The European elections are the most significant news of the day. Marine Le Pen (Front National) and Nigel Farage (UKIP) are probably the biggest winners. Ms. Le Pen has reached out to Beppe Grillo of M5S in Italy, who up until now has resisted all involvement with EU-skeptic parties in other countries.
Meanwhile, in Paris, two Jewish men were attacked and badly beaten outside a synagogue.
In other news, the first edible insect farm in the United States opened in Youngstown, Ohio.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to C. Cantoni, Fjordman, Gaia, Insubria, JP, Nick, Steen, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.
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Bankers Exhale as Tea Party Power Fizzles
Banks are breathing a sigh of relief after established GOP incumbents bested a handful of Tea Party challengers at the polls recently.
Industry sources said the establishment wins improve Republican odds of retaking the Senate, which would in turn lead to a friendlier climate for the long-beleaguered sector. But some note that the Tea Party has left a mark on the Republican Party, presenting a challenging landscape for the industry.
The Tea Party movement can trace its roots back to fury about bailouts and banks, but the force that pulled the Republican Party right in recent years is finding less success at the polls recently.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
FBI Director Tells ABC News Whether the US Has the Goods on China
FBI director James Comey sat down for an exclusive one-on-one interview with ABC News today during which Comey spoke at length about the charges announced against Chinese military officials for alleged hacking of U.S. businesses.
Asked about the economic impact of hacking, Comey said, “The amount of theft that’s going on is simply staggering.”
“There’s only two types of corporations — big corporations — in America. Those who have been hacked by the Chinese, or those who don’t yet know they’ve been hacked by the Chinese,” Comey said. “It is sapping the lifeblood of a lot of these companies, and it’s about our ability to compete and about the ability of our people to get and keep good jobs.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
‘I Am a Living God and Will Destroy Everything’ Wrote Mass Killer Elliot Rodger in Manifesto
In a 141-page manifesto entitled My Twisted World, detailing his life from his birth in a London hospital, Elliot Rodger railed against women and gave details of the massacre he was planning
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
MTV Partners With CAIR Despite Islamist Agenda
MTV is including the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a U.S. Muslim Brotherhood entity with a history of radicalism, in its “world-class coalition of expert partners” for a campaign to combat discrimination and inequality. CAIR has a history of tarring its opponents by calling them “anti-Muslim” or “Islamophobes.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Six Legs Tasty: First Edible Insect Farm Opens in US
A TWITCHING mass of European house crickets clings to a maze of meshed cardboard in a tent about the size of a minivan. They are inside their new home, an abandoned warehouse in Youngstown, Ohio, where they will prosper until being killed, ground into “flour” and baked into cookies and tortilla chips.
These are the first insects in the US to be farmed for human consumption. Big Cricket Farms, the company running the warehouse, is working with insect food start-up Six Foods in Boston, who will make the cricket chips (pictured right) — which they call “chirps” — and cookies. They are among many adventurous eaters hoping to carve out a niche for a protein-rich, environmentally friendly food source that could transform the modern diet.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Almost Half of Czechs Think EU Vote is ‘Useless’
A poll for Czech TV after the country’s EU election closed Saturday found that 48% of Czechs thought the vote was “useless” and “will not change anything”. The researchers linked the result with a record low turnout and said Czechs’ basic identification with the EU was at stake.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Austria’s Conservatives Win; Far-Right Advance
Maddy French, the Guardian’s correspondent in Vienna, has the Austrian results:
The race to top spot between the two major parties in Austria was won by the conservative Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP) who got 27.3% of the vote, beating their coalition partners the Social Democrats (SPÖ) who ended with 24.2%.
But as predicted, Heinz-Christian Strache’s far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ) made significant gains, ending on 20.5% (+7.8 on 2009) despite changing their top candidate just weeks before the election following a scandal over racist remarks.
“We are really happy and proud. It shows that the people have had enough of the European politics, that it is not the way the Austrians want to see the country working,” said Johann Gudenus, FPÖ Deputy Chairman.
| — Hat tip: Gaia | [Return to headlines] |
Belgium: N-VA in Pole-Position, Vlaams Belang Whipped
The Flemish nationalists of N-VA are taking a big leap forward in most places according to the first, partial election results in the Flemish and federal elections. The party of Bart De Wever fetches a symbolic 30 percent of the votes or more in different polling stations as the first results are coming in. Far-right Vlaams Belang posts major losses in various polling stations, sometimes losing 50 percent of the votes.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Israel’s prime minister accused European politician leaders of “hypocrisy” for not denouncing loudly enough a suspected anti-Semitic attack in Brussels, as Belgian police released images of the alleged killer
Benjamin Netanyahu set himself on a collision with European leaders on Sunday by accusing them of “hypocrisy” for allegedly failing to adequately condemn a suspected anti-Semitic attack in Brussels that killed four people, including two Israelis.
Police in Belgium were still hunting for a lone gunman who escaped the scene after carrying out Saturday’s deadly attack on the Jewish museum in the heart of one of Brussels’ most fashionable districts…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Booing and Turned Backs at Sweden Democrat Speech
Sweden Democrat leader Jimmie Åkesson was met by loud booing and many turned backs when he held a speech in Stockholm on Saturday.
A boisterous crowd of roughly 1 200 people had gathered to listen to Åkesson’s speech in Stockholm. Many turned their backs in disapproval of the party’s political standpoints and the police had to block off the square during the speech in order to prevent the crowd from becoming unruly.
One person was arrested for assaulting a police officer and ten people were reported and removed from the premises for disturbing a public assembly.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
EU Elections 2014: Who is Marine Le Pen?
Marine Le Pen, 45, took over the Front National (FN) her father founded in 2007 and today hopes a strong showing in European elections will turn the party into the most powerful anti-EU and immigration force on the continent.
Her detractors nicknamed her “the clone” or “la peste blonde” — the blonde plague — a play on words with the Black Death and “la peste brune” — a reference to the occupying Nazi troops and their brown shirts.
But today, she claims to have detoxified the FN, taken the “extreme” out of extreme-Right and succeeded in forcing her anti-European, anti-euro and anti-immigration agenda onto the French and EU political mainstream.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
European Elections 2014: Live European Elections: National Front ‘Tops Vote’
Follow our live updates of the European Election night as the results and the reaction comes in from across France and the rest of the continent. Will it be a night when the Eurosceptics rejoice? Refresh page regularly to update…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
European Elections: Live: 2014 European Election Results
Welcome to the Spectator’s liveblog of the European elections results. We’ll bring you results, analysis and political reaction throughout the night. This page will automatically reload every minute.
UK: YouGov’s Peter Kellner and Sky News calling it for Ukip. High turnout. BNP appears to have gone into meltdown with Nick Griffin saying he’ll lose his seat…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
European Elections: Front National Wins European Parliament Elections in France
String of sensational results rocks EU with far right triumphant in France, Denmark and Austria, and the hard left topping exit polls in Greece
France’s nationalist extreme right turned European politics upside down on Sunday, trouncing the governing Socialists and the mainstream conservatives in the European parliamentary elections which across the continent returned an unprecedented number of MEPs hostile to, or sceptical about, the European Union in a huge vote of no confidence in Europe’s political elite…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Flemish Separatist Party Ahead in Belgium
(AGI) Brussels, May 25 — Surveys put the Flemish separatist party ahead in Belgium’s national elections. Projections based on 15 percent of the votes counted gave Bart de Wever’s New Flemish Alliance between 32 and 34 percent of the vote in Flanders. Prime Minister Elio di Rupo’s Socialists got 30 percent of votes in the French-speaking south of the country.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
France: Two Jewish Men Attacked, Badly Hurt Outside Paris Synagogue
Brothers hospitalized in serious condition after brutal assault in suburb of Creteil; attackers fled on foot and bicycle
Two Jewish men were assaulted Saturday night outside a synagogue in Créteil, a Paris suburb.
According to Paris police, the two men, who are brothers, were attacked by two other men, one of whom fled on foot and the other on a bicycle.
The two men, who were reportedly beaten with brass knuckles, suffered multiple contusions and were hospitalized and listed in serious but not life-threatening condition.
French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve, who noted the victims were “of the Jewish faith,” condemned the attack with “utmost severity” on Sunday.
