "who are well-integrated into German society, are employed and have learned the German language" should "be able to remain" in the country. It also expands the voluntary return program, offering assistance to "anyone who wants to return to Syria," including those who wish to "look up relatives and decide whether they can return to a life in safety" in their country.
While voluntary return is encouraged, Faeser emphasized that the visits of Syrian refugees to their country "will be subject to strict requirements," adding that "we don’t want people commuting back and forth."
The German interior minister additionally stressed that "criminals and people considered a potential terrorist or holy warrior threat are to be deported as quickly as possible," adding that Berlin has "a definite national interest in seeing that these people leave Germany."
The plan further notes that Germany’s Federal Office for Migration and Refugees would also assess "the protection status of Syrian refugees and withdraw it for those who no longer require such protection in Germany because the situation in Syria has stabilized."
While Berlin seems keen on returning some of the refugees who sought asylum in Germany, its Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock warned last week that a sudden mass return of the millions who fled from Syria would lead to the country’s collapse. She emphasized that any return should follow a gradual, "step-by-step" process, beginning with refugees in countries neighboring Syria.
Germany also pledged €300 million (around $327 million) in aid to Syria last week, which will be distributed to United Nations ...an idea whose time has gone... agencies and other international organizations providing humanitarian assistance in the country.
Faeser stated on Thursday that the aid comes with "clear expectations," stressing that "freedom and security must apply to all people in Syria in the future, regardless of gender, faith, or ethnicity."
#5
He consistently doesn’t do the emoji thingies that would cue in the more literal among us — like me — that he is being totally sarcastic, alanc. Which suggests that he is being totally sarcastic. ;-)
Annoyed that he’s not getting a big enough cut or following orders from Tehran?
[Rudaw] Iraqi Shiite holy man and politician MoqtadaTater al-Sadr ...hereditary Iraqi holy man and leader of a political movement in Iraq. He had his hereditary rival al-Khoei assassinated shortly after the holy rival's appearance out of exile in 2003. Formerly an Iranian catspaw, lately he gagged over some of their more outlandish antics, then went back to catspawry when the check cleared... announced on Thursday that the National Shiite Movement he leads, formerly known as the Sadrist Movement, will sit out the 2025 legislative elections in protest of "corruption."
The X account of Salih Mohammad al-Iraqi - known for channeling Sadr’s views - on Thursday shared a handwritten response from the holy man to an inquiry from one of his followers about the "role of the National Shiite Movement in the upcoming parliamentary elections" in Iraq, slated for October 2025.
Sadr responded, "So long as corruption is prevalent, I will not participate in a flawed electoral process that only aims to secure ethnic, partisan and sectarian interests, far from the suffering of the [Iraqi] people and the unfolding disasters in the region."
Addressing his supporters, the influential holy man stated, "As I had previously directed them to vote in the elections, today I forbid them from both voting and running" in the 2025 ballot.
The complete turnaround notably comes after Sadr had in early March met with former Sadrist politicians at his Hanana headquarters in Iraq’s southern province of Najaf. The meeting was attended by around 200 former politicians affiliated with previous Sadrist parliamentary blocs.
Shortly after, in mid-March, Sadr urged supporters to prepare for the country’s 2025 elections, calling on them to vote carefully and warning that poor electoral choices could deepen corruption and poverty in the country.
The Sadrists emerged as the top force in Iraq’s October 2021 parliamentary elections, securing 73 seats in the 329-member Iraqi legislature. However,
man does not live by words alone, despite the fact that sometimes he has to eat them... their effort to establish a "national majority" government together with Sunni Arab and Kurdish allies ultimately failed.
The rival Shiite-led Coordination Framework then insisted on the post-2003 norm of establishing a consensus government. The deadlock ultimately prompted the Sadrist politicians to resign en masse.
After a 21 months hiatus from the political process, Sadr in May renamed his movement as the National Shiite Movement, a move that was widely interpreted as a precursor to re-enter the Iraqi political scene.
In mid-February, Sadr urged his supporters to update their voter registration records. However,
man does not live by words alone, despite the fact that sometimes he has to eat them... a former Sadrist politician, Rafi Abduljabbar Azzawi, then told Rudaw that the holy man’s request "does not necessarily indicate a shift in his stance on participating in Iraq’s upcoming elections, but rather to urge Iraqis to take a stand in the critical period ahead."
This is dreadful — may they all have found peace, at least, afterward.
[FoxNews] Long Nguyen, Christina Kohler, Maria Vasquez and William Bozeman were found dead by apparent suicide
Four current and former deputies from the same sheriff's office in Texas have died by apparent suicide over a six-week period, according to officials.
The Harris County Sheriff's Office deputies were all found dead between Feb. 6 and March 19.
In the first incident, retired Deputy Long Nguyen died by apparent suicide on Feb. 6, ABC 13 reported, citing officials.
Deputy Christina Kohler, who had been missing for more than a week, was found dead by apparent suicide on March 13.
Three days later, former Deputy Maria Vasquez's body was discovered. The Houston Medical Examiner ruled that Vasquez, who retired from the agency in December, died by apparent suicide.
On March 19, retired Deputy William Bozeman also died by apparent suicide after 24 years at the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.
Sheriff Ed Gonzalez mourned the reported suicides of his deputies.
The sheriff's office has launched mental health initiatives to address the recent trend. Lopez said he has also been helping his fellow deputies process the grief.
#2
Suicide clusters are common, Grom. It’s as if each one gives permission to those around him to do the same — a kind of hysteria. It’s worse when it’s teens in a single school or community, but it’s always heartbreaking.
[Stripes] The trial of a 20-year-old American woman charged in the fatal stabbing of a man at the Kaiserslautern train station last summer began today.
The woman is charged with bodily harm resulting in death after a June 29, 2024, altercation in which she stabbed a 64-year-old man who grabbed her buttocks, according to investigators.
One imagines he learnt his lesson...
The incident was captured on security cameras.
The woman, who was born in Germany and is an American citizen, is not affiliated with the U.S. military, according to officials.
The case is being heard in Kaiserslautern Regional Court.
[MSN] Israeli officials are reportedly upset over the public disclosure of a highly sensitive conversation between Trump administration officials about military strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen.
Why It Matters
The conversation, which took place in a Signal group chat, became public after The Atlantic's editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, reported that he was inadvertently invited to the chat by a user identified as Michael Waltz, President Donald Trump's national security adviser.
What To Know
The Wall Street Journal reported that Israel is frustrated over the leak because Israeli officials supplied sensitive intelligence about a Houthi target who was discussed in the Signal conversation. The intelligence came from a source in Yemen, where the strikes were carried out.
Brian Hughes, a spokesperson for the National Security Council, confirmed that the messages Goldberg reported on and which The Atlantic published screenshots of "appear to be authentic."
When asked about The Wall Street Journal's reporting, Hughes reiterated statements from the White House and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, saying, "No classified information was included in the thread."
Hughes added, "The messages have no locations, no sources and methods, and no war plans. Foreign partners had already been notified strikes were imminent."
According to screenshots of the thread that The Atlantic published, Waltz discussed specifics about a top Houthi "missile guy" targeted in the operation, writing after the strikes that "we had positive ID of him walking into his girlfriend's building and it is now collapsed."
Hegseth, meanwhile, gave a play-by-play breakdown of the operational details before the strikes were launched, including weapons systems that would be used, details about a human target and precise attack sequencing.
"We are currently clean on OPSEC," he wrote on Signal. OPSEC refers to operational security.
In addition to Waltz, Hegseth and Goldberg, the group chat included Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and other senior national security and White House officials.
President Donald Trump has publicly backed his administration and accused the media of going on a "witch hunt" in connection to the controversy. He, Hegseth, Waltz and other officials have also attacked Goldberg's credibility.
On Wednesday, when asked if there was any classified information in the Signal group chat, Trump told reporters that he didn't know.
"I don't know," he said. "I'm not sure. You have to ask the various people involved. I really don't know."
Rubio acknowledged the blunder over the message chain, telling reporters: "Obviously, someone made a mistake. Someone made a big mistake and added a journalist. Nothing against journalists, but you're not supposed to be on that thing."
What People Are Saying
Attorney General Pam Bondi commented on the Signal leak on Thursday, telling reporters: "It was sensitive information, not classified, and inadvertently released. And what we should be talking about is it was a very successful mission. Our world is now safer because of that mission."
Bondi also weighed in on whether administration officials will continue using Signal to conduct high-level discussions, telling Fox News' Laura Ingraham: "I think Signal's a very safe way to communicate. I don't think foreign adversaries are able to hack Signal, as far as I know."
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote on X: "The Atlantic has conceded: these were NOT 'war plans.' This entire story was another hoax written by a Trump-hater who is well-known for his sensationalist spin."
Goldberg dismissed Leavitt's commentary, telling MSNBC on Wednesday: "I don't even know what that means. I mean, the plain language in the text is—what are they arguing? That an attack is different than a war?"
What Happens Next
Waltz said the administration, including SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, is investigating how Goldberg came to be included in the group chat in the first place. Trump also told reporters he wouldn't be opposed to an inspector general investigation into the breach.
[FoxNews] Thousands of potential COVID-era unemployment fraud cases have yet to be prosecuted, lawmaker says
Federal law enforcement's hands are tied now that the statute of limitations for prosecuting fraud in COVID-era unemployment programs has expired.
While Congress extended the statute of limitations for pandemic-era business relief fraud in 2022, the window to prosecute fraud in individual relief programs closed Thursday.
"There's huge amounts of fraud that law enforcement officials are still trying to track down," said Andrew Moylan, a public finance policy expert at private philanthropy group Arnold Ventures.
"Every day that goes by from today, we lose the ability to prosecute fraud day by day. That's a huge problem, and this should be something that's an easy fix for Congress."
Despite opposition from 127 House Democrats, including Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, the House passed a bipartisan bill earlier this month to extend the statute of limitations for pandemic unemployment fraud from five to 10 years. The move mirrored what lawmakers did for the Paycheck Protection Program and the Economic Injury and Disaster Loans program in 2022.
However, the Senate has yet to take up a companion bill needed to cement the extension,
…I assume they’re concentrating on the big, beautiful budget bill the president wants, and their hearings…
leading House lawmakers to call on their colleagues on Capitol Hill to make it a priority.
"We can’t afford to let these fraudsters get away with the largest heist of tax dollars in American history," Rep. Jason Smith, R-Mo., chairman of the House Ways & Means Committee, said Wednesday. "Not only do we have an obligation to taxpayers to recover as much of this money as possible — up to $135 billion — we also need to send a message that we will never falter in going after criminals who take advantage of our support for those in need. … There is no time to waste."
According to estimates from the Government Accountability Office, as much as $135 billion in pandemic unemployment insurance programs was lost to fraud during the pandemic. So far, only $5 billion, or less than 4%, has been recovered.
Between the Department of Justice and the Department of Labor, there are more than 2,500 uncharged criminal matters or ongoing field investigations related to COVID-era criminal unemployment fraud, according to a fact sheet released by Smith.
Unless the statute of limitations is extended by Congress, federal law enforcement will be unable to prosecute these cases.
Moylan noted the majority of unemployment fraud during COVID stemmed from "loopholes" so big "you could drive a truck through" them in the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program.
It was deliberate. The idea was to get money out there fast, to keep the economy from collapsing by any means necessary.
"They didn't have strict enough paperwork requirements, and, so, basically anybody could apply for it and just attest that they were engaged in self-employed activity … and claim significant amounts of unemployment benefits in the process," Moylan said. He also pointed out how people were applying for financial assistance under the names of dead people or prison inmates.
"In California, about a billion dollars worth of fraud was facilitated by making claims on behalf of prisoners in prisons in California," he said.
She said "the 51 signers of the Hunter Biden ‘disinformation’ letter" also had their clearances rescinded.
[FoxNews] Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has revoked security clearances for several people, including former President Joe Biden, former Vice President Kamala Harris, Hillary Clinton and other political opponents.
In a Friday post on X, Gabbard said she revoked the clearance per a Trump directive.
"Per @POTUS directive, I have revoked former President Joe Biden’s security clearance, and revoked clearances and access to classified information for Kamala Harris, Hillary Clinton, Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, Fiona Hill, and Alexander Vindman," she wrote.
Cheney has been a staunch Trump critic following the events of Jan. 6, 2021, when many of the president's supporters rioted in the U.S. Capitol. Hill testified during the November 2019 House impeachment hearings against Trump, while Kinzinger, a Republican, became known for his vocal opposition to Trump while serving in the House.
Vindman, an Army veteran, garnered national attention in October 2019 when he testified before Congress regarding the Trump–Ukraine scandal. His testimony was used to charge Trump with abuse of power in his first impeachment.
Last week, the White House released a memo that read: "I have determined that it is no longer in the national interest for the following individuals to access classified information: Antony Blinken, Jacob Sullivan, Lisa Monaco, Mark Zaid, Norman Eisen, Letitia James, Alvin Bragg, Andrew Weissmann, Hillary Clinton, Elizabeth Cheney, Kamala Harris, Adam Kinzinger, Fiona Hill, Alexander Vindman, Joseph R. Biden Jr., and any other member of Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s family."
Earlier this month, Gabbard announced that she had revoked the security clearances of several people listed in Trump's memo and blocked them from having access to classified information. She said "the 51 signers of the Hunter Biden ‘disinformation’ letter" also had their clearances rescinded.
"The President's Daily Brief is no longer being provided to former President Biden."
[FoxBusinessNews] The judge ordered the CFPB not to delete any data, to reinstate terminated workers and to allow work to resume
A federal judge on Friday blocked the Trump administration from attempting to dismantle the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, saying the court "can and must act" to save the agency from being shut down.
