The Rotherham child-rape scandal has spread to Australia. A former children’s services director in Rotherham is now a senior education official in Australia, and anti-abuse activists are calling for her resignation.
In other news, 43 Fijian soldiers, part of a UN peacekeeping force in Syria, were abducted yesterday in the Golan Heights. Today the Fijian government announced that they are “safe”.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to C. Cantoni, Fjordman, Insubria, JP, Papa Whiskey, RR, Steen, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.
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Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. We check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.
Brazil Slips Into Recession Ahead of General Election
Latin America’s largest economy, Brazil, has recorded negative growth for the second quarter in a row. But the government downplayed what’s a technical recession by definition, saying other indicators were much better.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Eurozone Inflation Near Five-Year Low as Unemployment Remains High
The inflation rate in the eurozone continues to drop and almost hit a five year-low in August. At the same time, the jobs crisis isn’t easing, adding to pressure on the European Central Bank to do more to spur growth.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
FBI National Domestic Threat Assessment Omits Islamist Terrorism
The FBI’s most recent national threat assessment for domestic terrorism makes no reference to Islamist terror threats, despite last year’s Boston Marathon bombing and the 2009 Fort Hood shooting—both carried out by radical Muslim Americans.
Instead, the internal FBI intelligence report concluded in its 2013 assessment published this month that the threat to U.S. internal security from extremists is limited to attacks and activities by eight types of domestic extremist movements—none motivated by radical Islam.
They include anti-government militia groups and white supremacy extremists, along with “sovereign citizen” nationalists, and anarchists. Other domestic threat groups outlined by the FBI assessment include violent animal rights and environmentalist extremists, black separatists, anti- and pro-abortion activists, and Puerto Rican nationalists.
[Disastrous. The Feebs don’t want to cross the Head Islamophile In Charge, it seems. — PW]
| — Hat tip: Papa Whiskey | [Return to headlines] |
Fort Hood Jihad Mass Murderer Wants to be “Citizen” Of Islamic State
This stands to reason: according to the Obama Administration, Nidal Hasan’s Fort Hood jihad massacre had nothing to do with Islam, and (also according to the Obama camp) neither does the Islamic State. So Hasan and the caliph Ibrahim could get together, pop open a couple of sasparillas, and misunderstand Islam together.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
52% of Italians Fear Jihadi Threat
New poll by Ixè
(ANSA) — Rome, August 29 — Some 52% of Italians fear the threat from jihadi militants on Italian cities, according to a poll released Friday.
Some 48% of respondents answered No to the question “are you afraid of a jihadi terrorism threat to our cities”. The poll was carried out by the Ixè agency for RAI state TV’s Rai3 chanell.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Al-Qaeda Manual Encourages Attacks on High Street Stores in UK
Not to be outdone by Isil, al-Qaeda publishes English-language ‘shopping list’ for making bombs that can be used to attack British and American targets
The terrorist group al-Qaeda has published a manual in which it encourages followers to bomb British targets including Sandhurst, the MI5 headquarters and high profile department stores.
The media arm of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) this week published a nine-page how-to guide in its English-language magazine on making car bombs and suggests terror targets in the UK and the US…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Denmark ‘High on ISIS’s List’: Danish Jihadist
A militant jihadist born and raised in Denmark has fought alongside Isis in Syria and said that “soon it will be Denmark’s turn”.
The terrorist organisation Isis has its sights set on Denmark according to a Danish-Turkish militant who has fought in Syria.
The 27-year-old jihadist, identified only as ÖA, told Politiken that as “an enemy of Islam”, Denmark is on Isis’s radar.
“We have become very international and Denmark is high up on the list, believe me,” ÖA told the newspaper.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Dutch to Strip Suspected Jihadists of Passports
Move comes amid growing fears that Westerners who joined Islamic State will return home to carry out attacks
The Dutch government said Friday it wants to strip jihadists who go to fight in Syria or Iraq of their passports, even if they have not been convicted of a crime.
The move came amid growing fears that Western fighters who joined the Islamic State (IS) and other extremist groups in the Middle East will return home to carry out attacks.
“The law will be toughened with the aim of withdrawing Dutch nationality from jihadists who have joined an armed terrorist group, even without a criminal conviction,” the government said in a summary of a letter to parliament from Justice Minister Ivo Opstelten.
The action could however only be taken against Dutch citizens with dual nationality, as “no one should be left stateless”, the government said.
Many Dutch Muslims from immigrant families have dual nationality, particularly Moroccan.
| — Hat tip: Steen | [Return to headlines] |
France: Vivendi Takes up Telefonica Offer for Brazilian Unit
French and Spanish telcos in talks for 7.45-bn-euro deal
(see related) (ANSA) — Paris, August 28 — French group Vivendi on Thursday announced that it had entered into exclusive negotiations with Spanish telecommunications company Telefonica for the sale of its wholly owned Brazilian fixed network and broadband service provider GVT.
The decision came after the Madrid-based company upped its original offer of 6.7 billion euros to 7.45 billion euros, a valuation described by Vivendi as “particularly interesting”.
Telefonica made the new offer Thursday after Italian telecommunications giant Telecom Italia and its Brazilian subsidiary TIM Participações bid 7 billion euros for the Brazilian unit. In a statement, Vivendi said the offer by Telecom’s Spanish competitor “better responded to the group’s strategic and financial aims” while also giving a nod to the “pertinence and quality” of the Telecom offer.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Germany: S-Bahn Arson in Support of Refugees, Group Claims
A radical left-wing group claimed responsibility on Friday for an arson attack that cut power to several S-Bahn lines and caused transport chaos in Berlin, saying it was intended to awaken people to the plight of refugees.
The blaze at the Treptow Park station in the south east of the city early Thursday was carried out using gasoline and two timed detonating devices, according to a statement posted on the linksunter.indywelt website and attributed only to ‘independent groups’.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Italy: Kyenge Invites Calderoli to Make Congo Pilgrimage
‘He may return a changed man’ says MEP
(ANSA) — Rimini, August 28 — Cecile Kyenge, an Italian member of the European Parliament, on Thursday invited Deputy Senate Speaker Roberto Calderoli of the anti-immigrant Northern League to make a pilgrimage to the Congolese village where he claims her father placed a hex on him.