On Saturday night, hours after a deadly shooting at the Jewish Museum in Brussels which claimed four lives, including those of two Israeli tourists, Cazeneuve announced that he had instructed authorities to strengthen security at Jewish sites throughout France.
Cazeneuve pledged that French authorities would work to fight racism and anti-Semitism and said that police would do their best to apprehend the perpetrators.
The attack was condemned by French officials, including President François Hollande.
| — Hat tip: Steen | [Return to headlines] |
France: Two Jewish Men Are Attacked Outside Paris Synagogue
(AGI) Paris, May 25 — Two Jewish men were attacked on Saturday night outside a synagogue in the Parisian suburb of Creteil, Val-de-Marne, Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneveu announced. He strongly condemned the attack.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
French Troops Battle Muslim Rebels in Central African Republic Town
(Reuters) — French peacekeeping troops in Central African Republic used helicopter gunships and mortars on Saturday to fight Muslim rebels at a bridge in the town of Bambari, northeast of the capital Bangui, a Reuters witness said…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Germany: A Heated Debate: Are Climate Scientists Being Forced to Toe the Line?
After joining a controversial lobby group critical of climate change, meteorologist Lennart Bengtsson claims he was shunned by colleagues, leading him to quit. Some scientists complain pressure to conform to consensus opinion has become a serious hindrance in the field.
News that Lennart Bengtsson, the respected former director of Germany’s Max Planck Institute for Meteorology, had joined the Global Warming Policy Foundation (GWPF), sent shockwaves through the climate research community. GWPF is most notable for its skepticism about climate change and its efforts to undermine the position of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The tremors his decision sent through the scientific community shocked Bengtsson.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Germany: Socialist Candidate Schulz Shows Confidence in EC President Race
BERLIN, May 25 (Xinhua) — Martin Schulz, top candidate of European socialists, showed confidence in his bid for the post of European Commission (EC) president after Germany’s election to the European Parliament (EP) ended on Sunday…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Insults Fly as Euro Campaigning Ends
Campaigning for Sunday’s European elections came to an end on Friday with the leaders of the main parties pulling out all the stops in a final bid to convince voters.
Prime Minister and Democratic Party (PD) leader Renzi advised the electorate not to vote for “clowns and buffoons”. In an obvious reference to ex-comic and leader of the 5-Star Movement (M5S) Beppe Grillo he warned: “We love this country and we won’t leave it to those who want to destroy it and who only know how to say “f… off”.
Meanwhile, the clown, Grillo, was in particularly fine form, ratcheting up his language to an even more hysterical pitch than usual. Renzi was nothing but a big mouth, a blowhard, and “a moron who went to lick that German’s fat arse”, in a less than gallant reference to Chancellor Angela Merkel. He was about to suffer a political “lupara bianca”, a term that refers to a mafia execution where the body is never found. Renzi was like ex-Premier Enrico Letta and Rigor Montis (former-PM Mario Monti). “They are failures, and as with mafiosi, those who fail are punished.” His incendiary language came in for some criticism, although nothing like as much as his earlier comment that Berlusconi’s dog, fluffy white Dudù, should be handed over to vivisectionists. For the first time ever, Grillo was forced to backtrack. It was just a joke: “I am against vivisection and adore my dog Delirio.” Politics is a tough game but there are limits: you can joke about your fellow political leaders being executed mafia-style. You can make vulgar, sexist references to European leaders. But threaten someone’s little doggy and you’re in trouble. Undaunted, the loveable grey moptop went on to threaten (not for the first time) to lead a “March on Rome” next week to demand new national elections and the resignation of President Giorgio Napolitano, if the M5S comes out on top in the elections.
Not to be outdone, Forza Italia (FI) leader Berlusconi (presumably the “buffoon”) also invoked Mussolini’s 1922 March on Rome, but said that it would be his loyal fans who would be heading for the capital. He also called Grillo a “murderer, who killed three friends”, referring to a 1980 incident when the M5S leader was behind the wheel of a car involved in an accident in which three people died. Grillo was convicted of manslaughter, which is why he has never stood for election. The leader of FI — which was trailing in third place before the ban on polls came into force two weeks before the election — has also called his opponent “an aspiring dictator” and repeatedly likened him to Hitler. On one occasion he compared both Grillo and his sidekick Gianroberto Casaleggio to the Nazi dictator, then threw in Stalin, Pol Pot and Robespierre for good measure. Hyperbole aside, many would agree with at least one of his comments on the M5S leader: “Grillo isn’t funny any more, he’s scary.”
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Islamic Connection to Brussels Shooting?
One man has been arrested, and remains in custody, but he is not thought to have a direct link with the actual killings. Authorities strongly suspect Al Qaeda-linked Islamic radicals are behind the attack.
| — Hat tip: Nick | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Commissioner, Riva Meet Over ILVA Management, Future
Galletti says Italian government ‘has clear ideas’ for plant
(ANSA) — Milan, May 23 — Claudio Riva said Friday that his company’s management will respond Monday to ILVA Special Commissioner Enrico Bondi, who raised industrial and environmental concerns of the giant steel plant on Friday.
The pair met in Milan to discuss the company’s business plan and “exchanged mutual information,” Riva, whose family owns the troubled steel plant in southern Italy, said later.
But if ILVA is ultimately forced to close, that action would threaten the steel industry in Italy, he warned.
“Without a future for ILVA, I think there is little future for Italy in the steel industry,” said Riva, son of company founder Emilio Riva who died in April.
The Riva empire includes the troubled ILVA plant, one of the largest steelworks in Europe.
The ILVA plant has been at the centre of controversy for years over serious health concerns, culminating in a Save ILVA plan by the government more than one year ago that set out measures to help the plant survive and preserve as many as 20,000 jobs during environmental clean-up.
Part of the Taranto plant was seized by judges to cover some of the costs of cleaning it up and meeting damage claims related to high levels of cancer in the area.
The appointment of Bondi as special commissioner to oversee management and clean-up of ILVA was part of that plan.
On Friday, Environment Minister Gian Luca Galletti said the Italian government “has clear ideas” for ILVA. “We already have approved the environmental plan: we will do everything to carry it out,” Galletti said in Florence.
Meanwhile, prosecutors in Taranto said Friday they are investigating concerns that carpenters working at the plant have suffered incidents of thyroid cancer ..
That announcement came as a Taranto court on Friday found 23 former ILVA managers guilty in connection with a wave of asbestos and other carcinogen-linked deaths in the southern Italian port city. The longest terms were handed down on former execs of State-owned Italsider, Ilva’s precursor, including nine years for former plant chief Giovanbattista Spallanzani.
Italsider and Ilva have long been accused of causing the suspiciously high cancer death rate in the Puglia port.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Air France ‘Free to Pull Out of Alitalia’, Says Intesa
Italian carrier close to link-up with Etihad
(ANSA) — Milan, May 23 — Air France-KLM is free to sell its stake in Alitalia if it is not happy with its expected link-up with Etihad, the CEO of Intesa Sanpaolo bank, the Italian carrier’s biggest stakeholder, said Friday.
Air France-KLM, which used to be Alitalia’s biggest shareholder but saw its stake shrink to around 7% after opting not to take part in a capital increase last year, has expressed reservations about the deal that could see Etihad investing as much as 500 million euros to take up a big chunk of the troubled airline.
“Air France can say goodbye to Alitalia if it wants to,” said Carlo Messina, the CEO of Intesa Sanpaolo, which has a stake of over 20% in the airline. “We organized a financial operation aimed at involving Air France in the capital increase, but they left us in trouble, as we (the other stakeholders) had to subscribe to the whole capital increase.
“Now they can go. If they go, they go. I tried in every way to bring them in”. Etihad’s conditions to invest in Alitalia, including demands for cuts in the Italian airline’s workforce and its debt, have reportedly held up completion of the deal.
Air France-KLM recently said that it thought Etihad’s demands looked stricter than what the French-Dutch carrier had requested last fall in exchange for an increased investment.
Another senior Intesa Sanpaolo executive, Chairman of the Management Board Gian Maria Gros-Pietro, denied reports Friday that Etihad had responded to a proposal for a letter of intent from Alitalia for an agreement.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Italy Recycled 73.6% of the Steel it Consumed in 2013
Recrea calculates enough steel saved for 23 aircraft carriers
(ANSA) — Rome, May 16 — Italy recycled 73.6% the amount of steel it consumed in 2013 for a total of 320,231 tons, the recycling non-profit Ricrea (recreate) said Friday.
