In response to the wave of Islamic terror attacks that hit France over the summer, the French government has doubled the amount that will be spent on security for schools in the Paris region. French schools in particular have been targeted by the Islamic State in its propaganda materials.
In other news, officials in the Greek islands of the eastern Aegean have complained that they will need more government help coping with the recent resurgence of migration from Turkey.
To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.
Thanks to Dean, Diana West, Fjordman, Jerry Gordon, MC, Reader from Chicago, Steen, Vlad Tepes, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.
Notice to tipsters: Please don’t submit extensive excerpts from articles that have been posted behind a subscription firewall, or are otherwise under copyright protection.
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.
Canada’s Economy Shrinks 1.6% in 2nd Quarter, Worst Since 2009 Financial Crisis
Canada’s economy shrank in the second quarter as it dealt with the fallout from weak exports and this spring’s devastating wildfires in northern Alberta, Statistics Canada confirmed today.
On an annualized basis, the economy shrank by 1.6 per cent in the second quarter — the largest quarterly decline in gross domestic product since the second quarter of 2009, when the country was in the throes of the financial crisis.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
A Record Number of Americans Now Dislike Hillary Clinton
Hillary Clinton hit her stride after the Democratic National Convention, riding to a double-digit lead over Donald Trump in some national and swing-state polls — her highest of the year.
As of today, though, Americans’ views of her just hit a record low.
A new Washington Post-ABC News poll shows 41 percent of Americans have a favorable impression of Clinton, while 56 percent have an unfavorable one.
That’s the worst image Clinton has had in her quarter-century in national public life. Her previous low favorable rating this year was in July, when it was 42 percent, lower than any mark in historical Post-ABC polls except a few points in the 1990s when a large share of the public had no opinion of her. Her previous high for unfavorable views was in June, when 55 percent disliked Clinton.
Trump, of course, has long been the more unpopular of the two presidential nominees, and he remains so; 35 percent of Americans have a favorable impression of him, compared to 63 percent unfavorable.
But if you look just at registered voters, the new poll actually shows Clinton’s image is about as bad as Trump’s, with 38 percent having a favorable impression and 59 percent unfavorable, compared to a 37/60 split for Trump…
| — Hat tip: Dean | [Return to headlines] |
Marine Le Pen, National Front Leader: ‘Anything But Hillary Clinton’
Marine Le Pen, the leader of French conservative party National Front, said Wednesday that a Hillary Clinton presidency in the United States would lead to war and devastation worldwide.
“For France, anything is better than Hillary Clinton,” Ms. Le Pen said in an interview with CNN’s Hala Gorani. “Anything but Hillary Clinton. Because I think Hillary Clinton means war. Hillary Clinton means devastation. It means world instability.”
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Viktor Orban is Not Welcome in the US on the 60th Anniversary of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution
A small Hungarian-American group has started a letter-writing campaign to convince President Obama to receive Hungary’s Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán, at the White House when he comes to Washington in October to celebrate the 60th Anniversary of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
3,000-Year-Old Sword Found in Denmark is ‘Still Sharp’
A 82cm Bronze Age sword was recently discovered by amateur archaeologists near the Danish town of Svebølle, Museum Vestsjælland announced on Wednesday.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Austria: Police Left Stumped by Third Axe Attack on Cross
Police say a mystery culprit who keeps trying to cut down a giant Christian cross on top of a mountain at the border of Germany and Austria may be driven by religious motives.
There have been three attempts so far to chop down the cross positioned on top of the Schafreuter border mountain but authorities have so far identified no suspects.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Couple Brutally Attacked for Ordering Ham on Their Pizza
Two men who attacked a young couple for eating a pizza topped with ham have been sentenced to 18 months in prison.
Youness Boussaid and Fatah Bouzid, both 27, launched a brutal attack on the pair after warning them they would “go to hell” because the pizza they were eating contained ham.
The victims left Le Mix Bar, a nightclub in Cambrésis, France, where they had spent the evening, and ordered pizza from a nearby food vendor. They were approached by Boussaid and Bouzid soon after, who offered the young couple cocaine.
Noticing ham on the pizza, the two Arabs told the pair they would “go to hell” for eating it. Islam forbids the consumption of meat from pigs.
Seeking to humiliate the woman, the assailants caressed her blonde hair and forced fingers into her nose, which caused her to fall and lose consciousness. When her companion tried to protect her, the two Arabs began to beat the young man before security staff from Le Mix Bar intervened.
Boussaid and Bouzid then fled in a German sedan rented in Belgium, whose registration plate led to the men being identified after a long police investigation…
| — Hat tip: Vlad Tepes | [Return to headlines] |
Denmark: Eight More Cars Torched in Copenhagen
The Danish capital’s spate of car fires has continued unabated despite the arrest of one suspect.