“He may return a changed man,” said Kyenge, who served as Italy’s first black cabinet minister under the left-right government of Enrico Letta until Premier Matteo Renzi ousted his Democratic Party (PD) colleague in February. Her comments came after Calderoli, a former minister for reforms and simplification under ex-premier Silvio Berlusconi, told weekly magazine Oggi that he needed an exorcist to lift the ‘macumba’ allegedly placed on him in Kyenge’s native village in Democratic Republic of Congo. Calderoli is facing criminal charges of defamation aggravated by racial hatred and discrimination against Kyenge, a medical doctor and PD MEP after he likened her to an orangutan last year.
Since then, he has undergone six operations, been twice in intensive care, broken two ribs and two fingers, and his mother died, according to the interview.
The run of apparent bad luck culminated with the discovery of a two-meter snake in his kitchen last week.
“Maybe it’s time to send Kyenge’s dad a message of detente,” Calderoli told the magazine.
“It seems to me that I am still being persecuted,” replied Kyenge at the time.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Merkel Would Support Mogherini for EU, Says Bild
Describes the Italian minister as a ‘shoo-in’
(ANSA) — Berlin, August 29 — Italian Foreign Minister Federica Mogherini is “a shoo-in” for the post of the European Union’s high representative on foreign affairs, thanks to the support of Chancellor Angela Merkel, German newspaper Bild reported Friday. It reported that Merkel would favour the Italian candidate if Premier Matteo Renzi helps her to block Pierre Moscovici, a former French economy minister, for the post of EU economic commissioner.
European leaders are expected to fill posts, including high representative on foreign affairs, when they meet Saturday.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Morocco-Born Women in French Cabinet
TWO women of Moroccan origins were assigned ministerial posts in the newly formed French government announced on Tuesday evening by President Francois Hollande.
Myriam El-Khomri was appointed minister of urban affairs, youth and sports while Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, who was minister of women’s rights in the resigned cabinet, was given the education portfolio.
Belkacem, who was born in 1977 in Bni Chiker in north Morocco, is the first woman to be assigned the ministerial post of education in France.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Regional Councillors Suggest Italian-Only Prayer in Mosques
Forza Italia councillors say it could control Islamic extremism
(ANSA) — Bologna, August 27 — Two regional councillors in Emilia-Romagna on Wednesday suggested that Italian should be the mandatory language for prayer and speech in mosques and other places where practicing Muslims congregate.
Councillors Gian Guido Bazzoni and Luigi Giuseppe Villani of Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italian (FI) party told the regional council that initiatives such as making Italian mandatory in mosques could “help prevent and control the phenomenon of Islamic extremism in the region”.
The councillors made reference to the Ministry of Interior’s recent call to increase investigations into Islamic fanaticism.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Shipping: Greece: Record of Containers at Piraeus in July
Productivity at Terminal 1 increased by about 40% since 2009
(ANSAmed) — ATHENS, AUGUST 26 — A record number of containers were processed in July at Terminal 1, which is run by the Piraeus Port Authority (OLP), as Kathimerini online reported. A total of 50,517 containers were handled, which is the most during a single month in OLP’s history.
Management also revealed that productivity at Terminal 1 has increased by about 40% since 2009, with 161 containers now being processed each shift rather than 115.
The data were provided to journalists as the MSC London arrived at the port. It is the largest cargo ship to have docked in Piraeus, measuring 399 meters in length and with the capacity to carry 16,652 containers. Greek Merchant Marine Minister Miltiadis Varvitsiotis visited the port and said that Piraeus, where Chinese firm COSCO operates container handling terminals 2 and 3, now has the ability to compete with the best ports in the Mediterranean.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
British authorities have increased the perceived threat of a terror attack in the UK to “severe,” the second-highest available level. Prime Minister David Cameron attributed the change to developments in Iraq and Syria.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
UK Terror Threat Level Raised to Severe
Home Secretary Theresa May has raised the UK terror threat level to its second highest meaning an attack on the country is “highly likely”
The UK terror threat level has been raised to severe, meaning that a terrorist attack is “highly likely”.
Theresa May, the Home Secretary, stressed that there was no information to suggest an attack was imminent. She said the decision was taken as a result of the involvement of British fighters in the conflicts in Iraq and Syria.
It is the first time the threat level has been at “severe” since 2011 when it was reduced to “substantial”…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Pakistani community leaders in Rotherham were complicit in hushing up the shocking ‘ethnic’ dimensions of the sexual exploitation rather than speaking out, it was claimed yesterday.
Parveen Qureshi, director of the United Multicultural Centre in Rotherham, revealed the shocking issue was widely discussed between leaders who were privately ‘trying to resolve the problem’.
She refused to name those who kept quiet, but was certain the problem of Asian men abusing white girls was known ‘for a long time’…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: David Cameron: Douglas Carswell’s Defection ‘Quite Bizarre’ And ‘Very Strange’
Prime Minister speaks out over Tory MP’s resignation as he warns Ukip’s policies will leave Britain isolated from the world
David Cameron has warned that Ukip’s desire to “pull up the drawbridge” will leave Britain isolated as he criticised Douglas Carswell’s defection from the Conservatives as “quite bizarre” and “very strange”.
The Prime Minister made the comments during a visit to Scotland as reports circulated that more MPs from both the Tories and Labor are willing to jump ship and join Ukip ahead of next year’s general election…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: George Galloway Attacked in the Street as He Poses for Pictures
Controversial Respect MP hospitalised with a suspected broken jaw as he is punched in the street
Controversial Respect MP George Galloway has been taken to hospital for treatment to a suspected broken jaw after he was attacked in the street, his spokesman said.
Mr Galloway, who has also suffered a suspected broken rib and severe bruising to his face and head, was posing for pictures with people in Golborne Road, Notting Hill, west London, when a man shouted a comment about the Holocaust and attacked him, according to the spokesman.
Police were quickly on the scene and made an arrest.