The weight of the steel saved was equivalent to 23 aircraft carriers the size of the Italian navy’s Giuseppe Garibaldi.
Saving steel rubbish like food tins, aerosol cans, industrial drums and crown caps spared the use of 608,439 tons of iron, 192,138 tons of carbon and 573,213 tons of CO2, the group calculated. Packaging waste collected amounted to 368,575 tons, equal to the weight of about 4,600 railway locomotives.
As of 2013, recycling had expanded to reach 80% of Italian residents.
Geographically, the greatest steel recycling gains were seen in central and southern Italy, up 21.7% and 17.5% respectively.
Steel is the most recycled material in Europe, as it is easy to separate from other refuse and is 100% recyclable for an unlimited number of times.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Japanese Pop Star Weds Italian Barman in Bari
‘Strictly private’ wedding for couple
(ANSA) — Polignano a Mare, May 23 — Japanese pop star Hikaru Utada wed Italian barman Francesco Calianno in a discreet ceremony on Friday in Polignano a Mari, near the southern city of Bari.
Protected by bodyguards and umbrellas, Utada arrived to the Santa Maria Assunta cathedral shielded from on-looking paparazzi, reporters and uninvited guests. Strict instructions on ceremony and party behavior were required by guests, which included a ban on photography and sharing wedding information to any news or reporting outlets. Father Gaetano Luca, Polignano’s parish priest, presided over the ceremony. Celebrations follows on Friday evening at the San Lorenzo abbey in Fasano.
The 31-year-old pop star announced her engagement to the 23-year-old Calianno in February on her official website. The couple met at the Bulgari Hotel in London, where Caliano works. This is the second marriage for Utada.
Born in New York, Utada made her debut at 16 with the album First Love, which with seven million copies sold still holds the record in Japan.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Le Pen Appeals to Grillo to ‘Join Us’
Front National leader says Euroskeptics must join forces
(see related) (ANSA) — Nanterre, May 25 — Marine Le Pen on Sunday urged Beppe Grillo’s anti-establishment 5-Star Movement (M5S) to start cooperating with her far-right, Euroskeptic Front National (FN), which is poised to be France’s top party in the European elections.
Grillo is extremely critical of the European Union and wants a referendum on whether Italy should stop having the euro as it currency.
But his Internet-based M5S has so far spurned links to other Euroskeptic parties, unlike Italy’s regionalist, anti-immigrant Northern League, which has opened up a partnership with the FN.
“Join us,” Le Pen said in response to a question from ANSA about what she had to say to Grillo’s movement.
“Everyone who is in favour of liberty and independence and against the European Union must join us.
“The European Union must give back what it has stolen, with weakness, cowardice and betrayal by the European elite. It must give back sovereignty to the people. We have to build another Europe”.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Netanyahu Blasts Europe as 2 Israelis Killed in Belgium
Israel on Sunday blamed rising anti-Semitism for a Brussels shooting attack which killed three people, including two Israelis, lashing out at Europe for “hypocrisy” in its attitude to the Jewish state.
As officials confirmed the deaths of two Israelis and a French national in Saturday’s attack on the Jewish museum in the Belgian capital, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was quick to hail the visiting Pope Francis for his “determined stance” against anti-Semitism.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
New Europe Still Resourceful, Italy at Risk
Study, imminent exaustion gas, carbon, petroleum resources
(ANSA) — TRIESTE — A striking energy crisis caused by the impending extinction of non-renewable natural resources is conceivably close in most of Western Europe, with negative highs in France, Italy, Great Britain and, to a lower extent, Germany, according to a study produced by the Global Sustainability Institute (Gsi), consulted by ANSA New Europe. These problems regard to a lower extent the region of New Europe (Central, Eastern Europe, the Balkans), which still hides important reserves of carbon, natural gas and petroleum. In the study, which was elaborated by gathering the most recent data about non-renewable resources and their current consumption, it is underlined that in Western Europe, with the exclusion of the Netherlands and Denmark (10-30 years of reserve left) and Norway (more than 100 years), the natural gas reserves would dry out within the next five years at current rhythms of consumption. In the East, Albania has the best prospects (more than 100 years worth of natural gas reserves), followed by Serbia and Ukraine (10-30 years), Poland and Croatia (5-10 years). The outlook is negative for petroleum as well. The European oil reserves will dry out within two years in the majority of the continent, with the exception of Denmark (10-30 years of reserve), Great Britain (2-10 years), and Norway (more than 100 years), according to Gsi report. On the other hand, in Belarus, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Croatia the petroleum reserves are likely to endure another 10-30 years, in Albania 30-100 years. While Germany should be able to count on more than 250 years of carbon reserves, it is likely that the majority of Western Europe will exaust its reserves within the next 5-10 years. The future of the extraction therefore is in Eastern and Central Europe.
The reserves estimated by GSI in Slovakia, Slovenia, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Greece should guarantee another 30-100 years of extraction, with best predictions for Poland (34 years), Bulgaria (73 years), and over 100 year for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Albania, Ukraine and Belarus. In Russia, it is likely that the petroleum reserves will last another 50 years, while natural gas should last for another 100 years, with carbon reserves exctinction predicted in 500 years, as underlined in a note added to the study document. In the same note, the researchers indicated that Italy has less than one year of gas and carbon reserves left, and one year of petroleum.
The Great Britain is in a slightly better situation (5,2 years left of petroleum, 4,5 of carbon, 3 of gas). As for Germany, while carbon reserves are still rich, the same cannot be stated for petroleum (less than one year left) and natural gas (2 years). The director of GSI, Aled Jones, pointed out that the maps relative to the study show the “vulnerability of some parts of Europe and design the image of European economy in high debt and ever more under pressure of the rising global prices of energy”, “It is of vital importance that those who determine the European political agenda comprehend our economic fragility”, Jones added in a note, “The Eu is becoming ever more dependent on its neighbours rich in resources, like Norway and Russia. This trend will continue unless decisive innovative actions are taken, aiming at wind, waves, solar energy”.
The Italian researcher at the Institute for Economic Research on Firms and Growth (CERIS) within the Italiabn National Research Council (CNR) and one of the collaborators in the GSI study, Irene Monasterolo, told ANSA that the study “aims at informing policy-makers about the undisputable impact the limited nature of non-renewable resources has on the socio-economic development”. Monasterolo underlined that there was “urgency for action” at a political level in terms of supporting “green” investments, in order to guarantee for a more resilient resource management, and thus the quality of life of the future generations and of the Planet”.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Poland: The Fairy Tale of Wojtek, The Bear Who Became a Soldier
Puppy adopted by a lieutenant. krakow dedicated a statue to him
He was good, soft , cuddly. His name was Wojtek. He was born in Persia but he loved the Poles, he loved swimming in the Adriatic Sea and then retired to Scotland. He was afraid of braying donkeys, but endured the jokes of a mischievous monkey.
He liked wrestling with his soldier friends, but was always ready to help them carry the heavy boxes full of ammunition.
He also had some bad habits: he was very fond of eating, especially honey, he used to drink beer and vodka and he liked cigarettes, though he used to eat them. A true fairy tale in the dramatic years of World War II. A motherless bear cub who ends up in a field near Tehran among Polish civilians evacuated along with the soldiers led by General Wadysaw Anders. This happened in 1942. He was given the name of Wojtek, a diminutive of Wojciech, by a girl. Irena Bokiewicz. Three months later he can no longer stay there, so lieutenant Florczykowski brings him to the 22nd Artillery Supply Company, where on August 22, 1942, he is adopted by the soldier Piotr Prendysz and by his comrades.