Car fires continue to plague the Copenhagen region as an additional eight vehicles were torched in the early hours of Wednesday.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
France: Paris Region Doubles Security Budget for Schools
Authorities in the Paris region have announced plans to double the security budget for high schools, as the terrorist threat in France continues.
Announcing a series of changes to schools in the for the upcoming academic year, Valerie Pécresse, the head of the Ile-de-France region which includes Paris, insisted on Tuesday that the security of educational establishments in the region would be her top priority.
Pécresse’s announcement came in response to the heightened risk of terror attacks in France, and the particular vulnerability of French schools, which have been specifically targeted by threats in Isis propaganda magazine Dar al Islam in the past.
This year’s security budget has been doubled to €10.3 million for schools in the Paris region.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Germany: Far-Right AfD Leader Injured by Flying Frozen Cake
The co-leader of the far-right AfD party was attacked with a cake while attending a political event on Monday. But the fact the dessert was frozen made the act “dangerous”, according to the politician.
Jörg Meuthen, co-leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), was speaking at an event in Harburg, Lower Saxony, when the attack happened. A 17-year-old got up out of the crowd and threw the frozen dessert at the politician, who was struck on the head.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Mapped: The Countries Threatening to Tear European Union Apart in Wake of Brexit
Leading politicians in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia and Poland have all seized on the referendum result to heap pressure on Eurocrats.
They have been particularly critical about mounting pressure from Brussels to take in more refugees fleeing the Middle East.
Here Express.co.uk looks at the most outspoken attacks on the EU from the so-called ‘Visegrad Four’, or V4.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Morocco’s King Drains Water Supply From French Villages
When the Moroccan king brings his entourage of 300 to a small French village, the villagers are left thirsty.
King Mohamed VI has spent the past week in his second house in Betz, a town of about 1,000 residents in the department of Oise to the north east of Paris.
And the king has brought with him an apparently thirsty entourage of 300.
So desperate for water, in fact, that they’ve helped drain the local water pumps dry.
As a result, the locals have been asked to stop drinking the tap water as village’s consummation of water has exceeded its production.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Security Warning for UK Churches After French Priest Murder
New security guidance is being sent to every church in the UK following the murder of French priest Father Jacques Hamel by suspected Islamist militants.
The organisation National Churchwatch is advising that all church buildings should have CCTV.
A single public entrance that can be slammed shut against attackers and personal attack alarms for key personnel are also advised.
Churches in smaller villages are at greater risk of attack, it warned.
The advice states: “If someone produces a weapon during a service (and this will usually be a knife or blunt instrument) then you will need to get people out of the church. Do not let them just sit there and watch what is going on.
“They are at risk. It only takes seconds for someone to stab a large number of people as we have seen in various attacks around the country.
“Think about how you would get the congregation out. This is especially important in larger churches where the children may be separated from their parents in a Sunday School.”
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Sweden: Number of Unsolved Crimes Reaches 16-Year Record
Following a total reorganization of the national police force, the department is posting a record number of unsolved cases compared to the past 16 years, newspaper Dagens Nyheter reports. Just 14 percent of cases reported to the police end with an arrest and legal action.
Mats Löfving, deputy national police chief, said he is concerned that fewer crimes are being solved. He points to the reogranization as a cause but also stressed the year’s terrorism scares and unrest in underprivileged areas. “It’s messy in the police force right now. We are building a new force through this new agency,” he said.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Swedish Commentator: Migrants Enforcing Sharia Law in Sweden
Ingrid Kristina Carlqvist, a Swedish writer and commentator, has told Breitbart radio that Islamists and migrants “have already succeeded in introducing Sharia law to Sweden”.
Speaking to Breitbart London Editor-in-Chief Raheem Kassam, she explained that, because Swedish girls are becoming afraid to go to certain places where there have been rapes and attacks, key tenets of Islamic law are effectively being enforced.
“In [the migrants’] Islamic societies, women have no place in the public room. They are not supposed to go out unaccompanied or unveiled,” she said, claiming some radical Muslims think they have “a right” to rape non-Muslim women.
“They will succeed in getting Swedish women and girls away from the public room, because one day, no one will want to go a music festival, or the public bathhouse, the swimming pool and so on,” she said, before describing the series of mass rapes and sex attack at Swedish music festival.
“And so they have already succeeded in introducing Sharia law in Sweden,” she added…
| — Hat tip: Steen | [Return to headlines] |
Switzerland: 17-Year-Old Dies From Injuries After Salez Train Attack
A second victim of the train attack in Salez earlier this month has died in hospital from her injuries.