Mr Galloway was taken to St Mary’s Hospital, Paddington, where he is expected to remain overnight.
His spokesman said: “George was posing for pictures with people and this guy just attacked him, leapt on him and started punching him.
“It appears to be connected with his comments about Israel because the guy was shouting about the Holocaust.”
The spokesman did not know whether the attacker was an Israeli, an EDL-supporter or had some other motivation for attacking the Bradford West MP.
Mr Galloway was interviewed earlier this month by West Yorkshire Police following a speech in Leeds in which he claimed Bradford was an Israeli-free area.
The spokesman said Mr Galloway had described himself as being “in a pretty bad shape”…
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UK: Police’s Child Sex Exploitation Unit in Rotherham Had Just Three Officers
Senior managers in South Yorkshire police more interested in solving burglary and car crime than child sex abuse, a critical report claims
Police in Rotherham have investigated almost 160 cases of child sexual exploitation during the past year with just a handful of dedicated officers, it has emerged.
Despite evidence about the extent of the problem being known to senior officers for more than a decade the unit tasked with investigating sex abuse in Rotherham consists of just one Detective Sergeant, one Detective Constable and one Constable…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Rotherham’s Head of Children’s Services Refuses to Quit Despite Being Criticised in Report
Joyce Thacker gives herself a glowing report and says she was “appalled” to find out true scale of child abuse
The woman in charge of children’s services Rotherham Council yesterday refused to quit her £130,000-a-year job despite saying she was “appalled” at revelations about the scale of child sexual exploitation in the town.
Joyce Thacker, who has been in charge of Rotherham’s child protection since 2008, is among the managers under pressure to resign for their failure adequately to protect abused youngsters.
She made it clear she did not feel she was one of the guilty parties, referring to problems “in the past” and giving herself a glowing report for her work over the past six years.
But it emerged yesterday she had been personally criticised in an independent report published earlier this week for telling staff to keep a “sense of proportionality” over child sexual exploitation because it only made up 2.3 per cent of her team’s work.
Mrs Thacker said that “although it is a very important issue…child neglect is a much more significant problem”. She was not named in the report but the Times newspaper established that it was she who made the comments…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Rotherham Child Sex Scandal: Watchdog Says Police Tried to ‘Disprove’ Victims
Damning report from Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary adds to pressure on police and crime commissioner Shaun Wright
Shaun Wright, South Yorkshire’s police and crime commissioner, is under intensifying pressure to resign as a new report disclosed his force tried to “disprove” allegations made by sex crime victims.
David Cameron, the Prime Minister, called on Mr Wright to resign over the Rotherham child abuse scandal, as the commissioner’s own deputy quit her job saying he should go too…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Rotherham: ‘Brazen’ Sex Abusers Sent Taxis to Collect Girls From Children’s Home
Former Rotherham care worker claims men would arrive almost ‘every night’ at the children’s home and often girls of 11 would be collected by taxis
Rotherham’s sex abusers “brazenly” picked up girls as young as 11 from their children’s home and in some cases sent taxis to collect them, a former care worker has disclosed.
The unnamed male care worker told the BBC that the abusers made “absolutely no attempts to disguise what they were doing.” He claimed staff were reluctant to intervene in some cases for fear of being classed as “racist”.
The taxi drivers would get to know the girls while working on official council business, the source said. The girls would be taken by cab from the home to schools. But they would quickly start grooming them, giving them drugs and alcohol, the source added…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Ripe for Abuse: The Ghostly Figures in Britain’s Shadowlands
by Fraser Nelson
The system is failing those at the bottom of society, as the report into child grooming in Rotherham shows
It is three days since Professor Alexis Jay published her report into child abuse in Rotherham, and still the sickening implications are sinking in at Westminster. David Cameron had no inkling that it was coming, which is why he has said so little about it. The report, commissioned by the borough council, was expected to mop up any points left over from a notorious paedophile case four years ago. Instead, Prof Jay discovered a far greater, longer-running scandal with more than 1,400 victims. Suddenly, ministers have been presented with one of the most horrific catalogues of abuse in recent British history…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: Scandal Hit Rotherham ‘Deleted Abuse Files’
Senior staff from Rotherham Council ordered a raid on offices to delete and remove case files of abused girls
Top ranking staff ordered raids to delete and remove case files and evidence detailing the scale of Rotherham’s child exploitation scandal, sources have revealed.
More than 10 years before the damning independent inquiry revealed sexual exploitation of 1,400 children in Rotherham a raid was carried out on the orders of senior staff to destroy evidence, it has been claimed.
In 2002 high profile personnel at Rotherham Council ordered a raid on Risky Business, Rotherham council’s specialist youth service, which offered one-to-one help and support to vulnerable teenage girls, ahead of the findings of a draft report, according to the Times.
The raid was to remove case files and wipe computer records detailing the scale and severity of the town’s sex-grooming crisis, sources told The Times…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
UK: The House of Commons Needs Men Like Douglas Carswell: I Would Not Campaign Against Him
By Norman Tebbit
Douglas Carswell is a respected, upright, steadfast and brave politician who has always put his constituents and his country before himself.
He comes from a medical family and grew up in Uganda where his parents worked. He had held down proper jobs outside the Westminster village before being elected to the Commons in 2005. Since then he has been widely praised by most of those whose judgment I respect, not least Charles Moore of this parish.
Few would disagree that he has been an asset to The House of Commons.
I understand well enough how he has come to the view that Parliament needs to reflect more closely the feelings of the British electorate and his doubt that the Prime Minister, if re-elected, would be able to achieve more favourable changes to the European Treaties before his referendum than Harold Wilson was before his…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Kosovo: NATO Does Not Intend to Reduce KFOR Troops
‘Both Serbs and Albanians want them to stay’, official
(ANSAmed) — BELGRADE, AUGUST 28 — Despite growing concerns over the situation in the Middle East and Ukraine, NATO does not plan to reduce the number of peacekeeping troops it has in Kosovo as part of the KFOR mission. The announcement was made by a high-ranking official quoted by Serbian news agency Tanjug.