Wojtek had lost his mother’s love in the Iranian mountains and he tried to be loved by the men who would bring him with them in Syria, Palestine, Italy and finally in Britain. This teddy bear was inseparable from his friend Piotr. When he is still a cub, he’s cuddled by the soldiers and becomes their mascot. When he grows up and becomes a bear, no one among the soldiers can abandon the “puppy”, so he’s also accepted by the officers and then he leaves, along with the soldiers of Polish II Corps, led by Anders and called to fight in Italy. One day Wojtek, watching his men friends, discovers that he can be useful and becomes a tireless transporter of big crates full of artillery shells: he carries them using his front legs as well as men do using their arms, charging and then discharging the trucks of the 22nd Company. “Wojtek was a continuous source of affection and joy, he was our true friend, every time we came back from the frontline he used to celebrate and played with us, and after each action he kept us company”, former official Wojciech Narbski says.
Professor Narbski, internationally renowned scientist and professor emeritus of the prestigious Jagiellonian University in Krakow, is today 89 yo and he’s the last surviving soldier of the 22nd Company. The story of the soldier Wojtek ends with the end of the war and the demobilization of Anders’ army. He’s already become the symbol of the 22nd Company: a bear carrying an artillery shell. His farewell to Piotr and to his friends on November 15, 1947: Wojtek arrives at Edinburgh Zoo, where he soon becomes a star.
Wojtek died on December 2, 1963 , at the age of 22, 5 of which spent in the army. This beloved bear is remembered in a little book written by Geoffrey Morgan and Wieslaw Antoni Lasocki and in a comic book translated in several languages and addressed to children, “How Wojtek the bear became a soldier” (downloadable from the Internet), thanks to a Italo-Polish school partnership project between the institute IIS “Paolini Cassiano “ in Imola, promoted by Professor Angela Riccomi, and the school “Skol Zespol Tekstylno — Handlowych” in Zagan. There is also a docu-film made by the BBC and TV Polska. The city of Krakow will pay a tribute to him with a statue on May 18, in the 70th anniversary of the victory of Polish II Corps at Monte Cassino: this statue is not the first and will not be the last one.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Police Seek Public’s Help in Identifying Shooter at Jewish Museum of Belgium
Police are asking for the public’s help in identifying the suspect in the shooting at the Jewish Museum of Belgium. Two women and a man were killed in Saturday’s attack, all struck by bullets in the face or throat.
Belgium’s federal police planned to post photos of the suspected shooter as well as a video of the crime scene by Sunday afternoon. The attack killed an Israeli couple and a French woman and left one Belgian man injured.
At a news conference on Sunday, deputy prosecutor Ine Van Wymersch said the suspect “probably acted alone, was armed and well-prepared.” She added that the fourth victim in the attack “is still alive but in a very critical condition.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Political Earthquake in France as Far Right Triumphs in EU Vote
(PARIS) — France suffered a political earthquake on Sunday as the far-right National Front topped the polls in European elections with an unprecedented haul of one in every four votes cast, exit polls indicated.
Average results from five polling institutes pointed to the anti-immigration, anti-EU party led by Marine Le Pen taking 24-25 percent of the popular vote and around a third — between 23 and 25 — of France’s 74 seats in the European Parliament.
The mainstream right Union for a Popular Movement was beaten into second place with a projected 20-21 percent score and the ruling Socialist Party was left languishing in third place with just 14-15 percent.
The result is the highest score ever obtained in a nationwide election by the National Front (FN) and follows breakthrough gains made by the once pariah party in municipal elections earlier in the year.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Pro-European Parties Top Dutch EU Vote, Wilders’ Eurosceptics Equal 2nd
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) — The pro-European Christian Democratic party topped the Dutch vote for the European Parliament in the Netherlands, with the far-right Freedom Party of Eurosceptic politician Geert Wilders in equal second place, news agency ANP reported.
According to a preliminary count, the Christian Democrats will have 5 of the 26 Dutch seats in the European Parliament, while Wilders’ party and the centrist pro-European Democrats 66 party will each have four seats.
The electoral commission will not publish the definitive result until later this week.
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Prosecutor: Albanians Hold Heroin Market in Switzerland
Geneva cantonal prosecutor Yves Bertosa urged Albanian authorities to take certain measures to rectify the image that Europe and the world have about their citizens.
Bertosa, as reported by Albanian daily “Presheva jonë”, said that “Albania is European Colombia”. Speaking about the image of Albanians in Switzerland he said that Albanians have their “bad” sides, pointing out that “Albanian gangs hold the heroin market in Switzerland in their hands”.
“The smuggling network consists mostly of people coming from Albania and Kosovo and their mafia is the most active,” said Bertosa stressing that Albanian authorities would have to take measures to improve the image that Europe and the world have about them.
He said that Albania is a country that has “sunk in corruption” and in which “organized crime is at a high level”.
“We consider Albanians in our country as a community that is important and well integrated in our society,” said the prosecutor, noting that they are freedom-loving, working, but despite that, he said, they are “not angels”.
In addition to drug trafficking, they are involved in the “sex industry, trafficking, cigarette smuggling and car theft. This is why Albanian and Kosovo authorities, countries sunk in corruption and organized crime, have to do more to combat these phenomena in order to improve the image, not only of their countries, but also Albanians in Switzerland and the diaspora,” said Bertosa.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Syriza Party Leads Greece Exit Polls for EU Elections
(AGI) Athens, May 25 — The initial results of exit polls for the EU Parliament elections in Greece gave the opposition Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA), led by Alexis Tsipras, a 3 percent lead over the country’s governing New Democracy Conservatives. Tsipras’s party garnered 26 to 30 percent of the vote against the 23 to 27 percent for Prime Minister Antonis Samaras’s New Democracy. The neo-Nazi Golden Dawn won between 8 and 10 percent, while the centre-left Elia or Olive Tree, which absorbed Evangelos Venizelos’s PASOK, gained between 7 and 9 percent. Both the KKE Communists and the populist centre-left liberals of To Potami won 5 to 7 percent of the vote. The right-wing Independent Greeks followed at 3.5 to 5 percent, and the far-right Laos trailed at 1.5 to 2.5 percent.
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Terrorist’s ‘Proud’ Sister Quits France ‘For Jihad’
She once said she was proud of her brother for fighting ‘until the end’ and now the sister of French terrorist Mohamed Merah, who was behind a deadly killing spree in 2012 is believed to have left France and joined the holy war in Syria.
Who is Souad Merah?
Described as a “potential terrorist”, she is the 35-year-old sister of Mohamed Merah, who gunned down seven people in and around the south western city of Toulouse in 2012 before being killed in a shootout with police.
She has long been suspected of helping her 23-year-old brother, the self-proclaimed Al-Qaeda-inspired gunman, carry out the murders that included three Jewish children and a rabbi in front of their school in Toulouse. She has never been charged in connection with the attacks.
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Two ‘Eco’ Tankers Embarked for Italian Shipping Company
Hyundai tankers for DIS save 6-7 tonnes of fuel per day
(ANSA) — Genoa, May 23 — Italian petroleum tanker specialist D’Amico International Shipping (DIS) on Friday announced the launch of two state-of-the-art, fuel-saving “eco” tankers for its fleet. The two tankers, built at Hyundai Vanashin Shipyard in Vietnam, have a special hull shape and propulsion efficiency that DIS said permits bunker fuel savings of six to seven tonnes per day compared to the global average among existing medium range tankers. The ships fall 31.5% below the energy efficiency reference line set by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), a United Nations specialized agency for the safety and security of shipping, and prevention of pollution. The ships also conform to future international environmental regulations due to come online a decade from now, with an Energy Design Index (EEDI) that falls well within IMO phase-in 3 requirements for vessels built after January 1, 2025.
“These vessels will allow significant bunker cost-savings and a considerable reduction of CO2 emissions,” said Chief Executive Marco Fiori.
“We are actually seeing a constantly growing demand from oil-majors and leading market players for these types of ships,” Fiori added.
Both ships have already been booked with long-term contracts with a global leader in the refinery sector at “extremely profitable daily rates”, DIS said in a company statement.
The contracts are for two and three years, respectively. The vessels, the MT High Sun and MT High Fidelity, have a deadweight tonnage (dwt) — meaning the ship’s maximum permissible weight summing cargo, fuel, ballast water, fresh water, provisions and crew — of 50,000 tonnes.
One has been delivered to Eco Tankers Ltd., a Malta-based company in which DIS holds a 33% share, and the other is due to be delivered in the third quarter to the Irish DIS subsidiary D’Amico Tankers Limited.
D’Amico Tankers Limited has a fleet of 38.8 double-hull tankers, between owned and chartered vessels, with an average age of 5.8 years.