The 17-year-old girl died during the night of Tuesday to Wednesday, St Gallen’s public prosecutor said in a statement on Wednesday.
She suffered severe burns in the attack on August 13th when a man stabbed passengers and set fire to a Südostbahn (SOB) regional train on the railway line between Buchs and Sennwald in the canton of St Gallen.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Jerusalem Wine Festival — ‘An Affront to Islam’
Murad Al-Sudani, the Registrar for the National Palestinian Committee for Education, Culture and Science, lashed out at the upcoming Jerusalem Wine Festival, which is set to take place in the Mamilla mall complex near the Old City.
According to Al-Sudani, the complex rests on an old Muslim cemetery called “Maman Allah;” therefore, the festival manifests an affront to Islam.
Al-Sudani emphasized, the festival is “a dangerous escalating step” on the part of Israel in Jerusalem in its continual damaging activity against historically and religiously significant Muslim holy sites.
He accused Israel of trying to “bury” the Arab and Muslim history of Jerusalem, asserting that the relevant Muslim cemetery is a historically significant Muslim site that spans the largest Waqf-controlled area in Jerusalem, and that the remains of Mohammad’s comrades are said to be buried there.
The wine festival, according to Al-Sudani, violates the cemetery and manifests a provocation against the feelings of the Palestinian nation and Muslims world-wide.
The Jerusalem Wine Festival is to take place on September 5 in “Gan Haomanut.” The event includes tastings from leading Israeli wineries and music.[…]
[Is it because the wine is not served by delectable young boys as beautiful as scattered pearls? (Sura 76:19) or is it just plain old Pally hypocrisy?]
| — Hat tip: MC | [Return to headlines] |
What is Behind Erdogan’s Purge?
by Jerry Gordon
When we wrote about the mid-July 2016 failed Turkish coup, it was apparent that autocratic President Erdogan wanted to vanquish all opposition and conduct a purge that rivals Stalin’s in the 1930’s. By doing so, no one would oppose his perfecting an Islamic Ottoman Republic to supplant the secular constitution of the Turkish Republic founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. In the process, he would remove secular opposition and institutions at the foundation of Kemalist democracy. Subsequent developments culminating in his purge following the July 2016 coup suggest that he is primed to overthrow turkey’s secular traditions, the military and social democratic opposition that supported the Kemalist Constitution. In its place there would emerge a Constitution under Sharia principles. His purge is laced with paranoia and xenophobic excess and wild accusations about those in the West, especially here in America. Turkey has been a Member of NATO since 1952 and under the Charter’s Article 5 could call upon all members if attacked.
Conclusion
The chronicle of Erdogan’s purge in Turkey is still open. No one who opposes his quest for an Islamic Republic and dismantling Kemalist democracy will stand. The country is riven by suspicion and fear of arrests in the middle of the night, eerily similar to those carried out by equally paranoid Stalin during the 1930’s. The paranoia and xenophobia are splitting the country asunder. No dissenting minority will be tolerated. Symbolism of that is everywhere. On Friday, August 26, 2016, President Erdogan and Prime Minister Binali Yildirim attended the dedication of a third bridge across the Bosporus, another public display of contempt for the failed coup. The bridge dedication was troubling to the significant Sufi minority in Turkey, the Alevis, as noted by The National:
| — Hat tip: Jerry Gordon | [Return to headlines] |
Who is Erdogan Fighting in Syria?
by Jerry Gordon
At 4 AM local time on Wednesday August 24, 2016, a small task force of Turkish tanks and 500 Syrian Turkmen and Free Syrian Army (FSA) allies crossed the border at Karkamis into Jarablus, Syria ostensibly to close off the last ISIS held crossing. The rebel fighters came from small US special forces supported formations, the Hamza Division, the Sultan Murad Brigade and the Levante Front in Aleppo and the Idlib province in Syria. A Der Spiegel report on the Turkish invasion suggested that the move reflected shifting alliances in the six year civil war in Syria. A second wave of armored vehicles entered the Jarablus ‘pocket’ the following day along with Turkish special forces and a larger complement of Turkmen and FSA forces. The incursion had limited US Air support which made 8 sorties against fleeing ISIS fighters. The official statements from President Erdogan and his Interior Minister lent the impression that the main objective of Operation Euphrates Shield was only to clean out the remaining ISIS fighters. However, a second objective became apparent which was to demand the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Force (SDF) leave the city of Manbij, a city they had liberated in a hard fought two month campaign. Erdogan’s major move in Syria in late August 2016 stands in stark contrast to Turkish tanks in the border town of Suruc silently overlooking the destroyed city of Kobani that Kurdish YPG fighters had freed at high cost from ISIS on January 26, 2015.