Kosovo troops have a clear mandate from the UN Security Council and both Serbs and Albanians want them to stay, added the diplomat, who asked to remain anonymous.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
After Gaza: Egypt Sets Its Sights on Stabilization of Libya
Cairo preparing to present plan to UN Security Council
(by Claudio Accogli) (ANSAmed) — CAIRO, AUGUST 28 — Egypt is turning a new leaf and, while still savoring the taste of of its first international diplomatic victory with the Gaza ceasefire, warms the engines to tackle the number one issue on Cairo’s international agenda: Libya. President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is preparing to put an Egyptian plan on the United Nations Security Council table for the stabilization of Libya that has received strong consensus from other ‘allies’ neighbouring Libya — Tunisia, Algeria, Chad and Sudan.
The project revolves around the consolidation of the authority of Parliament elected in June, with Cairo playing a leading role. The Egyptian government has already promised military aid in the form of technical and consulting services to the ‘leaders of Tobruk’. The first step to be taken under the plan would be an immediate ceasefire and the creation of a political committee, led by Egypt, to start a national dialogue among the various factions in Libya.
The plan also includes a ‘table’ on security coordinated by Algeria, a country that has one of the most technologically advanced armies in North Africa, according to Libyan diplomatic sources.
Then the Libyan parliament and its armed forces, furnished with foreign arms conveyed through the United Nations and government, would proceed to disarm militias unconditionally.
Sisi’s plan, which enjoys the support of Saudi Arabia and the sympathy of Vladimir Putin, could find unexpected consensus in the West. Despite US broadsides charging the United Arab Emirates and Egypt for raids on Tripoli last week — this time coming from official sources: the US State Department and the Pentagon — the Egyptian plan, on paper, is exactly what Washington would aim to achieve in Libya.
The US has been working on a very similar project, but with the unique, essential condition that no action under the aegis of the United Nations in Libya could use American troops, diplomatic sources quoted by the Los Angeles Times revealed.
“It would be perceived as an invasion,” US officials said.
In addition, the Obama administration has been forced into growing military engagement in Iraq and Syria. The opening of another front in the Mediterranean, while the eastern Ukraine is in flames as well as the US relationship with Moscow, would place the US in the middle of a global conflict with an uncertain outcome.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
By Sara Ahmed
Alcohol is illegal in Kuwait and because of this, there is little to no discussion about alcoholism, its impact on the individual, the family or society. Yet alcoholism cuts across all social, nationality, economic and racial barriers. It can also be found in many homes in Kuwait and security forces regularly arrest smugglers or home brewers.
Setting aside the illegality of the matter, however, the question of alcoholism is seldom addressed for several reasons.
First, given that alcohol is illegal, it’s a closed subject. How can someone seek treatment for alcoholism when they are not supposed to be drinking in the first place? Many would fear legal action or criminal charges for possession or consumption.
Second, unlike in many countries where alcohol can be publicly consumed, drinking here is typically done in private and so only a few people — family and close friends — may know that someone has a problem. Problems kept in the dark don’t just go away.
Whether you view it as a disease or a self inflicted harm, whether you outlaw it or permit it, alcoholism can lead to many other societal problems including divorce, domestic abuse, violence, unemployment, child abuse, lack of productivity, car accidents and much more. So what can someone do if they or a loved one are an alcoholic in Kuwait? There are a few Al Anon-type groups that meet here, though for obvious reasons they are kept private.
Some local clinics and hospitals also offer rehabilitation and treatment options. Someone seeking help should also consider going for treatment abroad, as many countries offer affordable rehabilitation clinics and options.
Meanwhile, a more modern, proactive approach to dealing with the issue should be adopted by the government. Refusing to acknowledge that there is a problem does no one — neither the alcoholic, his family or society any good.
| — Hat tip: RR | [Return to headlines] |
Fiji Says UN Peacekeepers Detained in Golan Are Safe
Fiji says 43 of its soldiers abducted on Thursday in the Golan Heights while working for the UN are safe. Germany has demanded the peacekeepers’ release.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Kuwaiti Man Reportedly Jailed by Islamic State
A Kuwaiti in Syria has reportedly been jailed by the militant group, Islamic State (IS). Hussein Redha Lari, also known as Abu Omar Al Kuwaiti, was reportedly sentenced to solitary confinement for “inciting trouble between members of IS,” reported Al Rai Arabic daily yesterday. According to the report, the Wali (governor) of Riqqa in the Islamic State organization sentenced Lari. Sources said that Abu Omar sent back his wife and daughters to Kuwait because of the unstable situation in Syria.
His son Omar, who is not 18 yet remained with him in Riqqa, Eastern Syria. They said the decision by the wali of Riqqa to jail Abu Omar is because he seeks to create problems between IS and Nusra Front and widen the gap between the two Islamic factions. He also strongly opposes the reconciliation efforts with Nusra. Sources said that his son Omar expressed his wish to visit his father but the laws of secret prisons in the Islamic State prevented this. The son is trying some personal efforts to deliver a message to the head of IS, known by followers as the Amir of Believers, Abu Baker Al-Baghdadi, to release his father.
| — Hat tip: RR | [Return to headlines] |
Refugees Pour Into Turkey Amid Middle East Chaos
With civil war raging in Syria and IS-terrorists rampaging through Iraq, Turkey is struggling with a flood of refugees. Many have been integrated, but Turkish resentment is growing and many challenges remain.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
‘Sultan’ Erdogan is the President of a ‘New Turkey’
Opposition boycotts swearing-in. Davutoglu ‘grand visier’
(by Francesco Cerri) (ANSAmed) — ANKARA- Despite the scandals and accusations of authoritarianism and corruption, the ‘sultan’ of Ankara Recep Tayip Erdogan became the new president of Turkey on Thursday. He holds in his hands the widest powers since the founding father of modern Turkey Mustafa Kemal Ataturk built a new country over the ruins of the Ottoman empire in 1923.
Erdogan, 60, has led the country over the last 12 years as head of government. As he took office at the Cankaya presidential palace in Ankara, he announced the birth of a ‘New Turkey’. “The era of Old Turkey is over”, he said when taking over his role from predecessor Abdullah Gul.