D’Amico Tankers has shipbuilding contracts for a total of 11 new “Eco design” tankers.
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UK, France to Run Out of Oil, Coal, Gas in Few Years
Bulgaria will have run out of coal in 34 years, while Britain will have no oil, coal and gas reserves in just over five years, researchers have warned.
A report by the Global Sustainability Institute said shortages would increase dependency on Norway, Qatar and Russia. France fares even worse, according to the report, with less than a year to go before it runs out of all three fossil fuels. Germany, it was claimed, has 250 years of coal remaining but less than a year of oil.
Some countries have no oil reserves of their own, or very little such as Japan, and are entirely dependent on the world market and market prices. Other countries, such as Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, have more than 300 years of oil left at their 2010 rates of internal consumption. Kuwait has more than 700 “years left”, the report says.
The greatest concentration of oil reserves and production is observed in the Middle East, and the highest rates of consumption per head in Western Europe, North America, and Japan.
The data on coal makes one trend very clear that the abundance of coal is in key emerging markets such as Russia, India, China, Latin America and Africa. In addition the US, Canada and Australia have significant coal reserves. Therefore, the world is likely to continue to be able to exploit coal in energy production, either directly or through the conversion of coal into gas or liquid fuels. However, climate change agreements and legislation may impact on the feasibility of coal as a future energy source.
The same issue of relatively small reserves and low reported consumption resulting in high “years left” figures, as was seen with oil, also occurs for coal in countries such as Democratic Republic of the Congo and Niger.
Mexico had 6 years left of natural gas in 2010 and the USA -11, however USA figures have risen recently as a result of the development of extraction from shale gas deposits and may rise further as further reserve are proven.
Countries, such as Qatar with over 1000 “years left” in 2010, Norway with 420 years, and Russia 108 years, have significant capacity to export natural gas, the report has shown.
The Global Sustainability Institute’s research covers environmental, societal and economic challenges facing the world.
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UK: ‘There Will be a Political Earthquake’ — Farage Prepares for Euro Election Results
NIGEL Farage has promised a “political earthquake” ahead of the results of the European election being announced tonight.
Speaking as the last votes were being cast across the EU, Ukip is tipped to achieve a historic victory and the leader is feeling bullish. In an interview today, he said: “The public want something different. We are catalysing a big change in British politics on fundamental issues that have been brushed under the carpet and ignored by a completely out-of-touch career political class for too long.”…
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UK: I Renounced Islam, So My Family Think I Should Die
Apostasy is not just something that scandalises people in far off lands. Harriet Alexander hears the story of a British woman whose life was turned upside down when she left Islam — echoing the plight of Meriam Ibrahim, who awaits a death sentence in Sudan for the same “crime”
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UK: Vote for Common Sense Will Make Political Leaders Listen
BRITAIN wakes up this morning to a changed political landscape.
After decades of complacency in which the political class has appeared indifferent to the needs and concerns of the typical voter the two major parties have been given a bloody nose.
As for the two minor contenders, the figures speak for themselves: the Lib Dems, who have spent the past four years trying to shackle the Government on almost every decent initiative it has come up with, have lost 307 seats, while Ukip, predicted to win around 80 seats has gained 161.
However the real winner here is the British public, which has finally got the attention of the political classes once more.
Now, with a year to the General Election, the real work must begin…
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UKIP Surge in Early Euro Election Results
UKIP appears to be on course to top the poll in the European elections, with the first results starting to come in.
Labour won in the North-East of England with a 12% increase in vote share, beating UKIP into second place. But UKIP’s vote has gone up by 14% — which if repeated across the UK would see a win for Nigel Farage’s party…
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UKIP Storms European Elections
Nigel Farage says Ukip’s success in the European elections will ‘terrify’ political establishment and prove ‘disastrous’ for Ed Miliband and Nick Clegg
The UK Independence Party has won a national election for the first time, taking the most votes and seats in the European Parliament elections according to sources in all of Britain’s main political parties.
The Ukip victory, which came as anti-establishment parties advanced across the European Union, represents the biggest shock to the British political system in a generation…
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Nigel Farage tonight claimed victory in the European elections, becoming the first ‘insurgent party’ to top a national vote. With just a handful of results declared, Mr Farage broke cover to predict he will humiliate the Westminster parties, pushing Labour and the Tories into second and third.
Support for Ukip has surged by more than 12 per cent, outstripping a more modest boost in votes for Labour, while the Lib Dems face wipeout, with some calling for Nick Clegg to resign…
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Egyptian Crackdown Risks Spreading Instability Abroad, Islamist Says
A former Muslim Brotherhood leader has warned that government oppression in Egypt is fanning militancy that will pose a threat abroad unless the army-backed authorities start respecting freedom and human rights.
In an interview with Reuters, Abol Fotouh predicted wider consequences flowing from the crackdown launched last year after the military overthrew the Muslim Brotherhood’s Mohamed Mursi, Egypt’s first democratically-elected president.
He noted, for example, how past oppression in the Middle East had bred radicalism of the type that led to the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.
“The world around us must recognize that it will not be stable unless Egypt is stable, and what is going on now is producing terrorism for which Egyptians are paying the price, and for which the world will pay the price,” he said in the interview, which was conducted on May 21.
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Muslim Terrorists Stab Jewish Man in Tunisia
Gabriel Ozen, 38, saved by local shop owners. But the terrorist is freed after just one hour — and threats of a Muslim riot.
More reports of heightened anti-Semitism have emerged in the wake of the Brussels shooting attack — this time, in Tunisia.
Masked Muslims entered the main market in Djerba on Thursday, and stabbed Gabriel Ozen, 38, a Jewish jeweler and father of four.
Passerby stated that the assailants yelled, “the nation of Mohammed is coming back to take revenge” shortly before the attack.
Ozen fought the Muslim attacker, but was still stabbed in the chest, authorities said. He was rushed to intensive care in local hospital and is in serious, but stable, condition.
According to local media reports, merchants on the scene were able to apprehend the perpetrator and turn him in to local police. Justice will not be served, however; more than a hundred masked men surrounded the police station and threatened to burn it down if the terrorist was prosecuted.
The police released the assailant immediately.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Terrorists Entered Egypt When Morsi President, Ministry
(AGI) Cairo, May 24 — More than 2,000 “terrorists” from the Gaza Strip and Libya entered Egypt through tunnels and desert trails, during the presidency of Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohammed Morsi, Interior Ministry spokesman, Major General Hani Abdul Latif said. The Ministry believes the ousted President’s open-border policy and the amnesties granted during his administration undermined security in the country. Abdul Latif said the men entered the country with weaponry that has ended up in the hands of jihadist groups in the Sinai Peninsula.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Israeli and Palestinian Leaders to Meet With Pope at Vatican
Pope Francis waded into the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and peace-making soon after arriving here on Sunday, issuing an extraordinary invitation to President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority and President Shimon Peres of Israel to join him in his home in the Vatican next month for “a heartfelt prayer to God for the gift of peace.”
Both sides welcomed the pope’s invitation. Mr. Peres would attend, an Israeli source confirmed. Church and Palestinian officials said the meeting would be largely symbolic and, since Mr. Peres, a longtime advocate of peace, plays a mainly ceremonial role not in Israel, would not involve political negotiations.
The pope also gave the Palestinians an uncommon boost by openly endorsing “the State of Palestine.”
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13 Killed in Iraq as Shiite Pilgrims End Major Rituals
BAGHDAD, May 25 (Xinhua) — Hundreds of thousands of Shiite pilgrims ended Sunday a relatively peaceful religious ritual at the holy golden-domed shrine in Iraq amid tightened security, while violence across the country killed a total of 13 people and wounded some 37 others, security and medical sources said…
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Russian Daredevil Captures Incredible Selfie on Top of Dubai Skyscraper
Nineteen-year-old Alexander Remnev scaled the Princess Tower — the world’s tallest residential building at 1,350ft — before getting his camera out to take these stomach-churning pictures.
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Syria: Al-Nusra Front Kills 90 Isil Militants
Two days of clashes between terrorist groups in Syria’s eastern province of Deir al-Zour have left tens of foreign-backed militants dead.