U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson
…appointed by President Obama in 2011 to the DC circuit, she ascended to senior judge status two years ago…
agreed to issue a preliminary injunction to keep the agency in existence until she rules on the merits of a lawsuit seeking to preserve it.
The federal government can now ask a federal appeals court for emergency relief.
Lawyers representing a workers' union and other consumer advocates had sued the Trump administration to reverse the move last month to shutter the agency. The shutdown led to mass firings, contract terminations, office closures and an agency-wide work stoppage.
The agency had been "within hours of firing nearly its entire staff," Deepak Gupta, an attorney representing CFPB workers, said in a statement. "We're heartened by the decision and look forward to continuing to press our case in court."
President Donald Trump said after firing the CFPB's director last month that the agency should be shut down. His senior advisor, Elon Musk, who leads the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), posted "CFPB RIP" on X on the day DOGE workers gained access to the CFPB's headquarters.
But after the lawsuit was filed, agency officials backtracked from some of their positions, claiming in court that they did not plan to eliminate the agency and instructed staff to resume some work.
"If the defendants are not enjoined, they will eliminate the agency before the court has the opportunity to decide whether the law permits them to do it, and as the defendants' own witness warned, the harm will be irreparable," Berman Jackson wrote.
She rejected key evidence Justice Department lawyers had presented, calling some claims "a charade for the court's benefit."
The judge wrote that Mark Paoletta, the CFPB's top legal officer, "insults the reader's intelligence when he feigns surprise" that few CFPB employees were still working.
Berman Jackson also said that the agency's chief operating officer, Adam Martinez, after being contradicted by sworn statements undermining the administration's position, had appeared on the witness stand torn between the "loyalties to his new employers and the truth playing out on his face."
Berman Jackson ordered the CFPB not to delete any data, to reinstate terminated workers and to allow work to resume.
[FoxNews] Maine has thumbed its nose at Trump's executive order to keep trans athletes out of girls' and women's sports
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) on Friday said it referred Maine’s "noncompliance" with Title IX rules to the Justice Department for enforcement.
Maine has continued to defy President Donald Trump’s executive order to ban trans athletes from women’s and girls’ sports. The HHS gave the state 10 days to correct its policies through a signed agreement or risk referral to the Justice Department.
"Today, OCR referred Maine’s noncompliance with Title IX to @TheJusticeDept for enforcement in court for continuing to unlawfully allow males to compete against females," the department announced in a post on X.
"HHS will continue to protect women’s sports and keep the promises of Title IX for America’s women and girls."
Fox News Digital reached out to Maine Gov. Janet Mills’ office and Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey’s office for comment.
The Maine School Administrative District 51, home to Greely High School, where a transgender athlete incited national controversy after winning a girls' pole vault competition in February, said Thursday it was not complying and will instead "continue to follow state law and the Maine Human Rights Act."
The Maine Principals' Association said in a statement it is also "bound by the law, including the Maine Human Rights Act, which our participation policy reflects."
The situation involving the trans athlete at Greely High School attracted national attention after Maine Republican state Rep. Laurel Libby identified the athlete by name with a photograph in a social media post. Libby was later censured by the Maine legislature, and she has since filed a lawsuit to have it overturned.
Trump signed the "No Men in Women’s Sports" executive order in early February, which led to multiple athletics associations complying with it and a handful thumbing their nose at the order. The issue with the state of Maine came to a head at a meeting of the National Governors Association.
Trump threatened to cut federal funding to the state for not banning biological males from girls’ and women’s sports.
The next day, Mills' office responded with a statement threatening legal action against the Trump administration if it did withhold federal funding from the state. Then, Trump and Mills verbally sparred in a widely publicized argument at the White House during a bipartisan meeting of governors.
Since then, multiple protests against Mills have been held outside the state Capitol, and the Maine University System has cooperated with the Trump administration to ensure no trans athletes compete in women's sports after a temporary funding pause.
[FOX] Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) head Elon Musk shared his concerns for the country and future generations during the second installment of his exclusive interview with Fox News chief political anchor Bret Baier.
"Well, there's a lot of things that I suppose that I worry about. And some of these things will seem esoteric to people. The birth rate is very low in almost every country, and unless that changes, civilization will disappear," Musk said in part two of his "Special Report" exclusive interview Friday.
Musk pointed to declining birth rates in the U.S. and Korea, warning that "nothing seems to be turning that around. Humanity is dying."
[JustTheNews] The memo cites authority issued under the 1978 Civil Service Reform Act, which Trump is also using to end collective bargaining agreements with federal unions that represent agencies with national security missions.
The smartest thing I ever did was to marry Mr. Wife. Voting for Donald Trump, twice, is the second smartest.
The White House Office of Personnel Management (OPM) on Thursday announced in a memo that President Donald Trump had signed an executive order limiting the ability of federal employees across multiple departments to unionize.
The memo cites authority issued under the 1978 Civil Service Reform Act, which Trump is also using to end collective bargaining agreements with federal unions that represent agencies with national security missions, per a White House Fact Sheet.
The order impacts all agencies within the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Defense, the Department of State, and the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Treasury Department, Health and Human Services, the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Science Foundation, the General Services Administration, and more.
“Consequently, those agencies and subdivisions are no longer required to collectively bargain with Federal unions,” OPM states in its memo, according to The Hill. “Because the statutory authority underlying the original recognition of the relevant unions no longer applies, unions lose their status as the ‘exclusive[ly] recogni[zed]’ labor organizations for employees of the agencies.”
The executive order has not officially been posted as of press time.
#2
Do I think Federal Workers should have a Union?
NO.
They already have strict Federal Wage & Hour, work environment rules, annual COLA adjustments and retirement plans. All, far better than a majority of the private sector workers have now.
While I support the worker level efforts of fair wage and safe working conditions, that Unions were originally designed for. The leadership of too many Unions have decided to play Politics with Union funds and numbers, instead of staying focused on their union members.
#3
The national government is sovereign. By that definition it can not negotiate with a subset of the population on these issues. They are not equal. The unions already have their representatives whom they fund and elect to Congress. They don't get two votes.
#4
...NN2N1 speaks wisdom. On top of that, public employee unions, at the local or Federal levels, long ago became nothing more than a mechanism to provide ever-growing benefits to those employees and return a not-insubstantial amount of cash to the Democratic Party.
And that is the true cause of the howls coming from the unions this morning. Calvin Coolidge - yes, that one - said "There is no right to strike against the public safety by anybody, anywhere, any time," when the Boston Police went on strike, and he was right. And public employee unions have no right to contribute to or endorse any politician any where, any time.
One last point - the best part of this is that if the unions protest in any way other than statements by their leaders, they will be slitting their own throats. No civilian will sympathize with them, and they'll be handing POTUS an almighty big hammer.
#8
The industrial union adversarial model is problematic for public-sector workers--the result is inevitably adversarial, inescapably political, and as experience shows, often becomes a Praetorian Guard.
Posted by: James the lesser ||
03/29/2025 18:25
Comments ||
Top||
#9
People have a constitutional right to free association, peaceful assembly and the right of petition. They do not have the right to strike against the sovereign elected government of the people.
You understand, all these lawsuit shenanigans with select federal judges from Woke-crazed districts like Boston, San Francisco, Rhode Island, and the DC Beltway are aimed at provoking a second civil war. The objective is to burden Mr. Trump with so many restrictions on the executive that the country can’t be governed without declaring a national emergency.
This is the Democratic Party’s desperate strategy to stay alive: to preserve the flow of taxpayer money to its minions stuffed into the organs of government like cancer cells, and the vast network of NGOs that employ its agents and spread its sickness. The Democratic Party is a malignancy within the republic and the money is the blood-flow that feeds it.
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is supposed to function like an immune system for the body politic, defending it against political sickness. The current organized action in the federal judiciary against the executive is a grave sickness induced by the Deep State that must be corrected by the SCOTUS. We await that corrective action — a sweeping decision in reply to 100-plus lawsuits — that the chief executive is in-charge of the executive department and that his prerogatives to manage the staffing and actions of the executive agencies can’t be arrogated by federal judges.
So far, obviously, the SCOTUS has not yet come to issue that decision. Many of you worry that they will fail to, because Chief Justice John Roberts appears to be somehow under the influence of the Deep State. Let’s have a look. Sheldon Snook is Special Assistant to Chief Justice Roberts, and is deeply involved in the day-to-day management of the SCOTUS. Sheldon Snook is married to Mary McCord. Ms. McCord has been a leading actor, via her various roles in the Deep State, in the seditious operations against President Trump since 2017.
So, if the SCOTUS upholds the arrogation of executive powers and prerogatives by federal district judges, don’t expect Mr. Trump to roll over for that decision. It may come to pass, as per all the above, that he will be constrained to declare a national emergency to vacate the Deep State actors who are trying to make it impossible for him to govern, establishing special tribunals to disarm them. This, of course, will be seen by the Deep State and the Democratic Party as cassus belli, an excuse to declare war against the president. We seem to be headed in that direction. There will be friction, heat, and light.
#1
Assuming Congress ever wakes up, one really legal and dirty trick they could pull is to abolish all federal courts below the level of the Supremes, who would then have to handle thousands (or millions) of cases the lower courts used to handle.
#3
It's worth remembering that every single dollar the federal judiciary gets come from Congress. HVAC down at the courthouse in mid-summer? Yeah, Elon will get right on that. Not enough federal marshals to provide security? Well, we've redirected the marshals to provide security for the illegal aliens you won't let us deport-- you're good with that, aren't you, Judge? Think assymetrically.
Posted by: Matt ||
03/29/2025 11:26
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Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] On the evening of March 28, a new flare of the highest X-point was registered on the Sun. This was reported by the press service of the Laboratory of Solar Astronomy.
The exact measured level of the flare is X1.1. The maximum radiation was recorded at 18:20 Moscow time. The laboratory noted that events of this class on the Sun have not been observed for more than a month; the last time a flare of the highest level was recorded was on February 23.
"According to observations, the explosion occurred on the eastern edge of the Sun. The event does not initially pose a danger to the Earth, but the location of the flash will be in close proximity to the Sun-Earth line in a few days. If the event is a harbinger of a new series of activity, then direct strikes on the Earth will be possible from the middle of next week," the report says.
The laboratory added that some of the energy was most likely shielded by the solar disk, and the actual magnitude of the flare could be higher.
As reported by the Regnum news agency, on February 23, astronomers recorded a super-powerful flare on the Sun. It was noted that it was the result of a rapid increase in solar activity, which began a day before the flare and continued at the time of the flare. In the middle of the same day, astronomers recorded three flares of medium level M.
On January 23, astronomers captured a black jet of light from the surface of the Sun, a rare phenomenon. The effect occurs because the large mass of neutral hydrogen gas almost completely absorbs short-wavelength radiation falling on it from behind, making it appear black.
Text supplied by the Russian Ministry of Defense.
[ColonelCassad] Over the past 24 hours, the Kiev regime continued attacks on Russian energy infrastructure using various types of UAVs, as well as the HIMARS multiple launch rocket system.
On March 28, at about 10:20, the Kiev regime launched a double strike, using, according to preliminary information, HIMARS rockets at the Sudzha gas metering station, which resulted in a major fire and the energy facility was virtually destroyed.
Also, on the morning of March 28, Russian air defense systems in the Saratov region shot down and intercepted 19 Ukrainian attack UAVs of the fixed-wing type, the target of which was the infrastructure of the Saratov Oil Refinery.
In addition, on March 27 in the Belgorod region at about 15:00, as a result of targeted artillery shelling of the facility of the branch of PJSC Rosseti Center - Belgorodenergo, there was a power outage for consumers in the Shebekinsky district.
Thus, all publicly stated commitments of the Kiev regime to allegedly stop deliberate attacks on Russian civilian energy infrastructure are yet another ploy by Zelensky to prevent the collapse of the Ukrainian Armed Forces front and restore its military potential with the help of European "allies".
The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) attempted to attack an oil refinery in the Saratov region, the Russian Defense Ministry reported on March 28.
“On the morning of March 28, Russian air defense systems in the Saratov region shot down and intercepted 19 Ukrainian aircraft-type attack UAVs, the target of which was the infrastructure of the Saratov Oil Refinery,” the defense department said in a publication on its Telegram channel.
In addition, the Ukrainian Armed Forces launched a HIMARS multiple launch rocket system at the Sudzha gas measuring station in the Kursk region, after which it was effectively destroyed. The day before, on March 27, in the Belgorod region, as a result of Ukrainian shelling, the power supply to consumers in the Shebekinsky district was cut off.
The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, stated that the Kiev regime lacks the political will for peace, and continues to attack energy facilities on Russian territory under the moratorium.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited. by Kirill Semenov
[REGNUM] For the second year in a row, the world day of Al-Quds, as Jerusalem is called in the Islamic world, is celebrated under the explosions of bombs and shells. And this means that the Muslims of Gaza also fast during the second holy month of Ramadan under the strikes of the Israeli Air Force: Al-Quds Day is celebrated on the last Friday of Ramadan, this year it fell on March 28.
Hamas has called on Arab and Islamic leaders to shoulder historic responsibility as Israel commits what the Islamic resistance organization calls heinous crimes against Palestine.
"They must take decisive action to stop this war, lift the siege of Gaza and maintain peace for our people on their land," the statement said.
It also calls on preachers and Islamic scholars around the world to dedicate Friday as a global day of support for Palestine, Gaza, Al-Quds and Al-Aqsa, strengthening the resilience of the Palestinians and protecting their lands and holy places:
"Let the mass events, marches and sit-ins continue in the coming days until this aggression ends and the massacre and genocide stops."
In turn, the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) Masoud Pezeshkian called on the people of the country to take part in the march dedicated to the International Day of Al-Quds and express their condemnation of the “Zionist regime,” as Israel is called in the IRI.