The opposition boycotted the swearing-in ceremony and believes difficult times lie ahead with new authoritarian policies and a swifter ‘re-islamization’ process of the country.
The ‘sultan’ does not hide the fact that he means to remain in control of the country in his new position, hoping his Islamic AKP party will obtain a two-third majority in national elections in 2015, which would enable him to change the Constitution and formally impose a strong presidential system.
Meanwhile Erdogan means to de facto absorb most of the powers of the head of government thanks to the legitimization obtained through a presidential vote on August 10, the first direct presidential elections in Turkey’s history.
The new Turkish president chose a premier — already called a ‘puppet’ by opposition chief Kemal Kilicdaroglu — who will not outshine him: the faithful Ahmet Davutoglu, the outgoing foreign minister, who supports the ‘neo-Ottoman’ strategy brought forward by Erdogan’s Turkey over the past few years.
Newspaper Zaman wrote that Davutoglu will be the ‘grand visier’ of the head of State of the ‘New Turkey’. The two men are great admirers of the Ottoman past of the country. Erdogan’s first gesture after he announced his victory in presidential elections was to go pray at Istanbul’s historic mosque, where the sultans would become new rulers of the Empire.
Davutoglu, 55, the conservative Islamic ‘professor’ chosen by Erdogan as his successor at the helm of the AKP party, has already stated there will be no divergences of opinion with the president. He will announce today the composition of the new cabinet. Many are wondering who will succeed him as foreign minister: a possible choice is Mit secret services chief Hakan Fidan, another loyal Erdogan ally, and the man who led behind the scenes what the oppositions have slammed as Turkey’s “disastrous Syrian policy”, saying it contributed in strengthening jihadists with ISIS. Ali Babacan is expected to stay on as economy minister, to reassure foreign investors.
About 90 foreign delegations were present when the 12th Turkish president took office, though few were high-level.
Barack Obama was represented by a chargé d’affaires, while Italian Premier Matteo Renzi sent Deputy Foreign Minister Benedetto Della Vedova. No western head of State or government was present. This was confirmation for the opposition that the international image of the Turkish ‘sultan’ has been damaged by the crackdown on Gezi Park demonstrations and the scandals.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Syrian Refugees Top 3 Million, Half of All Syrians Displaced: U.N.
(Reuters) — Three million Syrian refugees will have registered in neighboring countries as of Friday, but many remain trapped by the advance of Islamist militants or are having difficulty in reaching open border crossings, the United Nations said.
Syrians desperate to leave their war-engulfed homeland are forced to pay hefty bribes at armed checkpoints proliferating along Syria’s borders, or to smugglers, the U.N. refugee agency said.
The record figure is one million refugees more than a year ago, while a further 6.5 million are displaced within Syria, meaning that “almost half of all Syrians have now been forced to abandon their homes and flee for their lives,” it said.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Syrian Refugees Number Tops 3 Million. Only 124,000 in Europe
(ANSAmed) — GENEVA — The crisis for Syrians has worsened with more than three million now registered as refugees, the UN’s refugee agency said in a statement on Friday.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said this toll does not include the hundreds of thousands of Syrians forced to flee the country who are not registered as refugees.
The number of registered Syrian refugees has soared from two million less than a year ago, the UN said, adding that the situation is only getting worse inside the country with cities in which the population is starved and besieged, where civilians are targeted or killed indiscriminately.
Moreover, 6.5 million are displaced inside the country due to the violence, which means that almost 50% of Syrians have been forced to leave their homes, according to UNHCR. One in eight Syrians left the country with the majority travelling to Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey. Over half are minors.
‘‘The Syrian crisis has become the biggest humanitarian emergency of our era, yet the world is failing to meet the needs of refugees and countries hosting them’’, said Antonio Guterres, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Turkish PM Davutoglu Presents New Cabinet
Turkey’s new premier Ahmet Davutoglu has announced his government with most ministers retaining the positions they held under Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who now holds the presidency.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Video: Islamic State Militants Humiliate Syrian Soldiers Before Their Execution
The Islamic State organisation (IS) has once again used social networks to broadcast its brutal propaganda. On Tuesday, the jihadist group published a new video showing a line of Syrian army soldiers being made to walk in their underwear in the desert. A source within IS told FRANCE 24 that these men were later executed.
The prisoners are seen walking in tight rows as their captors mock and taunt them, pretending to herd them like sheep. The video is clearly meant to humiliate the Syrian army, yet another provocation from a long list of actions staged by the terrorist group.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
EU Foreign Ministers Call for Tougher Russia Sanctions
A number of EU foreign ministers are pushing for stronger sanctions against Russia for its actions in eastern Ukraine. It follows NATO allegations that Moscow sent “well over 1,000 troops” across the border.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Military Escalation in Eastern Ukraine and the Dollar-Ruble Oil War
The United States, France and Germany slam “incursions” by Russian soldiers, threaten new sanctions. Some Baltic countries speak of a real Russian “invasion” of the Ukraine. Gazprom sells first oil shipments in rubles, even in Europe, plans to sell in yuan as well.
Moscow (AsiaNews/Agencies) — More charges have been levelled at Russia for its military “incursions” in Ukraine in support of the pro-Russian rebels. This comes at a time when Moscow is implementing its decision to accept rubles as payment for oil.
NATO satellite photos led the United States and European countries to criticise Russia for sending, according to NATO, at least a thousand soldiers to fight in the regions of eastern Ukraine. US President said that Moscow “has deliberately and repeatedly violated the sovereignty and territorial integrity” of its neighbour.
For some countries, like Latvia and Lithuania, this is a real “war” and Russia’s actions are a real “invasion”. For Obama, and the leaders of France and Germany, these “incursions” must still be met with firmness and new sanctions.
Alexander Zakharchenko, premier of the self-proclaimed Republic of Donetsk, said that Russian volunteers are soldiers on their holiday.
Pro-Russian separatists have widened the war conquering other cities besides Donetsk and Luhansk, including the coastal town of Novoazovsk.