Some Arab media outlets have released the names of 90 members of the terrorist so-called Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) who have been killed by rival al-Qaeda affiliate al-Nusra Front militants in clashes near the border with Iraq.
ISIL leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has promised to take revenge.
Rival militant groups in Syria have been engaged in fierce fighting among themselves. Months of violent conflicts among different terrorist groups have killed thousands of Takfiri militants in Syria.
Clashes between the militant groups still continue despite a recent order by terrorist al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri to stop the infighting.
In recent months, the Syrian army has managed to liberate a number of cities and towns from militant control.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Turkey’s Alevis March Against Discrimination
Thousands of Alevis marched in rallies across Turkey on May 25, calling for an end to discrimination in the aftermath of two deaths in Istanbul.
Rallies were held in cities including Istanbul, Ankara, Adana, Izmir and Diyarbakir. Speaking in Istanbul, Dogan Demir, the head of the Alevi Cultural Associations, spoke out against Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s “polarizing” language.
“Enough with the prime minister’s polarizing, insulting and violent speech toward Alevis, and enough with attacks on our beliefs and cemevis [worshipping places],” Demir said.
Two people, Ugur Kurt and Ayhan Yilmaz, were killed in clashes between police and anti-government protesters last week in Okmeydani, a predominantly Alevi neighborhood in Istanbul. Kurt was killed on May 22 by a bullet while attending a funeral at a local cemevi, and Demir described the killing as “deliberate” and “unacceptable.”
“Alevis know the culprits of the attacks against our fellow Alevis and on our cemevis. We warn the political power: Get your hands off Alevis,” he added.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Erdogan has extended his condolences to 30-year-old Kurt’s family, calling Kemal Kurt, the father of the deceased, who the police have confirmed was not involved in the protests.
Prime Ministry sources told state-run Anadolu Agency that Erdogan pledged that the government would follow the case and would conduct every required procedure to illuminate the incident…
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Italian is First Journalist Killed in Ukraine
(AGI) Slavyansk (Ukraine), May 25 — The body of Andrea Rocchelli, the first journalist killed in the uprising in eastern Ukraine, will be taken to Kiev as soon as possible, the Ukrainian government has said, according to reports by diplomatic sources contacted by AGI. Family members are due to arrive in the Ukrainian capital in the next few hours in order to identify the body. The post-mortem examination has already been performed and the authorities are awaiting the results, the same sources said.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
LifeNews Journalists: Lots of Mercenaries at Kramatorsk Airfield
LifeNews journalists Oleg Sidyakin and Marat Saychenko, who were detained in Ukraine about a week ago and released on Saturday evening, claim to have seen lots of mercenaries at Kramatorsk airfield in the eastern Donetsk region.
“There were lots of mercenaries at the airfield. There were people dressed in uniforms that aren’t typical of Ukraine. They talked to no one and walked into the headquarters in silence. We still can’t figure out who those people might be,” Sidyakin told a press conference on Sunday.
The captured journalists didn’t hear English spoken around but saw “people equipped in Western troops’ fashion”.
“Their behavior, the way the held themselves were odd as was the fact that they didn’t speak to anyone,” Sidyakin said.
Saychenko, for his part, said he believed the Ukrainian army was disorganized.
“After staying inside the Ukrainian army for a while, we understood how soldiers felt, how disorganized they were. Many soldiers serving on conscription, including those who guarded us, complained that they should long have been demobilized, and they also complained that the food they were given was of poor quality,” he said.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Poroshenko Claims Victory in Ukraine Presidential Vote
Chocolate businessman wants closer ties with EU
(ANSA) — Rome, May 25 — Chocolate magnate Petro Poroshenko on Sunday claimed victory in Ukraine’s presidential elections after exit polls suggested he had taken over 55% of the vote to prevail in the first round. Poroshenko has pledged to pursue closer ties with the European Union and restore peace in eastern regions where government forces are in conflict with pro-Russian separatists. The separatists severely disrupted voting in many parts of the east, including the city of Donetsk, where no polling stations were open.
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Pro-European Billionaire Claims Victory in Ukraine Presidential Vote
KIEV, Ukraine — KIEV, Ukraine — With their country caught in a fierce tug-of-war between Russia and the West over a new 21st-century security order, Ukrainians on Sunday elected Petro O. Poroshenko, a pro-European billionaire, as president, turning to a soft-spoken businessman to lead them out of six months of wrenching turmoil including an on-going separatist insurrection in the east.
Mr. Poroshenko, a confectionary tycoon known as the “Chocolate King\,” anda longtime veteran of Ukrainian politics, declared victory as exit polls showed him with a wide lead over his strongest rival, the former prime minister, Yulia V. Tymoshenko. He appeared poised to easily clear the 50 percent threshold needed to avoid a potentially divisive runoff.
Despite formidable obstacles in the east, where armed separatists largely prevented balloting from taking place on Sunday, and in Crimea, which Russian now claims as its own, election officials reported robust turnout throughout the rest of the country.
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Putin to Meet With Hollande at D-Day Events
(AGI) Saint Petersburg, May 24 — Russian President Vladimir Putin will attend the commemoration ceremonies marking the 70th anniversary of the Normandy landings on June 6, and will meet with French leader Francois Hollande. “From what I understand the president of France wants a separate meeting to discuss issues related to bilateral ties and the international agenda,” Putin said at an economic forum in Saint Petersburg. “Of course I am open to any such discussions. If the French president’s agenda allows it, I would be happy to meet with him,” Putin said.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Russia Does Not Want to Rebuild the USSR, Says Putin
(AGI) Saint Petersburg, May 24 — Russia does not want to rebuild the USSR, said President Vladimir Putin in a meeting with representatives of the foreign press in St. Petersburg.
“They are trying to stick this label on me, saying that we want to rebuild the empire, the Soviet Union, subordinating everybody to our influence. But this is absolutely not true”, Putin said.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Ukrainians Vote En Masse, Elections in Eastern Ukraine Fail
The Ukrainian news agencies report that the voter turnout in the early presidential elections in Ukraine is high.
In eastern Ukrainian regions Donetsk and Luhansk, however, the pro-Russian separatists have practically ruined the elections. According to the Unian wire service, in Donetsk the polling stations are closed and shortly after noon armed men started shooting in the city center.
In the Donetsk region remain closed over 82% of the polling stations.
In the Luhansk region elections are taking place in two out of 12 electoral districts and voter turnout at noon was around 18%.
In Mariupol opened 202 out of 216 polling stations.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
7 Troops Killed in SW Pakistan Check Post Attack
ISLAMABAD, May 25 (Xinhua) — At least seven troops were killed when some unknown militants opened fire at forces’ check post in Pakistan’s southwest Khuzdar district on Sunday, local media reported.
Dawn TV said that the militants targeted the check post located in Wadh area of Khuzdar, a main district in the country’s southwest Balochistan province…
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Indian Trooper Kills 2 Colleagues, Himself in Indian-Controlled Kashmir
SRINAGAR, Indian-controlled Kashmir, May 25 (Xinhua) — An Indian army trooper on Sunday killed two of his colleagues before shooting himself dead with his service rifle inside a post in restive Indian-controlled Kashmir, officials said…
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Obama Makes Surprise Visit to U.S. Troops in Afghanistan
President Obama made a surprise trip to Afghanistan on Sunday to visit American troops there, landing at Bagram Airfield outside the capital, Kabul, for the first time since a visit in 2012 when he signed a strategic partnership agreement with the government there to bring the war to an end.
The trip was unannounced, and Mr. Obama slipped out of the White House secretly on Saturday evening in advance of what White House officials said would be a Memorial Day rally with the troops. Officials said the president is also expected to get an on-site briefing from his military commanders and visit wounded service members.
Officials said that Mr. Obama will rally with some of the 32,000 service members who are currently in Afghanistan, many of whom are due to return home at year’s end when the 13-year war is officially brought to an end.
Brad Paisley, a country music singer, traveled on Air Force One with Mr. Obama to Afghansitan and will perform at the rally on Monday. The president is expected to use the appearance there to offer thanks to the members of the military, but is not expected to make any major policy announcements.
Instead, Mr. Obama is expected to wait until he returns to the United States to offer his latest foreign policy and national security vision, during a speech that he is scheduled to give at the West Point graduation on Wednesday.