Conclusion
All of this demonstrates that the Kurdish SDF strategy, concocted by US Special Envoy Brett McGurk and the cadres of US special operators assisting them, is having its wings clipped. This is reflected in the Geneva meetings between Secretary of State Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov seeking a political settlement in war torn Syria and denying Kurdish autonomy.
The Turkish Daily Hurriyet reported Kerry saying at a press conference following the meeting:…
| — Hat tip: Jerry Gordon | [Return to headlines] |
Why Are Turkey and Israel Reconciling?
by Jerry Gordon
Turkey’s reopening of diplomatic relations with Israel after a break off of six years culminated in conclusion of a reconciliation deal with Erdogan’s Turkey on June 26, 2016. The deal was affirmed by the Ankara Parliament on August 19th. You may recall that famous phone call in March 2013 “suggested” by President Obama to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu during a visit to Jerusalem that some attest may have triggered the final phase of the pact discussions. The deal involves renewal of diplomatic relations and mutual indemnifications for deaths and injuries arising from an attack on board a Turkish ferry, the Mavi Marmara during a Free Gaza Flotilla in Israeli Waters on May 31, 2010.
It also involves arrangements to meet Erodgan’s objectives in providing infrastructure rehabilitation and humanitarian aid to Hamas in Gaza, obviating reliance on Egypt which had shut down Gaza’s smuggling tunnels. However, Erdogan refused Israel’s request to shut down Hamas in Ankara. He kept Hamas political chief Khaled Meshaal in Turkey and Hamas leaders in Gaza informed about the progress in negotiations. Erdogan was endeavoring to lift Israeli restrictions and permit Turkish infrastructure construction projects in power and health facilities in Gaza. Prior to Turkey approving the deal, Israel agreed to shipments of humanitarian goods to ports under its control and inspection before entering Hamas-controlled Gaza.
Does Israel Face a Choice between Turkey and the Kurds?
Dr. Reuven Berko in an Israel Hayom commentary, August 25, 2016, “Erdogan recalculates his Route,” said this about Erdogan threading the proverbial Gordian Knot between the Russian deal and reconciliation with Israel:…
| — Hat tip: Jerry Gordon | [Return to headlines] |
Historic Commercial Flight From US Lands in Cuba
The first commercial flight between the United States and Cuba in more than a half century landed in the central city of Santa Clara on Wednesday morning.
JetBlue Flight 387 took off from Ft. Lauderdale at 9:45 a.m. for a 72-minute journey that opened a new era of U.S.-Cuba travel, with about 300 flights a week connecting the U.S. with an island cut off from most Americans by the 55-year-old trade embargo on Cuba and formal ban on U.S. citizens engaging in tourism on the island.
The restart of commercial travel between the two countries is one of the most important steps in President Barack Obama’s two-year-old policy of normalizing relations with the island.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Egypt Blames EU-Turkey Deal for Refugee Spike
Egypt has blamed the EU-Turkey deal for a spike in migrants and refugees in the country and wants more help from the EU.
Egypt’s assistant foreign minister ambassador Hisham Badr said on Tuesday (30 August) his country now hosts some 5 million refugees and migrants.
He noted around 500,000 are Syrians and that 800 asylum demands are being filed daily.
“You see what has happened as a result of the deal with Turkey. The closing of the Balkan route and the deal in north Africa, the pressure has increased on Egypt,” he told MEPs in the European parliament’s foreign affairs committee.
He noted Egyptian border authorities had prevented some 5,000 people from leaving in boats in the past few months.
Egypt is the second main staging point after Libya for asylum seekers and migrants leaving on boats to reach the EU.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Five million migrants including 500,000 Syrian refugees are now living in Egypt with the country blaming the influx on the EU-Turkey deal.
The agreement was brokered after European nations were faced with more than one million migrants flooding across the Mediterranean last year.
They tightened border controls, set up naval patrols to stop smugglers, negotiated an agreement with Turkey to limit the numbers crossing, shut the Balkan route used by hundreds of thousands, and tried to speed up deportations of rejected asylum-seekers.
Many issues still remain but now Egypt’s assistant foreign minister Hisham Badr says his country has been unfairly left out from receiving aid to help with the influx, which he claims is currently costing his country $300 million a year.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
England is the Dream for Many Migrants Trapped on the Italian Riviera
Alma* began her journey two years ago, before France increased controls on its border with Italy, before Brexit. Today the young Palestinian woman is among hundreds of people stuck in Ventimiglia, a seaside city on the Italian Riviera, a few kilometres from France.