This raises fears that the Kremlin wants to create a corridor between Russia and the Crimean peninsula, which it seized in March.
Advances by separatists have left pockets of encircled Ukrainian government troops.
Putin today urged pro-Russian rebels to open a humanitarian corridor to allow them to escape to avoid unnecessary loss of lives.
Rising tensions in Ukraine parallels another “war”, that against the dollar. Russia will now accept payment for its oil in rubles (and yuan).
According to Russia’s RIA Novosti, Gazprom Neft agreed to accept payment in rubles for 80,000 tonnes of oil from its Novoportovskoye field in the Arctic. It will also deliver oil via the Eastern Siberia-Pacific Ocean pipeline (ESPO), accepting payment in yuan.
Moscow will accept that its energy exports to Europe or China will be paid in either rubles or yuan, moving completely away from the US dollar.
Announced months ago, the decision is only now becoming operational.
Last week, Russia began to ship oil from the Novoportovskoye field to Europe by sea. Two oil tankers are expected to arrive in Europe in September.
According to Russian media, the payment for these shipments will be in rubles.
| — Hat tip: C. Cantoni | [Return to headlines] |
Nearly 2,600 Killed in East Ukraine Conflict: UN
The conflict in eastern Ukraine has killed nearly 2,600 people since mid-April, the United Nations said Friday in their latest report, explaining the sharp increase by fighting in densely populated areas between Kiev’s army and pro-Russian rebels.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Putin Compares Ukrainian Troops to Nazis
Says Nazis used same tactics against Russian civilians
(ANSA) — Moscow, August 29 — Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin on Friday compared Ukrainian troop tactics to those of the Nazis, “who surrounded our cities and shot directly at their citizens.” The comment was made in a speech at the pro-Kremlin youth forum held each year at Lake Seliger.
Meanwhile, NATO secretary general Anders Fogh Rasmussen said that Moscow is “resisting every effort to find a peaceful diplomatic solution”.
“Despite Moscow’s claims to the contrary, it is clear that Russian troops have crossed the border into Ukraine and are operating within the country,” Rasmussen said.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
Pakistan’s ‘Symbolic’ Coup: Military Comes in as Mediator
Pakistani PM Nawaz Sharif is still in power after weeks of anti-government protests in the capital Islamabad. But experts say that he has been cut down to size, and the country’s military is back in the driving seat.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Rotherham Child Abuse Scandal: Ex-Children’s Head ‘Must Quit’
A former Rotherham children’s services director is facing calls to resign from her current job in Australia.
Sonia Sharp, now a senior education official, led the department on the town’s council for three years during the child abuse scandal. Ms Sharp, who left in 2008, has apologised and said she wished she had been able to do more to prevent abuse.
But Andrew Collins, an advocate for 140 historical abuse survivors, has said she should resign “immediately”. Mr Collins told the BBC Ms Sharp’s position running education services in the State of Victoria, was now “inappropriate”…
| — Hat tip: JP | [Return to headlines] |
Senegal Confirms First Ebola Case
Senegal has recorded its first case of Ebola in an outbreak that continues to spread through West Africa, Dakar’s health ministry said on Friday. The disease has now killed more than 1,500 people this year.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Belgium: “Groups of Illegals Are Attacking Our Lorries”
A Belgian lorry driver has given a particularly disturbing account of the situation in the French port city of Calais where illegals are trying to get on a boat for the UK. Patrick Van Hoecke says that the would-be immigrants are becoming increasingly audacious in their attempts to make a successful crossing.
Patrick Van Hoecke: “Lorries are being attacked in clear daylight.
The lorry driver tells what happened as he was queuing to get his lorry on board a boat to England last Monday: “Several lorries came to a standstill outside the guarded area. A group of 30 illegals was waiting for us. Suddenly several men tried to force open the door of the truck of the lorry in front of me. It had been sealed. How they open it is incredible.”
Patrick Van Hoecke, a truck driver with many years’ experience, explains that the lorries are simply attacked: “It happens in front of our eyes. Around five illegals climb onto your lorry. They stand there in group. Of the 12 trucks 5 or 6 were attacked.”
Recently there has been a significant change: “There used to be 5, 6 people. Nowadays they are standing there in groups of 30. It’s pitiful and often dangerous, the way they try and make the crossing. They are armed with knives. This makes it dangerous for us. In the past they would run off if you discovered them. Nowadays they just remain sitting there. Last time I really had to act in a threatening fashion and I don’t want to take that road.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
There is Something Wrong With Globalization
by Lars Hedegaard
How come that no Westerners migrate to the Muslim world — why is it always the other way around? asked Lars Hedegaard when speaking at Gallery Rönnquist & Rönnquist in Malmö on August 15.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Federal Judge Strikes Down Restrictive Texas Abortion Law
A federal judge in Austin, Tex., on Friday blocked a stringent new rule that would have forced more than half the state’s remaining abortion clinics to close.
The rule, requiring all abortion clinics to meet the building standards of hospital-style surgery centers, was set to take effect on Monday. But in his opinion, Judge Lee Yeakel of the United States District Court in Austin, said that the mandate placed an unconstitutional burden on a woman’s right to an abortion.
| [Return to headlines] |
First Adoption for Gay Couples in Italy
Daughter, 5, born to one of two lesbians
(ANSA) — Rome, August 29 — A Rome court on Friday approved the first adoption of a child by a gay couple in Italy.
The girl is the biological child of one of two lesbians, a professional couple.
It was the first Italian instance of stepchild adoption. Italy does not recognize other civil rights of gay couples living together, unlike the laws in some other countries.
The couple, who have been together for 10 years, conceived their five-year-old daughter through an assisted fertility procedure in an unspecified European location, their lawyer Maria Antonia Pili said.
She said Italy’s laws are based on finding what is best for the child and the best possible family situation in any adoption case. A gay rights organization called Friday’s ruling “very beautiful” and good news for the family in question. Franco Grillini, president of Gaynet, said that thousands of children of homosexual couples have suffered when the death of a biological parent has torn the child away from the parent’s gay partner.