“I call on the people to take to the streets tomorrow (Friday – Ed.) and express their hatred of the Zionist regime,” the president said at a meeting of governors at the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
"The Zionist regime has committed the most murders in front of the world and then calls others terrorists. They talk about peace but commit such brutal crimes," the Iranian leader added.
A NEW STAGE OF WAR
Of course, the issue of international support for Palestine is now especially important not only for Hamas, but for all Palestinians, since the hope that peace could return to Gaza after the ceasefire came into effect on January 19 has not come true.
On March 18, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched a new operation, codenamed "Power and Sword," unilaterally violating the agreement with Hamas, which was reached with the support of American and Qatari mediators.
Its goal is to finally resolve the Palestinian issue and, at the first stage, expel the Palestinians from the Gaza Strip. After which it will be possible to proceed with the annexation of the West Bank (where military activity is also increasing) and the expulsion of the Palestinians from there.
The IDF's campaign last year was ineffective because of disagreements between political and military leaders over tactics and strategy, Amir Avivi, a former deputy commander of the army's Gaza unit, told The Washington Post.
It was also hampered by concerns from the previous US administration about high casualties among Palestinian civilians.
But he said the advent of the Donald Trump administration and changes in Israel's defense establishment have loosened those restrictions.
"Now we have new [IDF] leadership, support from the US, and we have enough ammunition, and we have completed our main operations in the north and can focus on Gaza, " Avivi said. "The plans are decisive. There will be a full-scale attack, and the IDF will not stop until Hamas is completely destroyed."
Indeed, the first day of the new military campaign was one of the bloodiest: more than 400 Palestinians were killed, including 263 women and children, adding to the more than 50,000 Gazans killed.
Not counting those trapped under the rubble and still missing, at least 100 civilians have been killed in Gaza every day since then.
At the same time as the military efforts against Hamas are being stepped up, the Israeli leadership is taking steps to move to the practical phase of expelling the Palestinians from Gaza.
Thus, on the evening of March 22, the security cabinet approved a proposal by Defense Minister Israel Katz to create an administration to facilitate the “voluntary movement of Gazans to a third country.”
Katz said the structure is being created "in line with the vision of US President Trump."
The administration will report to Katz and will be responsible for “preparing and ensuring the safe and controlled transit of Gazans for their voluntary departure to third countries, including ensuring the safety of their movement, establishing the route of movement,” and so on.
INVASION AND OCCUPATION ARE COMING
However, in order to move on to the practical implementation of the plan, it will first be necessary to reoccupy the sector and move 2.2 million people to a “humanitarian zone” along the Mediterranean coast, the Financial Times reports.
Officials note that Gaza will be ruled by the military, which would effectively mean its reoccupation.
Israel had already captured the enclave during the 1967 war and controlled it for nearly four decades until 2005.
The new and more aggressive tactics, Israeli experts say, will likely also include direct military control of humanitarian aid, targeting more civilian Hamas members and officials, and evacuating women, children and screened non-combatants from residential areas into "humanitarian bubbles" and locking in those who remain.
It is a more intense version of the tactics used last year in northern Gaza.
Such a plan does not seem so far-fetched at the moment, given that Hamas is left alone with its enemy.
The movement still has about 20,000 experienced fighters capable of putting up serious resistance, but the main problem is access to weapons and ammunition.
So far, only the Yemeni Houthis from the Ansar Allah movement are capable of providing real assistance to the Palestinians.
Despite being subjected to American bombing, the Houthis find the opportunity to launch their ballistic missiles and drones towards Israel almost every day.
While the military impact of such attacks is minimal, the psychological factor is important, allowing Palestinians to feel at least someone's support when air raid sirens force half of Israel's population to take refuge in bomb shelters.
But in any case, the current stage of the confrontation between Hamas and the IDF seems to be the most difficult for the Palestinians.
Israel can bring its full military might to bear on the Islamic resistance in Gaza. Previously, significant resources were diverted to the Lebanese front to contain Hezbollah; now all these forces can be used in Gaza.
In fact, the plans revealed by the Financial Times envisage the IDF deploying several divisions to launch a second invasion of the enclave and take control of all territories previously held by Hamas.
A full-scale invasion and occupation would require up to five army divisions. And the IDF is now able to concentrate them against Hamas, something it could not previously do.
However, the deployment of such a group in Gaza could make other areas vulnerable.
While the Syrian and Lebanese fronts do not yet pose a threat to Israel, numerous risks still come from Iran, which has twice attacked Israeli territory with hundreds of ballistic missiles and drones in support of Hamas.
Tehran now appears weakened after Hezbollah retreated across the Litani River and the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime in Damascus. But its resources and capabilities, including continued support for Hamas, should hardly be underestimated.
"THE ONLY TRUE WAY"
“The Islamic Republic supports Palestine on the basis of Fiqh and Sharia,” the Iranian embassy in Moscow told Regnum.
According to the embassy, Imam Khomeini, as the inspirer of the Islamic Revolution, played a key role in supporting Palestine. He called for the unification of all Muslims in the struggle for the liberation of Al-Quds while still in exile, considering it an important religious aspect. It was he who, after the victory of the revolution, designated the last Friday of Ramadan as Al-Quds Day, and it is now celebrated throughout the Islamic world and beyond.
Let us recall that the problem of Palestine and, above all, the question of Jerusalem's belonging from the point of view of Islam is not only a national matter for the Palestinians. The liberation of Al-Quds - Jerusalem, which is the third holiest place of Islam along with Mecca and Medina from Israeli occupation is becoming the duty of all Muslims.
It is precisely on the basis of religious principles that the Islamic Republic considers it its duty to support the Palestinian resistance in the matter of returning Jerusalem to Muslims.
The Embassy of the Islamic Republic in Russia emphasized that Iran, which itself is under difficult conditions of sanctions and pressure from the new US administration, is the only country that has supported and continues to support the oppressed people of Palestine not only in words but also in deeds.
“Unlike many other Muslim states, such as Turkey, for example, from which one can hear only slogans.
The Iranian representative office also continues to believe that Hamas' armed struggle for the liberation of Palestine is the only correct path.
“Hamas understands that there is no other way to liberate its land except through resistance, even though the movement is paying a high price for the liberation of Palestine,” the embassy noted.
As Iranian diplomats emphasized, “as long as international organizations do not work, rules do not exist, and force and cruelty dominate, there is no other way out except resistance, and this is in accordance with the principles of Islam, since Muslims will not live under oppression.”
THERE ARE ENOUGH FIGHTERS
Last month, Israel's defense minister said the war with Palestinian groups in the occupied West Bank could last another year as Tehran refocuses its efforts after the Gaza war on supporting Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in that part of Palestine.
At the same time, as Shlomo Mofaz, head of the Meir Amit Center for Intelligence and Research in Israel, noted in a March 23 interview with Iran International: “It is possible that something is being smuggled into Gaza, either with food or from Egypt on UAVs, but mainly they have a problem” with weapons.
He also confirmed that Iran's "main focus is now on the West Bank, where there are several ways to support Hamas and other groups, mainly from Jordan, where there is a long border and no fences in many places."
At the same time, Hamas itself has found a way to restore its stockpiles. To do this, the movement uses unexploded Israeli ammunition.
"Unexploded ordnance is the main source of explosives for Hamas, " Michael Kardash, a former deputy chief of the Israel National Police's bomb disposal unit and a police consultant, told the NYT. "They cut up bombs from Israel, and many of them are used, of course. "
According to Hamas videos and inspections of captured weapons, the weapons used by the organization's military wing (anti-tank explosives, RPG warheads, thermobaric grenades and improvised devices) are indeed made from Israeli ammunition.
And if Hamas' arsenal continues to grow, the movement will have enough manpower to thwart Israel's plans to expel the Palestinians from Gaza.
Support for Hamas remains very high, despite recent demonstrations against the movement in the Gaza Strip.
The protests were directed specifically at the group's political wing, whose leaders live abroad and, according to some Gazans, are not doing enough to achieve peace.
At the same time, residents have no complaints about the Hamas military forces, the al-Qassam Brigades. Gazans very clearly distinguish between the military and political wings of the movement.
HOPE FOR PEACE
Amid ongoing attacks on Gaza, fragile hopes for peace remain as negotiations and consultations continue.
But their latest round has once again reached a deadlock. On Wednesday, Egyptian mediators told Hamas that Israel had rejected all proposals presented last week, even though they had been agreed upon with the United States.
Later on Wednesday, Hamas said ceasefire talks were ongoing and the movement was open to discussing any proposals.
Hamas spokesman Basem Naim said "no one will accept a situation in which the agreement will only be a temporary period of calm, with those taken prisoner released in exchange for food and drink, and then the fighting will resume along with plans for expulsion."
So once again everything will depend on the ability of the Palestinian movement to survive in the new conditions of war, unless, of course, Donald Trump intervenes with his unpredictability.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited. by Leonid Tsukanov
[REGNUM] Iran's secret underground facilities have been dazzling the world for decades. The secrecy carefully kept around the deadly contents of these dungeons only fueled interest. And then suddenly Iran lifted the veil.
The one-and-a-half-minute video, in which the Chief of the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Mohammad Bagheri and the Commander of the Aerospace Forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Amir-Ali Hajizadeh travel through the “underground city” and inspect the advanced “arsenal of retaliation,” was promptly distributed by all Iranian media.
It also served as an open message to the opponents who are issuing ultimatums and threatening devastating blows to Iranian territory.
Official Tehran emphasizes that it does not mind “showing off” some secret facilities and what is stored there, since they are only the tip of the iceberg.
"ROCKET CITIES"
Although speculation about Iran having a large number of underground military facilities has been circulating in the press since the early 2000s, Tehran has not confirmed them for a long time.
The first controlled leaks of information were sanctioned by the government only in 2015 to debunk numerous myths surrounding the Iranian military program, and most importantly to show that such facilities are not used as nuclear arsenals.
True, the fragmentary information that made it into the press did not give researchers a complete picture of the functionality of these bases and further fueled the imagination of Tehran’s opponents.
Was there any mention of them — and complete architectural plans — in that warehouse archive Mossad completely emptied and carried off to Israel? Unlike us here at Rantburg, Mossad does not rely on open sources for their information.
Over time, underground cities began to be increasingly used by Tehran as a tool to intimidate the enemy.
In 2016, they were used to scare Saudi Arabia and other Arabian monarchies, and since 2020, the United States and Israel.
Maybe the Magic Kingdom was scared, but I suspect we and Israel are more annoyed than anything else.
And although Tehran did not voice a direct threat to “strike from underground,” the authorities did not miss the opportunity to report on the latest modernization of “missile cities.”
This scare tactic was especially effective given that until recently Iran’s opponents only had reliable information about three such facilities: Khorramabad (the largest missile base in the country), Kenesht-Kanyon, and Panj-Pelleh.
Are you sure about that, Mr. Tsukanov?
However, both in Washington and Tel Aviv, the conviction is growing that underground cities exist in every Iranian province.
Recently, Iranian generals have been actively confirming these guesses.
Thus, by January 2025, the IRGC had publicized information about at least two more such facilities in the central part of the country and in one of the coastal provinces. And in February, IRGC Commander-in-Chief Hossein Salami ceremoniously opened a new underground base in the south in the presence of journalists.
Introducing the facility, the commander-in-chief did not fail to hint that Iran already has “hundreds of underground cities” and even the most sophisticated enemy knows about only a small part of them.
In the context of constant threats to strike Iranian territory from Washington and Tel Aviv, Salami's statement sounded sobering.
STRATEGIC RESERVE
Despite the fact that the underground city shown by the Iranian command is not the first of its kind, it is unique in its own way.
First of all, the press was able to see not only the “entrance hall” of the complex and some galleries, but also study in detail – right down to the serial numbers of some strike units – the rich “arsenal of retaliation.”
Among the weapons demonstrated to the general public by Generals Bagheri and Hajizadeh were dozens of medium-range ballistic missiles (Kheibar Shekan, Sajil, Qadr-110) and cruise missiles (Shahid Abu Mahdi, Paveh).
Most of these weapons have already been used by Iran in strikes on Israeli territory and have proven to be very effective.
Given the high level of development of Iran's missile industry, the tour of the base only highlighted a small part of the range of the latest weapons.
At the very least, the promising cruise missiles Hoveyzeh and Sumar, which were launched into production several years ago, as well as the Jihad ballistic missile, which Tehran first presented at a parade in September 2024, remained in the shadows.
The IRGC command is increasingly fanning the flames of interest in the topic, stating that there is “nowhere to put” the stamped missiles of all types and kinds, and promising that underground missile storage facilities will be opened every week for the next two years.
In other words, we are talking about at least another hundred buried objects that Tehran is ready to talk about publicly.
ARSENALS ON DISPLAY
Despite the fact that Iran's new underground city looks very impressive, some Western military experts have assessed the IRGC's bravado with skepticism. Others have even called the complex a "white elephant" of the Iranian military system.
The main thing that caught the eye of Iran's opponents was the lack of any division of the base into sections. In fact, the complex shown is one long tunnel filled with missiles and launchers.
The lack of blast-proof doors makes the impression worse - the minimal barriers between the racks are visible only in a few places, and they are clearly not designed to contain a blast wave.
In addition, a significant portion of the missiles are stored without transport containers, which further increases the risk of chain detonation and destruction of the entire complex.
Although, given the propaganda nature of the video, most of the missiles were, with a high degree of probability, placed in a simulated combat position in advance, so that the arsenals would look more menacing.
Israeli military experts, who are closely monitoring the discovery of underground cities, respond with bravado and recall that they already had experience in destroying similar impregnable objects.