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US Army Ready to Share Engineering Expertise With India
Amid political changes taking place in India, the US has taken a number of steps to bolster relations with the South Asian country. A couple of days after President Barack Obama confirmed that his administration was ready to co-operate with the newly-elected Indian government, the US Army Corps of Engineers has offered India its expertise in different fields.
Addressing a press conference in Washington, Commanding General and Chief of Engineers for the US Army Corps of Engineers Lieutenant General Thomas Bostick said that they were eager to share expertise with India in water resource management, research and development, environmental issues and construction of facilities for soldiers and civilians. “I think it is a wonderfully advanced country in many respects and their engineers are some of the brightest in the world,” he said.
Lieutenant General Bostick also said: “So I think where we can best help is where India feels it has a need. For India, it is really their decision or any other country to advise on what they can provide.” According to him, the main strength of his corps’ is great expertise in “water resource management” and the expertise will help India a lot, if New Delhi accepts the offer. “I think that the first step is probably to continue to have the dialogue with countries to see where needs may not be met and if those needs can be met by an organisation like the Corps of Engineers,” stressed Bostick.
Currently, the Corps monitors the construction work of a bed-down facility for an Indian Air Force station in the northern part of the country for the Boeing C-17 Globemaster III military transport aircraft. The construction work, which began in 2012, would finish by the end of 2016, according to Bostick. As India has signed a contract with the US to purchase 10 C-17s, the chief of Engineers stated: “Our capabilities extend beyond construction management and foreign military sales. We execute different missions — military construction, host nation-funded construction, foreign military sales, humanitarian assistance, and disaster preparedness and response projects in 22 countries in the Asia Pacific region, including India.”
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
White House Mistakenly Identifies CIA Chief in Afghanistan
The CIA’s top officer in Kabul was exposed Saturday by the White House when his name was inadvertently included on a list provided to news organizations of senior U.S. officials participating in President Obama’s surprise visit with U.S. troops.
The White House recognized the mistake and quickly issued a revised list that did not include the individual, who had been identified on the initial release as the “Chief of Station” in Kabul, a designation used by the CIA for its highest-ranking spy in a country.
The disclosure marked a rare instance in which a CIA officer working overseas had his cover — the secrecy meant to protect his actual identity — pierced by his own government.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
China: Zhejiang: List and Pictures of 64 Demolished Christian Churches
The campaign of persecution against Christians in Zhejiang has led to the destruction of places of worship, the removal or obliteration of crosses, and a month-long clashes between Christians and police over churches and other places of worship. Meanwhile, the plan to demolish the “Jerusalem of the East” moves on relentless.
Rome (AsiaNews) — More than 60 churches in Wenzhou, Zhejiang, have received a demolition notice, have had some of their annexes demolished and crosses either removed or covered.
The dates in the list published below are not confirmed demolition dates, but rather the dates when the pictures of this sacrilege were posted on the web (at the bottom list, numbers refer to the building destroyed).
The city of Wenzhou (known as the Jerusalem of the East because of its sizable Christian community) has had the most churches demolished.
Yongjia County has the largest number of churches with crosses removed, and Sanjiang Church in Yongjia County, which cost 30 million yuan (US$ 4.8 million) to build, was demolished.
Due to pressure from the authorities, a few churches have not been able to send us timely information on demolition.
Following the campaign of church and crosses demolition in Wenzhou, there are signs that in late May, the authorities will start to outlaw house churches used by Christians who do not want to join state bodies. Some sources suggest that the government will start with 85 churches.
Some churches in Yongjia County, Wenzhou, have also been ordered to stop Sunday school programs offered to minors.
Here is a complete list and the pictures of the demolitions.
1. On Jan. 1, the Christian Church of Gou village, Liangzhu town, Yuhang District, Hangzhou, was required by Liangzhu town government to remove the cross of Gou Village Church.
2. On Feb, 27, the cross of Huanghu Christian Church, Huanghu town, Yuhang District, Hangzhou, was forcibly removed.
3-5: The crosses of Hangzhou Gulou Church, Sandun Church and Xingqiao Church are in the government’s list of crosses that will be demolished.
6. On Feb. 27, Baiquan Church in Baiquan town, Dinghai District, Zhoushan, Zhejiang, received a notice from the local government, demanding the church to remove its cross between Feb. 28 and March 1. On April 4, more than 100 SWAT and paramilitary police officers suddenly surrounded the church, and the cross was forcibly removed. Registered with the government, Baiquan Church built its church 15 years ago. The construction of the church was approved by the government and closely followed architectural drawings with no violation of the law.
7. In early April, the cross of Gangtou Church in Yantou town, Yongjia County, Wenzhou, was forcibly removed.
8. On April 4, the nursing home of Jiangjiaqiao Church in Yueqing County, Wenzhou was close to being demolished. Demolition stopped temporarily due to believers’ resistance.
9. On April 4, Guangming Christian Church in Rui’an city, Wenzhou, received a demolition notice demolition. The government demanded three churches located in Shibajia industrial district of Rui’an city to tear down parts of their church buildings before April 10.
10. On April 4, part of a church building under construction in Rui’an, Wenzhou, was demolished by the government.
11. On April 4, a Catholic church in Pingyang County, Wenzhou, was forcibly demolished. The government sent in SWAT to intimidate believers. Some believers were beaten up for resisting the demolition and one person was injured, head covered with blood and dropping to the ground. The church building was bulldozed to the ground.
12. On April 8, Baduzhen Church in Longquan city, Lishui District, Zhejiang, received a notice demanding the church’s cross to be demolished because it was “too conspicuous.”
13. A Christian meeting place in Rui’an, Wenzhou, received a notice from the Municipal Jinhu Office, demanding the demolition of the cross on the roof of the meeting place and other parts of the building.
14. Lushan Chuch in Lingxi town, Cangnan County, Weizhou, received a demolition notice from the government.
15. On April 9, Tengqiaodaima Church in Ouhai District, Wenzhou, received a demolition notice demanding the demolition of the church’s bell tower, which was under construction, before April 17.
16. On April 11, Gaoloudilai Church of Rui’an, Wenzhou, faced the demolition of its cross.
17. On April 11, Xiangjiangxindu Church in Rui’an, Wenzhou, received a demolition notice. The government covered the cross of the church with black canvas.
18. On April 12, Baihe Church in Tiantai County, Taizhou, Zhejiang, received a demolition notice for the church’s cross.
19. On April 15, Xiaying Church of Yinzhou District, Ningbo, Zhejiang, received a notice from the government, demanding the church to demolish its cross and claiming that the failure to comply would cause the whole church building to be demolished. The deadline given to the church for demolishing its cross is May 20. This church was built in 2013.
20. On April 16, Baixiang Church in Yueqing, Wenzhou, which was under construction, received a demolition notice.
21. April 22, Chengguan Church in Wenling, Tiazhou, Zhejiang, received a demolition notice despite its possession of all paperwork required by the government.
22. On April 28, Sanjiang Church in Yongjia, Zhejiang, was demolished completely.
23. On April 23, the cross of De’en Church in Jiaojiang, Zhejiang, was demolished.
24. On April 25, the cross of Shuiyang Church in Linhai, Zhejiang, was demolished. The church was built 14 years ago.
25. On April 29, the annexes and bicycle sheds of churches in Xiaanshan, Cheng’an, Linshan and Rendi, all in Tengqiao town, Lucheng district, Wenzhou, were demolished.
26. On April 30, Zengshan Evangelical Church in Pingyang, Wenzhou, received a notice from the government that demanded the church to demolish its building before May 4.
27. On May 1, parts of the Rendi Catholic Church building of Linjiang community, Tengqiao, Lucheng, Wenzhou, were torn down.
28. On May 2, Anji Church in Huzhou, Zhejiang, faced demolition.
29. In May, the sign of Zhu’en Church on Zhenxing Road, Yiwu, Zhejiang, was demolished.
30. On May 4, Longgangshan Catholic Church in Liu city, Yueqing, Wenzhou, was demolished.
31. On May 4, the annex of Feng’ao Church in Cangnan County, Wenzhou, was forcibly demolished.
32. On May 5, Getian Church in Yaze, Ouhai, Wenzhou, was converted into the “Cultural Auditorium of Getian Village.”
33. On May 5, the cross of Dingqiao Church in Haining, Zhejiang, was removed. (The church received a notice demanding the demolition of its cross on April 22.)