“We have dreams to go to other countries. We don’t want to stay here,” she says, exasperated. After crossing Egypt, Libya and the Mediterranean to get here, Alma hopes to reach Belgium, where she has friends. “But the dream is to go to England.”
Alma, 30, says she was caught by French police after crossing the border, and sent back to Italy. Yet she is determined to try again. “I will do many things to achieve my dream,” she insists.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Ever Wonder How the Zealous Half Lives?
by Diana West
Ever wonder how the zealous-half lives?
Peter Sutherland, UN Special Representative for Migration, is one such zealot. I’m fairly certain he lives — “holiday home,” dontcha know — in that thing (above), which is located along a breathtaking stretch of Irish seacost.
Sutherland is an alumnus of Goldman Sachs, the LSE, a founding director general of the WTO, GATT, a member of the Trilateral Commission, a regular at Bilderburger, and all that.
His resume is such a cliched roster of secretive multi-national elite sinecures that one might almost start thinking he was part of some worldwide conspiracy to destroy the West.
Except that would be a “conspiracy theory.”
On the other hand, what better place to plan a conspiracy than this remote and award-winning mausoleum of his?…
| — Hat tip: Diana West | [Return to headlines] |
Finland: Undocumented Migrants Legally Eligible for Income Support, Still Get Refused
Rejected asylum seekers no longer get allowances from reception centres, but they can claim income support from local councils. The right to support is guaranteed by the Finnish constitution—but apparently some municipalities remain unaware of it, and reject applications from undocumented foreigners.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Greek Islands Raise Alarm Over Migrants
Local and port authorities on the islands of the eastern Aegean are demanding immediate government action to decongest overcrowded migrant camps, insisting that they cannot cope with the recent surge in arrivals from neighboring Turkey.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Merkel: ‘Germany Will Remain Germany’
One year after Angela Merkel first declared “we can do this,” leading to a huge uptick in refugees applying for asylum, the Chancellor reflected this week on her policies and the future of Germany.
In an interview with Süddeutsche Zeitung published online on Tuesday, Merkel seemed as resolute as ever about the decision to take in hundreds of thousands of refugees from war-torn countries.
When she first uttered her now often repeated — and mocked — mantra of “we can do this” one year ago, she said she never expected those few words to make such an impact.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Migrants Mass in Libya in Deadly ‘Race Against Time’
Thousands of migrants are “racing against the clock” to make the perilous crossing from Libya to Europe before summer ends, with authorities in the conflict-torn country at a loss to stem the flow.
People traffickers have exploited Libya’s rampant insecurity to cash in, as authorities concentrate their limited resources on combating jihadists and an uphill political battle to extend their writ over the entire country.
“Our patrols have been reduced lately because the vessels are ageing and we don’t have the means to control the Sabratha coast,” Libya’s navy chief, Colonel Ayoub Qassem, said in Tripoli.
Rescuers saved 3,000 migrants in the waters off Libya on Tuesday as they tried desperately to reach Europe, a day after a record 6,500 people were rescued in the Mediterranean.
| — Hat tip: Fjordman | [Return to headlines] |
Poland Slams Door on Chechnyan Refugees
Warsaw has denied entry to a group of Chechens trying to enter Poland from Belarus. This will protect the nation — and the EU — from terrorism. At least that’s what Poland’s interior minister has said.
| — Hat tip: Reader from Chicago | [Return to headlines] |
Why not just surrender or get off the pan? Just axing.
“They were approached by Boussaid and Bouzid soon after, who offered the young couple cocaine.
Noticing ham on the pizza, the two Arabs told the pair they would “go to hell” for eating it. Islam forbids the consumption of meat from pigs.”
I wonder if Boussaid and Bouzid (surely a comedy duo) realize they may “go to hell” for pushing cocaine.
I guess the attackers didn’t get the memo that you can sell as many drugs, eat as much pork, drink as much alcohol, and engage in as much deviant sexual activity as you want and still get to paradise simply by murdering an infidel in Allah’s name!
Imagine that. After all this time there are still mentions of the “Islam forbids the consumption of meats from pigs”.
Austria: Police Left Stumped by Third Axe Attack on Cross
Don’t the Austrians have any snipers?
Or covert cameras?
** According to Al-Sudani, the complex rests on an old Muslim cemetery called “Maman Allah;” therefore, the festival manifests an affront to Islam. **
Evveerrryyyything is an affront to Islam.
Shocking to see Marine Le Pen on a controlled media organ like CNN.
Marine is 110% correct about Hillary. Hillary entering the White House almost guarantees WW3, with a high chance of nuclear exchange in the offing.