In particular, in September 2024, the IDF destroyed an underground Hezbollah missile factory in northwestern Syria, and a few days later, like a house of cards, demolished the underground bunker of the same movement’s leadership in Lebanon.
Yep. Very dramatic it was, too.
Therefore, the Israelis claim that it would not be difficult for them to get to the Iranian missile deposits.
However, they are being a bit disingenuous here.
In both Syria and Lebanon, the successful destruction of underground facilities was preceded by a lengthy ground operation, which included (as in the case of Syria) the planting of explosives directly inside the complex.
The Hezbollah leader's bunker was destroyed because the Lebanese air defense system was not working: only because of this did dozens of concrete-piercing bombs reach their target.
Uh huh. Sure.
Neither scenario will work in the case of Iran due to its advanced echeloned defense both in the air and on the ground.
I seem to recall the IAF spending a night destroying Iran’s entire anti-aircraft set-up last year, but it’s possible Iran completely replaced it while we weren’t looking…
In addition, the large number of objects scattered throughout the country (the exact location of some of which is still unknown)
… for a given definition of unknown which means Mossad might well know all about it because they were the ones who built it, just like they staffed the IRGC’s dedicated in-house Mossad-hunting team…
will require serious expenditures to identify and eliminate them and will almost certainly result in monstrous losses in personnel and equipment for the IDF.
This way of posing the question makes the operation impractical even in the eyes of the most ardent Israeli “hawks”.
#5
"Attention! New Persian invention:
An underground town in suspension!
Now all that we need
To proceed at high speed
Is some shambling tattooed Untermenschen."
#7
About those Yahud WMs: Hungarian-Israeli Olympic multi-medal gymnast Ágnes Keleti died in Budapest on January 2nd at 103. Cheated of her first Olympic appearance by the Nazis in the 1940s, she competed in her first Olympics at the age of 31 and took gold — plus a couple of other colours — then did it again four years later before fleeing the Communists for Israel, where she coached several generations of outstanding Israeli women gymnasts. She finally gave up doing gymnastics demonstrations a few years ago.
[EngMilRu] From 22 to 28 March 2025, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation carried out seven group strikes by high-precision weapons and attack unmanned aerial vehicles, which hit the infrastructure of military airfields, a training centre of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, command posts, assembly workshops, storage sites and training areas of attack drone operators, ammunition depots as well as temporary deployment areas of nationalists and Ukrainian armed formations.
Over the past week, units of the Sever Group of Forces continued to eliminate AFU formations on the territory of Kursk region.
During resolute actions, units of the Sever Group of Forces liberated Gogolevka.
Aviation, unmanned aerial vehicles, and artillery hit manpower and hardware of one tank brigade, two mechanised brigades, two air assault brigades of the AFU, one naval infantry brigade, and three territorial defence brigades.
In Kharkov and Belgorod directions, Russian troops inflicted fire damage on formations of four mechanised brigades, one UAV brigade, one assault regiment of the AFU, and three territorial defence brigades.
During the week, in the area of responsibility of the Sever
Group of Forces, the AFU losses were up to 2,190 troops, six tanks, 43 armoured fighting vehicles, and 103 motor vehicles. In addition, 45 field artillery guns and five electronic warfare stations were neutralised.
As a result of active and resolute actions, units of the Zapad Group of Forces liberated Mirnoye (Donetsk People's Republic) and Krasnoye Pervoye (Kharkov region).
In addition, Russian troops delivered strikes at manpower and hardware of three mechanised brigades, one tank brigade, one airmobile brigade, one mountain assault brigade, one assault brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and two territorial defence brigades. The AFU losses were more than 1,640 troops, three tanks, 11 armoured fighting vehicles, including three M113 armoured personnel carriers, and three U.S.-made HMMWV armoured vehicles. In addition, 26 motor vehicles, 29 field artillery guns, including seven Western-made ones, five electronic warfare stations, and ten field ammunition depots.
The Yug Group of Forces' units improved the tactical situation. Russian troops hit formations of one heavy mechanised brigade, eight mechanised brigades, one motorised infantry brigade, and one airmobile brigade of the AFU, one territorial defence brigade, and two National Guard brigades.
Over the week, the AFU losses were up to 2,035 troops, four tanks, 22 armoured fighting vehicles, including three M113 armoured personnel carriers, and one U.S.-made Bradley infantry fighting vehicle. In addition, 39 motor vehicles, 15 field artillery guns, including three NATO-manufactured ones, five electronic warfare stations, 10 field ammunition depots, and two fuel depots were eliminated.
As a result of resolute actions, the Tsentr Group of Forces' units liberated Sribnoye (Donetsk People's Republic). Russian troops launched attacks on manpower and hardware of three mechanised brigades, four assault brigades, one jaeger brigade, one UAV brigade, the Vostok Special Operations Centre of the AFU, one naval infantry brigade, and two National Guard brigades.
The AFU losses were more than 3,355 troops, four tanks, 26 armoured fighting vehicles, including four U.S.-made M-113 and two French-made VAB armoured personnel carriers. In addition, 54 motor vehicles and 21 artillery guns were eliminated, including three Western-made artillery guns were destroyed.
Units of the Vostok Group of Forces continued advancing into the depth of enemy defences. Russian troops hit formations of four mechanised brigades, one mountain-attack brigade, one jaeger brigade, one airmobile brigade of the AFU, one naval infantry brigade, three territorial defence brigades, and nationalist Aidar Battalion.
The AFU losses were more than 1,015 troops, one tank, 10 armoured fighting vehicles, 28 motor vehicles, and 19 field artillery guns, including six Western-made ones. Seven ammunition and materiel depots were destroyed.
As a result of active actions, units of the Dnepr Group of Forces liberated Malye Shcherbaki (Zaporozhye region).
Russian troops delivered strikes on manpower and hardware of two mechanised brigades, one mountain assault brigade, and three coastal defence brigades of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The AFU losses were more than 545 troops, two tanks, two U.S.-made M-113 armoured personnel carriers, 38 motor vehicles, and 11 field artillery guns. In addition, four electronic warfare stations and ten ammunition depots were neutralised.
Over the past week, air defence systems shot down two MiG-29 aircraft of the Ukrainian Air Force, 27 JDAM guided aerial bombs, 20 U.S.-made HIMARS MLRS projectiles as well as 1,160 fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicles.
In total, since the beginning of the special military operation, the AFU losses amounted to: 660 aircraft, 283 helicopters, 48,879 unmanned aerial vehicles, 601 anti-aircraft missile systems, 22,554 tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, 1,532 MLRS combat vehicles, 23,051 field artillery guns and mortars, 33,475 units of special military vehicles.
The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation continue the operation to neutralise AFU formations on the territory of Kursk region.
During offensive actions, units of the Sever Group of Forces liberated Gogolevka.
Russian troops delivered strikes on formations of one mechanised brigade, two air assault brigades, one presidential brigade, and one territorial defence brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine close to Gornal, Guyevo, and Oleshnya.
Operational-Tactical, Army aviation and artillery hit enemy manpower and hardware close to Basovka, Belovody, Varachino, Velikaya Rybitsa, Veselovka, Vladimirovka, Vodolagi, Zhuravka, Zapselye, Loknya, Mogritsa, Novonikolayevka, Obody, Proletarskoye, Sadki, Yunakovka. and Yablonovka in Sumy region.
Over the course of the day, the AFU losses were more than 320 troops, five armoured fighting vehicles, six motor vehicles, two artillery guns, two ATVs, one electronic reconnaissance station, and three UAV command posts.
Since the beginning of hostilities in Kursk direction, the AFU losses amounted to: more than 70,700 troops, 402 tanks, 327 infantry fighting vehicles, 290 armoured personnel carriers, 2,233 armoured fighting vehicles, 2,561 motor vehicles, 589 artillery guns, 53 MLRS launchers, including 13 of HIMARS and seven of MLRS made by the USA, 26 anti-aircraft missile launchers, one self-propelled anti-aircraft system, ten transport-loading vehicles, 123 EW stations, 18 counter-battery warfare radars, ?ten air defence radars,
56 units of engineering and other materiel, including 23 counterobstacle vehicles, one UR-77 mine clearing vehicle, five bridge launchers, one engineering reconnaissance vehicle as well as 15 armoured recovery vehicles, and one command post vehicle.
The operation to neutralise the AFU units is in progress.
[AnNahar] An Israeli Arclight airstrike ...KABOOM!... on Friday targeted the Beirut southern suburb of al-Jamous, destroying two buildings, following an Israeli evacuation warning, the first such raid since a November ceasefire largely halted hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.
TV footage showed heavy black smoke billowing from the area, which is densely populated and home to residential buildings and schools.
The Israeli warning for evacuating a building sparked panic in the area, with parents rushing to pick up their children from schools that quickly shut.
Heavy traffic clogged roads around the southern suburbs as many residents of the area, which Israel heavily bombed during two months of war with Hezbollah from September last year, tried to flee.
Education Minister Rima Karami had ordered all schools and universities in Hadath to close for the day. In some parts of the southern suburbs, shooting could be heard warning people to leave their homes and many residents were seen fleeing the area in cars and on foot.
Israel’s military had warned people in a post on X in Arabic to evacuate buildings in the area.
"You are located near facilities affiliated with Hezbollah," it said alongside a map with a building marked in red.
After the strike, Israel’s army said it attacked a Hezbollah drone storage facility, accusing Hezbollah of using civilians as human shields and saying it issued advanced warning for people to leave.
It added that the rockets fired at Israel from Leb ...home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade.... earlier in the morning were a "blatant violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon." It also pledged to continue operations "in order to remove any threat to the civilians of the State of Israel."
Chaos engulfed the southern suburbs of Beirut as Lebanese tried to flee the area, and a large smoke cloud rose over the city following the strike.
The area struck is a residential and commercial area and is in close proximity to at least two schools, which sustained material damage.
Hezbollah denied firing the rockets at northern Israel, and accused Israel of seeking a pretext to continue attacking Lebanon.
Israel's army said it earlier struck "Hezbollah targets" in southern Lebanon after the rocket fire. Israel's Defense Minister said Friday that if there was no peace in Israel's northern communities there would be no peace in Beirut either.
Israeli strikes in other parts of Lebanon on Friday killed three people and maimed 18, including children and women, in the southern village of Kfar Tibnit, said Lebanon's health ministry.
Speaking from Gay Paree, President Joseph Aoun said the strike on a Beirut suburb was a continuation "of Israel’s violations of the agreement" that was sponsored by La Belle France and the U.S.
Two rockets were fired at northern Israel from Lebanon on Friday morning, leading the military to carry out strikes first in southern Lebanon and later in the capital, Beirut, a first since the November ceasefire went into effect.
According to the military, one of the rockets was intercepted and the other fell short inside Lebanese territory, as rocket sirens sounded in the city of Kiryat Shmona and the nearby communities of Tel Hai, Margaliot, and Misgav Am.
It was the second attack within the past week, after three rockets were fired at Metula on March 22, the first such incident since the November 27 ceasefire ended over a year of fighting with the Hezbollah terror group.
Following the attack, the IDF said Friday morning it was carrying out a wave of strikes on Hezbollah targets in the south of the country, and later that afternoon brought down a building it claimed was used by the terror group’s drone unit in southern Beirut, a Hezbollah stronghold known as Dahiyeh.
According to the IDF, the building struck in Beriut was used by Hezbollah as a drone storage facility. It belonged to Hezbollah’s aerial forces, known as Unit 127, the military said. The unit is responsible for explosive-laden drone attacks on Israel and flying surveillance drones to collect intelligence.
“Hezbollah has placed its terror infrastructure in the heart of the civilian population. This is another example of the Hezbollah terror organization’s cynical use of Lebanese citizens as human shields,” an IDF statement said.
The IDF issued an evacuation warning for the building and the surrounding area before the strike and also reportedly carried out several warning shots in the area before dropping larger munitions that brought down the building.
It marked the first time that the IDF issued warnings ahead of strikes in Beirut since November 27, when it last struck Hezbollah sites in the Lebanese capital, hours before a ceasefire took effect.
According to Hezbollah’s Al-Manar news outlet, targeted areas in southern Lebanon included the outskirts of Qaaqaait al-Jisr and the town of Khiam in the Nabatieh area.
Earlier this week, a Lebanese official said Lebanese leaders have been in intensive contact with Washington and Paris to prevent Israel from bombing Beirut after the rocket fire on March 22.
Israel has continued to carry out strikes on Hezbollah operatives and members of affiliated terror groups since a ceasefire in November, following two months of open war aimed at ending rocket attacks from the Iran-backed group that plagued the north for nearly a year.
U.S. envoy to Lebanon, Ortagus, tells Al Arabiya:
"This morning the ceasefire agreement was violated by Lebanon... we don't care if it's Hezbollah or Hamas... what's interesting is that the missiles were launched from Lebanon, which is a violation of the agreement. Israel has the right to respond to this violation."
The Lebanese army says it found a rocket launcher used in this morning’s attack on Kiryat Shmona, during which two projectiles were fired.
In a statement, the Lebanese Armed Forces says its troops found the rocket launcher in the Qaaqaait al-Jisr area, near Nabatieh, and has begun an investigation into which group was behind the fire
As far as I can tell, Palestinian attacks are so common that nobody bothers to report them, only the less common Israeli response.
[IsraelTimes] At least 6 Palestinians said wounded; no Israelis detained for attack on Jinba, which police say came after 2 Jews in the area were assaulted
Twenty-two residents of the southern West Bank Paleostinian village of Jinba were arrested by the IDF on Friday morning, a resident of the hamlet told The Times of Israel, with the military saying it detained people involved in a violent mostly peaceful confrontation with Israeli settlers — none of whom were arrested.