34. On May 6, the unfinished Wu’ai Christian Church in Cangnan, Wenzhou, was forcibly demolished.
35. On May 6, the cross of Baixi Christian Church in Yandang town, Yueqing County, Wenzhou, was demolished. The construction of Baixi Church was approved by the government, and the church obtained all paperwork required by the government. The government approved even the cross of the church. The church downsized the cross by dozens of centimeters from the original plans in order to be in compliance with government regulations.
36. On May 6, Bao’ao Church in Nanxi’ao pastoral area, Wenzhou, faced demolition.
37. On May 7, the cross of Taoyuan Catholic Church in Pingyang, Wenzhou, was covered with cloth.
38. On May 6, the cross of Shamen Church in Ouhai District, Wenzhou, was wrapped up in cloth.
39. On May 7, the cross of Qiaosi Church in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, was demolished.
40. On May 8, the cross of Wuchang Church on Wuchang Road in Hangzhou was removed, along with the church’s sign: Wuchang Christian Church.
41. On May 8, the cross of a Catholic Church in Cangnan county, Wenzhou, was demolished.
42. On May 8, the cross of Lingxi Sabbath Day Adventist Church in Cangnan, Wenzhou, was removed.
43. On May 8, Hebing Church in Longwan, Wenzhou, was demolished. Guarded by police, workers only took two hours to tear the church down to the ground.
44. On May 9, the branch of Longwan Church in Shangwan village, Wenzhou, was demolished.
45. On May 12, Bethany Church in Wenzhou received a notice demanded the church to stop gathering.
46. The sign of Bingwang Church in Yiwu, Zhejiang, was removed.
47-49, the crosses of three churches in Jiande, Zhejiang Province, were demolished.
50-52. In mid-May, the cross of Shuangheyan Church in Yongjia County, Zhejiang, and the annexes of Huangtian Church and Fengbu Church, which were under construction, were demolished.
53. On May 16, the cross of a Yangshancang “Little Flock” Church in Shanglu, Yongjia County, Wenzhou, was demolished.
54. On May 16, the cross of Heyu Church in Shanglu, Yongjia County, Wenzhou, was demolished.
55. On May 16, the cross of “Little Flock” Church in Zhikou, Yongjia County, Wenzhou, was forcibly demolished.
56. The cross of Shancang Church in Yongjia County was demolished.
57. The cross of Zhang’ao Church in Yongjia County, Wenzhou, was demolished.
58. The cross of Jiuzhang Church in Yantou, Yongjia County, Wenzhou, was demolished.
59. On May 17, the cross of Lutian Church, Yongjia County, Wenzhou, was demolished.
60. The cross of Ruo’ao Church in Yongjia County, Wenzhou, was demolished.
61. The cross of Huangcun Church in Yongjia County, Wenzhou, was demolished.
62. The cross of Lishe Church in Yinzhou District, Ningbo, Zhejiang, was wrapped up with cloth by the government.
63. On May 17, the cross of Henglan’ao Catholic Church in Wuniu Street, Yueqing, Wenzhou, was demolished.
64. On May 17, the cross of Yantan Church in Yongjia County, Wenzhou, was demolished.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
China Fighters in ‘Dangerous’ Brush With Japanese Planes
Japan on Sunday accused China of “dangerous” manoeuvres above the disputed East China Sea after a Chinese fighter flew within roughly 30 metres of a Japanese military aircraft.
A Japanese Defence Ministry spokesman said that a Chinese SU-27 jet on Saturday flew close by a Japanese OP-3C surveillance plane above the waters where the countries’ air defence identification zones overlap.
“They were dangerous acts that could lead to an accident,” Japanese Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera told reporters on Sunday. “The Japanese crew reported that the fighters were flying with missiles, which raised the tension as they handled the situation.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Pray for Nigeria, Sambo Urges Muslims
The Vice President of Nigeria, Mohammad Namadi Sambo, has urged the Muslim ummah to pray for the country and the world for peace to reign.
Speaking during the 28th Maulud anniversary of sheikh Ibrahim Niass (R.T.A) which held yesterday in Gombe Namadi said Nigeria need prayers from all. He appealed to all Muslims to continue praying for Nigeria for peace and the upliftment of the country and its people…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
German Police Chief on Violent Young Refugees
New interview on Badische Zeitung, translated from German by Frau Katze:
How should citizens deal with violent young refugees? In Freiburg we have been debating this. We ask Freiburg’s Police Commissioner Bernhard Rotzinger:
BZ: Mr. Rotzinger, is Freiburg no longer safe — at least at night?
Rotzinger: This is not true. In reality, we have an increase in certain types of crimes, and perhaps what is worrying you is the type of crime and that you did not know about it.
BZ: What do you mean?
Rotzinger: The aggressiveness of some of the so-called unaccompanied minor refugees has a new quality. They do not behave — sorry — like native offenders. The level of aggression is higher and they coordinate in groups…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Astronaut Sows First Fresh Veg in NASA Space ‘Garden’
RED lettuce is in the spotlight on the International Space Station. Last week NASA announced that it has activated a plant growth system on the orbiting lab.
The first fresh-food production system on the ISS, the Veggie chamber provides lighting and nutrients for seeds. It relies on cabin conditions for temperature control and carbon dioxide, and on astronauts for water.
Plants grown on the ISS will be harvested, frozen and returned to Earth. Scientists will compare the samples from both chambers to determine whether the space-grown food is safe, nutritious and tasty. The Veggie system will stay on board the ISS for future use — perhaps eventually growing fresh vegetables for homesick astronauts to eat.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Surprise: Segway Rolls Out Three-Wheeled Vehicle
The company known for two-wheeled, self-balancing people transporters throws another wheel into the mix.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
How predictably sad it is that when a Swiss criminal prosecutor asserts ( acknowledges) that “Albanians hold the Swiss heroin trade in their hands” he has to preface this fact with the following PC boilerplate:
“We consider Albanians in our country as a community that is important and well integrated in our society,” said the prosecutor, noting that they are freedom-loving, working, but despite that, he said, they are “not angels”
He goes on to add that Albanians are prominent in “the sex industry, [women] trafficking, cigarette smuggling and car theft”.
The Albanians have been prominent in organised crime, and specifically the heroin trade, in the West (including Alaska (!) I learned in 1992) for at least two decades. What enabled the Albanians to displace the traditional Chinese, Lebanese, Italians and Russians in this criminal trade? An unsurpassable ruthlessness and predilection for inflicting cruelty: get into debt to an Albanian heroin dealer or trespass onto their turf and your wife and children will be the first to be maimed (fingers cut off), tortured and ultimately killed until you repay your debt/leave their turf.
What intrinsic aspect distinguishes the Albanians from the Chinese, Italians Russians and (some) Lebanese criminals? It is not the corruption of the Albanian government as the Swiss prosecutor would have the Swiss believe. It is because they are Muslims and their clientele of street dealers and addicts, ditto loan shark debtors, are overwhelmingly not. Hence there is an utter contempt for the kuffars by the Albanians as evinced by their willingness to mete out barbarous punishments.
What is fascinating is that in popular culture, eg cinema, this world-wide Albanian phenomenon is ignored. A version of “The Sopranos” with Albanian protagonists wouldn’t have any endearing qualities and would be decried as Islamophobia if the Muslim aspect was made apparent.
In 2002 at a licensing hearing in Westminster, a police representative giving evidence stated that Albanians controlled the sex industry in London.
Amazing to think that 00:10 i have had CCHQ asking me to boost Con values and promote our policies for staying in the EU. DC has no intention of us coming out of the Eu.
Who should, or, will i vote for?
Not DC if he still leads the Cons, no way for E Miliband, and Clegg is a cockroach, willing to scavenge the scraps from any party to stay in power.
For me, racist, clobbyist little Englanders, fruitcakes and believers in England are for me what the MSM say what i am. Well screw you MSM. We are fighting back.
Without violence like the Muslim radicals, the Government and the Police.
They (the muslim radicals) are allowed to run riot, chasing OUR police away from demos. It is time that the law is enforfed equally along the line, irrespective of religion, and no poltical interference.