Rainbow Families, representing gay and transgender families, said the ruling broke “taboos”.
However, Maurizio Sacconi, Senate leader for the New Centre Right (NCD) political party, denounced the “irresponsibility” of the courts, suggesting the ruling contradicts what he called the will of parliament in restraining the rights of same-sex couples.
In contrast Sergio Lo Giudice, a Senator with the centre-left Democratic Party (PD), said the court ruling is showing parliament the direction it should take in lawmaking.
Lo Giudice called the decision “another humiliation for a parliament deaf and blind to the fundamental rights of individuals, a wonderful day of civilization for our country”.
This Rome court ruling follows a decision by the country’s high Cassation Court which, in January 2013, approved adoption by gay couples where one partner is the parent of the child in question so long as authorities determine there is no threat to the child’s development.
That high court ruling involved the 2011 case of a Muslim immigrant couple in Brescia where the mother of a young son had left her male partner for a lesbian relationship.
The boy’s father argued that was an unhealthy arrangement for the child, but the Cassation Court disagreed, saying that it required much more proof of a detrimental environment than the mere fact the mother was in a gay relationship.
| — Hat tip: Insubria | [Return to headlines] |
No Descendants Are Left From the First Eskimos
Ancient human DNA is shedding light on the peopling of the Arctic region of the Americas, revealing that the first people there did not leave any genetic descendants in the New World, unlike previously thought.
“I was actually surprised that we don’t find any evidence of mixture between Native Americans and Paleo-Eskimos,” said study co-author Eske Willerslev, an evolutionary geneticist also at the University of Copenhagen’s National Museum of Natural History. “In other studies, when we see people meeting each other, they might be fighting each other, but normally they actually also have sex with each other, but that doesn’t seem to really have been the case here. They must have been coexisting for thousands of years, so at least from a genetic point of view, the lack of mixture between those two groups was a bit surprising.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
What I want to see is the British people show a firm response to this scandal. I’m sorry to say that the response has been quite weak thus far. Much like Obama’s to the IS threats.
This new bubonic plague blueprint is scary. These guys are already done with the planning stage, and heaven knows how far they are along the execution stage. I don’t know enough chemistry/biology to say how easy it is, but I sure want to know from some expert. Any on here want to comment on the IS bubonic plague bomb plan? There are some details in the link I posted earlier. Is that sort of attack feasible? Thanks in advance.
SEND IN THE CLOWNS
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http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/tochter-saddam-husseins-sponsert-
islamisten-a-988581.html
“Islamic State” in Iraq: Saddam’s daughter is godmother Terror
Von Raniah Salloum
picture: http://cdn1.spiegel.de/images/image-742034-
breitwandaufmacher-avoc.jpg
REUTERS
Saddam Husseins Tochter sinnt auf Rache. Mit ihrem Millionenvermögen sponsert Raghad Hussein offenbar die Terrormiliz “Islamischer Staat”. Wie viele Gefolgsmänner ihres Vaters träumt sie von der Rückkehr an die Macht.
Saddam Husseins älteste Tochter Raghad ist berüchtigt für ihr Luxusleben im jordanischen Exil. Man kennt sie in den großen Juweliergeschäften und Designerläden Ammans. Wenn die 45-Jährige dort mit ihren Bodyguards vorfährt, wittern die Verkäufer ein gutes Geschäft. Auch beim berühmtesten Schönheitschirurgen der Stadt gilt die Diktatorentochter als Stammkundin – Nase, Busen, Augenringe.
Raghad Hussein geht mit der Mode, privat wie politisch. Früher passte sie mit ihrer wallenden blondgefärbten Mähne zur Baath-Ideologie ihres Vaters: säkular, modern, nationalistisch. Nun scheint Raghad Hussein plötzlich den Glauben für sich entdeckt zu haben. Im Juni bejubelte sie in einem Interview den Vormarsch der Terrormiliz “Islamischer Staat” (IS).
Normalerweise äußert sich Raghad Hussein nur selten politisch. Es ist die Bedingung dafür, dass die jordanische Königsfamilie weiterhin ihre schützende Hand über sie hält. 2007 stellte Interpol einen Haftbefehl gegen sie aus, weil sie den Aufstand gegen die Amerikaner unterstützte. Jordanien lieferte sie nicht aus. Nun finanziere die Hussein-Tochter die Radikalen, schimpfen nahöstliche Diplomaten. Ihr Vermögen wird auf einen zweistelligen Millionenbetrag geschätzt.
Für die geschassten Hussein-Anhänger ist jetzt die Zeit der Rache
Es schlägt die Stunde der Rache für die geschassten Baath-Anhänger. Einst hochrangige Militärs wie Fadel al-Hajali, Adnan al-Sweidawi oder Abu Ali al-Anbari, die mit dem Sturz Saddam Husseins alles verloren haben, stehen nun auf der Gehaltsliste von IS und feiern ihr Comeback.
Der US-Zeitung “New York Times” erzählte ein irakischer Militär von den ständigen Anrufen, die er von einem Ex-General Husseins bekommen habe. Inbrünstig habe der Mann immer wieder gebeten, in die Armee aufgenommen zu werden – vergeblich. Nun rief der Ex-General wieder an. “Ich kämpfe jetzt mit IS”, sagte er, “warte nur, wir kommen und hacken euch in Stücke.” Auch Issat Ibrahim al-Duri, einst Husseins rechte Hand und ein Vertrauter von Husseins Tochter, rührt für IS die Werbetrommel.
Jahrzehntelang hatte der Sunnit Saddam Hussein jegliche Opposition unterdrückt; es bildete sich ein schiitischer Widerstand. Nach Husseins Sturz übernahmen die einst Verfolgten die Macht und jagten ihrerseits erbarmungslos Sunniten. Nun wird IS vereint zum Sammelbecken für junge Radikale – und Veteranen aus der Hussein-Ära.