Footage from the scene shortly before the Israel Defense Forces arrived showed dozens of settlers raiding the village, attacking residents and property. At least six Paleostinians were maimed in the assault, four of whom were taken to a hospital, the Haaretz daily reported, citing residents. The IDF said an Israeli was also injured during the violence.
Residents of Jinba, in the southern West Bank’s Masafer Yatta area, accused the IDF of using excessive force, saying soldiers hurled stun grenades inside homes. Haaretz cited Masafer Yatta council head Nidal Younis as saying that settlers also threw stun grenades. Younis was among the Paleostinians detained at Jinba, according to the newspaper.
The settler attack on Jinba followed reports of violence against Jews, according to police and the military.
Police said officers were dispatched to the area after two Jewish shepherds were assaulted south of Susiya, one of the Masafer Yatta villages.
The IDF said it had received a report that an Israeli citizen was attacked near the southern West Bank’s Mitzpeh Yair outpost. Troops dispatched to the scene along with coppers "began a chase after the terrorists," the IDF said, without clarifying how forces knew whom to pursue.
"Shortly thereafter, a violent mostly peaceful confrontation developed between several Israeli citizens and several Paleostinians, during which an Israeli civilian was injured and evacuated for medical treatment," the IDF said. "A report was received regarding several Paleostinians who were maimed and received treatment from medical personnel."
"IDF troops worked to disperse the violent mostly peaceful confrontation and arrested several Paleostinian suspects near the location. The suspects were transferred for further interrogation," the army added.
The West Bank has seen a spike in violence since October 7, 2023, when thousands of Hamas ..a regional Iranian catspaw,... -led holy warriors stormed southern Israel to kill some 1,200 people and take 251 hostages, sparking the war in Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... In the West Bank, the military has undertaken large-scale counterterrorism operations that have killed hundreds of people — the vast majority of them combatants, according to the IDF — and displaced tens of thousands.
Masafer Yatta, in the West Bank’s South Hebron Hills, has faced frequent raids by settlers and soldiers. It is the subject of Oscar-winning documentary "No Other Land" about Israel’s demolitions in the area, which the military has designated a live-fire training zone.
Israeli forces on Monday night arrested the film’s co-director, Hamdan Ballal, a resident of Masafer Yatta, after he was reportedly injured during festivities between settlers and Paleostinians in the southern West Bank village of Susya. He was released the next day. Two other Paleostinians and an Israeli were also detained.
Arrests of Israelis in incidents of settler violence are extremely rare. The head of the police’s West Bank division is currently under investigation for allegedly refusing to crack down on the phenomenon to curry favor in the eyes of far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.
Israel’s failure to prosecute near-daily incidents of settler violence led the previous White House and multiple European governments to begin sanctioning violent mostly peaceful settlers last year. US President Donald Trump ...Oh, noze! Not him!... scrapped his predecessor’s sanctions shortly after taking office in January.
The Israeli settlers’ raid came shortly after reports that an Israeli shepherd from the area was assaulted. That incident appears to be connected to the assault of a pair of Palestinian shepherds by settlers. Settlers subsequently stormed Jinba apparently in order to avenge the attack on the Israeli shepherd.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[Regnum] Journalist Nadezhda Kevorkova (an individual included in the list of terrorists and extremists of Rosfinmonitoring) must pay a fine of 600,000 rubles
…about US $7,100…
in a criminal case on the justification of terrorism. The court verdict has entered into legal force, said the lawyer of the convicted woman, Kaloy Akhilgov.
“The verdict against Nadezhda Kevorkova has not been appealed by the parties and has entered into legal force,” TASS quoted the human rights activist as saying.
As reported by the Regnum news agency, on May 6, 2024, searches were conducted in Kevorkova’s apartment, during which posters were found with the inscriptions “they are not terrorists” and “a rally is better.”
According to media reports, Kevorkova maintained ties with terrorists, including Abu Umar Sasitlinsky
…a preacher from Dagestan who with several others formed a foundation that raised more than 38 million rubles, ostensibly to build mosques and help poor Moslems, but actually they donated the funds to ISIS and Al Nusra (Hayat Tahrir al Sham). Looking at the current situation in Syria, no doubt all involved think they got a good return on their investment…
(real name Israil Akhmednabiyev, included in the list of terrorists and extremists by Rosfinmonitoring). She shares a radical Islamic ideology and has published materials justifying the activities of terrorists. Her social networks contained materials justifying the attack on Nalchik in 2005 and the actions of the Taliban movement (under UN sanctions for terrorist activity).
On May 7, the court granted the request of the investigative authorities and arrested the journalist.
The Second Western District Military Court handed down the sentence to the journalist on March 12 of this year. She was fined 600,000 rubles and released from custody right in the courtroom. Initially, the fine was 700,000 rubles, but taking into account the time spent in pretrial detention, the amount was reduced.
During the court debate, the prosecutor requested six years in prison and a fine of 500,000 rubles for the journalist. Kevorkova did not admit her guilt.
The recording shows Russian service officers detaining a Russian citizen who, on orders from Ukrainian special services, was planning to set off an explosion in a crowded place in Moscow.
Merely political, not a jihadi.
In addition, the footage shows FSB officers working with a confiscated improvised explosive device (IED). The detainee also confessed, explaining that he contacted Ukrainian special services via messengers and, for a fee of 10,000 dollars, agreed to deliver the item to the specified coordinates and carry out all further instructions from his handlers.
Even more from regnum.ru FSB Detains Smolensk Region Resident for Calls for Genocide of Russians
The Federal Security Service (FSB) of the Russian Federation detained a resident of Desnogorsk, Smolensk region, who spoke out against the SVO and publicly called for the mass murder of Russian families, including children and the elderly.
"The attacker openly supported statements regarding the use of violence against the Russian people. In particular, he proposed exterminating Russians as families, starting with children and ending with the elderly," the department said in a statement.
It is specified that the detained Russian insisted on the need to deal with Russians and called on other users in pro-Ukrainian and emigrant communities in one of the messengers to do so. He explained his actions by hatred of the Russian people.
A criminal case was opened against the man for public calls for extremism. Now he faces up to five years in prison.
[FoxNews] Trump administration lawyers said the lower court's 'flawed' orders risk 'serious and perhaps irreparable harm' if not immediately reviewed by the high court
The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court on Friday to review a restraining order that temporarily blocks its use of an 18th century wartime immigration law to immediately deport Venezuelan nationals, including alleged members of the gang Tren de Aragua, from U.S. soil.
In the filing, lawyers for the Trump administration said that the lower court's orders have "rebuffed" Trump's immigration agenda, including its ability "to protect the Nation against foreign terrorist organizations and risk debilitating effects for delicate foreign negotiations."
The request for Supreme Court intervention comes shortly after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled 2-1 on Wednesday to uphold a lower court's decision that temporarily blocked the administration's use of the 1798 Alien Enemies Act law to immediately deport Venezuelan nationals. That decision paused the Trump administration's use of the law for a 14-day period to allow the judge time to review the merits of the case.
The Trump administration had vowed it would appeal the circuit court decision to the Supreme Court for further review.
In their Supreme Court filing, U.S. Acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris said the lower court's "flawed" orders "threaten the government's sensitive negotiations with foreign powers," and risk "serious and perhaps irreparable harm if not immediately reviewed" by the nation's highest court.
At minimum, the Trump administration said, the Supreme Court should grant an administrative stay, which would allow them to continue using the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelan nationals while the court considers the government's orders.
They also sharply criticized the appeals court's decision handed down Wednesday.
Writing for the 2-1 majority in the appeals court decision, U.S. Circuit Court Judges Karen Henderson, a Bush appointee, and Patricia Millett, an Obama appointee, focused heavily on concerns of due process violations, as well as complaints of immediate and irreparable harm cited by the plaintiffs.
Allowing Trump to use the law in the near-term "risks exiling plaintiffs to a land that is not their country of origin," Henderson said in a concurring opinion siding with the lower court judge.
"The equities favor the plaintiffs," Henderson said. "And the district court entered the TROs for a quintessentially valid purpose: to protect its remedial authority long enough to consider the parties’ arguments.
Millett, for her part, said that siding with the Trump administration would "moot the Plaintiffs’ claims by immediately removing them beyond the reach of their lawyers or the court."
Lawyers for the Trump administration also used the Supreme Court filing to criticize the growing trend of temporary restraining orders and injunctions blocking key policies, calling the lower court’s ruling part of a "rule-by-TRO" pattern. Harris argued this approach has become so common that "the Executive Branch’s basic functions are in peril."
In the two months since Inauguration Day, district courts have issued more than 40 injunctions or TROs against the Executive Branch, they noted in the filing.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[KavkazUzel] The sentences handed down by the Oktyabrsky and Kirovsky district courts of Stavropol to two groups of people convicted of participating in the riots at the Makhachkala airport have entered into legal force.
As reported by the "Caucasian Knot", the Kirov District Court in Stavropol Krai sentenced Maksud Shcheikhgasanov, Ismail Ibakov, Shamil Mirzabekov, Magomed Khalilbegov and Rabadan Rabadanov, accused of involvement in the riots at the Makhachkala airport, to terms ranging from eight years to nine years and four months. At the end of January, the Oktyabrsky Court sentenced Gamzat Isakov, Makhmud Dzhavatkhanov and Abdulbasir Atavov to lengthy terms.
The sentences of two groups of those convicted in the "airport case" have come into force, lawyer Bashir Abdurakhmanov, who defended the participants in the trials in the Oktyabrsky District Court of Stavropol and the Kirovsky District Court of Stavropol Krai, told a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent on March 28.
"When considering the appeal in the Oktyabrsky District Court, the convicts were given two months of imprisonment each, and the sentence was upheld. As for the Kirovsky District Court, the convicts decided not to file an appeal. Thus, both sentences came into force," Abdurakhmanov said.
Mass riots at Makhachkala airport occurred on October 29, 2023, due to a report of the arrival of a plane with passengers from Israel. More than 20 people were injured in the riots, including nine police officers. 1,200 people were brought to administrative responsibility. What happened at Uytash airport
…in full, the Makhachkala Uytash Airport is a civil airport located near Makhachkala. That October the locals were exercised about Israel daring to fight back against fellow Moslems, so a crowd went to the airport to beat up a rumoured airplane full of Jews coming in from Israel. It turned out there were no Jews on the plane, and as the small local Jewish population was keeping itself carefully out of sight, the crowd turned to riot and mayhem at the airport, causing extensive and expensive damage while the world watched. The government was mortified; it has proceeded to share its pain with the entire mob as each man is identified and caught…
and how the investigation is proceeding is described in the "Caucasian Knot" report "Case of the pogrom at Makhachkala airport."
[RedState] President Trump signed an executive order Thursday seeking to restore truth to American history through an overhaul of the Smithsonian.
The order, titled "Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History," slams the Biden administration for ushering in an era of "corrosive ideology" in recent years and seeks to unfurl "divisive, race-centered" themes plaguing the institution.
"Once widely respected as a symbol of American excellence and a global icon of cultural achievement, the Smithsonian Institution has, in recent years, come under the influence of a divisive, race-centered ideology," the order reads. "This shift has promoted narratives that portray American and Western values as inherently harmful and oppressive."
The directive puts Vice President JD Vance in charge of overseeing efforts to “remove improper ideology” from all areas of the institution. Vance serves on the Smithsonian Institution’s Board of Regents.
The President notes that institutions like these - including the institution's museums and research centers - should focus on American achievements.
If you're looking for the red meat issue that's almost certain to make liberals pull their hair out, it'd be the section of this new executive order that directs Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum to review and "restore" any "public monuments, memorials, statues, markers, or similar properties" that may have been improperly removed in the past five-plus years.
A White House fact sheet states that their removal or any subsequent changes made to alter them were designed "to perpetuate a false revision of history or improperly minimize or disparage certain historical figures or events."
#1
I was born in the state of Georgia, lived there until I was almost 10, and had grandparents who lived there until I was in my 30s.
The love of the Confederacy was still strong. But not "racism"...not that. People celebrated the military prowess of Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson. They told stories of how to fight when out-gunned. But the people I knew never advocated for damage to other races.
The last 20 years of attempts at "shame" for anything associated with the south have worked. They have worked so well that I've actively considered buying a souvenir state of Georgia flag that once upon a time included the flag of the Confederacy.
I'm beyond fed-up with those who wish to erase American history.
#2
Interesting that you say that. I, too, have considered buying a Confederate flag just to display it in my house, to thumb my nose at the race-baiters, so-called progressives (spit) and the demoncrat commies. I want them to seethe, and be very, very upset.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
03/29/2025 4:49
Comments ||
Top||
#3
“The first step in liquidating a people is to erase its memory. Destroy its books, its culture, its history. Then have someone write new books, manufacture a new culture, invent a new history. Before long the nation will begin to forget what it is and what it was.”
― Milan Kundera, The Book of Laughter and Forgetting
#4
The leadership of the south were the slavers who exploited the tribal affiliation of their citizens. The average soldier fought for his 'team' which at the time was usually their state. Even in the North, most of the formations were state formations. It's a tribalism that is not much different than we witness with March Madness or the fall college football season. Those who actually were killing each other, respectfully saluted each other upon the surrender at Appomattox. Those men had more respect for each other than the cowards over a hundred years later who never had to face the fire.
#5
1st, let me say, being the grandchild of Indentured Servants for a Chicopee, Massachusetts Cotton mill family. A mill that used Southern Cotton.
SLAVERY IS NEVER RIGHT.
But the Confederacy and its flag, to a vast majority (95+%) of Southerners, was and still is, not about Racism. The Stars and Bars, is about fighting the DC Swamp Dictatorial imposed rule on the States since, before 1860 and thereafter.
Remember, it was the abuses and taxation of the DC Swamp that were the cause of the Session.
A LITTLE ADDED HISTORY
Remember, official record show there were over 77,343 Northern Slave Owners in 1860+. Plus, some of the larger slave owners were Northern syndicate operations or Northern Family owned to supply their mills with cotton and the northern population with foods and materials.
NOTE: Delaware only ratified the 13th Amendment in 1901. About 45 years AFTER it was introduced and approved.
With all that said.
When ANY Political Group seeks to retune, adjust or destroy history, what it usually is really seeking, is to hide info about its own misgiving and abuses of power?
Worth noting, korrespondent.net has compiled its Invasion of Ukraine series into separate months, beginning May 9th, 2023. Linked in the title.
[Korrespondent] 22.23 Russian war criminals attacked Dnepr with drones. As a result of the raid, several fires occurred in the city. This was reported by the head of the Dnepropetrovsk regional military administration Serhiy Lysak on his Telegram channel.
21.26 On March 27, the Ukrainian Air Force carried out an airstrike on the Pogar border checkpoint in the Sluchovsk region of the Bryansk region of the Russian Federation, from where Russian UAVs were periodically launched. This was reported on the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces' Facebook page.
20.58 The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry condemned the awarding of a photo of a Russian occupier next to a photo of a Ukrainian child traumatized by war at the World Press Photo competition. This was stated by the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Georgiy Tykhyi on the social network X.
20.27 The number of confirmed Russian losses in the war against Ukraine as of March 28, 2025 is 100,001 people. Of the liquidated invaders, 4,842 are Russian officers. The corresponding list is compiled by the Mediazona publication and the BBC Russian Service.
19.23 UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that Ukraine has "legitimate power that demands respect." This was reported by Reuters journalist Michelle Nichols on the platform of H.
Washington has already rejected the Kremlin's proposal to establish external governance in Ukraine under the auspices of the UN, and now the head of the organization has done the same.
19:01 During the summit in Paris, the Ukrainian side reached an agreement with partners of some countries to expand access to their intelligence data. This was stated by President Volodymyr Zelensky at a briefing .
18.57 Ukrainians will be able to apply for 35 types of deferment in the Reserve+ application without leaving their homes during 2025. Deputy Defense Minister Kateryna Chernogorenko spoke about this on the air of Unified News.
18.13 President Volodymyr Zelenskyy issued a decree introducing Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Andriy Gnatov into the personnel of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief's Headquarters. The same decree removed Anatoliy Bargilevich, who had previously been Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, from the Headquarters.
17.31 Foreign Ministry spokesman Georgy Tikhyi commented on Russian dictator Vladimir Putin's statement about establishing a "temporary government" in Ukraine to hold elections. He advised extending this practice to Russia.
16.59 Since the beginning of the current day, 116 combat clashes have occurred along the entire front line. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported the details in an operational summary as of 16:00.
16:45 The Czech Republic, as part of its initiative, will be able to provide Ukraine with the same amount of ammunition this year as in 2024. We are talking about a quantity of 1.5 million units. This was stated by the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic Petr Fiala.
16.24 The timeframe for completing the negotiations and concluding a peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia has not yet been determined. This was stated by US Secretary of State Mark Rubio. At the current stage of the negotiations, "more progress needs to be made on a technical level," he explained.
15.57 Since the beginning of Russia's military aggression in 2014, the total damage inflicted on Ukraine could reach $1 trillion. This was stated by Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Irina Mudraya on Igor Dolgov's program on Ukrinform .
15:38 The Danish government has announced the provision of 300 million Danish kroner (40 million euros) to create an innovation fund that will be used for the technological development of Ukraine on the battlefield, the press service of the Danish Ministry of Defense reported.
15.13 In the area of responsibility of the Seversk OTG , the situation is under the control of the Ukrainian Defense Forces. At the same time, the enemy has concentrated more forces near the border with Sumy region, where the intensity of shelling from the aggressor is extremely high. This was reported by the spokesman for the operational-tactical group, Colonel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Vadym Mysnyk.
15.00 The bodies of 909 fallen defenders have been returned to Ukraine as a result of repatriation activities. This was reported by the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War. The Ukrainian defenders died in battles in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, as well as in the Zaporizhia region.
14.49 Russia continues to produce fakes about Ukraine's pseudo-defeat of energy facilities. This was reported by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. It is noted that the Ukrainian army is carrying out fire strikes exclusively on military targets of the Russian occupation army.
14.43 Russian troops attacked Antonovka and Belozerka in the Kherson region using drones. This was reported by the Kherson OVA. As a result of the explosives being dropped in Antonovka, a 75-year-old man received an explosion injury and amputation of his arms. In Belozerka, a 37-year-old man received an explosion injury, concussion and concussion.
14.28 On March 27, Russian troops attacked civilian infrastructure in the village of Banychi, Glukhiv United Territorial Community. As a result of the shelling, the religious site was completely destroyed. There were no casualties. This was reported by the police of Sumy Oblast.
14.13 The aggressor country Russia may withdraw from the so-called "energy truce" because Ukraine allegedly does not comply with the moratorium. This was stated by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
13:50 A man injured by Russian shelling has died in a hospital in Kropyvnytskyi. This was reported on March 28 by the head of the Kirovohrad OVA, Andriy Raikovich.
13:44 In Ukraine, a Russian GRU agent who was preparing to kill soldiers in Chernihiv region was convicted. He received 15 years in prison with confiscation of property. This was reported by the press service of the SBU.
He planned to use improvised explosive devices (IEDs) or kamikaze drones for the assassination attempt.
13:03 The first burials at the National Military Memorial Cemetery (NMMC) are planned to begin in May 2025. This was announced by the Minister of Veterans Affairs of Ukraine Natalia Kalmykova during the "Government Question Hour" in the Verkhovna Rada.
12:50 The Cabinet of Ministers allocated UAH 83.3 million to complete the construction of fortifications in the Zaporizhia region. This was reported by the government representative in the Verkhovna Rada Taras Melnychuk.
12.47 As of 2025, the damage to the environment of Ukraine as a result of Russian aggression exceeded 85 billion euros. This was stated by the Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources Svitlana Grinchuk at a meeting of the Environment Council of the EU Member States.
More than 8,000 cases of environmental damage due to military actions have been recorded. More than 230 million tons of carbon have been released into the air, and a quarter of Ukraine's territory remains mined and contaminated with ammunition. 850 thousand hectares of forests are under occupation and in the combat zone.
12.31 Russian troops attacked Kupyansk in the Kharkiv region on March 28. As a result of enemy strikes, residential and utility buildings were destroyed, and three people were injured. This was reported by the head of the Kharkiv OVA Oleg Sinegubov.
12.26 Russian aggressors attacked Naftogaz facilities and damaged gas production capacities. This is the eighteenth combined attack on gas infrastructure since the start of the full-scale war and the eighth this year.
11:35 The location of ships of the Russian FSB border service has been discovered in the temporarily occupied Crimea. The Russian invaders have set up a base in Sevastopol, the Telegram channel Krymsky Veter reports.
Project 22460 Okhotnik patrol ship with anti-aircraft weapons is moored in Inkerman Bay. In addition, another ship of the same project is moored at berth No. 56 at the entrance to Inkerman Bay.
With the help of the anti-aircraft weapons on board, these ships can cover the nearby oil depot of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. For the same purpose, the Pantsir-S1 anti-aircraft missile and gun system is probably located on Zelenaya Gorka above the bay.
11.26 Explosions and a large fire have occurred again at the Sudzha gas metering station in the Kursk region of the Russian Federation. The Russian Defense Ministry blamed the Ukrainian Armed Forces for this attack. And the Central Control Center stated that the Russian military had again attacked its own gas transportation system.
10:25 In the first quarter of this year, almost 12.3 billion hryvnias were allocated to support combat brigades of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. This was reported by the Ministry of Defense. The money was used to purchase drones, electronic warfare systems, transport and other equipment to improve the effectiveness of units on the front lines.
10.22 Two more Russian agents have been detained in Donetsk Oblast, who were adjusting Russian air strikes on Defense Forces locations in the frontline areas of the oblast. This was reported by the SBU on March 28.
9:50 Russian troops shelled communities in the Sinelnyky, Nikopol and Dnipro districts. This was reported by the head of the Dnipropetrovsk OVA Serhiy Lysak. According to him, the Russians struck the Vasilkivska community of the Sinelnyky district with drones. There is damage on the territory of an agricultural enterprise. The Russian army targeted the Nikopol region with artillery and Grad MLRS, and used kamikaze drones. Nikopol, Marganets and Pokrovsk communities suffered. Infrastructure was damaged. In the Petrykivska community of the Dnipro district, an infrastructure facility was damaged as a result of a UAV attack.
9.38 The fire caused by the Russian attack on the industrial zone in Poltava region has been extinguished. This was reported by the State Emergency Service of Ukraine. It is noted that as a result of the shelling, damage was caused at six locations in the Poltava community: warehouses, administrative buildings and a backup transformer were burning. The total area of the fires was 2,500 square meters.
9:30 At night, Russian troops attacked Ukraine with 163 Shahed-type attack UAVs and drone imitators of various types. Air defense forces shot down 89 drones, and another 51 enemy drone imitators of location losses without negative consequences.
As a result of the Russian attack, Kharkiv, Sumy, Poltava, Dnepropetrovsk, Odessa, Nikolaev and Zaporozhye regions suffered.
9.20 The International Atomic Energy Agency has requested access to the fuel tanks of the temporarily Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant to verify information about a fuel spill.
8.57 A man was injured as a result of the Russian attack in the Odessa region at night. Garages and an outbuilding were on fire, and private houses were damaged. This was reported by the State Emergency Service of Ukraine.
8.42 There were 209 combat clashes on the front over the past 24 hours. The Ukrainian Armed Forces stopped 68 enemy attacks in the Pokrovsk direction. This was reported by the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces on March 28.
7.48 The Ukrainian Armed Forces destroyed 1,860 Russian occupiers in one day. The enemy's total combat losses from 24.02.22 to 28.03.25 were approximately 910,750 people. This was reported by the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
04.28 Several explosions were heard at night in the city of Engels in the Saratov region of Russia. Social networks reported that UAVs were apparently flying near a local oil refinery.
03.56 Russian occupiers have advanced near Katerynivka and Panteleimonivka in the Donetsk region and Orlyanskoye in the Kharkiv region, Deep State reported.
00.20 Late in the evening, the Russians attacked Poltava and Zaporizhia. Poltava reported a hit, and power went out in some areas of the city. In Zaporizhia and its suburbs, the attack caused fires, and one person was injured. Houses were also damaged.
[GatewayPundit] Five Senate Democrats Head to Gitmo to Protest Detention of Tren de Aragua Terrorists and Killers – But Don’t Give a D*mn About Americans’ Safety
Five Senate Democrats are heading to Guantanamo Bay—not to demand justice for Americans terrorized by violent foreign gangs, but to protest the detention of members of the notorious Tren de Aragua cartel, a brutal criminal enterprise originating in Venezuela with ties to trafficking, extortion, and murder.
The delegation includes Sens. Jack Reed (D-RI), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Gary Peters (D-MI), Alex Padilla (D-CA), and self-proclaimed Independent Angus King of Maine, who caucuses with Democrats. The trip was led under the guise of “congressional oversight.”
This visit follows months of Democrat outrage over the use of Guantanamo Bay to detain foreign nationals with suspected ties to international terrorist organizations like Tren de Aragua.
Progressive lawmakers have echoed the radical left’s talking points, prioritizing “rights” for foreign terrorists over the safety of American citizens.
The Democrat demands include:
An immediate halt to transfers of immigrants to Guantanamo Bay.
A detailed report on past or prospective transfers to the facility.
Access to counsel for any past present, or prospective detainee.
A full accounting of government expenditures related to this detention program.
While Republicans have been pushing for tougher immigration enforcement, border security, and strong action against violent foreign gangs, Senate Democrats appear more committed to virtue-signaling and appeasing the open-borders lobby.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[KavkazUzel] A citizen of the Russian Federation and Abkhazia was detained in Sochi after publishing content that created glorified images of members of Chechen illegal armed groups, in particular, Shamil Basayev.
A citizen of Russia and the Republic of Abkhazia, born in 1988, involved in the distribution of terrorist materials on the Internet, has been detained, security forces reported.
According to the FSB, the detainee published materials on his Telegram channel justifying and promoting terrorist activity "by creating a glorified image of the leaders of illegal armed groups on the territory of the Chechen Republic from 1991 to 2006, in particular, the terrorist Shamil Basayev." A case has been opened against the detainee under Part 2 of Article 205.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (public calls for terrorist activity, public justification of terrorism or propaganda of terrorism). The penalty under this article provides for up to seven years of imprisonment, Interfax writes, citing the FSB Public Relations Center.
On August 7, 1999, more than a thousand armed fighters under the leadership of Shamil Basayev and Jordanian Amir Khattab entered Dagestan from Chechnya. Fighting continued in the republic for more than a month, including on September 5, when about 2,000 fighters again crossed the Chechen-Dagestan border and occupied villages and heights in the Novolaksky District.
At the time they called themselves the Republic of Ichkeria, which morphed into the Al Qaeda-linked Caucasus Emirate, which eventually swore allegiance to the Islamic State, changing its name to Vilyat Kavkaz. I suppose for our purposes current members should be filed under ISIS…
Only on September 15, 1999, the Minister of Defense announced that Dagestan had been completely liberated, according to the " Kavkazsky Knot " report " Militant Invasion of Dagestan (1999)."
Investigators regularly report detentions and arrests of alleged former members of Basayev and Khattab's group. In December, the court remanded in custody Khamidulla Yapov and Minkail Magamadov, accused of involvement in attacks by Basayev and Khattab's militants on servicemen in Chechnya.