Raghad Hussein will in die Fußstapfen ihres Vaters treten
Raghad Hussein hat die Zeichen der Zeit erkannt. Sie ist ein Machtmensch genauso wie ihr Vater. Einmal verriet sie sogar ihren eigenen Ehemann. Der hatte 1995 versucht, Saddam Hussein zu stürzen. Mit Raghad und Millionen im Gepäck ging er nach Jordanien und biederte sich den Amerikanern und Briten an. Doch das westliche Interesse verpuffte schnell. 1996 kehrte die Familie enttäuscht nach Bagdad zurück. Raghad Hussein trennte sich von ihrem Mann. Der Vater ließ den Schwiegersohn ermorden und aus den Familienfotos retuschieren.
Seitdem wartet Raghad Hussein geduldig darauf, in die Fußstapfen des Vaters zu treten. Sofort nach dem Sturz des Diktators meldete sie ihren Anspruch an. Als ältestem Kind stünde ihr sein politisches Erbe zu, nicht dem verschollenen Halbbruder oder einem der Enkelsöhne.
Seit Husseins Exekution kultiviert die Tochter sein Andenken. Eine Facebook-Seite, die ihr gehören soll, veröffentlicht täglich Fotos aus dem Hussein-Familienalbum.
Dort wird der Lebemann nun plötzlich als Glaubensfürst inszeniert: Statt Saddam mit Whiskey sieht man den Diktator auf einmal mit dem Koran oder in den schlichten Gewändern eines Pilgers nach Mekka, dazu die Überschrift: “Märtyrer der Islamischen Glaubensgemeinschaft”.
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/google translation/
Saddam Hussein’s daughter seeks revenge.
With its million fortune Raghad Hussein sponsors apparently the terrorist militia “Islamic State”. How many followers of her father, she dreams of returning to power.
Saddam Hussein’s eldest daughter Raghad is notorious for their luxury life in the Jordanian exile. They are known in the big jewelry stores and designer shops of Amman. When the 45-year-old drives up there with their bodyguards, the seller sniff a good deal. Even the most famous plastic surgeons of the city the dictator’s daughter is considered a regular customer – nose, breasts, dark circles. Raghad Hussein goes with fashion, both privately and politically.
Previously it fit with their flowing dyed blond mane for Baath ideology of her father: secular, modern, nationalistic. Now Raghad Hussein seems to have discovered the faith itself suddenly. In June, they cheered in an interview the advance of the terrorist militia ” Islamic State “(IS). Normally, Raghad Hussein expresses rarely politically. It is the condition that the Jordanian royal family still holds a protective hand over them.
In 2007, Interpol issued an arrest warrant against them, because they supported the uprising against the Americans. Jordan they did not deliver from. Now the Hussein-daughter was financing the Radicals, scold Middle Eastern diplomats. Your fortune is estimated at a double-digit millions.
Now is for the ousted Hussein supporters the day of vengeance
It is the hour of revenge for the ousted Baathists. Once high-ranking military as Fadel al-Hajali, Adnan al-Sweidawi or Abu Ali al-Anbari, who with the fall of Saddam Hussein’s lost everything, are now on the payroll of IS and celebrate their comeback.
The American newspaper “New York Times” told an Iraqi military from the constant calls that he got from an ex-General Hussein. Fervently the man had repeatedly asked to be included in the army – in vain. Now the ex-general called again. “I struggle now with IS,” he said, “just wait, we will come and chop you into pieces.” Also Issat Ibrahim al-Duri, once Hussein’s right hand and a confidant of Hussein’s daughter, beats the drum for IS For decades, the Sunni Saddam Hussein suppressed all opposition; it formed a Shiite resistance.
After Hussein’s overthrow the once persecuted took power and in turn hunted mercilessly Sunnis . Now IS combines a rallying point for young radicals – and veterans from the Hussein era.
Raghad Hussein wants to follow in the footsteps of her father
Raghad Hussein has recognized the signs of the times. It is a man of power as well as her father. Once she even betrayed her own husband. The 1995 had attempted to overthrow Saddam Hussein. With Raghad and millions in the luggage he went to Jordan and curried the Americans and British to. But Western interest fizzled quickly. In 1996 the family returned disappointed after Baghdad back.
Raghad Hussein separated from her husband. The father who murdered the son and retouch photos from the family. Sofort nach dem Sturz des Diktators meldete sie ihren Anspruch an. Immediately after the fall of the dictator, she declared her claim. As her oldest child would to his political legacy, not the lost half-brother or one of the grandsons.Since Hussein’s execution daughter cultivated his memory. A Facebook page, which will include their published daily photos from the Hussein family album. There, the bon vivant is suddenly presented as faith Prince: Instead of Saddam with whiskey you see the Dictator at once with the Koran or in the simple robes of a pilgrim after Mecca , to the headline: “Martyrs of the Islamic Community”.
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Saddam’s Daughter Making The Most Of Her Life In Exile
By Philip Sherwell
The Telegraph – UK—–
http://www.rense.com/general53/ecxhile.htm
Dymphna:
Just saw this today in Times.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Lady-al-Qaida-On-the-trail-of-the-worlds-most-wanted-prisoner/articleshow/41254621.cms
Baron,
I thought I should tell you that Google Chrome is blocking your site. A few weeks ago they started blocking VladTepes site. Now, they are also blocking yours. When I type in your address or Vlad’s I get the message “We are redirecting you.” What they “redirect” me to is a blank white page.
I’m a US expat on long-term assignment in a ‘moderate’ Muslim country in North Africa.
If it weren’t already obvious, I would write a book as to why Westerners have zero interest in emigrating to these countries.
Good to see that Traitor, George Galloway, get just a taste of what will be coming his way in the not too distant future.
Babs’ trouble in accessing this site might not just be related to Google Chrome because I use Google Chrome these days and have few troubles accessing sites. This site would not work properly, a few days ago, but you had already mentioned server trouble, so I went elsewhere. On my return, all was well, as usual.
I like Chrome. It has better success in displaying some video or images on some counter-jihad sites; in IE, these same images or videos were blank. I use it for email too. I switched a few months ago, since IE plus Hotmail stopped displaying emails properly.
These oddities seem related to use of combinations of site X and internet program Y. Maybe our individual computers influence the results, too.