Posted by: Mullah Richard ||
03/29/2025 6:46
Comments ||
Top||
#3
"Always after me Book, the poltroons!
Lurid, captioned in beautiful runes;
Sure, immutable truth,"
Added Paddy, "forsooth,
Are me Holy M------- Cartoons."
Commentary by Russian military journalist Boris Rozhin:
[ColonelCassad] The restructuring of USAID (despite Democrats' attempts to stop it through the controlled courts) will be completed by July 2025.
By September, all USAID employees will be officially dismissed.
Those USAID programs that are deemed necessary will be transferred to the direct control of the US State Department.
In general, the Trumpists' plan is simple - clean out the entire USAID bug-hole, fire the staff, take over useful programs + save several tens of billions of dollars during Trump's second term.
The Democrats understand which way the wind is blowing and are trying to slow down/stop the process, but the Trump administration and the State Department are trying to make the dismantling of USAID completely irreversible in the coming months. And even if the Democrats win the elections in 2028, they will have to essentially restore USAID from scratch when implementing the plans of Trump and Co.
In general, this is a rather tangible blow to the entire system of "soft power" of the United States. The incessant hysteria of grant-eaters deprived of funding is the best confirmation of this. However, we should not relax - other subversive programs continue to work + some of the USAID programs will be resumed after the reboot through the State Department (we are waiting for an epic battle of grant-eaters for access to the limited budget trough).
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited. by Kamran Gasanov
[REGNUM] Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan made his first visit to the United States since Donald Trump's election on March 25-26, aiming to restore relations and revive Ankara's participation in the program to produce and supply the latest F-35 fighter jets.
Trump is backing Erdogan at the expense of his main political opponent, the jailed mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu. But the looming thaw between the countries could be spoiled by Israel and Europe.
"A GOOD LEADER"
In the waning days of former US President Joseph Biden's term, the two countries were making efforts to normalize ties. Turkey voted to admit Finland and Sweden into NATO, and Biden approved the transfer of F-16 fighter jets to it.
But the relationship remained suspended. Erdogan had not forgotten that Biden had put off a phone call for months after the inauguration. Nor had he forgotten the recognition of the mass murder of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire as genocide. And besides, in four years, the Democrat had never received his Turkish counterpart in the White House.
Biden's team was initially focused on overthrowing Erdogan's government peacefully, supporting the opposition and expressing dissatisfaction with Turkey's behavior - whether in Syria, the Mediterranean or the conflict in Ukraine.
The Turks supplied UAVs and armored vehicles there, and at the same time managed to organize parallel exports to Russia, including dual-use goods, and the export of sanctioned Russian oil.
This is why the current contacts with the Americans are considered a breakthrough by the Turkish administration.
Even before Fidan's trip to the US, Erdogan had a very warm phone conversation with Trump, which his special envoy for Russia negotiations, Stephen Witkoff, called "wonderful" and transformative.
And Trump himself, at a reception in honor of the new US ambassador to Ankara, Tom Barrack, described Turkey as follows: “It’s a good country, and its leader is good.” These words are especially valuable for the Turkish leader in the days when almost half a million people who do not consider Erdogan “good” are gathering for a protest in the center of Istanbul.
Now, not only America, but even Europeans, who are fixated on “human rights,” are somehow very sluggishly reacting to the Turkish protests.
The only exception was the German Foreign Ministry, which hinted at the impossibility of Turkey's European integration with the "sitting" Imamoglu. But Minister Annalena Baerbock can be given a discount - the cabinet with her participation was disbanded literally the next day.
SANCTIONS ARE STILL IN EFFECT
The main topic of Fidan's visit, as well as Trump's call with Erdogan, was the restoration of relations and raising them to a new level. And the key issue, which serves to some extent as a test of the seriousness of intentions, is the program for the production and supply of F-35 fighters.
It was Trump who threw the country out of it during his last term. The pretext was Turkey's purchase of Russian S-400 air defense systems, their incompatibility with NATO standards and the theoretical possibility of testing these systems against the F-35 on Turkish territory with the possibility of transferring this data to Moscow.
Towards the end of Trump's term, Erdogan traveled to Washington and seemed to have reached an agreement not to use the S-400, but the restrictions imposed under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) were never lifted.
Even before Fidan's departure, Erdogan discussed lifting sanctions on participation in the "F-35 program" in a telephone conversation with Trump. The Turkish president said: "In order to develop cooperation between the two countries in the defense industry, it is necessary to lift CAATSA sanctions, complete the F-16 procurement process and complete Turkey's re-participation in the F-35 program."
According to Fox News, Ankara is ready to make a concession on the S-400 — to dismantle and transport the system to a US military base. The decision has not yet been made, but the foreign ministers have already made it clear that the parties are aiming for progress in the negotiations.
According to a Turkish Foreign Ministry source cited by Daily Sabah, Fidan and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio "have clearly demonstrated their political will to remove obstacles to cooperation in the defense industry." The US and Turkey are already planning "technical talks" on the issue.
Turkey will only be satisfied with two options: either a full return to the F-35 fighter assembly program, or compensation: over $1 billion or the supply of less modern F-16 fighters.
If Trump and Erdogan reach an agreement on fifth-generation fighters, it would be a landmark event. But even without that, the two administrations are focused on strengthening their ties.
The rise of the anti-globalist agenda and Trump's personal sympathy for Erdogan create a favorable atmosphere for Turkey's rapprochement with the United States. By the way, Erdogan is one of the few leaders who has Trump's mobile phone number.
Ankara sets itself the goal of increasing trade turnover with America from the current $50 billion to $100 billion.
It is interesting that in this matter, connections with Russia and the implementation of new projects such as the construction of the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant and the development of a gas hub will not become an obstacle.
If Trump is hinting at lifting sanctions on Russia, what incentive does he have to maintain sanctions against Turkey, imposed for trade and military-industrial cooperation with Moscow?
”SUPPORT FOR PEACE IN UKRAINE”
Beyond lifting sanctions, Trump and Erdogan must address many international issues that pose opportunities and risks to bilateral relations. Ukraine and the Middle East remain the focus.
The Hürriyet newspaper, citing diplomatic sources, reports that Fidan discussed efforts to end the war in Ukraine with Rubio. A TASS source reported that Fidan intended to raise the issue of Turkey's possible contribution to the Ukrainian settlement.
The word “contribution” sounds a bit ridiculous now – Erdogan would first like to deal with the protests in Istanbul and Ankara.
But, on the other hand, by keeping Ukraine in the focus of his attention, Erdogan is trying to create the impression that his power is inviolable. And at the same time, he is trying, as he always did, to earn domestic political points at the expense of foreign policy successes.
If the Biden administration has been putting spokes in his wheels and demanding more aid to Ukraine, then, as the State Department reports, Rubio “demands Turkish support for peace in Ukraine.” Against the backdrop of Trump’s peace talks, Erdogan should feel like a fish in water.
However, in a situation where Europe is showing growing interest in the contribution of NATO’s second army to the European security architecture and is pushing Turkey to send peacekeepers to Ukraine in exchange for ephemeral preferences, Ankara not only risks losing its status as a mediator, but also the trust of both Putin and Trump.
A CHANCE TO SOLVE THE "KURDISH QUESTION"
The common key topics in the Middle East are Syria and Palestine. There are no fewer pitfalls here. Turkey, as the closest ally of the new Turkish leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, is trying hard to get Washington to lift sanctions on Damascus.
Trump is in no hurry for now. In addition to the claims about the dominance of foreign fighters and cooperation with Hamas, there is another important nuance.
The new Syrian authorities have failed to ensure the security of ethnic and religious minorities (Christians, Druze and Alawites), for whom Trump’s closest friend, Israel, decided to stand up.
The second problematic point in Syria is the Kurds. Before his trip to Washington, Fidan said that a continued military presence in the Euphrates region is not a priority for Trump, since the positions of Iran and Russia have weakened, and the Bashar al-Assad regime is gone. “If America withdraws its troops, it will be cheaper for them,” says the Turkish minister, balancing on the edge of a threat.
Ankara is still hoping that Damascus will reach an agreement with the Kurds and integrate them into a single state, but the retention of US forces in the territories controlled by Kurdish formations still leaves a chance for the emergence of a “Syrian Kurdistan.”
On the issue of Kurdish separatism, which, by the way, is supported by Israel, Ankara and Washington have a chance to find a common language. In 2019, the Pentagon tactfully withdrew its troops from the zones of the Turkish military operation "Peace Spring" against the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), although Trump threatened to "destroy the Turkish economy."
RISK OF CLASH WITH ISRAEL
But with "Israeli expansionism" (Fidan's expression) everything is much more complicated. The Turkish minister recalled that "Israel has occupied southern Syria for almost 50 years" and under the pretext of protecting the Yazidis and Druze "is trying to expand the zone of occupation."
Türkiye is also unhappy that Israel recently abandoned the ceasefire in Gaza and launched a limited military operation.
Before Trump's inauguration, his aide made a significant contribution to achieving a ceasefire in Gaza, but now the US president is almost himself encouraging the Israeli offensive, striking the Houthis in Yemen and threatening war with Iran.
In the current situation, when Erdogan is in disarray at home, he is unlikely to do anything against Israel. However, in the long term, given that the Turkish army feels at home in Syria, and Syria has a direct border with Israel, there are risks of a head-on clash between Ankara and Tel Aviv. And they will certainly leave a heavy mark on the interaction between the United States and Turkey in all areas.
Erdogan is also very concerned about the influence of foreign lobbies on Trump. On March 24, the Turkish leader expressed hope for a “significant boost” despite “lobbyists seeking to poison cooperation between the two countries.”
Fidan had barely stepped off the plane when Greek lobbyists sent Trump a letter through the American Hellenic Institute (AHI) in which called on him to speak out “categorically against Turkey’s return to the F-35 program” and to maintain pressure on it to get rid of the S-400.
Unlike the Greeks, Israel is acting through the government. According to the newspaper Kathimerini, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu obtained assurances from Trump that deliveries of F-35s to Turkey were ruled out. After that, the Israelis calmed down, but with the intensification of contacts between the US and Turkey, they became tense again. And Netanyahu decided to remind about his request a second time, this time through Rubio.
THE ICE HAS BROKEN
If we sum up all the news from Washington, then perhaps the most important and indisputable achievement of Turkey in relations with the United States, the pinnacle of which was Fidan's visit, is that the United States, for the first time in decades, is not interfering in Erdogan's internal affairs and de facto has come out in his support in the confrontation with the opposition.
The ice has also been broken on the F-35 deal, with technical consultations underway. Fidan and Rubio discussed possible visits by their presidents. And, unlike in the Biden era, human rights concerns and cooperation with Russia should not be an obstacle.
Of course, Israel's position and actions could make adjustments: this factor greatly influences the Trump administration. Türkiye is interested in the conflict in Gaza coming to an end, but there is no progress here yet.
Success in the issue of a peaceful settlement in Ukraine depends more on Turkey itself. And if it is seriously determined to contribute to the Ukrainian settlement, then Erdogan should stay away from the provocative initiatives of French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and others like them.
Posted by: badanov ||
03/29/2025
00:00 ||
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[11163 views]
Top|| File under: Sublime Porte
#1
The blame can be laid at the feet of the general officer cabal that has refused to removed nukes from Turkey.
#3
Trump is backing Erdogan at the expense of
Thinking may the devil you know is better than the devil you don't know, backed by Hussein, Kadaffy, Mosaddeq (?), Assad (?), even possibly Mullah Omar.
[AnNahar] Leb ...The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozen flavors of Christians, plus Armenians, Georgians, and who knows what else?... must disarm Hezbollah as agreed under the terms of the November truce with Israel, the U.S. State Department said Friday, after rocket fire prompted Israel to bomb Beirut's southern suburbs for the first time since the agreement came into effect.
Israel and Beirut agreed the terms of ceasefire in November, but rockets have been fired from Lebanon twice this week, prompting Israeli air raids in return.
The Iran-backed Hezbollah has denied involvement in the rocket fire, but Israel has vowed to respond to "enforce the ceasefire."
A spokeswoman for the U.S. State Department, Tammy Bruce, indicated that Washington supports the Israeli position.
"The reason that any attacks have happened is because Lions of Islam launched rockets into Israel from Lebanon. That is a violation of the cessation of hostilities. It is a violation of the ceasefire when terrorist groups, when gangs, shoot rockets," Bruce said.
"As part of the cessation of hostilities agreement, the government of Lebanon is responsible for disarming Hezbollah, and we expect the Lebanese armed forces to disarm these Lions of Islam to prevent further hostilities," she said.
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[NewsFront] 23:59 Official summary of the Office for Documentation of War Crimes of Ukraine from 00:00 03/28/2025 to 00:00 03/29/2025.
A total of 12 facts of armed attacks by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
There were reports of a civilian being injured.
DAMAGED:
Four passenger cars,
Two residential buildings,
Three civil infrastructure facilities.
A total of 11 armed attacks in the Gorlovka direction,
One armed attack in the Yasinovataya direction.
A total of 32 units of various ammunition were fired.
22:08 Units of the Center Group of Forces are increasing pressure on the enemy’s front line in the Dnepropetrovsk direction –MAP
20:16 Veselovka liberated.
The border village of Veselovka is located on the territory of a historically Russian region – Sumy Oblast.
19:40 Units of the 7th Guards Airborne Assault Division (Mountain) knocked out enemy from the village of Malye Shcherbaki in the Zaporizhia region.
18:00 Opened criminal case in connection with the injury of an agricultural worker in the Lgovsky district of the Kursk region.
The Investigative Committee of Russia has opened a criminal case in connection with the commission of a terrorist act against the civilian population of the Kursk region (subparagraphs “a”, “b” of Part 2 of Article 205 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).
17:42 Zaporizhia direction, Novodanilovka area. UAV operators of the Vostok-Akhmat battalion continue to destroy enemy manpower.
17:30 On the fact of the repeated explosion of the gas distribution station "Sudzha" by Ukrainian servicemen, resulted in the opening of a criminal case
The Main Military Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of Russia has opened a criminal case on the grounds of a crime under paragraphs “a”, “b” of Part 2 of Article 205 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (terrorist act).
17:15 Calculation of the Pantsir-S air defense missile and gun system discovered an enemy attack UAV that was flying towards one of the settlements in the Zaporizhia region. The crew launched a missile and hit the target.
16:46 Captured serviceman of the Armed Forces of Ukraine pretended to be civilians to stay and live in Russia
Prisoner of war Vladimir Berezhnykh told how his unit was surrounded by Russian troops and retreated. The prisoner himself decided not to miss the opportunity to save his life and stay in Russia. To do this, he put on the clothes of a killed civilian and pretended to be a civilian.
15:56 Calculation of the UR-77 self-propelled mine-clearing rocket launcher of the Center group destroyed stronghold of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Krasnoarmeysk direction.
15:47 Between Russia and Ukraine is an exchange of bodies of those killed in the armed conflict
Ukraine handed over the bodies of 43 soldiers to Russia, and in response the Ukrainian Armed Forces were handed over 909 bodies.
The body exchange ratios have increased from the traditional 1:12 and 1:15 to 1:21 and indicate colossal losses for the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
15:41 Bogatyrskoe direction
Units of the Group of Forces "Vostok" continue break through the enemy's defenses, developing an offensive in the direction of Komar, Otradny and Bogatyr.
The enemy is putting up fierce resistance, trying to prevent our units from breaking through to Komar, and is intensively using artillery and attack UAVs. However, the group's units are breaking through the enemy's defenses and have advanced forward, especially to Otradnoye and Bogatyr.
In Razliv our assault forces were able to gain a foothold and are fighting in the center of the village, in the area of the school.
The enemy counterattacks, trying to rush into Constantinople in order to somehow delay the advance of our troops.
In the Alekseyevka-Andreyevka area, there are fierce head-on battles involving armored vehicles, UAVs, and artillery.
14:50 Operator of a combat drone of the Sever group destroyed a dugout with Ukrainian Armed Forces personnel in the Khar'kov region.
14:44 In the period from 12.30 to 12.50 Moscow time, air defense systems on duty destroyed two Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles: one UAV over the territory of the Kursk region and one UAV over the territory of the Belgorod region.
14:11 Russian Armed Forces units took control of the forest east of Guevo and entered Oleshnya from the north. Fighting for the farmstead began, –MAP.
13:46 From March 22 to 28, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation inflicted seven group strikes with high-precision weapons and attack unmanned aerial vehicles, which resulted in the destruction of the infrastructure of military airfields, the training center of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, command posts, assembly shops, storage and training sites for operators of attack unmanned aerial vehicles, ammunition depots, as well as temporary deployment sites of nationalists and Ukrainian armed formations.
13:45 Units of the West group of forces, as a result of active and decisive actions released the settlements Krasnoe Pervoe, Khar'kov region.
13:00 In the morning a group of Ukrainian occupiers leaked to the outskirts of Popovka, where they took refuge in a former residential building.
The operator of the GV Sever strike UAV made a targeted strike: the entire enemy assault group was added to the endlessly long lists of "missing in action." The occupiers had no chance of survival.
12:38 Units of the North group of forces during offensive operations released the settlement of Gogolevka in the Kursk region.
12:20 While performing a combat mission in the Kursk region died Hero of Russia Major Tibilov Marat Georgievich
Tibilov received the Hero of Russia star last month. He and his unit distinguished themselves in defending the Kursk region from the invasion of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
12:16 In the area of the settlement Turya in the Sumy region, FPV operators GV "Sever" attacked with kamikaze drones, a stronghold of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. They didn’t even need to use fiber-optic drones to overcome the Bukovel A-D electronic warfare system.
11:40 March 28 at about 10.20, the Kyiv regime struck using, according to preliminary information, HIMARS rockets on the Sudzha gas metering station, which resulted in a major fire and the power facility was virtually destroyed.
11:20 Sumy direction
Gogolevka in full liberated the assaults of the 51st PDP have consolidated their positions in the area of the state border and the Sudzha checkpoint.
The enemy in this area is holding Oleshnya and several ravines in semi-encirclement with the forces of the 95th Brigade.
Fighting continues in the Sumy border area (in Vladimirovka, in the area of the village of Vodolaghi, in Veselovka, Zhuravka, in the southeastern part of Basovka).
11:04 Destroyed Turkish armored vehicle in Sudzhan border area
Soldiers of the Guards Forces "North" during the liberation of the Russian land from the Ukrainian fascists destroyed most of the NATO equipment of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and the Turkish "Kirpi" was no exception.
10:16 FPV drone calculations at Rubicon Center destroyed manpower and military equipment of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the border areas of the Kursk region.
9:12 Eight unmanned aerial vehicles "Geran-2" hit the UAV production workshop and the Armed Forces of Ukraine warehouse in the village of Bogodukhov in the Khar'kov region.
8:20 Frontline report for the morning of 03/28/2025
Zaporizhzhya Front. It is reported about the advance of the Russian Armed Forces in the village of Shcherbaki. Despite counterattacks by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Russian troops were able to reach the central part of the village.
Donetsk Front. Fighting continues in the direction of Razliv. The Russian Armed Forces were able to advance north of Burlatskoye. There is also progress in the settlement of Volnoye Pole. Fighting for Vesyoloye continues.
Heavy fighting is underway in the Pokrovsk direction, which in several areas is of a counter-insurgency nature. Russian troops are repelling attempts by the Ukrainian Armed Forces to counterattack in the Kotlino area.
Chasovoyarsky direction. Here, fighting continues within the city limits and on the flanks. Over the past 24 hours, no information has been received about any changes in the LBS.
Kursk Region. Russian troops continue to push the Ukrainian Armed Forces out of the Kursk Region. There are tactical successes of the Russian Armed Forces in the Guevo area. Also, Russian troops continue to move in the direction of Oleshnya. It is reported that the Sudzha checkpoint has come under the control of Russian troops.
Belgorod Region. Russian troops continue to repel attacks by the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Demidovka and Popovka area. It is reported that the enemy is concentrating in this direction. However, the Ukrainian Armed Forces are still using small groups
. 7:26 During the past night, air defense systems on duty intercepted and destroyed 78 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles:
– 32 UAVs – over the territory of the Voronezh region,
– 19 UAVs – over the territory of the Saratov region,
– 17 UAVs – over the territory of the Kursk region,
– Six UAVs – over the territory of the Belgorod region,
– Two UAVs – over the territory of the Lipetsk region,
– One UAV each – over the territories of the Rostov and Tambov regions.
Commentary by Russian military journalist is in italics.
[ColonelCassad] New exercise against "Russian aggression". At least, that's what they say.
In Poland, on the borders of Russia and Belarus, the situation has hardly changed in recent years. The Poles are spending money on defense against the "Russian offensive that is about to be prepared" and are militarizing the bordering regions.
And from March 19 to 30, the Rozsadny Żbik - 2025 exercise is taking place in the north-eastern part of the country. The idea is that the Poles are training to defend their borders in the event of an offensive by the Russian and Belarusian Armed Forces.
According to the plan, the "Occasus" alliance (as the Russian-Belarusian tandem is called in Poland) attacks in two directions from Grodno to Elk, from Brest to Warsaw, and from Kaliningrad to Bydgoszcz.
Units from the 16th Olsztyn and 18th Siedlce mechanized divisions are involved in the exercise. In total, there are about a thousand servicemen and 100 units of military equipment.
It is curious that the 1st, 7th and 10th Combined Arms armies of the Russian Armed Forces are considered as adversaries, with weapons including the Iskander OTRK, 152mm Msta-S howitzers, 240mm BM-27 Uragan MLRS, Buk-M1 SAM systems, Ka-52, Mi-28N and Mi-24 helicopters.
The Polish command pays special attention to assessing the readiness of the defensive fortifications of the Polish troops on the Frombork-Braniewo-Bemovizna-Pakosze line. The Poles want to understand how effective the defense lines along the borders are as part of the operations Safe Podlasie and Eastern Dawn, which have been conducted since August 1.
The Polish exercises near our borders are not exactly unique. They do this on a regular basis, and the aforementioned 16th and 18th divisions are now some of the most hyped units of the Polish Armed Forces. The first is equipped with South Korean K2 tanks, and the second with Abrams tanks.
But now the Poles are specifically conducting combat training taking into account our weapons and the tactics of our actions in the SVO zone. At the same time, as part of the exercise, Polish servicemen first conduct defense, and then, according to the plan, counterattack on Russian and Belarusian cities.
Exercises on the topic of war in the Baltics and northeastern Poland have been actively underway since 2015.
[Fox4News KDFW] The National Medal of Honor Museum is set to open Tuesday in Arlington, just west of Dallas. It highlights the lives and service of Medal of Honor recipients from the Civil War to the global war on terrorism.
One of the more expansive exhibits in the museum is the "More Than a Medal" exhibit. Inside, visitors will find memorabilia and personal effects that let visitors put faces to the nation's most prestigious military award.
"That's what this place is," museum President and CEO Chris Cassidy said. "It's a place for the stories of those Medal of Honor recipients."
Another exhibit lets visitors speak with Medal of Honor recipients and ask them questions. There are over 60 recipients who are still living.
"We sit down recipients and we ask them hundreds of questions, over the course of several days with lots of cameras trained on them," Waters said. "We use AI to match the question with the most appropriate answer. We don’t use AI to put words in their mouths. So all of the answers are the words the recipients actually said." A Holocaust museum that opened in Dallas a couple of years ago did similar interviews with survivors. I believe the generated responses to questions were to include a recorded image of the survivor, 'speaking' to the audience.
[X] Leah Greenberg and Ezra Levin founded Indivisible Project right after Election Day, 2016 as a leftwing TEA Party to resist the Trump agenda, putting together a 26 page guide for how to protest effectively. They quickly monetized it, getting themselves hired to run the thing — they’re hooked directly to ActBlue and connected to the Soros Open Society Foundations, probably among others. The couple are entirely products of the Progressive NGO web. Today is supposed to be a big day of “spontaneous” attacks on Tesla cars and dealerships, dear Reader, so keep an eye out.
WATCH: Leader of Soros-backed Indivisible Movement compares their Trump protests to Mao’s “Thousand Flowers Movement.”
This communist push led to the murder, imprisonment, and persecution of countless people. pic.twitter.com/gjiT7GvfL1
Update at 11:45 a.m. ET from Fox News — be situationally aware; if you see something, say something; and please throw a cheap WalMart cover over your Tesla if you have one:
#2
"We should have been harder on them. Mostly, we just ignored them.'
This was the comment of one of the surviving leaders of Jews who fought the Nazis, from within Poland, during WWII -- It was from an interview ~1970 discussing those Jews who refused to face their reality, for one self-serving rationale or another -- like these two loathesome creatures above.
The question was , with the benefit of hindsight how he would do things differently were he to be forced to deal with a similar set of circumstances again in the future.
By early afternoon, crowds ranging from a few dozen to hundreds of protesters had flocked to Tesla locations in New Jersey, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Maryland, Minnesota and the automaker’s home state of Texas. Pictures posted on social media accounts showed protesters brandishing signs such as “Honk if you hate Elon” and “Fight the billionaire broligarchy.”
#7
Delivered donuts to the local dealership. Our area is mostly Grantifa. It's the outside Transtifa types we're looking out for.
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
03/29/2025 16:34
Comments ||
Top||
#8
Search “Tesla Takedown” — dozens to hundreds are the numbers reported at protests around the world — and mostly dozens at that, as far as I can tell. Maybe the crowds will grow after dark, when Molotov cocktails are so much more dramatic, and the Black Bloc come out to play in their dear little destructive way.
#9
Here in Idaho the lefties were outnumbered about 3:1 by defenders who self-organized on X. (No violence; I'm assuming potential troublemakers understand the %age of concealed carriers here.)
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.
...
...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. In Anatolia did Recep Bey a stately Presidential Palace decree, that has 1100 rooms. That's 968 more than in the White House, 400 more than in Versailles, and 325 more than Buckingham Palace, so you know who's really more important...
..not a terrorist organization, even though it kidnaps people, holds hostages, and tries to negotiate by executing them,...
..not a terrorist organization, even though it kidnaps people, holds hostages, and tries to negotiate by executing them,...
..not a terrorist organization, even though it kidnaps people, holds hostages, and tries to negotiate by executing them,...
...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. In Anatolia did Recep Bey a stately Presidential Palace decree, that has 1100 rooms. That's 968 more than in the White House, 400 more than in Versailles, and 325 more than Buckingham Palace, so you know who's really more important...
... al-Qaeda's tentacle in East Africa...
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...
...hereditary Iraqi holy man and leader of a political movement in Iraq. He had his hereditary rival al-Khoei assassinated shortly after the holy rival's appearance out of exile in 2003. Formerly an Iranian catspaw, lately he gagged over some of their more outlandish antics, then went back to catspawry when the check cleared...
...home of the original Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade....
[GatewayPundit] Five Senate Democrats Head to Gitmo to Protest Detention of Tren de Aragua Terrorists and Killers – But Don’t Give a D*mn About Americans’ Safety
...The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozen flavors of Christians, plus Armenians, Georgians, and who knows what else?...
One of the more expansive exhibits in the museum is the "More Than a Medal" exhibit. Inside, visitors will find memorabilia and personal effects that let visitors put faces to the nation's most prestigious military award.
